| National Medal of Arts | |
| Presenter: | President of the United States & National Endowment for the Arts |
| Country: | United States |
| Eligibility: | Civilians |
| Awarded For: | Outstanding contributions to the excellence, growth, support and availability of the arts in the United States |
| Established: | 1984 by the United States Congress |
| Firstawarded: | 1985 |
The National Medal of Arts is an award and title created by the United States Congress in 1984, for the purpose of honoring artists and patrons of the arts. A prestigious American honor, it is the highest honor given to artists and arts patrons by the United States government. Nominations are submitted to the National Council on the Arts, the advisory committee of the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), who then submits its recommendations to the White House for the President of the United States to award.[1] The medal was designed for the NEA by sculptor Robert Graham.
In 1983, prior to the official establishment of the National Medal of Arts, through the President's Committee on the Arts and Humanities, President Ronald Reagan awarded a medal to artists and arts patrons.[2]
| Name | Area of Achievement | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| data-sort-value="Zukerman, Pinchas" | Artist | ||
| data-sort-value="von Stade, Frederica" | Artist | ||
| data-sort-value="Miłosz, Czesław" | Artist | ||
| data-sort-value="Lin, Maya" | Artist | ||
| data-sort-value="Stella, Frank" | Artist | ||
| data-sort-value="Johnson, Philip" | Artist | ||
| data-sort-value="Valdez, Luis" | Artist | ||
| data-sort-value="Texaco Philanthropic Foundation, The" | The Texaco Philanthropic Foundation | Patron | |
| data-sort-value="Michener, James" | Patron | ||
| data-sort-value="Philip Morris" | Patron | ||
| data-sort-value="Cleveland Foundation, The" | Patron | ||
| data-sort-value="Lewis, Elma" | Patron | ||
| data-sort-value="Dayton Hudson Foundation, The" | The Dayton Hudson Foundation | Patron |
The National Medal of Arts was first awarded in 1985. The ceremony was not held in 2021 or 2022 due to the COVID-19 pandemic therefore the 2021 recipients were given the award in 2023.[3]
| Year | Name | Area of Achievement | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1985 | data-sort-value="Carter, Elliott" | composer | |
| data-sort-value="Ellison, Ralph" | writer | ||
| data-sort-value="Ferrer, Jose" | actor | ||
| data-sort-value="Graham, Martha" | dancer, choreographer | ||
| data-sort-value="Nevelson, Louise" | sculptor | ||
| data-sort-value="O'Keeffe, Georgia" | painter | ||
| data-sort-value="Price, Leontyne" | soprano | ||
| data-sort-value="Buffum Chandler, Dorothy" | arts patron | ||
| data-sort-value="Kirstein, Lincoln" | arts patron | ||
| data-sort-value="Mellon, Paul" | arts patron | ||
| data-sort-value="Tully, Alice" | arts patron | ||
| corporate arts patron | |||
| 1986 | data-sort-value="Anderson, Marian" | contralto singer | |
| data-sort-value="Capra, Frank" | film director | ||
| data-sort-value="Copland, Aaron" | composer | ||
| data-sort-value="de Kooning, Willem" | painter | ||
| data-sort-value="de Mille, Agnes" | choreographer | ||
| data-sort-value="Le Gallienne, Eva" | actress, director, author | ||
| data-sort-value="Lomax, Alan" | folklorist, scholar | ||
| data-sort-value="Mumford, Lewis" | philosopher, literary critic | ||
| data-sort-value="Welty, Eudora" | writer | ||
| data-sort-value="de Menil, Dominique" | arts patron | ||
| data-sort-value="Corporation, Exxon" | corporate arts patron | ||
| data-sort-value="Knox, Seymour" | arts patron | ||
| 1987 | data-sort-value="Bearden, Romare" | painter | |
| data-sort-value="Fitzgerald, Ella" | singer | ||
| data-sort-value="Nemerov, Howard" | writer, scholar | ||
| data-sort-value="Nikolais, Alwin" | dancer, choreographer | ||
| data-sort-value="Noguchi, Isamu" | sculptor | ||
| data-sort-value="Schuman, William" | composer | ||
