National Heritage Fellowship Explained

National Heritage Fellowship
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Awarded For:Lifetime achievement in folk or traditional arts
Location:Washington, D.C.
Country:United States
Presenter:National Endowment for the Arts
Reward:$25,000
Year:1982
Year2:present

The National Heritage Fellowship is a lifetime honor presented to master folk and traditional artists by the National Endowment for the Arts. Similar to Japan's Living National Treasure award,[1] the Fellowship is the United States government's highest honor in the folk and traditional arts.[2] [3] It is a one-time only award and fellows must be living citizens or permanent residents of the United States. Each year, fellowships are presented to between nine and fifteen artists or groups at a ceremony in Washington, D.C.

The Fellows are nominated by individual citizens, with an average of over 200 nominations per year. From that pool of candidates, recommendations are made by a rotating panel of specialists, including one layperson, as well as folklorists and others with a variety of forms of cultural expertise. The recommendations are then reviewed by the National Council on the Arts, with the final decisions made by the chairperson of the National Endowment for the Arts.[4] As of 2024, 487 artists in a wide variety of fields have received Fellowships.

History

The program was officially founded in 1982 by Bess Lomax Hawes, the first director of the Folk and Traditional Arts Program at the NEA,[5] following a five-year period of development.[4] In 1982, the monetary award associated with the Fellowship was $5,000;[1] in 1993, it was increased to $10,000 and since 2009, the award amount is $25,000, which is considered "enough to make a difference, but not enough to go to anyone's head".[4] Each recipient receives a certificate of honor, the monetary award, and a congratulatory letter from the President of the United States.

The annual recognition events are held in the Fall and consist of an awards ceremony, a banquet, and a concert that is open to the public. Over the years, the awards ceremony has been held at different locations in the US capitol city, including the NEA headquarters, Ford's Theatre, George Washington University,[1] the Library of Congress,[6] and for the first time at the White House in 1995.[7] Since 2000, the banquet has been held in the Great Hall of the Library of Congress.[4] The concert features musical performances, craft demonstrations, and interviews with the honorees.[6] Masters of ceremonies at the concerts have included folksinger Pete Seeger, actress Ruby Dee, author Studs Terkel, journalist Charles Kuralt, and since 1997 Nick Spitzer, the host of public radio program American Routes.[4] Beginning in 2010, the Fellowship concerts have been streamed live on the NEA website and archived on YouTube.

In 2000, the NEA instituted the Bess Lomax Hawes Award in conjunction with the Fellowships, "given to an individual for achievements in fostering excellence, ensuring vitality, and promoting public appreciation of the folk and traditional arts".[6] The Hawes Award has been given annually since 2000 to recognize "artists whose contributions, primarily through teaching, advocacy, and organizing and preserving important repertoires, have greatly benefited their artistic tradition. It also recognizes individuals, such as producers and activists, who have comprehensively increased opportunities for and public visibility of traditional artists."[4]

Publications

Winners

Awardees have included Native American basket weavers, African American blues musicians, traditional fiddlers, Mexican American accordionists, and all manner of traditional artisans and performers of numerous ethnic backgrounds.

1990
2000
2020
2024

National Heritage Fellowship winners are:

1982

1983

1984

1985

1986

1987

1988

1989

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

[21]

2015

[23]

2016

2017

2018

2019

[26]

2020

[27]

2021

[28]

2022

[29]

2023

[30]

