Theaster Gates named 2023 Vincent Scully Prize winner

Theaster Gates has been named as the recipient of the 2023 Vincent Scully Prize by the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C. 

Gates joins names such as Robert Campbell, Inga Safron, Mabel O. Wilson, and last year’s winner Dolores Hayden as the Prize’s 25th overall winner. The award was established in 1999 in honor of the late historian and celebrated Yale School of Architecture professor, who was also its inaugural recipient.

Gates, the designer of last year’s Serpentine Pavilion and recently named as one of three Isamu Noguchi Award winners, was particularly recognized for his archival collecting practice and community revitalization work through the 13-year-old Rebuild Foundation. 

Aileen Fuchs, the president and executive director of the National Building Museum, said: “Theaster’s work is very much in the spirit of Vincent Scully’s scholarship, melding art, architecture, and urban design. His pioneering approach to cultural preservation and community building aligns so well with the Museum’s institutional Pillars of Innovation and Equity, and we are thrilled to recognize his achievements and impact with this award.”

A special ceremony honoring Gates held at the museum will follow on Friday, November 3rd. Studio Barnes founder Germane Barnes will join Gates on stage for a conversation with Baltimore Museum of Art curator Jessica Bell Brown following the presentation. The event will be re-broadcast via YouTube. Tickets and other information about the ceremony can be found here.