United States Artists has announced the recipients of forty-six of its 2016 Fellowship Awards. Working across nine disciplines—architecture and design, crafts, dance, literature, media, music, theater and performance, traditional arts, and visual arts—the artists will receive an unrestricted $50,000 prize in support of their artistic practices. Senga Nengudi is one of the eight visual artists that were honored this year

Born in Chicago, bred in Los Angeles, living at points in New York City and briefly Japan, Nengudi resides in Colorado. She has always been active in arts education in the communities in which she has lived. Nengudi’s disciplines include sculpture, installations and performance. There is continuing interest in her late ‘70s Nylon Mesh “RSVP” (Panty Hose) series. First exhibited at Linda Goode-Bryant’s legendary Just Above Midtown Gallery, this series mimics in abstract the sensuality and elasticity of the body and psyche, reflecting the toll that inside and outside pressures have on our mortal selves.

Recipient of the Women’s Caucus For Art-Lifetime Achievement Award, Anonymous Was A Woman Award, Louis Comfort Tiffany Foundation Award, and an Art Matters grant, she has received an honorary degree from Colorado College, Colorado Springs, and is in the permanent collections of the Tate, London, Centre Pompidou, the Museum of Modern Art – NYC, Brooklyn Art Museum – Brooklyn, NY, Carnegie Museum of Art – Pittsburgh, PA, the Hammer Museum – Los Angeles, CA, Museum of Contemporary Art – Los Angeles, CA and Studio Museum in Harlem – NY. Nengudi is represented by the Thomas Erben Gallery and Dominique Levy Gallery.

“By supporting American artists, USA is supporting creativity, free expression, and a strong diverse culture,” Interim President and CEO Sunny Fischer said. “Our Fellows cross all ages, ethnicities, and stages in their careers. Each has a unique artistic voice that expands the creative environment of the United States. It is an honor to support these artists, contribute to their financial security, and to facilitate future works. We are encouraging the best of what American artists can achieve.”

As in years past, the recipients hail not only from the visual arts, but also from numerous other artistic fields, including dance, literature, and music, and are chosen by a panel of experts.

The 2016 fellows are:

Architecture and Design
Janet Echelman, USA Barr Fellow (Brookline, MA)
Sharon Johnston & Mark Lee (Johnston Marklee), USA
Oliver Fellows (Los Angeles, CA)

Crafts
Vivian Beer, USA Windgate Fellow (Manchester, NH)
Lauren Fensterstock, USA Barr Fellow (Portland, ME)
Anna Hepler, USA Barr Fellow (Eastport, ME)
Roberto Lugo, USA Barr Fellow (Marlboro, VT)
Annabeth Rosen, USA Distinguished Fellow (Davis, CA)
Piper Shepard, USA Distinguished Fellow (Baltimore, MD)
April Surgent, USA Ford Fellow (Port Townsend, WA)

Dance
Michelle Dorrance, USA Doris Duke Fellow (Brooklyn, NY)
Faye Driscoll, USA Doris Duke Fellow (Brooklyn, NY)
Donna Uchizono, USA Doris Duke Fellow (New York, NY)
Rosie Herrera, USA Sarah Arison Fellow (Miami, FL)
Steve Paxton, USA Barr Fellow (East Charleston, VT)
Yvonne Rainer, USA Doris Duke Fellow (New York, NY)
Raphael Xavier, USA Knight Fellow (Philadelphia, PA)

Literature
Amitava Kumar, USA Ford Fellow (Poughkeepsie, NY)
Claudia Rankine, USA Zell Fellow (Claremont, CA)

Media
Steven Paul Judd, USA Hatch Fellow (Norman, OK)
Lynn Hershman Leeson, USA Smith Fellow (San Francisco, CA)
Quique Rivera Rivera, USA Simon Fellow (Glendale, CA)

Music
Raven Chacon, USA Distinguished Fellow (Albuquerque, NM)
Vijay Iyer, USA Cummings Fellow (New York, NY)
Eddy Kwon, USA Ford Fellow (Cincinnati, OH)
Mike Reed, USA Doris Duke Fellow (Chicago, IL)
Dianne Reeves, USA Doris Duke Fellow (Denver, CO)
Randy Weston, USA Doris Duke Fellow (Brooklyn, NY)

Theater and Performance
Daniel Alexander Jones, USA Doris Duke Fellow (Bronx, NY)
Miranda July, USA Doris Duke Fellow (Los Angeles, CA)
Hirokazu Kosaka, USA Andrew W. Mellon Fellow (Torrance, CA)
Young Jean Lee, USA Doris Duke Fellow (Brooklyn, NY)
Jefferson Pinder, USA Joyce Fellow (Chicago, IL)
Peggy Shaw, USA Doris Duke Fellow (New York, NY)

Traditional Arts
Teri Greeves, USA Distinguished Fellow (Santa Fe, NM)
Cherice Harrison-Nelson, USA Distinguished Fellow (New Orleans, LA)
Ernie Marsh, USA Katie Weitz Fellow (Lovell, WY)
Vicky Holt Takamine, USA Doris Duke Fellow (Aiea, Hawaii)

Visual Arts
Charles Atlas, USA Gracie Fellow (New York, NY)
Senga Nengudi, USA Ford Fellow (Colorado Springs, CO)
Shirin Neshat, USA Rockefeller Fellow (New York, NY)
Winfred Rembert, USA Barr Fellow (New Haven, CT)
Laurie Jo Reynolds, USA Shari D. Behnke Fellow (Chicago, IL)
Beatriz Santiago Muoz, USA Ford Fellow (San Juan, PR)
Jacolby Satterwhite, USA Francie Bishop Good & David Horvitz Fellow (Brooklyn, NY)
Stanley Whitney, USA Jeanne & Michael Klein Fellow (New York, NY)

Read here ‘It was African and Kabuki-like at the same time’ – A conversation with Naomi Beckwith and the artist Senga Nengudi.