Brandy McDonnell, 2025 Rabkin Prize winner

Nicole Martinez, 2025 Rabkin Prize winner

Nicole Martinez is an arts journalist and the deputy director of Fountainhead Arts in Miami. She is a winner of a 2025 Rabkin Prize, and you can read her full bio on our website [https://www.rabkinfoundation.org/nicole-martinez]. We invited Nicole to have a conversation about her work. The interview is accompanied by a newly commissioned portrait of Nicole in her home office in Miami. The interview has been gently edited for length and clarity. MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE: * Ballet Etudes [https://balletetudesfla.com/] * “Trump’s Former Pal Plans To Beat Tariffs And The Immigration Crackdown [https://www.forbes.com/sites/giacomotognini/2025/06/17/this-billionaire-condo-king-plans-to-beat-trumps-tariffs-and-immigration-crackdown/]” by Giacomo Tognini [https://www.forbes.com/sites/giacomotognini/] (Forbes, June 2025) * Carolina Drake [https://www.instagram.com/carolinadrake/] * Artburst Miami [https://www.artburstmiami.com/] * Fountainhead Arts [https://www.fountainheadarts.org/about] * The Yearbook: 2024, An Annual Survey of Fountainhead Residency Artists [https://www.fountainheadarts.org/membership/p/the-yearbook-2024-ff] by various writers (Fountainhead Arts, 2024) * Writer Ta-Nehisi Coates [https://ta-nehisicoates.com/] * Otter.ai [https://otter.ai/] app * Laurie Simmons [https://www.instagram.com/lauriesimmons/?hl=en]’ Instagram account * “With the help of fellow Floridians and artificial intelligence, a Miami artist imagines a climate-resilient future for his city” [https://www.theartnewspaper.com/2022/08/26/miami-climate-change-artificial-intelligence-resilience-lee-pivnik] by Nicole Martinez (The Art Newspaper, August 2022) * Ragnar Kjartansson’s solo show Las cosas que ves al momento de caer el telón [https://www.museotamayo.org/en/exposiciones/ragnar-kjartansson-the-things-you-see-before-the-curtain-hits-the-floor], (The Things You See Before the Curtain Hits the Floor), Museo Tamayo, Mexico City, 2023. * Ragnar Kjartansson, God [https://vimeo.com/292676427] * Ragnar Kjartansson, The Visitors [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Igof7jUIaaE] * Felix Gonzalez-Torres, Untitled (Portrait of Ross in L.A.) [https://www.artic.edu/artworks/152961/untitled-portrait-of-ross-in-l-a] * RUNIK [https://www.museotamayo.org/en/exposiciones/petrit-halilaj-runik] by Petrit Halilaj, Museo Tamayo, Mexico City (2023-2024) * Art on my mind [https://thenewpress.org/books/art-on-my-mind/] by bell hooks * Mother Reader: Essential Writings on Motherhood [https://www.sevenstories.com/books/3324-mother-reader?srsltid=AfmBOor6qXuo7v0dytfxRPaLx9fqujSJS8ibXP0fARpX7wohjO4Hy4ko], edited by Moyra Davey (Seven Stories Press, 2001) This episode of the Rabkin Interviews was produced by the Dorothea and Leo Rabkin Foundation, an artist-endowed foundation based in Portland, Maine. The interview was conducted by Mary Louise Schumacher, a journalist and the executive director of the Rabkin Foundation. The portraits were made by artist-photographer Kevin J. Miyazaki. The production team for the Rabkin Interviews also includes Cindy Eggert Johnson, producer; Johnathon Olsen, editor; with research and copyediting by Katie Avila Loughmiller and Karen Samelson. Music is by Flint, HaHaHa, Just for Kicks, and Curtis Cole. The Rabkin Prize is awarded through a nomination process, and an independent jury selects the winners. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit rabkinfoundation.substack.com [https://rabkinfoundation.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

