Awards and Fellowships

The fellowships at the Vera List Center support individuals whose work advances discourse on art and politics. The appointments provide these individuals with the opportunity to further develop such work by drawing on the academic resources of The New School, to expand on the work in collaboration with students and classes, and to bring it to the public through the Vera List Center's interdisciplinary programs. In 2020, two additional fellowships were launched: the Borderlands Fellowship and the Boris Lurie Fellowship.

The Borderlands Fellowship, a collaborative effort with the Center for Imagination in the Borderlands at Arizona State University (ASU), is awarded biennially to two artists, scholars, or thinkers. It pairs the institutional resources of the Vera List Center in New York City and the Center for Imagination in the Borderlands at Arizona State University in Tempe, Arizona, in order to support research projects that create communities across different geographical, cultural, and political landscapes.

The Boris Lurie Fellowship is named after Russian-born artist Boris Lurie (1924-2008), a Holocaust survivor and the founder of the NO! art movement. In acknowledgment of The New School’s historic University in Exile, the Boris Lurie Fellowship is reserved for an artist living outside of the United States, with special consideration given to those who have faced political hardship. The Boris Lurie Fellowship is made possible by support from the Boris Lurie Art Foundation and the Schaina and Josephina Lurje Memorial Foundation.

Fellowship projects relate to the current curatorial focus theme and are selected either following an open call for applications (Boris Lurie, Vera List Center) or by nomination (Borderlands). They result in performances, concerts, exhibitions, lectures, online artworks, archives, or publications. Visit our website for more information and to learn about our current and former fellows.

The Jane Lombard Prize for Art and Social Justice honors an artist or group of artists who have taken great risks to advance social justice in profound and visionary ways. International in scope, the prize is awarded biennially for a particular project’s long-term impact, boldness, and artistic excellence.

The prize initiative unfolds across various platforms and over an extended period of time. It serves as a catalyst for activities that illuminate the important role of the arts in society and strengthen teaching and learning at The New School in art and design, social science, philosophy, and civic engagement. More than a single moment of recognition, it represents a long-term commitment to the question of how the arts advance social justice and how we speak of, evaluate, and teach about such work.

An exhibition of the winning project, a conference, integration into classes, and a publication featuring the finalist nominated projects complement a cash award and short-term New York City residency for the honoree. In the spirit of the center’s 20-year history, the prize provides the opportunity for an ongoing public conversation on art and social justice as a global issue that engages audiences in New York City, nationally, and around the world. The prize is made possible by support from Jane Lombard, whose generous donations to the Vera List Center make possible the continuation of the aforementioned efforts and initiatives.

Visit our website for more information and recent winners.

The Vera List Center for Art and Politics regularly offers two graduate student fellowships to New School students. The fellowships link VLC programming closely with the student community and highlight specific areas of study. Fellows receive a stipend and a small events budget with which they can create student-focused programming utilizing the VLC's resources.

The Graduate Student Fellowship in International Affairs is co-sponsored by the Julien J. Studley Graduate Program in International Affairs at The New School. The fellow works closely with VLC staff to amplify those programs that focus on international affairs.

The Graduate Student Fellowship in Art and Social Justice assists in various aspects of the center's social justice-focused programs and is tasked with establishing and maintaining vibrant and reciprocal connections between the center, the fellows, and social justice efforts at the university.

For information on the current Graduate Student Fellows, please visit the center's Staff page. Students interested in applying to the fellowships can email us at [email protected].