For Kimberly LaVonne, being one of the fifteen Kresge Arts fellows meant showcasing her ceramic art inspired by her Panamanian culture. LaVonne’s trek to her family’s home in Panama is shown in her short film which was directed by John Sippel.
“Since my work is so much about my family, my heritage and memory, what if we could actually go there and visit Panama?” said LaVonne, reflecting on the decision to take her short film to Panama.
“The fellowship funds not just the artists, but the conditions that make the work possible,” said Jeni De La O, Assistant Director of the Kresge Arts in Detroit and previous fellow of the program.
This year’s Kresge Artist Showcase Film Premier featured fourteen of the fifteen Kresge Fellowship winners from the 2025 Literary Arts and Visual Arts competition. The prize for each winner was a $50,000 award, up from last year’s $40,000 award. The Kresge Arts Fellowship is open to residents of Wayne, Oakland, and Macomb county. There are other stipulations which are mentioned on the Kresge Arts in Detroit website.
Louis Aguilar, notable for his journalistic endeavors at the Detroit News, is one of the 2025 Kresge Arts Fellows. He intends to write a book about Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera’s time in Detroit. This is Aguilar’s second time as a Kresge Arts Fellow.
“I want to write it like a novel, although it’s creative nonfiction,” said Aguilar. With the award, he hopes to carve out some time away to acquire a literary agent and to finish the book.
The dollars are unrestricted to take into account cost of materials, childcare, rent, paying collaborators, and general understanding of the financial obstacles that often get in the way of making art.
“The money is supporting the arts, but that money goes right back into the community. So it does impact the business side too,” De La O said. “Having a thriving arts ecosystem creates a healthy community.”
The short films series has been made available through scheduled airings on Detroit PBS, the Kresge Arts in Detroit website under each artist’s individual page, and through the Kresge Arts in Detroit social media page. The films were a collaborative effort where selected filmmakers were matched with artist fellows to create a short film and guided by producers Angelina Starceski and Donald Harrison.
As part of her advice to younger artists, LaVonne encourages them to embrace uncertainty as a sign of growth, noting that it’s okay to make “messes.” The fellowship does just that. It gives artists the opportunity to experiment and make more art.
“I have found that when things start to feel uneasy, or I get scared, to try something new and just keeping making [art],” said Lavonne.
Key to the fellowship is a call to artists from all walks of life, including self-trained artists, academically-trained artists, and those taught through cultural traditions. The program runs through an alternating two-year cycle, focusing on literary and visual arts in one cycle, and live arts and film in the next.
The 2026 live arts and film arts fellows will be announced in the summer. Applications for the 2027 literary arts and visual arts fellowship will open in the fall of this year.
“Don’t count yourself out. Don’t say no on behalf of the panelists. Give them a chance to see your art,” De La O said. “No one is telling you exactly what to do because the whole idea is that your artistry is being recognized here.”
This article and photos were made possible thanks to a generous grant to EL CENTRAL Hispanic News by Press Forward, the national movement to strengthen communities by reinvigorating local news. Learn more at www.pressforward.news.
