ANNOUNCING THE 2021 KRESGE ARTIST FELLOWS AND GILDA AWARD RECIPIENTS

Kresge Arts in Detroit is thrilled to announce the artists receiving 2021 Kresge Artist Fellowships and Gilda Awards in Literary Arts and Visual Arts!

Last year, in recognition of the impact of COVID-19 to the arts community, Kresge expanded funding to support two additional Kresge Artist Fellows, for a total of 20 annual fellowships, and an additional eight Gilda Awards, for a total of 10. In announcing the 2021 award recipients working in Literary Arts and Visual Arts, Kresge Arts in Detroit and The Kresge Foundation commit to sustaining this increased level of investment.

The 2021 cohort of Kresge Artist Fellows includes luminaries of the Detroit art scene, as well as rising stars.

In addition to a $25,000 no strings attached award, Kresge Artist Fellows receive one year of professional development support and inclusion in Kresge Arts in Detroit’s ongoing commissioned film series, which has documented the work and perspectives of fellows throughout the program’s history. Short individual artist videos are available online at kresgeartsindetroitpresents.com and Vimeo. The 2021 fellows’ films will go online next spring.

Gilda Award recipients were chosen from among the applicants for the 2021 Kresge Artist Fellowships. In keeping with the late Gilda Snowden’s legacy of encouraging and mentoring early-career artists, Gilda Awards recognize artists who are early in their artistic career, are gaining momentum, and who demonstrate exceptional potential through creative risk-taking and pushing the boundaries of their chosen art forms.

Over the course of several months and numerous rounds of review, panels comprised of local and national artists and arts professionals evaluated over 800 applications to select the artists who receive 2021 Kresge Artist Fellowships and Gilda Awards. “As someone whose fellowship year ended as our city shut down for the pandemic, it was a tremendous honor to serve as a Literary Arts panelist in this year of reopening,” said Literary Arts panelist and 2019 Kresge Artist Fellow Jack Cheng. “I am continually impressed with—and humbled by—the sheer amount of artistic talent in metro Detroit. To connect with this diverse cohort’s work, and learn more about their involvement in their respective communities, was a true pleasure.”

The selection criteria for Kresge Artist Fellowships include: A demonstrated track record of artistic achievement and high-quality work, the potential to grow and advance in one’s artistic career, and the potential to reflect, enhance, or impact communities within metropolitan Detroit.

An online celebration of the 2021 award recipients is scheduled for the evening of July 15. The public, virtual event will include remarks from the 30 award recipients, performances by Kresge Artist Fellows Cherise Morris (2019) and Passalacqua (2012), as well as reflections on Detroit’s arts and culture sector from Carole Harris (2019 fellowship panelist and 2015 Kresge Artist Fellow), Rip Rapson (president and CEO, The Kresge Foundation), and Don Tuski (president, College for Creative Studies) in a conversation moderated by W. Kim Heron (senior communications officer, The Kresge Foundation). Information is available on Eventbrite.

Funded by The Kresge Foundation, Kresge Artist Fellowships and Gilda Awards are administered by the Kresge Arts in Detroit office of the College for Creative Studies. In announcing the 13th cohort of award recipients, Kresge Arts in Detroit has thus far awarded 238 Kresge Artist Fellowships, 32 Gilda Awards, and 13 Kresge Eminent Artist Awards for a total of more than $6.7 million.