Contemporary Beadworker Ken Williams Jr Awarded Rakow Commission by Corning Museum of Glass

Marking the prize’s 40th year, "I Am the Hungry Cat" is the first Rakow Commission awarded for beadwork.

The Corning Museum of Glass selected Northern Arapaho and Cattaraugus Seneca artist Ken Williams Jr as the recipient of the 2026 Rakow Commission. Williams began learning beadwork at an early age on the Cattaraugus Seneca Indian Territory and later refined his technique alongside master beadworkers from his mother’s Northern Arapaho family.

Widely celebrated for his pictorial beadwork, Williams used the Commission as an opportunity to move beyond functional and wearable forms, creating a standalone wall panel. Utilizing 68 different colors from a range of historic to contemporary made beads, the framed composition features a graphic depiction of the artist’s cat, Valentino, complete with thought bubbles depicting his favorite foods as part of his “Yum Series.” In centering imagery of his cat and favorite foods detailed in bold colors and expressive lines, Williams is actually presenting a self-portrait through the work.

Now on view in the Museum’s Contemporary Art + Design Gallery, I Am the Hungry Cat, draws inspiration from Pop Art and a vibrant color palette and bridges ancestral artistic traditions with a playful contemporary sensibility, expanding the possibilities of glass as a medium for narrative art.

The Rakow Commission is one of the most prestigious annual awards for artists working in glass and supports the creation of a new work by encouraging artists to venture into technical or conceptual projects that they would have been unable to explore due to financial limitations. The annual program was endowed by the late Dr. and Mrs. Leonard S. Rakow, who were Fellows, benefactors, and dear friends of the Museum.

In its 40th year, the annual award was first presented in 1986, and recipients ranged from emerging to established artists including Te Rongo Kirkwood, Charisse Pearlina Weston, Leo Tecosky, Preston Singletary, Silvia Levenson, Klaus Moje, and Lino Tagliapietra.

Learn more at info.cmog.org/rakow-commission.