“I Am The Artist I Always Wanted To Be”

This year’s NYFA Hall of Fame Honorees share what they love most about what they do

On April 12, 2016, artists James Casebere, Anna Deavere Smith, Faith Ringgold, and Zhou Long were inducted into the NYFA Hall of Fame. They spoke to us and shared what they love about their artist careers and what NYFA’s support meant to them. 

James Casebere (Fellow in Sculpture ‘89, Photography ’85, ’94) 

“I am the artist I always wanted to be,” states James Casebere and notes that he wouldn’t do anything else in his life. NYFA’s Fellowships were “a big deal in my career, I have a lot to be thankful for,” he added.

Anna Deavere Smith (Current Fiscally Sponsored Artist)

“What NYFA has done is given me a kind of freedom that I hope manifests in a very good project,” mentions Anna Deavere Smith about her NYFA fiscally sponsored project, “at the heart of it is people”.

Faith Ringgold (Fellow in Painting ‘88)

“At 85, that’s my present age, I don’t think life would be nearly as wonderful if I were not an artist,” says Faith Ringgold, admitting that “being an artist, it’s difficult, but it’s wonderful”. 

Zhou Long (Fellow in Music Composition ’00) 

"I like to spend time to compose music, and as a composer I work hard between the cultures of the East and the West,” explained Zhou Long while speaking of his work.

To learn more about this year’s honorees or see similar videos of previous Hall of Fame honorees, click here.

NYFA’s Artists’ Fellowship Program is a $7,000 unrestricted cash grant awarded to individual artists living and working in the state of New York. NYFA has awarded over $27 million in unrestricted cash grants to over 4,400 artists since 1985.

NYFA Fiscal Sponsorship allows individual artists and emerging arts organizations in all disciplines the ability to raise funds using NYFA’s tax-exempt status as a 501©(3)-classified organization; learn more here.

Image: Carl Timpone/BFA.com; Videos by Melissa Friedling, Slouch Productions