| data-sort-value="Warren, Robert Penn " | writer, poet | ||
| data-sort-value="Fisher, J. W." | J. W. Fisher | arts patron | |
| Dr. data-sort-value="Hammer, Armand" | arts patron | ||
| data-sort-value="Lewis, Frances" | Frances Lewis | arts patron | |
| Mr. and Mrs. data-sort-value="Lewis, Sydney" | arts patron | ||
| 1988 | data-sort-value="Bellow, Saul" | writer | |
| data-sort-value="Hayes, Helen" | actress | ||
| data-sort-value="Parks, Gordon" | photographer, film director | ||
| data-sort-value="Pei, Ioeh Ming" | architect | ||
| data-sort-value="Robbins, Jerome" | dancer, choreographer | ||
| data-sort-value="Serkin, Rudolf" | pianist | ||
| data-sort-value="Thomson, Virgil" | composer, music critic | ||
| data-sort-value="Freedberg, Sydney" | art historian, curator | ||
| data-sort-value="Stevens, Roger" | arts administrator | ||
| data-sort-value="Astor, Brooke" | arts patron | ||
| data-sort-value="Goelet, Francis" | music patron | ||
| data-sort-value="Tanner, Obert Clark" | arts patron | ||
| 1989 | data-sort-value="Adler, Leopold" | preservationist, civic leader | |
| data-sort-value="Dunham, Katherine" | dancer, choreographer | ||
| data-sort-value="Eisenstaedt, Alfred" | photographer | ||
| data-sort-value="Friedman, Martin" | museum director | ||
| data-sort-value="Gerdine, Leigh" | arts patron, civic leader | ||
| data-sort-value="Gillespie, Dizzy" | jazz trumpeter | ||
| data-sort-value="Hancock, Walker" | sculptor | ||
| data-sort-value="Horowitz, Vladimir" | pianist (posthumous) | ||
| data-sort-value="Miłosz, Czesław" | writer | ||
| data-sort-value="Motherwell, Robert" | painter | ||
| data-sort-value="Updike, John" | writer | ||
| data-sort-value="Hudson, Dayton" | Dayton Hudson Corporation | corporate arts patron | |
| 1990 | data-sort-value="Abbott, George" | producer | |
| data-sort-value="Cronyn, Hume" | actor | ||
| data-sort-value="Tandy, Jessica" | actress | ||
| data-sort-value="Cunningham, Merce" | choreographer & dance company director | ||
| data-sort-value="Johns, Jasper" | painter & sculptor | ||
| data-sort-value="Lawrence, Jacob" | painter | ||
| data-sort-value="King, BB" | blues musician | ||
| data-sort-value="Lloyd Kreeger, David" | arts patron | ||
| data-sort-value="Sterling Masterson, Harris" | Harris & Carroll Sterling Masterson | arts patrons | |
| data-sort-value="McHarg, Ian" | Ian McHarg | landscape architect | |
| data-sort-value="Sills, Beverly" | opera singer | ||
| corporate arts patron | |||
| 1991 | data-sort-value="Abravanel, Maurice" | music director & conductor | |
| data-sort-value="Acuff, Roy" | country singer | ||
| data-sort-value="Belluschi, Pietro" | architect | ||
| data-sort-value="Brown, J. Carter" | museum director | ||
| data-sort-value="Coles, Charles" | tap dancer | ||
| data-sort-value="Crosby, John" | opera director, conductor, administrator | ||
| data-sort-value="Diebenkorn, Richard" | painter | ||
| data-sort-value="Hanes, R. Philip" | arts patron | ||
| data-sort-value="Carlisle Hart, Kitty" | actress, singer & arts administrator | ||
| data-sort-value="Primus, Pearl" | choreographer & anthropologist | ||
| data-sort-value="Stern, Isaac" | violinist | ||
| corporate arts patron | |||
| 1992 | data-sort-value="Horne, Marilyn" | opera singer | |
| data-sort-value="Jones, James Earl" | actor | ||
| data-sort-value="Houser, Allan" | sculptor | ||
| data-sort-value="Pearl, Minnie" | comedian | ||
| data-sort-value="Saudek, Robert" | television producer, Museum of Broadcasting founding director | ||
| data-sort-value="Scruggs, Earl" | banjo player | ||
| data-sort-value="Shaw, Robert" | orchestra conductor, choral director | ||
| data-sort-value="Taylor, Billy" | jazz pianist | ||
| data-sort-value="Venturi, Robert" | architects | ||
| data-sort-value="Wise, Robert" | director | ||
| corporate arts patron | |||
| data-sort-value="Bell Wallace, Lila" | foundation arts patron | ||
| 1993 | data-sort-value="Annenberg, Walter" | arts patrons | |
