Chicago’s Renaissance Society Receives $45,000 Ellsworth Kelly Award
3July 31, 2026
TheFoundation for Contemporary Arts, a nonprofit organization founded in 1963 by John Cage and Jasper Johns, has announced theRenaissance Societyat the University of Chicago as the 2026 recipient of theEllsworth Kelly Award. The $45,000 annual grant supports institutional exhibitions for contemporary artists. The museum will use the funds to mount a fall 2027 exhibition of new work by Berlin-based multidisciplinary artistPan Daijingthat will include moving image, sound, and other interventions that respond to the institution’s unique architectural space.
“At the Ren, we love working with artists who embrace experimental methods and have a desire to make the most of our unusual exhibition space,” said Karsten Lund, senior curator at theRenaissance Societyand the organizer of Pan’s forthcoming exhibition. “The Ellsworth Kelly Award will have a major impact on Pan’s exhibition here, letting her think more expansively and play out a wider range of ideas.”
Born in Guiyang, China, in 1991, Pan is known for her wide-ranging practice, embracing moving image, sound, sculpture, and performance. Her work often integrates the modes of perception, underscoring the ephemerality of experience in the hosting venues of her exhibitions. This reflects the improvisational attitude that Pan, who has released several albums, first developed as a genre-defying musician and composer. She has most recently exhibited her work at Haus der Kunst, Munich (2024); Hamburger Bahnhof, Hamburg, for the Preis der Nationalgalerie (2024); and Grazer Kunstverein, Graz, Austria (2023). Her forthcoming exhibition at the Renaissance Society will be her second solo exhibition in the United States, after “Sudden Places” at the Walker Art Center, Minneapolis, in 2025.