The $10,000 awards are made through a highly competitive process.
“The fellowship program is one of the arts commission’s signature programs. It directly impacts artist development, one of the agency’s core functions,” according to Deputy Director Ce Scott-Fitts.
“Increasing the award makes the program more prestigious, but better serves the recipients. They receive financial resources so that they may focus on developing and creating art. Adding disciplines allows for more inclusion while demonstrating how many aspects of the creative economy are touched by the arts.”
A diverse group of panelists from each discipline is selected to judge applicants. The application process is no longer anonymous, and awards are no longer made solely on artistic merit. Consideration is also given to work samples, achievements, and commitment to the discipline in which artists apply. (Artists may apply in multiple categories with separate applications.)
Fellowships lend prestige to an artist’s reputation and can open doors to other resources and employment opportunities. Meet this fiscal year’s accomplished fellowship recipients below, where you can also browse names of previously recognized artists.
The disciplines in the upcoming rotation are:
Each category will have one recipient if enough applications are received. Applications should open by late summer 2023.
When soliciting artist statements, the South Carolina Arts Commission (SCAC) provides artists complete latitude for those statements they craft to take any form. Publication of said statements does not—and should not be understood to—indicate endorsement by the state of South Carolina, SCAC, or agents thereof.
Anna G. Dean is an interdisciplinary artist, working in sculpture, installation, video, and mixed media. She began her career in art education with a focus on contemporary art and arts integration. She was selected for the Art21 Educators program in New York City and helped create the SmartArts program in Greenville. She recently completed her Master of Fine Arts at Winthrop University, where she currently teaches and coordinates the CreatorSpace technology lab. Dean also works as a production designer with ACSM, a design/build firm in Charlotte.
Dean’s work has been exhibited at the Mint Museum, the McColl Center, the Brooklyn Collective, Redux Gallery and at Miami Art Week. She has public art installations at Atrium Health in Charlotte and at Miracle Park in Rock Hill. She has been an artist-in-residence at the McColl Center and has been awarded a project space at Goodyear Arts. Dean currently lives in Fort Mill with her husband and son.
Jeremy R. Brooks received his Bachelor of Fine Arts from Grand Valley State University & Master of Fine Arts from Alfred University. He has balanced his career between working as an artist and teaching. Some of his honors include receiving the emerging artist award from the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts (NCECA), being selected as a guest of honor at the XXIst International Biennial of Vallauris, France and being selected as a finalist for the 2017 Elizabeth R. Raphael Founder’s Prize. Brooks is currently an assistant professor of ceramics at Coastal Carolina University and resides in Conway.
Brittany M. Watkins lives and works in Columbia. She earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of West Georgia and a 2016 Master of Fine Arts from Florida State University. Her work has been exhibited in international art fairs, museums, non-profit, and experimental spaces in North America, Iceland, Germany, Estonia, and the Philippines in 2022 at Art Fair Philippines. Her site-specific installation “<Accept [(Self) + Elsewhere]” was awarded the Juried Panel Prize in ArtFields 2017 ($25,000), where she later erected a public art installation at TRAX Visual Art Center. Watkins has participated in residencies at The Vermont Studio Center, Hambidge Center for Creative Arts & Sciences, and 701 Center for Contemporary Art (as winner of the 2022 701 CCA Prize). She was the South Carolina fellow for the 2022 South Arts Southern Prize and State Fellowships program
Trumpeter, composer, and educator Dr. Matthew White is currently an associate professor of jazz studies at the University of South Carolina, with previous experience teaching at Coastal Carolina University. He was previously a first-call freelance and session musician in Nashville and Miami. He holds degrees from the universities of North Florida and Miami and has appeared on numerous albums, radio broadcasts, and television shows, performing with a host of artists, ensembles, symphonies, and big bands. In 2019, he was named a Guggenheim Fellow in Music Composition. He was a keynote speaker at the 2017 National Association of Leadership Educators Conference. He is a member of the Charleston Jazz Orchestra and manages the Wheelwright Recording Studio at CCU. White has released three albums as a leader with two receiving four-star reviews in Downbeat magazine and making “best of” yearly lists. He wrote, tracked, engineered, and produced his latest album, The Trumpet.
