2025 McKnight Visual Artist Fellows Announcement
The McKnight Fellowship for Visual Artists 2025: Celebrating Minnesota’s Creative Talent
The Minneapolis College of Art and Design (MCAD), in collaboration with the McKnight Foundation, is delighted to reveal the six recipients of the 2025 McKnight Fellowships for Visual Artists. These prestigious awards have been bestowed upon Leslie Barlow, Charles Matson Lume, Joe Sinness, Laura Wennstrom, Diane Willow, and Shun Yong.
The McKnight Visual Artists Fellowships aim to support mid-career Minnesota artists by providing a substantial $25,000 stipend. This funding is designed to promote their artistic growth and facilitate significant opportunities. In addition to financial assistance, recipients gain public recognition and professional encouragement from national critics, further amplified by a residency coordinated by the Artist Communities Alliance (ACA).
This year, the fellowship selection was made by a distinguished national panel of arts professionals. The jurors included Hương Ngô, an interdisciplinary artist and educator, Alisa Swindell, Associate Curator of Photography at Hood Museum of Art, Dartmouth College, and Claudia Zapata, Associate Curator of Latino Art at Blanton Museum of Art, Texas. Their expertise was essential in choosing these exceptional artists from a competitive pool of 144 applicants.
The McKnight Foundation, one of the oldest and largest arts backers in the country, holds a firm belief that Minnesota thrives when its artists do. Since its inception in 1982, the foundation has emphasized support for working Minnesota artists as a cornerstone of its arts program. The McKnight Artist and Cultural Bearer Fellowships Program distributes unrestricted cash awards annually to outstanding mid-career Minnesota artists spanning 15 different creative disciplines.
For further information about the Fellowships and the artists awarded, interested parties can visit mcad.edu/mcknight or reach out via email at [email protected]. The fellowships are generously funded by the McKnight Foundation and are managed by MCAD with the assistance of Program Director Keisha Williams and Associate Fellowship Coordinator Melanie Pankau.
These fellowships not only celebrate the achievements of Minnesota’s mid-career artists but also reaffirm the McKnight Foundation’s commitment to fostering a vibrant and dynamic arts community within the region.