United States Artists

United States Artists. United States Artists is a national nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting the most accomplished and innovative artists working across the country. Founded in 2006 by a coalition of leading philanthropic foundations, it provides direct, unrestricted financial awards through its prestigious fellowship program. The organization champions artistic excellence across diverse disciplines, from visual arts and music to architecture and design, fostering a vibrant and sustainable creative landscape.

History and founding

The organization was established in 2006 in direct response to significant reductions in public funding for individual artists, most notably the dissolution of the National Endowment for the Arts' Individual Artist Fellowship program in the 1990s. Its creation was spearheaded by a consortium of major foundations, including The Ford Foundation, The Rockefeller Foundation, and The Prudential Foundation, which provided the initial seed funding. The founding board included prominent arts leaders and philanthropists such as Agnes Gund, president emerita of the Museum of Modern Art, and James Cuno, then director of the Art Institute of Chicago. This initiative aimed to fill a critical gap in the national arts ecosystem by creating a new, privately funded model for direct support to creative individuals, independent of project-based grants or institutional affiliations.

Mission and programs

The core mission is to invest in America's finest artists and illuminate the value of their work to society. Its flagship initiative is the unrestricted fellowship program, but it also administers several targeted award programs. These include the Berenice Abbott Prize for an emerging photographer, the Lenore G. Tawney Fellowship for craft artists, and the Doris Duke Artist Award, a partnership with the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation. Additional programs often focus on specific communities or disciplines, such as the USA Fellows program for artists in the Performing Arts. Beyond financial awards, it fosters community through convenings and public engagement events, connecting fellows with broader networks like Creative Capital or local arts councils.

Fellowship awards

The USA Fellowship is a highly competitive, unrestricted award of $50,000 given directly to individual artists across a wide range of disciplines. Fellows are selected through a rigorous, multistage nomination and panel review process involving hundreds of experts from fields such as curation, criticism, and fellow artist practitioners. Disciplines encompass Visual Arts, Craft, Dance, Design, Film, Media, Music, Theater & Performance, Writing, and Traditional Arts. Notable past fellows include composer Tania León, visual artist Theaster Gates, novelist Jesmyn Ward, choreographer Kyle Abraham, and ceramicist Roberto Lugo. The award provides crucial flexible funding, allowing artists to pay for studio rent, materials, healthcare, or to develop new work without restrictive reporting requirements.

Impact and recognition

The fellowship has a demonstrable impact on artists' careers, providing not only financial stability but also significant validation and increased visibility within the national arts community. Many fellows have gone on to receive major accolades such as the MacArthur Fellowship, Pulitzer Prize, and Tony Award, or to present work at premier institutions like the Whitney Museum of American Art and the Sundance Film Festival. The organization's work has been featured in major media outlets including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and ARTnews. By championing artistic innovation, it has helped shape contemporary cultural dialogues and supported the creation of groundbreaking works that tour globally, from the Brooklyn Academy of Music to the Venice Biennale.

Leadership and funding

The organization is governed by a national board of trustees comprising artists, philanthropists, and business leaders from cities like Los Angeles, New York City, and Miami. Its President and CEO is Judilee Reed, formerly of the Leveraging Investments in Creativity initiative. Primary funding comes from a diverse array of private foundations, including the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, The Joyce Foundation, and the Knight Foundation, as well as from individual donors and corporate partners. This funding model ensures the sustainability of its fellowship programs and allows for strategic growth, enabling support for artists in all fifty states and reinforcing the vital role of individual creativity in American society.

Category:Arts organizations based in Chicago Category:Arts awards in the United States Category:Non-profit organizations based in Illinois