Ucross Welcomes Spring 2026 Fellows

On February 9, the Ucross Foundation, the acclaimed artist residency program, announced its Spring 2026 Fellows. From February to early June, 64 writers, visual artists, composers, choreographers and interdisciplinary artists will complete residencies on Ucross’s 20,000-acre ranch in northeastern Wyoming.

“We are honored to support the creative process of this exceptional roster of working artists,” said Ucross President and Executive Director Caitlin Addlesperger.“It is always a joy to welcome artists to Ucross and watch each cohort settle into the stillness that generates the spark.”

Jesse 2 Composer Studio

Ucross Fellowships range from two to six weeks, with 10 artists in residence at a time. Each artist receives a private studio, comfortable living accommodations, meals prepared by a professional chef and the opportunity to work in solitude amid the vast and majestic High Plains. Residencies are fully funded and include a stipend to offset expenses.

This session’s Ucross Fellows and recipients of the Ucross Fellowship for Native American Artists were selected from 1,085 applicants by an independent jury of established artists, critics and arts leaders. In addition, several artists will join the program through partnerships with esteemed national organizations, including the McKnight Foundation, University of Houston’s Creative Writing Program and Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music.

The Spring 2026 roster comprises artists at all stages of their careers. While some are just beginning, various other Fellows have achieved national and international recognition through exhibitions, concerts, performances and publications. Many have won awards such as Guggenheim Fellowships, erb Alberts Awards in the ARts, Herb Alpert Awards in the Arts and PEN America Literary Awards.

The first cohort of the spring session sits down before dinner. From left to right, back to front: Maddie Butler, Genevieve Hudson, Lanie Gannon, Louisa Lim, Carmen Taylor, Le Hien Minh, Song Yi Jeon, Anna Sperber, Adrianna Hinds, Jennifer Neal.

Artists across disciplines will travel to Ucross from 27 states in the U.S., as well as Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany and Australia.

The Spring 2026 Ucross Fellows are:

Literature – Elinam Agbo; Fiction; Lewisburg, PA; Jessie Allen; Nonfiction; Pittsburgh, PA; Jason Asenap; Fiction; Albuquerque, NM; Sarah E. Berns; Nonfiction; Winthrop, WA; Kartika Budhwar; Fiction; Houston, TX; Libby Carr; Playwriting; Brooklyn, NY; Grace Carrier; Poetry; Brooklyn, NY; Zoe Carpenter; Fiction; Portland, OR; Elisabetta La Cava; Nonfiction; Austin, TX; Karen Chee; Screenwriting; Foster City, CA; Simran Chugani; Poetry; Orlando, FL; JR Fenn; Fiction; Rochester, NY; Lillian Fishman; Fiction; Brooklyn, NY; Nikki A. Greene; Nonfiction; Sudbury, MA; Chelsea T. Hicks; Fiction; Pawhuska, OK; Genevieve Hudson; Fiction; Portland, OR; Beth Alison Jones; Poetry; Augusta, ME; Ed Bok Lee; Poetry; St. Paul, MN; Matthew Libby; Playwriting; Brooklyn, NY; Moro; Playwriting; Brooklyn, NY; Neal; Fiction; Berlin, Germany; Lisa Reisman; Nonfiction; Branford, CT; L. Renée; Poetry; Princeton, WV; Atia Sattar; Poetry; Los Angeles, CA; Zach Shultz; Fiction; Baton Rouge, LA; Carmen Taylor; Fiction; Chimayo, NM; Brittany J. Thurman; Fiction; Louisville, KY

Music, Dance & Performance – John Atkinson; Music Composition; New York, NY; Arthur Gottschalk; Music Composition; Houston, TX; Dana Jessen; Music Composition; Oberlin, OH; Song Yi Jeon; Music Composition; Berlin, Germany; Cannupa Hanska Luger; Performance; Glorieta, NM; Victor Marquez-Barrios; Music Composition; Kirksville, MO; May Phang; Performance; Greencastle, IN; Jesse Rundle; Music Composition; Boise, ID; Nola Sporn Smith; Dance; Ridgewood, NY; Anna Sperber; Dance; Brooklyn, NY; Rebecca Zegans; Music Composition; Ridgewood, NY

Visual Arts – Amanda Bonaiuto; Film/Video; Brooklyn, NY; Rachel Breen; Mixed Media; Minneapolis, MN; Sophia Brueckner; Mixed Media; Howell, MI; Maddie Butler; Mixed Media; San Diego, CA;

Laura Colomb; Painting; Jacksonville Beach, FL; Lanie Gannon; Mixed Media; Nashville, TN; Lori Hepner; Drawing; Pittsburgh, PA; Adrianna Hinds; Sculpture; Cheyenne, WY; Tyson Houseman; Film/Video; Montreal, Canada; Lauren Kalman; Sculpture; Detroit, MI; Emily Martinez; Painting; Lutz, FL; ishkwaazhe Shane McSauby; Film/Video; Grand Rapids, MI; Le Hien Minh; Sculpture; Chicago, IL; Taylin Mornelle; Video; Covington, GA; Natani Notah; Mixed Media; Tulsa, OK; Rehab El Sadek; Installation; Tulsa, OK; Kelly Sears; Video; Arvada, CO; Jae Song; Mixed Media; Brooklyn, NY; Chloe West; Visual Art; St. Louis, MO

Interdisciplinary – Mariam Ghani; Interdisciplinary; Brooklyn, NY; Lance Horne; Interdisciplinary; New York, NY; Bree Lowdermilk; Interdisciplinary; Philadelphia, PA; Anna Maria Nabirye; Interdisciplinary; St. Leonards on the Sea, UK; Annie Saunders; Interdisciplinary; Los Angeles, CA; Cyrah L. Ward; Interdisciplinary; Columbus, OH

Since Ucross’s first residencies were awarded in 1983, more than 3,000 artists have received the gift of time and space. Distinguished Fellows include Annie Proulx, Terry Tempest Williams, Elizabeth Gilbert, Ann Patchett, Bill Morrison, Theaster Gates, Anthony Hernandez and Tayari Jones. National Book Award winners Susan Choi, Sigrid Nunez and Sarah M. Broom have been residents, as have Academy Award and Tony winners Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, Emmy Award winner Billy Porter, Pulitzer Prize winner Colson Whitehead and former three-term U.S. Poet Laureate Joy Harjo.

To learn more about Ucross and its residency program, visit ucross.org.

All photos courtesy of Emi Whiting, Ucross Communications Associate