MacArthur Foundation Announces 2026 Fellows Across Arts, Sciences and History

On Tuesday, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation announced its 2026 fellowship cohort, comprising 20 scholars, artists and scientists from three continents and spanning roughly forty years in age. Each fellow will receive $800,000 spread over five years, with no strings attached or progress reports required. The selection emphasizes work that engages with history, including a philosopher using cognitive science to examine memory and forgiveness, a poet revisiting colonial-era writings to explore Native American resilience, and a choreographer merging different dance styles across time.

Among the artists, saxophonist Immanuel Wilkins, the youngest recipient, discussed his efforts to represent Black musical traditions beyond conventional Western notation. Economist Ellora Derenoncourt plans to use the grant to bring research on racial wealth gaps to a broader audience. Painter Vincent Valdez described his goal of countering “social amnesia” through large-scale works that reference American identity and historical injustices.