Eva Recinos, 2025 Rabkin Prize winner

Eva Recinos is an arts and culture journalist, educator, and creative nonfiction writer based in Los Angeles. Her essay collection, Underneath the Palm Trees, is forthcoming in 2027 from Northwestern University Press. She is a winner of a 2025 Rabkin Prize. You can read her full bio at our website [https://www.rabkinfoundation.org/eva-recinos]. We invited Eva to have a conversation about her work. The interview is accompanied by a newly commissioned portrait of Eva in her home office in Los Angeles. The interview has been gently edited for length and clarity. MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE: * Mellon Foundation – Poet StoryLabNarrative, Community, and the Transformative Possibilities of Brown Storytelling at Whittier College [https://www.whittier.edu/news/mon-01302023-843-am/mellon-foundation-grant-supports-study-brown-identities-whittier-college] * Carolina Miranda [https://linktr.ee/Cmonstah?fbclid=PAZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAaeFBnuPsdxiG0NW7AG7VdQi8pRph4rMLOA6LB2ifY5zrcjXuvG5CS7TuXgU_A_aem_Fnicb0UWE88csxWWW_zHMQ] * KCRW’s Art Insider [http://kcrw.com/newsletters?utm_campaign=Art%20Insider&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-8H_Ibe-LcdWE3jReAVDAyf5CAFzxFTzLpDbvII49-dnWVhENcgkWNEwjeQC-2Y_HDluyhX] newsletter * Image Magazine [https://www.latimes.com/lifestyle/image] * LA Public Press [https://lapublicpress.org/] * Writer and brand strategist Tasbeeh Herwees [https://www.tasbeehherwees.com/] * Fred Eversley [https://www.davidkordanskygallery.com/artist/fred-eversley] at David Kordansky Gallery [http://www.davidkordanskygallery.com] * Mona Lisa Smile [https://www.sonypictures.com/movies/monalisasmile] movie, directed by Mike Newell (Sony Pictures, 2003) * Too Much and Not the Mood: Essays [https://us.macmillan.com/books/9780374535957/toomuchandnotthemood/] by Durga Chew-Bose (Farrar, Straus and Giroux) 2017) This episode of the Rabkin Interviews was produced by the Dorothea and Leo Rabkin Foundation, an artist-endowed foundation based in Portland, Maine. The interview was conducted by Mary Louise Schumacher, a journalist and the executive director of the Rabkin Foundation. The portraits were made by artist-photographer Kevin J. Miyazaki. The production team for the Rabkin Interviews also includes Cindy Eggert Johnson, producer; Johnathon Olsen, editor; with research and copyediting by Katie Avila Loughmiller and Karen Samelson. Music is by Flint, HaHaHa, Yarin Primak, and Out of Flux. The Rabkin Prize is awarded through a nomination process, and an independent jury selects the winners. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit rabkinfoundation.substack.com [https://rabkinfoundation.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

Brandy McDonnell, 2025 Rabkin Prize winner

Brandy McDonnell is an award-winning journalist, a lifelong Oklahoman, and a features writer for The Oklahoman and Oklahoman.com [http://oklahoman.com]. She is a winner of a 2025 Rabkin Prize. Find her full bio on our website [https://www.rabkinfoundation.org/brandy-mcdonnell]. We invited Brandy to have a conversation about her work. The interview is accompanied by a newly commissioned portrait of Brandy in her home office in Lindsay, near where she grew up. The interview has been gently edited for length and clarity. MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE: * The Lindsay News [http://www.cableprinting.com/lindsay_news.html], Lindsay, Okla. * Allied Arts [https://www.alliedartsokc.com/] * Ghibli Park [https://ghibli-park.jp/en/] in Aichi, Japan * Howl’s Moving Castle [https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0347149/] by Hayao Miyazaki (2004) * “Spreading the feminist spirit of Hayao Miyazaki as ‘Spirited Away’ debuts on Blu-ray” [https://awfj.org/week-in-women/2015/06/28/spreading-the-feminist-spirit-of-hayao-miyazaki-as-spirited-away-debuts-on-blu-ray/?doing_wp_cron=1756838903.7858510017395019531250] by Brandy McDonnell (AWFJ Network Blog, 2015) * My Neighbour Totoro [https://totoroshow.com/] by Hayao Miyazaki (1988) * Ghibli Museum [https://www.ghibli-museum.jp/en/] in Tokyo, Japan * “OKC museum celebrating 80th anniversary with art by Rembrandt, Chihuly and Ansel Adams” [https://www.oklahoman.com/story/entertainment/2025/02/02/okc-museum-of-art-celebrating-80th-anniversary-this-year-what-to-know/77192325007/] by Brandy McDonnell (The Oklahoman, February 2025) * Toy and Action Figure Museum [https://www.toyandactionfiguremuseum.com/], Pauls Valley, Okla. * Artist Kevin Stark [https://kevinstarkart.com/artists/kevin/] * Squeaky Burger [https://kevinstarkart.com/music/] music * Lyric Theatre of Oklahoma [https://lyrictheatreokc.com/?gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=21051675510] * Jubilee City: A Memoir at Full Speed [https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5188061] https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5188061by Joe Andoe (Harper Perennial, 2008) * Don’t Never Be Afraid of Your Horses [https://www.oklahomahof.com/books/dont-never-be-afraid-of-your-horses] by Mike Larsen (Oklahoma Hall of Fame Publishing, 2017) This episode of the Rabkin Interviews was produced by the Dorothea and Leo Rabkin Foundation, an artist-endowed foundation based in Portland, Maine. The interview was conducted by Mary Louise Schumacher, a journalist and the executive director of the Rabkin Foundation. The portraits were made by artist-photographer Kevin J. Miyazaki. The production team for the Rabkin Interviews also includes Cindy Eggert Johnson, producer; Johnathon Olsen, editor; with research and copyediting by Katie Avila Loughmiller and Karen Samelson. Music is by Flint, HaHaHa, and Out of Flux. The Rabkin Prize is awarded through a nomination process, and an independent jury selects the winners. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit rabkinfoundation.substack.com [https://rabkinfoundation.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