| data-sort-value="Calloway, Cab" | singer & bandleader | ||
| data-sort-value="Charles, Ray" | singer & musician | ||
| data-sort-value="Lomax Hawes, Bess" | folklorist | ||
| data-sort-value="Kunitz, Stanley" | poet & educator | ||
| data-sort-value="Merrill, Robert" | baritone | ||
| data-sort-value="Miller, Arthur" | playwright | ||
| data-sort-value="Rauschenberg, Robert" | artist | ||
| data-sort-value="Richards, Lloyd" | theatrical director | ||
| data-sort-value="Styron, William" | writer | ||
| data-sort-value="Taylor, Paul" | dancer & choreographer | ||
| data-sort-value="Wilder, Billy" | director, writer & producer | ||
| 1994 | data-sort-value="Belafonte, Harry" | singer & actor | |
| data-sort-value="Brubeck, Dave" | jazz musician | ||
| data-sort-value="Cruz, Celia" | singer | ||
| data-sort-value="DeLay, Dorothy" | violin teacher | ||
| data-sort-value="Harris, Julie" | actress | ||
| data-sort-value="Hawkins, Erick" | choreographer | ||
| data-sort-value="Kelly, Gene" | actor & dancer | ||
| data-sort-value="Seeger, Pete" | composer, lyricist, vocalist, banjo player | ||
| data-sort-value="Filene Shouse, Catherine" | arts patron | ||
| data-sort-value="Thiebaud, Wayne" | artist, teacher | ||
| data-sort-value="Wilbur, Richard" | poet, teacher, critic, literary translator | ||
| data-sort-value="Audiences, Young" | Young Audiences | arts presenter | |
| 1995 | data-sort-value="Albanese, Licia" | opera singer | |
| data-sort-value="Brooks, Gwendolyn" | poet | ||
| data-sort-value="Cantor, B. Gerald" | arts patrons | ||
| data-sort-value="Davis, Ossie" | actors | ||
| data-sort-value="Diamond, David" | composer | ||
| data-sort-value="Freed, James Ingo" | architect | ||
| data-sort-value="Hope, Bob" | entertainer | ||
| data-sort-value="Lichtenstein, Roy" | painter, sculptor | ||
| data-sort-value="Mitchell, Arthur" | dancer, choreographer | ||
| data-sort-value="Monroe, Bill" | bluegrass musician | ||
| data-sort-value="Gateways, Urban" | Urban Gateways | arts education organization | |
| 1996 | data-sort-value="Albee, Edward" | playwright | |
| data-sort-value="Caldwell, Sarah" | opera conductor | ||
| data-sort-value="Callahan, Harry" | photographer | ||
| data-sort-value="Fichandler, Zelda" | theater director, producer, educator | ||
| data-sort-value="Guerrero, Lalo" | composer, musician | ||
| data-sort-value="Hampton, Lionel" | musician, bandleader | ||
| data-sort-value="Lewitzky, Bella" | dancer, choreographer, teacher | ||
| data-sort-value="List, Vera" | arts patron | ||
| data-sort-value="Redford, Robert" | actor, director, producer | ||
| data-sort-value="Sendak, Maurice" | writer, illustrator, designer | ||
| data-sort-value="Sondheim, Stephen" | composer, lyricist | ||
| data-sort-value="Harlem, Boys Choir of " | performing arts youth group | ||
| 1997 | data-sort-value="Bourgeois, Louise" | sculptor | |
| data-sort-value="Carter, Betty" | jazz vocalist | ||
| data-sort-value="Gund, Agnes" | arts patron | ||
| data-sort-value="Kiley, Dan" | landscape architect | ||
| data-sort-value="Lansbury, Angela" | actress | ||
| data-sort-value="Levine, James" | opera conductor, pianist | ||
| data-sort-value="Puente, Tito" | Latin percussionist, musician | ||
| data-sort-value="Robards, Jason" | actor | ||
| data-sort-value="Villella, Edward" | dancer, choreographer | ||
| data-sort-value="Watson, Doc" | bluegrass guitarist, vocalist | ||
| data-sort-value="Colony, MacDowell" | artist colony | ||
| 1998 | data-sort-value="d'Amboise, Jacques" | dancer, choreographer, educator | |
| data-sort-value="Domino, Fats" | rock 'n' roll pianist, singer | ||
| data-sort-value="Elliott, Ramblin' Jack" | folk singer, songwriter | ||
| data-sort-value="Gehry, Frank" | architect | ||
| data-sort-value="Handman, Barbara" | arts advocate | ||
| data-sort-value="Martin, Agnes" | visual artist | ||
| data-sort-value="Peck, Gregory" | actor, producer | ||
