Awardee to receive $25,000 Unrestricted Prize
Miami, FL (May 25, 2023)—YoungArts announces Daveed Baptiste (2016 YoungArts Winner in Photography & Visual Arts) as the 2023 recipient of The Ashley Longshore Excellence in the Arts Award, a $25,000 unrestricted prize. This award is made possible by the generous support of artist Ashley Longshore and aims to deepen and expand support for artists in the disciplines of Theater, Photography and Visual Arts. Daveed Baptiste is a multidisciplinary maker working in fashion design, photography, and textiles who was chosen based on his passion, excellence, and thoughtful approach to issues of identity and representation in his work. In addition to the cash award, Baptiste will have opportunities for mentorship and access to continuing education that can have a significant influence on the trajectory of an emerging artist’s career. The Ashley Longshore Excellence in the Arts Award for photography is awarded in memory of photographer Alix Edmonson Martinez.
“Artists supporting other artists exemplifies the mission of YoungArts. We are so grateful to Ashley Longshore for her generosity, and this award speaks to her commitment to amplifying the voices of emerging artists like Daveed Baptiste,” said Clive Chang, president of YoungArts. “Daveed is a talented interdisciplinary artist who inspires new understanding as he investigates notions of identity, belonging and race. YoungArts is proud to recognize his work with this award, and I am truly excited to see how his career continues to flourish.”
“It is with all my heart and astounding admiration for Daveed Baptiste that he receives the Award for excellence this year,” said Ashley Longshore. “His work holds a magic, beauty and magnetism that I felt so strongly at first glance. The vibrancy and composition and narrative of his work is glorious! The world needs him. I am so excited to watch Daveed continue to grow as an artist. The honor is truly all mine.”
“I have worked really hard for this moment, and it feels so good to be recognized,” said Daveed Baptiste, “More importantly, receiving this award gives me the opportunity to share my story in a special way.”
The Ashley Longshore Excellence in the Arts Award is open to YoungArts award winners 25 years or older who exemplify the traits of ambition, excellence, a love of their craft, and demonstrate an active interest in furthering the arts in their community. Each year, eligible YoungArts award winners are invited to apply through YoungArts Post, the online network that brings together YoungArts winners from the past 40 years and is a resource for artistic and career advancement opportunities. Recipients are selected by discipline-specific panels of artists.
The 2022 Ashley Longshore Excellence in the Arts Award for musical theater was awarded to Blaine Krauss.
About Daveed Baptiste
Daveed Baptiste is a multidisciplinary maker working in fashion design, photography, and textiles. His migration from Haiti to America inspires all his work. As an immigrant and queer person, his work examines the multidimensional identities of the Caribbean diaspora living in the United States. Through collaborative projects and various mediums, his work aims to decolonize notions of race, gender, and class within the Haitian community and greater Caribbean diaspora. He is a Parsons graduate with a BFA in Fashion Design. His photographs have been published in The New Yorker and VOGUE, and he has exhibited at Red Hook Labs, Aperture and YoungArts.
About YoungArts
Established in 1981 by Lin and Ted Arison, YoungArts identifies exceptional young artists, amplifies their potential, and invests in their lifelong creative freedom. YoungArts provides space, funding, mentorship, professional development and community throughout artists’ careers. Entrance into this prestigious organization starts with a highly competitive application for talented artists ages 15–18, or grades 10–12 in the United States, that is judged by esteemed discipline-specific panels of artists through a rigorous blind adjudication process.
For more information, visit youngarts.org, Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter.
