Awards and Honors
Vision & Justice and its founder Sarah Elizabeth Lewis have been recognized by esteemed organizations with the following awards and honors.
Pratt Institute Honorary Degree
May 15, 2024
Pratt Institute presented Sarah Elizabeth Lewis with an honorary degree from in recognition of her work through Vision & Justice. Lewis gave the commencement address to the class of 2024.
Tribute at BADG of Honor Awards
November 2, 2023
The Black Artists + Designers Guild paid tribute to Sarah Elizabeth Lewis at their second annual BADG of Honor Awards.
2022 Andrew Carnegie Fellow
Vision & Justice founder Sarah Elizabeth Lewis was selected as a 2022 Andrew Carnegie Fellow to support her ongoing research and critical writing. The Program recognizes a select group of extraordinary scholars and writers who receive philanthropic support for scholarship in the humanities and social sciences that addresses important and enduring issues confronting our society. The fellows are selected by a distinguished panel of jurors comprised of scholars and academic and intellectual leaders from some of the nation’s most prominent educational institutions, foundations, and scholarly societies.
Frieze New York 2021 Tribute
The major art fair Frieze New York honored Vision & Justice in 2021 through a range of dedicated programming throughout the fair. Inspired by Vision & Justice, more than 50 galleries and institutions developed Frieze New York and Frieze Viewing Room presentations and special programs that probed the question of the responsibility of the arts to disrupt, complicate, or shift narratives of visual representation in the public realm.
Critically acclaimed artists Carrie Mae Weems and Hank Willis Thomas presented new works as homages to Vision & Justice, and Sarah Elizabeth Lewis created and moderated a panel featuring Wynton Marsalis, Ava DuVernay, Franklin Leonard, Carrie Mae Weems, and Theaster Gates.
2019 Inaugural Freedom Scholar Award
Vision & Justice Founder Sarah Elizabeth Lewis was the inaugural recipient of the Freedom Scholar Award in 2019. Through the award, the ASALH recognizes the contributions of an early career academic whose scholarship and research focuses on the empowerment of the African American community, with candidates required to demonstrate how their work provides a local or national community benefit.
2017 Infinity Award
The International Center of Photography’s Infinity Awards honor outstanding achievements in photography and visual arts. For their work on the “Vision & Justice” issue of Aperture, guest editor Sarah Elizabeth Lewis and editor Michael Famighetti received the 2017 Infinity Award for excellence in critical writing and research.