| data-sort-value="Peters, Roberta" | opera singer | ||
| data-sort-value="Roth, Philip" | writer | ||
| corporate arts patron | |||
| arts organization | |||
| data-sort-value="Verdon, Gwen" | actress, dancer | ||
| 1999 | data-sort-value="Diamond, Irene" | arts patron | |
| data-sort-value="Franklin, Aretha" | singer | ||
| data-sort-value="Graves, Michael" | architect, designer | ||
| singer, music historian | |||
| data-sort-value="Juilliard" | performing arts school | ||
| data-sort-value="Lear, Norman" | producer, writer, director, advocate | ||
| data-sort-value="LeNoire, Rosetta" | actress, producer | ||
| data-sort-value="Lichtenstein, Harvey" | arts administrator | ||
| data-sort-value="Mendoza, Lydia" | singer | ||
| data-sort-value="Sega, George" | sculptor | ||
| data-sort-value="Tallchief, Maria" | ballerina | ||
| 2000 | data-sort-value="Angelou, Maya" | poet, writer | |
| data-sort-value="Arnold, Eddy" | country singer | ||
| data-sort-value="Baryshnikov, Mikhail" | dancer & director | ||
| data-sort-value="Carter, Benny" | jazz musician | ||
| data-sort-value="Close, Chuck" | painter | ||
| data-sort-value="Foote, Horton" | playwright, screenwriter | ||
| data-sort-value="Manilow, Lewis" | arts patron | ||
| National Public Radio, cultural programming division | broadcaster | ||
| data-sort-value="Oldenburg, Claes" | sculptor | ||
| data-sort-value="Perlman, Itzhak" | violinist | ||
| data-sort-value="Prince, Harold" | theater director, producer | ||
| data-sort-value="Streisand, Barbra" | actress, singer & director | ||
| 2001 | modern dance company and school | ||
| data-sort-value="Anaya, Rudolfo" | writer | ||
| data-sort-value="Cash, Johnny" | singer & songwriter | ||
| data-sort-value="Douglas, Kirk" | actor | ||
| data-sort-value="Frankenthaler, Helen" | painter | ||
| data-sort-value="Jamison, Judith" | artistic director, choreographer, dancer | ||
| data-sort-value="Ma, Yo-Yo" | cellist | ||
| data-sort-value="Nichols, Mike" | director, producer | ||
| 2002 | data-sort-value="Knoll Bassett, Florence" | architect | |
| data-sort-value="Brown, Trisha" | artistic director, choreographer, dancer | ||
| data-sort-value="de Montebello, Philippe" | museum director | ||
| data-sort-value="Hagen, Uta" | actress, drama teacher | ||
| data-sort-value="Halprin, Lawrence" | landscape architect | ||
| data-sort-value="Hirschfeld, Al" | artist, illustrator | ||
| data-sort-value="Jones, George" | singer | ||
| data-sort-value="Lee, Ming Cho " | theater designer | ||
| data-sort-value="Robinson, Smokey" | songwriter, musician | ||
| 2003 | PBS television program | ||
| data-sort-value="Cleary, Beverly" | writer | ||
| data-sort-value="Esquith, Rafe" | arts educator | ||
| data-sort-value="Farrell, Suzanne" | dancer, choreographer, company director, educator | ||
| data-sort-value="Guy, Buddy" | blues musician | ||
| data-sort-value="Howard, Ron" | actor, director & producer | ||
| choral group | |||
| data-sort-value="Slatkin, Leonard" | symphony orchestra conductor | ||
| data-sort-value="Strait, George" | country singer, songwriter | ||
| data-sort-value="Tune, Tommy" | dancer, actor, choreographer, director | ||
| 2004 | data-sort-value="Mellon Foundation, Andrew W." | philanthropic foundation | |
| data-sort-value="Bradbury, Ray" | author | ||
| data-sort-value="Floyd, Carlisle" | opera composer | ||
| data-sort-value="Hart, Frederick" | sculptor (posthumous) | ||
| data-sort-value="Hecht, Anthony" | poet | ||
| data-sort-value="Ruthven, John" | wildlife artist | ||
| data-sort-value="Scully, Vincent" | architectural historian & educator | ||
| data-sort-value="Tharp, Twyla" | contemporary dance choreographer | ||
| 2005 | data-sort-value="Auchincloss, Louis" | author | |
| data-sort-value="DePreist, James" | symphony orchestra conductor | ||
| data-sort-value="D'Rivera, Paquito" | jazz musician | ||
| data-sort-value="Duvall, Robert" | actor | ||
| data-sort-value="Garment, Leonard" | arts advocate | ||
