The Kenneth Rainin Foundation has announced the 2022 recipients of the Rainin Fellowship.

Administered by United States Artists, the fellowship awards four artists annually with unrestricted grants of $100,000, as well as supplemental support, including financial planning, communications and marketing help, and legal services. Fellows are artists working across varied disciplines—dance, film, public space, and theater—who push the boundaries of creative expression, anchor local communities, and advance the field.

This year’s recipients are Brett Cook (in the category of public space), an interdisciplinary artist and educator who uses storytelling to distill complex ideas and creative practices to transform outer and inner worlds of being; film director Maria Victoria Ponce (film), whose work navigates the complexities in the routine lives within poor and working-class neighborhoods; NAKA Dance Theater (dance), a socially engaged dance theater collective founded by Debby Kajiyama and José Ome Navarrete Mazatl; and actress, director, playwright, writer, and producer Ryan Nicole Austin (theater), who works at the intersection of art and activism.

“We are thrilled to announce the second cohort of Rainin Fellows. As anchor artists, these fellows and their creative practices speak to both the rich history and bright future of the Bay Area arts ecosystem.” said Ted Russell, Director, Arts Strategy & Ventures at the Kenneth Rainin Foundation. “It is an honor to celebrate these talented artists, their significant contributions to our community, and the enrichment of the ecosystem in the process.”

(Photo Credit, clockwise: Khattab McIntosh for The Green Balloon; ScottTsuchitani; Staci DeGagne; Smeeta Mehanti)