2022/2023
Eunjung Choi – Performance (dance, music, or theatre/film acting)
Michael Smallwood – Playwriting/Screenwriting
Rebecca T. Godwin – Prose
Marlanda Dekine – Spoken Word/Slam Poetry
2021/2022
Kristi Ryba – Visual Art
Clay Burnette – Craft
Sherard Duvall – Media: Production
Triza Cox – Media: Screenwriting
2020/2021
Sarah Blackman – Prose
John Pursley III – Poetry
Erin Bailey – Dance: Choreography
Tanya Wideman-Davis – Dance: Performance
2019/2020
Adrian Rhodes – Visual Art
Valerie Zimany – Craft
Fang Man – Music: Composition
Craig Butterfield – Music: Performance
2018/2019
F. Rutledge Hammes – Prose
Stephen Tulloh – Poetry
Paul Kaufmann – Theatre: Acting
Kevin Ferguson – Theatre: Playwriting
2017/2018
Linda Fantuzzo – Visual Arts
Elizabeth Keller – Craft
Jason Gourdine – Media: Production
Leasharn Hopkins – Media: Screenwriting
2016/2017
Jeremy Griffin- Prose
Walt Hunter – Poetry
Jonathan Tabbert – Dance: Choreography
Journy Wilkes-Davis – Dance: Performance
2015/2016
Jarod Charzewski- Visual Arts
Alice Ross Ballard – Craft
Jon Jeffrey Grier – Music: Composition
Marina Lomazov – Music: Performance
2014/2015
Scott Gould – Prose
Hastings Hensel – Poetry
Vicky Saye Henderson – Theatre: Acting
Beth Lincks – Theatre: Playwriting
2013/2014
James Arendt – Visual Arts
Robert F. Lyon – Craft
Jeff Sumerel – Media: Production
Herbert “Robbie” Robertson – Media: Screenwriting
2012/2013
Kathryn Etters Lovatt – Prose
Nancy Ancrom – Poetry
Marcy Jo Yonkey-Clayton – Dance: Choreography
2011/2012
Jonathan Brilliant – Visual Arts
Russell Biles – Craft
Lee-Chin Siow – Music: Performance
Mark Kilstofte – Music: Composition
2010/2011
Barbara G.S. Hagerty – Poetry
Ed Madden – Prose
Rodney Lee Rogers – Theatre: Playwriting
Sharon Graci – Theatre: Acting
2009/2010
Damond Howard – Visual Arts
Kim Lee Keats – Craft
Jill Eathorne Bahr – Dance: Choreography
Terrance Orlando Henderson – Dance: Performance
2008/2009
Julia E. Elliott – Prose
Mindy Friddle – Prose
Dan Albergotti – Poetry
Sally Arango Renata – Poetry
Phillip Bush – Music: Performance
John Fitz Rogers – Music: Composition
2007/2008
Jamie Davis – Craft
John Benjamin Gilliam – Craft
Elizabeth Melton – Visual Arts
Herb Parker – Visual Arts
Laura Kissel – Media: Production
Howard Kingkade – Media: Screenwriting
2006/2007
Sheila Joan Tombe – Poetry
Scott Yarbrough – Prose
Monica Wyche – Theatre: Acting
Kathryn Smoak – Dance
Peter Lenzo – Craft
Patricia Lee Brady – Visual Arts
2005/2006
Debra A. Daniel – Poetry
Kimberly K. McGuire – Prose
Maxine Miller Warshauer – Music Composition
David Ross Puls – Crafts
Mana D.C. Hewitt – Visual Arts
2004/2005
Linda Annas Ferguson – Poetry
Brenda Dale McClain – Prose
Kathleen Vandekieft – Music Performance
Darryl Lorenzo Wellington – Playwriting
Jocelyn Chateauvert – Crafts
Jack Steve Gerstner, Jr. – Visual Arts
2003/2004
Carol Ann Davis – Poetry
Kathleen (Kate) Bullard Adams – Prose
Eric Bultman – Performing Arts (Acting)
John David Solomon – Media (Screenwriting)
Paula Smith – Crafts
Philip L. Moody – Visual Arts
2002/2003
Warren Slesinger – Poetry
Gilbert Allen – Prose
Varsha Parikh – Dance Performance
Seth Howell Riddle – Media Production
Jennifer T. Vincent – Crafts
Diane Hopkins-Hughs – Visual Arts
2001/2002
Alice Ballard Munn – Crafts
Rebecca S. Nagel – Music Performance
Terri L. McCord – Poetry
Susan Millar Williams – Prose
Martha Brim – Dance Choreography
Linda Williams McCune – Visual Arts
2000/2001
Mark Kilstofte – Music Composition
Keith Knight – Music Performance
Jessica Bundschuh – Poetry
Russell Biles – Visual
1999/2000
Jon W. Tuttle – Playwriting
Keith Lee Morris – Prose
Sandi Shackelford – Theatre: Acting
Cliffton Peacock – Visual Arts
1998/1999
Anne Boudreau – Crafts
Steve Zimmerman – Media
Hazel Ketchum – Music Performance
Angela R. Kelly – Poetry
Mary Edna Fraser – Visual Arts
1997/1998
Jill Bahr – Dance Choreography
Mariclaire Miranda – Dance Performance
David Yandell Todd – Prose
Michelle Van Parys – Visual Arts
Barbara Duval – Visual Arts
1996/1997
Mike Lavine – Crafts