America Meredith, 2025 Rabkin Prize Winner

America Meredith (Cherokee Nation) is an arts writer, visual artist, independent curator, and publishing editor of First American Art Magazine. She is a winner of a 2025 Rabkin Prize. You can read her full bio at our website [https://www.rabkinfoundation.org/america-meredith]. We invited America to have a conversation about her work. The interview is accompanied by a newly commissioned portrait of America in the backyard space where she sometimes writes, alongside her dogs, Terin and Rosie. The interview has been gently edited for length and clarity. MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE: * Southeastern Indian Artists Association [https://www.facebook.com/seiaa.ok] * The Coe Center [https://www.coeartscenter.org/] * Cherokee Heritage Center [https://www.cherokee.org/visit-us/cherokee-heritage-center/], Park Hill, Okla. * Center for the American Indian, [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Center_of_the_American_Indian](1978), Oklahoma City, Okla. * Institute of American Indian Arts [https://iaia.edu/] * William S. Yellow Robe, Jr. [https://thedgcm.org/yellow-robe-legacy] * Artist T.C. Cannon [https://www.americanindianmagazine.org/story/art-revolution-tc-cannon] * Artist Kelly Church [https://www.woodlandarts.com/] * Artist Teri Greeves [https://www.terigreevesbeadwork.com/] * Right After [https://artsandculture.google.com/story/right-after-milwaukee-art-museum/AgVR4Q9aeaIsLw?hl=en] https://artsandculture.google.com/story/right-after-milwaukee-art-museum/AgVR4Q9aeaIsLw?hl=enby Eva Hesse [http://evahesseestate.com/] * Composer John Cage [https://www.johncage.org/] * Artist Robert Rauschenberg [https://www.rauschenbergfoundation.org/] * Shingle Springs Rancheria, Calif [https://www.shinglespringsrancheria.com/]. * Illiterate Digest [https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1217421.The_Illiterate_Digest] by Will Rogers (A&C Boni, 1924) * Elements of Indigenous Style: A Guide for Writing by and about Indigenous Peoples [https://birchbarkbooks.com/products/elements-of-indigenous-style] by Gregory Younging (Brush Education, 2025) * Track Changes: A Handbook for Art Criticism [https://shop.nplusonemag.com/products/track-changes-a-handbook-for-art-criticism?srsltid=AfmBOoq1Z58qV9reg5_tK5Lv-DNqqjvoMtqPOMnevHcOENbxGcGv1Ma7] Edited by Mira Dayal and Josephine Heston (n+1, Literary Hub, and Burnaway, 2023) This episode of the Rabkin Interviews was produced by the Dorothea and Leo Rabkin Foundation, an artist-endowed foundation based in Portland, Maine. The interview was conducted by Mary Louise Schumacher, a journalist and the executive director of the Rabkin Foundation. The portraits were made by artist-photographer Kevin J. Miyazaki. The production team for the Rabkin Interviews also includes Cindy Eggert Johnson, producer; Johnathon Olsen, editor; with research and copyediting by Katie Avila Loughmiller and Karen Samelson. Music is by Flint, HaHaHa, Just for Kicks, and Jim Swim. The Rabkin Prize is awarded through a nomination process, and an independent jury selects the winners. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit rabkinfoundation.substack.com [https://rabkinfoundation.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

