Knight Foundation Names 2026 Recipients of Its $50,000 Art + Tech Fellowships
4April 8, 2026
TheJohn S. and James L. Knight Foundationon April 8 revealed the five recipients of its 2026 Arts + Tech Fellowships. Administered by United States Artists, the annual program supports artists exploring fresh approaches to technology and new media.LIZN’BOW,Miguel Novelo,Rhonda Holbertson,Taeyoon Choi, andWesley Taylorwill each receive an unrestricted $50,000 award along with access to financial planning assistance.
This year’s cohort are scattered across both coasts and the Midwest. The San Jose, California–based Novelo is known for immersive installations employing computer vision, custom software, photogrammetry and game engines, while Holbertson, also from San Jose, blends traditional and new media to explore the destabilizing effect of digital technology on humans. The Detroit-based Choi, an artist, writer, and educator, collaborates with others on works incorporating images, text, and code. Taylor, also in Detroit, brings decades of artmaking experience to bear in video and sound installations that reflect the history and future of the city’s strong hip-hop community. As the Miami duo LIZN’BOW, Liz Ferrer and Bow Ty create performances, videos, and new-media installations that draw from pop aesthetics and cultural critique.
“Through the Knight Arts + Tech Fellowship, we aim to not only strengthen the arts and technology ecosystem through long-term investment in the individuals and artistic practices that fuel innovation, but also foster a community among artists and cultural workers and continued growth across the field,” said Kristina Newman-Scott, the Knight Foundation’s vice president for arts, in a statement. “Working across various disciplines and mediums, this year’s Fellowship class offers an examination of how evolving technological systems shape our environments, behaviors and forms of connection. Their work inspires consideration for innovation as a site of relational and communal possibility. We are thrilled to support each of these artists and we welcome their arrival and participation within our community.”
Established in 2021, the fellowship program has to date assisted twenty-five artists working across multiple practices.