Okwui Okpokwasili, a Nigerian choreographer and performer has been named a 2018 MacArthur Fellow.
Okwui Okpokwasili, 46, is one of the recipients of the “genius award” and is duly being recognised for “making visible the interior lives of women whose stories of resistance and resilience have been left out of dominant cultural narratives”.
Okwui Okpokwasili was born and raised in the Bronx (United States of America) to immigrant parents from Nigeria and centers Black women in her work. A graduate of Yale University, Okpokwasili’s work has explored a lot from West African griot poets, the experiences of Black women in the Bronx, and the Bring Back Our Girls movement (Nigeria).
This year’s winners, 25 in total announced, spans several professions. They include a journalist, community organiser, social justice advocates, health economist, scientists, artists, musicians, writers, and a human rights lawyer.
The MacArthur fellowships, awarded annually for exceptional “originality, insight and potential,” awards each of its fellows with a no-strings-attached award of $625,000, disbursed over five years to use however they want.
The selection decisions focus primarily on exceptional creativity, as demonstrated through a track record of significant achievement, and manifest promise for important future advances.
There are no applications for the award.
According to Cecilia Conrad, Managing Director, MacArthur Fellows Program:
“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.”
Njideka Akunyili-Crosby, a painter and daughter of the late Nigerian minister, Dora Akunyili, was awarded the 2017 MacArthur Fellowship.
