Three Cleveland Artists Collect $30,000 in Regional Honors
Webb, Lee, and Davis receive juried awards at the Cleveland Museum of Art ceremony.
By Luca Harrison ·
The 2026 Cleveland Arts Prize winners reflect a wide range of artistic disciplines within Northeast Ohio. The awards recognize decades of contribution to the local cultural scene. Three juried discipline prizes carry a $10,000 award each, supporting artists at different career stages.
Chris Webb, a playwright, actor, and journalist, received the Emerging Artist award. He trained at CalArts and the Royal Scottish Academy before returning to Cleveland. His one-person show, The End of Black Excellence, premiered at Cleveland Public Theater last year. Webb noted that the prize is the oldest municipal arts award in the country. He said the recognition proves that world-class art is being made locally.
Aimee Lee, a papermaking artist, was named Mid-Career Artist. She established the first hanji studio in North America in Cleveland. Lee published the award-winning book Hanji Unfurled in 2012. Her work has appeared at the Cleveland Museum of Art and the Korean Cultural Centers in Washington, D.C., and Abu Dhabi. A current exhibition of her work is on display at the Kent State University Museum. Lee stated that being acknowledged in her chosen place of residence holds more meaning than outside accolades.
Dexter Lee Davis received the Lifetime Achievement award. He creates collage-based works that layer hand-carved woodblock prints with found paper and other materials. A lifelong Clevelander, Davis channels urban violence into his multi-media pieces. He described the prize as the Cleveland art version of the Oscars. His home studio serves as his primary workspace during early to midday hours.
The ceremony will take place Thursday at the Cleveland Museum of Art. The Women’s City Club established the prize in 1961. Four special prizes will also be presented alongside the juried awards. Terry Stewart, emeritus president and CEO of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, will receive the Martha Joseph Prize for Distinguished Service to the Arts.
Webb is remounting The End of Black Excellence at Cleveland Public Theater in November for four performances. He is also developing The End of Black Love, the second installment of his series, which uses life-size Bunraku-style puppets. Lee is organizing an inaugural hanji summit at Penland School of Craft in North Carolina this fall. Davis is preparing a retrospective and new work titled shadows.