Tempestt Hazel, 2025 Rabkin Prize Winner

Tempestt Hazel is a curator, writer, and co-founder of Sixty Inches From Center, a publishing platform and archival project focusing on the Midwest. She is a winner of a 2025 Rabkin Prize. You can read her full bio at our website [https://www.rabkinfoundation.org/tempest-hazel]. We invited Tempestt to have a conversation about her work. The interview is accompanied by a newly commissioned portrait of Tempestt in her Chicago living room, where she often writes, with her dog, Humphrey. The interview has been gently edited for length and clarity. MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE: * Sixty Inches From Center [https://sixtyinchesfromcenter.org/] * Margaret Burroughs [http://www.margaretburroughs.com/] * Noah Davis [https://hammer.ucla.edu/exhibitions/2025/noah-davis] exhibit, Hammer Museum (2025) * Midwest Arts Writers Convening [https://sixtyinchesfromcenter.org/pausing-to-listen-embracing-the-collective-wisdom-of-the-midwest/] * Luz Magdaleno Flores [https://sixtyinchesfromcenter.org/about/team/luz-magdaleno-flores/] * Christina Nafziger [https://www.christinanafziger.com/] * Nadia John [http://www.nadiajohn.info/] * Chicago Reader [https://chicagoreader.com/] * Performance Response Journal [https://performanceresponsejournal.com/] * Newcity [https://www.newcity.com/] * Chicago Artist Writers [https://temporaryartreview.com/author/chicago-artist-writers/#:~:text=is%20an%20online%20platform%20for,%2C%20temporary%2C%20and%20nonprofit%20spaces.] * AirGo Radio [https://airgoradio.com/] * The Triibe [https://thetriibe.com/] * South Side Weekly [https://southsideweekly.com/] * Contratiempo [https://contratiempo.org/] * Lumpen Magazine [https://www.lumpenmagazine.org/] * Pigment International [https://www.pigmentintl.com/] * The Space in Which to Place Me [https://www.thebroad.org/art/special-exhibitions/jeffrey-gibson-space-which-place-me]exhibit by Jeffrey Gibson (2025), The Broad Museum * “Thick: They say you are what you eat. Does how you eat what you eat matter too?” [https://sixtyinchesfromcenter.org/thick/] by Corey Smith, Rachel Lindsay (Sixty Inches from Center, May 2025) * Artist A.J. McClenon [https://www.3arts.org/artist/aj-mcclenon/] * David Hammons [https://www.hauserwirth.com/hauser-wirth-exhibitions/david-hammons-concerto-in-black-and-blue/]. [https://www.hauserwirth.com/hauser-wirth-exhibitions/david-hammons-concerto-in-black-and-blue/]Concerto in Black and Blue [https://www.hauserwirth.com/hauser-wirth-exhibitions/david-hammons-concerto-in-black-and-blue/] exhibit by David Hammons (Hauser & Wirth, February 2025) * “A New David Hammons Book Will Challenge You, Scold You, Flirt with You” [https://www.artnews.com/art-in-america/aia-reviews/david-hammons-artist-book-hauser-wirth-1234743679/] by TK Smith (Art in America, May 2025) * Writer Hilton Als [https://www.instagram.com/hilton.als/?hl=en] * Chicago’s Critic Table [https://grad.uchicago.edu/fellowship/chicago-critics-table/] * Adrienne Brown [https://english.uchicago.edu/people/adrienne-brown] This episode of the Rabkin Interviews was produced by the Dorothea and Leo Rabkin Foundation, an artist-endowed foundation based in Portland, Maine. The interview was conducted by Mary Louise Schumacher, a journalist and the executive director of the Rabkin Foundation. The portraits were made by artist-photographer Kevin J. Miyazaki. The production team for the Rabkin Interviews also includes Cindy Eggert Johnson, producer; Johnathon Olsen, editor; with research and copyediting by Katie Avila Loughmiller and Karen Samelson. Music is by Flint, HaHaHa, Ariel Shalom, and Just for Kicks. The Rabkin Prize is awarded through a nomination process, and an independent jury selects the winners. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit rabkinfoundation.substack.com [https://rabkinfoundation.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]