| data-sort-value="Johnston, Ollie" | pioneering film animator & artist | ||
| data-sort-value="Marsalis, Wynton" | jazz musician & educator | ||
| arts education | |||
| data-sort-value="Ramirez, Tina" | dancer & choreographer | ||
| data-sort-value="Parton, Dolly" | singer & songwriter | ||
| 2006 | data-sort-value="Bolcom, William" | composer | |
| data-sort-value="Charisse, Cyd" | actress & dancer | ||
| data-sort-value="DeCarava, Roy" | photographer | ||
| data-sort-value="Holladay, Wilhelmina" | arts patron | ||
| summer arts camp and winter arts focused boarding high school | |||
| data-sort-value="Kunzel, Erich" | conductor | ||
| jazz ensemble | |||
| data-sort-value="Rabassa, Gregory" | literary translator | ||
| data-sort-value="Schreckengost, Viktor" | industrial designer/sculptor | ||
| data-sort-value="Stanley, Ralph" | bluegrass musician | ||
| 2007 | data-sort-value="Lauridsen, Morten" | composer | |
| data-sort-value="Momaday, N. Scott" | author | ||
| data-sort-value="Noel, Craig" | director | ||
| data-sort-value="Neuberger, Roy" | arts patron | ||
| data-sort-value="Paul, Les" | electric guitar pioneer | ||
| data-sort-value="Steinway, Henry Z." | arts patron | ||
| data-sort-value="Tooker, George" | painter | ||
| Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival (University of Idaho) | music festival | ||
| data-sort-value="Wyeth, Andrew" | painter | ||
| 2008 | data-sort-value="Lee, Stan" | comic book writer, editor | |
| data-sort-value="Sherman, Richard M." | songwriter | ||
| data-sort-value="Sherman, Robert B." | songwriter | ||
| data-sort-value="de Havilland, Olivia" | actress | ||
| data-sort-value="Jones, Hank" | jazz pianist | ||
| data-sort-value="Moroles, Jesús" | sculptor | ||
| historic theatre organization | |||
| Fisk Jubilee Singers, (Fisk University) | African American choral group | ||
| data-sort-value="Limón, José" | dance troupe | ||
| data-sort-value="Presser Company, Theodore" | music philanthropy organization | ||
| 2009 | data-sort-value="Dylan, Bob" | singer & songwriter | |
| data-sort-value="Eastwood, Clint" | actor & director | ||
| data-sort-value="Glaser, Milton" | graphic designer | ||
| data-sort-value="Lin, Maya" | artist & architect | ||
| data-sort-value="Moreno, Rita" | actress | ||
| data-sort-value="Norman, Jessye" | operatic soprano | ||
| data-sort-value="Riley, Joseph P." | mayor | ||
| data-sort-value="Stella, Frank" | artist | ||
| data-sort-value="Thomas, Michael Tilson " | conductor | ||
| data-sort-value="Williams, John" | composer, conductor & pianist | ||
| data-sort-value="American Ballet, School of" | |||
| 2010 | data-sort-value="Brustein, Robert" | theater director & producer | |
| data-sort-value="Cliburn, Van" | classical pianist | ||
| data-sort-value="di Suvero, Mark" | sculptor | ||
| data-sort-value="Hall, Donald" | poet | ||
| data-sort-value="Jones, Quincy" | composer & music producer | ||
| data-sort-value="Lee, Harper" | novelist | ||
| data-sort-value="Rollins, Sonny" | jazz musician | ||
| data-sort-value="Streep, Meryl" | actress | ||
| data-sort-value="Taylor, James" | singer & songwriter | ||
| 2011 | data-sort-value="Barnet, Will" | artist | |
| data-sort-value="Dove, Rita" | poet | ||
| data-sort-value="Pacino, Al" | actor | ||
| data-sort-value="Pulitzer, Emily" | Emily Rauh Pulitzer | arts patron | |
| data-sort-value="Puryear, Martin" | sculptor | ||
| data-sort-value="Tillis, Mel" | singer & songwriter | ||
| United Service Organization (USO) | provides programs and entertainment to the U.S. military and their families | ||
| data-sort-value="Watts, André" | classical pianist | ||
| 2012 | data-sort-value="Alpert, Herb" | musician | |
| data-sort-value="Arison, Lin" | arts education advocate | ||
| data-sort-value="Myers Brown, Joan" | dancer, choreographer and artistic director | ||
| data-sort-value="Fleming, Renée" | opera singer | ||
| data-sort-value="Gaines, Ernest" | author & teacher | ||
