MacArthur Foundation Announces the 2018 ‘Genius’ Fellows

Artist Titus Kaphar; Wu Tsang, filmmaker and performance artist; Becca Heller, human rights lawyer; William Barber Jr., pastor and activist, and Vijay Gupta, violinist and social-justice advocate, are among the 2018 MacArthur Foundation's 'Genius' fellows.

The MacArthur Fellowship is a "no strings attached" award in support of people, not projects, explains the foundation. The program is intended to encourage people of outstanding talent to pursue their own creative, intellectual, and professional inclinations.

The recipients -which may be writers, scientists, artists, social scientists, humanists, teachers, entrepreneurs, or those in other fields, with or without institutional affiliations- may use their fellowship to advance their expertise, engage in bold new work, or, if they wish, to change fields or alter the direction of their careers, details the foundation's website.

"Working in diverse fields, from the arts and sciences to public health and civil liberties, these 25 MacArthur Fellows are solving long-standing scientific and mathematical problems, pushing art forms into new and emerging territories, and addressing the urgent needs of under-resourced communities. Their exceptional creativity inspires hope in us all," said Cecilia Conrad, managing director, MacArthur Fellows Program.

Each fellowship comes with a stipend of $625,000 to the recipient, paid out over five years.

Read the full list of fellows here.

Image: MacArthur Foundation / Twitter