2026 United States Artists Fellowship
50 artists selected nationwide for $50,000 unrestricted fellowship from United States Artists on their 20th anniversary.
United States Artists is awarding its 2026 Fellowship to 50 artists across the United States, providing significant unrestricted support for creative practices. The fellowship includes a $50,000 grant designed to give recipients flexibility to support their creative practices, personal needs, and community commitments. This prestigious award is part of United States Artists' 20th anniversary celebration, marking their continued commitment to supporting working artists since their founding in 2005. The Chicago-based organization has distributed over $53 million in direct support to artists across multiple disciplines, emphasizing unrestricted funding as a way to sustain long-term creative work rather than project-based outcomes. Fellows are selected through a year-long, peer-led process across 10 disciplines, with emphasis on artistic vision, originality, and the potential impact of unrestricted support. In addition to the $50,000 award, fellows receive access to professional resources such as financial planning, legal advice, and career consulting. The fellowship recognizes artists working across visual art, music, performance, film, media, and other disciplines whose practices often intersect with social histories, overlooked narratives, and community-based engagement. The selection process reflects the organization's broader approach to artist sustainability, providing material support that allows artists to determine how best to sustain and expand their own work.