Announcements
2021 Virtual Ceremonial
Yehudi Wyner, Rita Dove, and Phong Bui Receive Highest Honors
Yehudi Wyner, Rita Dove, and Phong Bui receive top awards in Music, Poetry, and Service to the Arts.
2021 Art Award Winners
Eighteen artists receive awards and purchase prizes totaling $500,000.
April 8 Reading of Academy Tributes
You are cordially invited to attend a reading of tributes over Zoom on Thursday, April 8, from 7 to 8 p.m. EDT.
2021 Newly Elected Members
Twenty-nine new members and four honorary members will be inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Letters during its virtual award ceremony on May 19 at 7 p.m. EST.
Three Musicals Win Richard Rodgers Awards
The Monster, Oratorio for Living Things, and TL;DR: Thelma Louise; Dyke Remix have won the 2021 Richard Rodgers Awards for Musical Theater.
2021 Music Award Winners
Eighteen composers receive this year’s awards in music, which total $225,000.
February 24 Reading of Academy Tributes
The American Academy of Arts and Letters presented a reading of tributes over Zoom on Wednesday, February 24, from 7 to 8 p.m. EST. A video recording is now available.
Academy Member George Lewis Interviewed by Randy Cohen
On November 7, 2020, the radio program and podcast Person Place Thing, hosted by Randy Cohen, broadcast an interview with Academy member George Lewis.
Academy Member David Sedaris Interviewed by Randy Cohen
On October 31, 2020, the radio program and podcast Person Place Thing, hosted by Randy Cohen, broadcast an interview with Academy member David Sedaris.
November 12 Reading of Academy Tributes
The American Academy of Arts and Letters presented a reading of tributes over Zoom on Thursday, November 12, from 7 to 8 p.m. EST. A video recording is now available.
Statement from the Academy President
Billie Tsien on recommittment to the arts in times of vulnerability.
2020 Architecture Award Winners
The American Academy of Arts and Letters announces the recipients of the Arnold W. Brunner Memorial Prize and four Arts and Letters Awards.
Peter Eisenman, David W. Blight, Richard Powers, and Bill Henderson Receive Highest Honors
Peter Eisenman, David W. Blight, Richard Powers, and Bill Henderson receive top awards in Architecture, History, Literature, and Service to the Arts.
2020 Art Award Winners
Twenty-four artists receive awards and purchase prizes totaling $295,000.
2020 Literature Award Winners
Leslie Marmon Silko wins the second biennial $100,000 Christopher Lightfoot Walker Award for a significant literary contribution, and eighteen writers receive literature prizes.
Two Musicals Win 2020 Richard Rodgers Awards
In the Green and The Loophole have won the 2020 Richard Rodgers Awards for Musical Theater.
2020 Music Award Winners
Seventeen recipients receive this year’s awards in music, which total $235,000.
Academy Receives Medal from Archives of American Art
On October 22, 2019, the Academy received the Archives Medal from the Smithsonian’s Archives of American Art.
Lee Bontecou, Thelma Golden, and Toni Morrison receive highest honors
Lee Bontecou and Toni Morrison will receive Gold Medals in Sculpture and Fiction, respectively. Thelma Golden will receive the 2019 Award for Distinguished Service to the Arts.
Billie Tsien Elected President
Architect Billie Tsien was elected president of the American Academy of Arts and Letters. Ms. Tsien, who was inducted into the Academy in 2007, will serve a three-year term from January 2018 to January 2021.