Theaster Gates

GRAY congratulates Theaster Gates on being named a 2025 Guggenheim Fellow. The John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation announced their appointment of the 100th class of Guggenheim Fellows, including 198 distinguished individuals working across 53 disciplines.

“This acknowledgment is deeply affirming, and I’m humbled to be amongst the ranks of excellent thinkers and makers whose practices I admire,” says Gates. “Studying the craft traditions that shaped me, both at home and abroad, always gives me tremendous joy. This Guggenheim fellowship will allow me an opportunity to immerse myself in the traditions of Japanese ceramic culture focusing principally on Mingei, a movement that celebrated the power of local craft traditions. I look forward to deepening my knowledge and I’m grateful for this honor.”

Chosen through a rigorous application and peer review process from a pool of nearly 3,500 applicants, the Class of 2025 Guggenheim Fellows was tapped based on both prior career achievement and exceptional promise. As established in 1925 by founder Senator Simon Guggenheim, each Fellow receives a monetary stipend to pursue independent work at the highest level under “the freest possible conditions.”

The 100th class of Fellows is part of the Guggenheim Foundation’s yearlong celebration marking a century of transformative impact on American intellectual and cultural life. “At a time when intellectual life is under attack, the Guggenheim Fellowship celebrates a century of support for the lives and work of visionary scientists, scholars, writers, and artists,” said Edward Hirsch, award-winning poet and President of the Guggenheim Foundation. “We believe that these creative thinkers can take on the challenges we all face today and guide our society towards a better and more hopeful future.”