2024

[31]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Book: Siporin, Steve . 1992 . Introduction . American Folk Masters: The National Heritage Fellows . New York . Harry N. Abrams, Inc. in association with The Museum of International Folk Art, Santa Fe, New Mexico . 14–21 . 0810919176 . 24699109.
  2. News: . National Endowment for the Arts Announces 2013 NEA National Heritage Fellowship Recipients . https://web.archive.org/web/20171214014231/https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P3-2988935041.html . dead . December 14, 2017 . US Fed News Service . Washington, DC . June 6, 2013 . December 12, 2017.
  3. News: Lane . Sarah . September 24, 2015 . Daniel Sheehy Named National Heritage Fellow . The Washington Post . Washington, DC . Metro section, T23 . December 12, 2017.
  4. Web site: National Heritage Fellowships 30th Anniversary . . 2011 . arts.gov . National Endowment for the Arts . December 12, 2017.
  5. News: Sullivan . Patricia . December 2, 2009 . Bess Lomax Hawes, 88; folklorist, performer, NEA official . The Washington Post . October 19, 2017.
  6. Web site: NEA National Heritage Fellows Fact Sheet . . September 2017 . arts.gov . National Endowment for the Arts . December 12, 2017.
  7. News: Trescott . Jacqueline . September 28, 1995 . First Lady Defends NEA: Art Fellowships Presented at the White House . The Washington Post . Style section, C03.
  8. News: Sullivan . Meg . July 3, 1992 . Keeping Traditional Crafts Alive . Daily News of Los Angeles . Los Angeles, California . L.A. Life Section, L45.
  9. Book: Govenar, Alan . 2001 . Masters of Traditional Arts: A Biographical Dictionary . Santa Barbara, California . ABC-Clio . 1576072401.
  10. Book: Govenar, Alan B. . 2006 . Extraordinary Ordinary People: Five American Masters of Traditional Arts . Cambridge, Massachusetts . Candlewick Press . 9780763620479 . registration .
  11. http://www.arts.gov/honors/heritage/fellows/fellow.php?id=1989_13 1989 NEA National Heritage Fellow: Chesley Goseyun Wilson
  12. News: David . Colker . Musician Nati Cano dies at 81; leader of Mariachi los Camperos . . October 4, 2014 . October 25, 2014.
  13. Web site: Jerry Brown . . arts.gov . National Endowment for the Arts . October 22, 2017.
  14. Broadfoot, Jan. "Twentieth-Century Tar Heels," Broadfoot's of Wendell, 2004.
  15. Web site: Fatima Kuinova . . arts.gov . National Endowment for the Arts . October 22, 2017.
  16. Web site: [{{Allmusic |class=artist |id=p165862/biography |pure_url=yes}} Elder Roma Wilson ]. Jason Ankeny . AllMusic . October 28, 2011.
  17. http://www.nea.gov/honors/heritage/fellows/fellow.php?id=1998_04 "Lifetime Honors: Bruce Caesar."
  18. Web site: News | NEA . Nea.gov . February 5, 2014 . February 11, 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120921164948/http://www.nea.gov/news/news04/Heritage/Wang.html . September 21, 2012 . dead.
  19. News: Big Joe Duskin; Bluesman who flourished in later life – obituary by Tony Russell . The Guardian . November 25, 2009 . London . June 19, 2007.
  20. Web site: About Ka‘upena Wong . Coconutinfo.com . February 7, 2013 . February 11, 2014.
  21. Web site: NEA Announces Lifetime Honors Recipients . . arts.gov . National Endowment for the Arts . June 25, 2014 . June 17, 2017.
  22. Book: Yohe, Jill Ahlberg . Hearts of Our People: Native Women Artists . Teri . Greeves . 2019 . . 9780295745794 . 2018967294 . 131 . Keshick refers to her practice as 'quill art' rather than 'quill work,' both to assert the aesthetic significance of her creations and to firmly position this artistic practice as a valued art form..
  23. Web site: NEA Announces Recipients of Nation's Highest Award in the Folk and Traditional Arts . . arts.gov . National Endowment for the Arts . June 9, 2015 . June 17, 2017.
  24. Web site: National Endowment for the Arts Statement on the Death of Clarissa Rizal, 2016 National Heritage Fellow . National Endowment for the Arts . NEA . January 26, 2017.
  25. Web site: National Endowment for the Arts Announces 2018 National Heritage Fellows . National Endowment for the Arts . June 20, 2018.
  26. Web site: National Endowment for the Arts Announces 2019 National Heritage Fellows . arts.gov . National Endowment for the Arts . June 18, 2019 . July 23, 2019.
  27. Web site: National Endowment for the Arts Announces 2020 Recipients of Nation's Highest Honor in the Folk and Traditional Arts . National Endowment for the Arts . June 23, 2020 . July 27, 2020.
  28. Web site: National Endowment for the Arts Announces 2021 NEA National Heritage Fellows . National Endowment for the Arts . June 15, 2021 . July 5, 2021.
  29. Web site: National Endowment for the Arts Announces 2022 NEA National Heritage Fellows . National Endowment for the Arts . June 28, 2022 . June 29, 2022.
  30. Web site: National Endowment for the Arts Announces 2023 NEA National Heritage Fellows . National Endowment for the Arts . February 28, 2023 . June 23, 2023.
  31. Web site: National Endowment for the Arts Announces 2024 NEA National Heritage Fellows . National Endowment for the Arts . February 28, 2024 . March 26, 2024.

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