Anonymous Was a Woman Names 2023 Grantees

New York–based organization Anonymous Was a Woman (AWAW) has announced the fifteen recipients of its 2023awards. The awards, unrestricted grants of $25,000 apiece, are presented to woman-identifying artists over the age of forty who have made outstanding contributions in their respective fields and who continue to make important work. AWAW has distributed more than $7 million in grants to 295 artists since its 1996 founding by an anonymous artist, who in 2018 revealed herself to be Susan Unterberg. Unterberg for years served as AWAW’s sole funder, handing out ten awards annually.

This year, for the third year in a row, the organization is able to offer fifteen awards, with three funded by the Boston-based Meraki Artist Award, itself anonymously funded, and the other two supported by anonymous donors.RelatedKEVIN TERVALA NAMED CHIEF CURATOR AT BMAARGENTINIAN PRESIDENT JAVIER MILEI SHUTTERS MINISTRY OF CULTURE This year’s winners—who were nominated and selected by an anonymous panel of art historians, curators, artists, and writers—range in age from forty-two to eighty-seven and work across media including painting, installation, performance, photography, film/video, and new media. Among the 2023 grantees are multimedia artist Carolina Caycedo, whose work explores themes of community and the environment; multimedia artist Steffani Jemison, who examines themes of Black embodiment and vernacular traditions in relation to modernism and conceptual art; interdisciplinary artist Amanda Ross-Ho, who uses found objects to evoke a sense of alienation and detachment; and Drew Shiflett, whose drawn and collaged reliefs address concerns of architecture and light. “I am delighted to congratulate this year’s award recipients—a group of artists who represent a wide spectrum of perspectives, backgrounds, and formal practices,” said Unterberg in a statement. “When I started Anonymous Was a Woman, I did so to address a need that I felt personally and observed among my peers.

Nearly a quarter century later, that need persists. It is an honor to come to know these artists and their practices, and I am very excited to see what the award recipients do next.” A full list of recipients is below: Carolina Caycedo, 45, CaliforniaLiz Collins, 55, New YorkSteffani Jemison, 42, New YorkStanya Kahn, 55, CaliforniaBarbara Kasten, 87, IllinoisAthena LaTocha, 55, New YorkCandice Lin, 44, CaliforniaSuchitra Mattai, 50, CaliforniaDindga McCannon, 76, Pennsylvanialinn meyers, 55, Washington, DCErika Ranee, 58, New YorkAmanda Ross-Ho, 48, CaliforniaDrew Shiflett, 72, New YorkCauleen Smith, 56, CaliforniaSaya Woolfalk, 44, New York.