Artist Mary Kelly elected to US Academy of Arts and Sciences

Mary Kelly, the American conceptual artist and feminist whose work provided the catalyst for the College’s renowned Women’s Art Collection, has been made a member of the prestigious American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

Mary is among 252 leaders in academia, the arts, industry, journalism, philanthropy, policy, research, and science elected to the august institution in 2026. The cohort also includes Murray Edwards alumna and Fellow, Hiranya Peiris, Professor of Astrophysics (1909) at the University of Cambridge.

The Academy, chartered in 1780, was established to recognise accomplished individuals and engage them in addressing the greatest challenges facing the young American republic. Among its first members was George Washington, first president of the United States, who said – in his first annual message to Congress in 1790 – ‘Knowledge is in every country the surest basis of public happiness.’ 

Mary, now recognised as one of the most significant artists of her time, stayed at Murray Edwards (then New Hall) during the academic year 1985-6, as artist in residence in collaboration with Kettle’s Yard. 

A creator of large scale narrative installations, she found contact with the University of Cambridge fed into her interdisciplinary approach to art. One of her major works from that period, Extase, part of the series Interim (1984-89), was acquired by the College.

Interim explores the identity of women in their middle years and the difference between the social construction of woman-as-object and how she experiences herself. Interim has four themes: Corpus (Body) (of which Extase forms part), Pecunia (Money), Historia (History) and Potentas (Power).

During her time at the College, Mary forged a friendship with then-President Valerie Pearl, who became the inspirational driving force behind the development of a collection of art by women artists. The three pairs of photo laminates that make up Extase were the foundational work of the New Hall Art Collection, now the Women’s Art Collection.

Mary returned to the United States in 1989, developing the Interim series as part of the Independent Study Program at the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York. Now based in Los Angeles, she is the Judge Widney Professor at the Roski School of Art and Design, University of Southern California.

The African American artist and writer Faith Ringold (1930-2024), whose works are also represented in the Women’s Art Collection, was also a member of the Academy of Arts and Sciences. 

This is a particularly notable year for election to the Academy, as it marks 250 years since the foundation of the United States. Academy President Laurie Patton said: ‘We celebrate the achievement of each new member and the collective breadth and depth of their excellence… The founding of the nation and the Academy are rooted in the inextricable links between a vibrant democracy, the free pursuit of knowledge, and the expansion of the public good.’