ARTnews has announced the nominees for its third annual ARTnews Awards, recognizing artists, exhibitions and curatorial achievements across US museums, nonprofit spaces and galleries.
Launched in 2024, the awards spotlight standout work presented during the eligibility period from August 1, 2025, to July 31, 2026. This year's program spans six categories: Emerging Artist of the Year, Established Artist of the Year, Lifetime Achievement, Historical Artist of the Year, Best Thematic Museum Exhibition and Best Gallery Group Show.
A broad view of today's art ecosystem
The emerging artist shortlist includes Eric Gyamfi, Blas Isasi, Coco Klockner, Emma McCormick Goodhart and Christelle Oyiri. In the established artist category, nominees are Raven Chacon, Mike Cloud, Vaginal Davis, Jacqueline Humphries and Saodat Ismailova.
For Lifetime Achievement, ARTnews selected Coco Fusco, Maren Hassinger, Suzanne Jackson, David Lamelas and Martin Puryear. The historical artist category recognizes new institutional perspectives on Theresa Hak Kyung Cha, Wifredo Lam, Tom Lloyd, Ceija Stojka and Betty Parsons.
Museum exhibition nominees include "Into the Time Horizon" at the Nevada Museum of Art, the 59th Carnegie International at Carnegie Museum of Art, "Let Us Gather in a Flourishing Way" at Buffalo AKG Art Museum, "MONUMENTS" in Los Angeles, and "Several Eternities in a Day: Form in the Age of Living Materials" at the Hammer Museum.
The gallery group show category features presentations from Sprüth Magers, Ortuzar, David Peter Francis, David Zwirner and Black Cube Nomadic Art Museum. Together, the selections reflect the range of practices shaping the current American art landscape--from individual artistic research to ambitious, collaborative exhibition-making.
The nominees were chosen by a jury of leading curators alongside ARTnews editors, including representatives from the Art Institute of Chicago, Dia Art Foundation, Bard College, the Museum of Contemporary Art Denver and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.
By bringing artists, curators and institutions into the same conversation, the ARTnews Awards may help broaden how cultural achievement is recognized and supported in the years ahead.
