Established by The High Museum of Art in 2005, the David C. Driskell Prize in African American Art and Art History recognizes field-defining contributions to African American art by some of the leading scholars and artists from around the country. The recipient of the 20th Anniversary Driskell Prize will be announced at the event and will join Randall Suffolk, Director of The High Museum of Art and 2024 Driskell Prize Winner Naomi Beckwith, Chief Curator and Deputy Director of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, for a conversation followed by a celebratory reception.
—About the David C. Driskell Prize
Named in honor of the late artist and scholar David C. Driskell, this prize is the first in the country to recognize the importance of African American art. Acknowledging Driskell’s own extraordinary gifts as both a historian and an artist, the prize annually alternates between awarding a practicing US-based African American artist and an art historian whose artistic practice or scholarly work makes an original and important contribution to the visual arts and study of African American art. The recipient of the prize receives $50,000 in unrestricted funds to use toward the furthering of their research or artistic practice.
—About Naomi Beckwith
Naomi Beckwith is the Chief Curator and Deputy Director at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum. She is also the Artistic Director and Chief Curator of documenta 16, opening in 2027 in Kassel, Germany. Beckwith came to the Guggenheim from the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago, where she held curatorial posts since 2011 and served as Senior Curator from 2018-2021. She was previously a fellow at the Institute of Contemporary Art in Philadelphia and Associate Curator at The Studio Museum in Harlem, where she also oversaw the Artists-in-Residence program. Beckwith holds an MA with Distinction from the Courtauld Institute of Art in London and was a Critical Studies Fellow of the Whitney Museum Independent Study Program.
This program is presented to guests of The Fifth Avenue Hotel and an invited audience. Please write to experiences@thefifthavenuehotel.com to inquire about attendance.
