Ken Williams Jr. Receives Corning Museum Of Glass Rakow Commission

(MENAFN- USA Art News) Northern Arapaho and Cattaraugus Seneca artist Ken Williams Jr. has been selected as the recipient of the 2026 Rakow Commission by the Corning Museum of Glass. Williams, known for his pictorial beadwork, utilized the commission to move beyond traditional functional and wearable forms, creating a standalone wall panel.

His new work, titled I Am the Hungry Cat, is now on view in the museum's Contemporary Art + Design Gallery. This framed composition features a graphic depiction of his cat, Valentino, using 68 different colors of beads. It includes thought bubbles illustrating Valentino's favorite foods, as part of Williams's“Yum Series.” The artist explained that by centering imagery of his cat and favorite foods, detailed in bold colors and expressive lines, the piece functions as a self-portrait. Drawing inspiration from Pop Art, the artwork connects ancestral artistic traditions with a contemporary sensibility, expanding the narrative possibilities of glass as a medium.

Williams began learning beadwork at a young age on the Cattaraugus Seneca Indian Territory and later refined his techniques with master beadworkers from his mother's Northern Arapaho family. The Rakow Commission is an annual award supporting the creation of new glass art by encouraging artists to explore technical or conceptual projects that might otherwise be financially unfeasible. Endowed by the late Dr. and Mrs. Leonard S. Rakow, benefactors of the museum, the program was first presented in 1986 and is now in its 40th year. Past recipients include both emerging and established artists such as Te Rongo Kirkwood, Charisse Pearlina Weston, Leo Tecosky, Preston Singletary, Silvia Levenson, Klaus Moje, and Lino Tagliapietra.

Source: Hyperallergic

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