| data-sort-value="Kelly, Ellsworth" | artist | ||
| data-sort-value="Kushner, Tony" | playwright | ||
| data-sort-value="Lucas, George" | film director | ||
| data-sort-value="May, Elaine" | actress & director | ||
| data-sort-value="Olin, Laurie" | landscape architect | ||
| data-sort-value="Toussaint, Allen" | composer, producer and performer | ||
| data-sort-value="Washington Performing Arts Society" | Washington Performing Arts Society | arts presenter | |
| 2013 | data-sort-value="Alvarez, Julia" | novelist, poet & essayist | |
| data-sort-value="Brooklyn Academy of Music" | presenter | ||
| data-sort-value="Harris, Joan" | Joan Harris | arts patron | |
| data-sort-value="Jones, Bill T." | dancer & choreographer | ||
| data-sort-value="Kander, John" | musical theater composer | ||
| data-sort-value="Katzenberg, Jeffrey" | director and CEO of DreamWorks | ||
| data-sort-value="Kingston, Maxine Hong" | writer | ||
| data-sort-value="Maysles, Albert" | documentary filmmaker | ||
| data-sort-value="Ronstadt, Linda" | musician | ||
| data-sort-value="Tsien, Billie" "Williams, Tod" | architects | ||
| data-sort-value="Turrells, James" | visual artist | ||
| 2014 | data-sort-value="Baldessari, John" | visual artist | |
| data-sort-value="Chong, Ping" | theater director, choreographer, and video and installation artist | ||
| data-sort-value="Colón, Miriam" | actress | ||
| data-sort-value="Duke" | The Doris Duke Charitable Foundation | supporting creative expression across the country | |
| data-sort-value="Field, Sally" | actress and filmmaker | ||
| data-sort-value="Hamilton, Ann" | visual artist | ||
| data-sort-value="King, Stephen" | author | ||
| data-sort-value="Monk, Meredith" | composer, singer, and performer | ||
| data-sort-value="Shirley, George" | tenor | ||
| data-sort-value="University Musical Society" | presenting the performing arts to communities in Michigan | ||
| data-sort-value="Wolff, Tobias" | author and educator | ||
| 2015 | data-sort-value="Brooks, Mel" | actor, comedian, writer | |
| data-sort-value="Cisneros, Sandra" | author | ||
| data-sort-value="Eugene O'Neill Theater Center" | theater | ||
| data-sort-value="Freeman, Morgan" | actor | ||
| data-sort-value="Glass, Philip" | composer | ||
| data-sort-value="Gordy, Berry" | record producer, songwriter | ||
| data-sort-value="Jiménez, Santiago, Jr." | musician | ||
| data-sort-value="Kaufman, Moises" | theater | ||
| data-sort-value="Lemon, Ralph" | dance | ||
| data-sort-value="McDonald, Audra" | actor | ||
| data-sort-value="Valdez, Luis" | playwright, actor, director | ||
| data-sort-value="Whitten, Jack" | painter | ||
| 2016– 2018 | colspan="2" | ||
| 2019[4] | singer | ||
| arts supporter | |||
| The Musicians of the United States Military | military musicians | ||
| actor | |||
| 2020[5] | country musician | ||
| country musician | |||
| [6] | operatic soprano | ||
| photojournalist | |||
| director, National Gallery of Art | |||
| 2021[7] | musician | ||
| singer | |||
| actress | |||
| actress | |||
| singer | |||
| fashion designer | |||
| film director | |||
| artist | |||
| businessman and philanthropist | |||
| painter | |||
| The Billie Holiday Theatre | theatre | ||
| The International Association of Blacks in Dance | preserves and promotes dance by people of African ancestry or origin | ||
In 1989, composer and conductor Leonard Bernstein refused his award, allegedly due to how a federal grant to an art show on AIDS had been revoked.[8]
In 1992, composer and lyricist Stephen Sondheim refused his award, claiming that the NEA had "become a victim of its own and others' political infighting and is rapidly being transformed into a conduit and a symbol of censorship and repression rather than encouragement and support".[9]
In 1997, poet Adrienne Rich refused her award as a protest against "inconsistencies" between art and "the cynical politics" of the Clinton administration.[10]