Paul Rucker – Music Performance
Paul Allen – Poetry
Anne Creed – Prose
Joseph Scott Goldsmith – Visual Arts
Tarleton Blackwell – Visual Arts
1995/1996
Lee A. Malerich – Crafts
Eunjoo Yun – Music Performance
Paul Rice – Poetry
Deborah Cumming – Prose
Vinh T. Dang – Visual Arts
Phyllis Hebert Constransitch – Visual Arts
1994/1995
Michael V. Vatalaro – Crafts
Christopher Berg – Music Performance
Kathleen Whitten – Poetry
Rosa Shand – Prose
Joe Walters – Visual Arts
Rebecca Freeman – Visual Arts
1993/1994
Ellen Kochansky – Crafts
Maxine Warshauer – Music Composition
Debra A. Daniel – Poetry
Sue Monk Kidd – Prose
Herb Parker – Visual Arts
Jorge A. Otero – Visual Arts
1992/1993
Megan Wolfe – Crafts
Douglas A. Weeks – Music Performance
Jan R. Bailey – Poetry
Deno Trakas – Prose
Frankie Jean Mixon – Visual Arts
Jean R. Grosser – Visual Arts
1991/1992
Jamie Davis – Crafts
Enrique Graf – Music Performance
Curtis Derrick – Poetry
Merry Speece – Prose
Richard Rose – Visual Arts
Dexter Buell – Visual Arts
Michael Thunder – Visual Arts
1990/1991
James Barnard Lawton – Crafts
Kathleen Vandekieft – Music Performance
Ron Rash – Poetry
Scott Gould – Prose
Manning Bethea Williams – Visual Arts
Jane Allen Nodine – Visual Arts
1989/1990
Jenifer A. Borg – Crafts
Cathy Smith-Bowers – Literature
Sarah Gilbert – Literature
Robert Jesselson – Music Performance
Rebecca Des Marais – Visual Arts
Christina Chase – Visual Arts
1988/1989
Lee A. Malerich – Crafts
Paul Allen – Literature
Steve Rosenburg – Music Performance
Edward Rice – Visual Arts
Scott Belville – Visual Arts
1987/1988
Clay Burnette – Crafts
Bret Lott – Literature
Robert Pruzin – Music Performance
Judy V. Jones – Visual Arts
Dennis Croteau – Visual Arts
1986/1987
Terry Jarrard-Dimond – Crafts
Libby Bernardin – Literature
Anthony & Mary Ann Lenti – Music Performance
Christine Kierstead – Visual Arts
Zoey Brookshire – Visual Arts
1985/1986
Jeri Burdick – Crafts
Starkey Flythe – Literature
Douglas A. Weeks – Music Performance
Michael Phillips – Visual Arts
Barbara Duval – Visual Arts
1984/1985
Clark Ellefson – Crafts
John Lane – Literature
Bob Landau – Media
Wilfred Delphin & Edwin Romain – Music Performance
Gunars Strazdins – Visual Arts
Larry Lebby – Visual Arts
1983/1984
Michael Vincent Vatalaro – Crafts
Andrew Kuharsky – Dance Performance
Blanche Boyd – Literature
David W. Maves – Music Composition
Robin Zemp – Music Performance
Barbara Layne – Visual
Edward Wimberly – Visual Arts
1982/1983
Lee A. Malerich – Crafts
Susan G. Ludvigson – Literature
Jan L. Millsapps – Media
Christopher B. Berg – Music Performance
Karen E. Davies – Visual
Donna G. Ciacciarelli (née Bolton) – Visual Arts
1981/1982
Heidi Darr Hope – Crafts
Robert Cumming – Literature – Prose
Stephen Corey – Literature – Prose
Nancy Yasecko – Media
Cleveland Edwards – Music Composition
Sarah Johnson – Music Performance
Jane Allen Nodine – Visual Arts
Judy V. Jones – Visual Arts
Eugene Horne – Visual Arts
Alice D. Boyle – Visual Arts
1980/1981
Kristy Higby – Crafts
Louis J. Gallo – Literature – Prose
Frank Eastes – Media
David Maves – Music Composition
Mark E. Flowers – Visual Arts
James Edwards – Visual Arts
Alice D. Boyle – Visual Arts
1979/1980
Pamela Tarchinski – Crafts
Edward Minus – Literature – Prose
Gretchen Robinson – Media
Samuel Douglas – Music Composition
Michael Tice – Visual Arts
Thomas N. Mills – Visual Arts
Lee Brumbaugh – Visual Arts
1978/1979
Ellen Kochansky – Crafts
Susan G. Ludvigson – Literature
Timothy Crenshaw – Music Composition
Susan B. Wooten – Visual Arts
Bob M. Jolly – Visual Arts
Margaret Chalmers – Visual Arts
1977/1978
Jamie Davis – Crafts
Sylvia-Elaine Foard – Literature
Edwin Freeman – Music Composition
Howard Woody – Visual Arts
Michael Seward – Visual Arts
Steven Gately – Visual Arts
1976/1977
John Ower – Literary Arts
Philip Mullen – Visual Arts
Leo Manske – Visual Arts
Stephen Dell – Visual Arts
If you are seeking more program information, please contact Artist Development Director Tanisha N. Brown (803.734.8043 | tbrown@arts.sc.gov).