Irene Yamamoto Arts Writers Fellowship

The Daniel K. Inouye National Center for the Preservation of Democracy (Democracy Center) at the Japanese American National Museum (JANM) is thrilled to announce the 4th annual Irene Yamamoto Arts Writers Fellowship. This year’s fellowship will award $5,000 unrestricted awards to two emerging writers of color who write critically about visual art.

Writers of color have knowledge and experiences that differ from the dominant Eurocentric ones, and their perspectives give art produced by marginalized communities the depth of attention and consideration it deserves. The fellowship encourages critics of color starting out in the field to continue writing about works from their own cultural and political perspectives, enriching and broadening cultural criticism as a practice and profession. By supporting and highlighting these voices, the fellowship broadens public discourse and strengthens participation in cultural conversations by diverse communities.

How We Define Arts Writing

This fellowship is for arts writers, defined as journalists, critics, and cultural commentators who analyze, contextualize, and interpret the arts for public audiences. Arts writing includes criticism, reviews, essays, opinion pieces, and other forms of nonfiction writing about art, artists, cultural institutions, and creative movements.

This fellowship does not support creative writing or artistic production. Submissions of poetry, fiction, screenplays, plays, memoir, or other creative literary works are not eligible and will not be reviewed. While these forms are vital to the cultural ecosystem, this program is specifically focused on supporting writers whose primary practice is writing about the arts, rather than creating art through literary forms.
 

2026 Focus: Visual Art

The focus of this year’s fellowship is visual art. In order to ensure full consideration of your application, please make sure your writing samples provide critical, analytical, or interpretive perspectives on visual art.

Although visual art takes many forms and is experienced in many different contexts, for the purposes of this award, visual art is defined as a creation that is primarily visual in nature or  that is shown in a museum, gallery, or other space dedicated to visual art. For example:

• Reviews of performance, sound art, film, video, or other time-based work in a museum or gallery setting will be considered, but a review of a performance, play, concert, or screening in a theater will not.
• Analytical writing about immersive or interactive art spaces and installations will be considered, but discussions of functional architecture and design will not, even if they appear in a museum or gallery setting.
• Criticism of visual art in public spaces (such as murals, sculptures, and monuments) or online (such as NFTs, memes, or websites) is eligible as long as the works discussed are primarily visual in nature.
• Critical views on the visual art market, its figures, or trends are acceptable, as long as they are directly related to the aesthetics, production, or reception of visual art. 
   

Award

Irene Yamamoto Arts Writers Fellowships will be awarded to two (2) emerging writers of color, each of whom receive a $5,000 award to be spent over a six-month period.

The awards are unrestricted. Funds may be used for any purpose that helps the fellows advance their careers, including paying themselves to write.

In addition to the cash award, the fellows are given the opportunity to write a piece of criticism or review for the Democracy Center blog as well as the opportunity to deliver a talk at the Democracy Center at JANM on their work.

A brief, written report in the form of a letter accounting for the use of funds is required at the end of the fellowship period. No receipts or other documentation is required.
 

For more information:

See Eligibility Criteria, Application Process, and Review Process  VIEW NOW

Official Fellowship Call APPLY NOW

Learn about past Irene Yamamoto Arts Writers Fellowship Recipients  PAST FELLOWS 

Funders and Supporters

The Irene Yamamoto Arts Writers Fellowship is made possible through a gift from Sharon Mizota to honor Irene Yamamoto. This project is also supported by Critical Minded, an initiative to invest in cultural critics of color cofounded by The Nathan Cummings Foundation and the Ford Foundation.

About Irene Yamamoto

Irene Yamamoto (1937–2020) was a lifelong lover of the arts. Born in Los Angeles, she was incarcerated with her family during World War II at the Gila River concentration camp in Arizona. Upon returning to Los Angeles, she attended UCLA and had a long career as a production artist for several design and advertising agencies. In her free time, she loved to draw, learn new languages, visit museums, and travel.

About the Japanese American National Museum (JANM)

Established in 1985, JANM promotes understanding and appreciation of America’s ethnic and cultural diversity by sharing the Japanese American experience. Located in the historic Little Tokyo district of downtown Los Angeles, JANM is a hybrid institution that straddles traditional museum categories and strives to provide a voice for Japanese Americans as well as a forum that enables all people to explore their own heritage and culture. Since opening to the public in 1992, JANM has presented over 70 exhibitions onsite while traveling 17 exhibits to venues such as the Smithsonian Institution and the Ellis Island Museum in the United States, and to several leading cultural museums in Japan and South America. JANM’s Pavilion is closed for renovation; programs will continue on the JANM campus, throughout Little Tokyo, Los Angeles, and Southern California, and beyond from early January 2025 through late 2026. For more information, visit janm.org/OnTheGo or follow us on social media @jamuseum.