José Andrés, Clive Davis, Ava DuVernay, Marian Wright Edelman, Anthony S. Fauci, M.D., Serena Williams and Venus Williams will be honored at the National Portrait Gallery’s Portrait of a Nation Awards on Nov. 12.
The event, which started in 2015, “honor extraordinary individuals who have made transformative contributions to the United States and its people across all fields of endeavor from the arts and sciences,” according to the Smithsonian gallery. An exhibition featuring portraits of the honorees will open at the museum on Nov. 10.
Baratunde Thurston will host the event, with Laurene Powell Jobs presenting to Andres; Alicia Keys to Davis; Isabel Wilkerson to DuVernay; Hillary Clinton to Edelman; David M. Rubenstein to Fauci; Mellody Hobson to Serena Williams and Sonya Haffey and Isha Price to Venus Williams.
Kim Sajet, director of the National Portrait Galley, said in a statement, “It is important to honor and celebrate the people who are making a difference and inspiring others. The presenters, each of whom have a special relationship with the honorees, help us to offer meaningful thanks to this year’s awardees for their significant contributions to our nation.”
The national chairs of the event are Catherine and Michael Podell, Eduardo J. Ardiles and Joseph P. Ujobai, and Lyndon J. Barrois, Sr. and Janine Sherman Barrois. Washington, D.C., chairs are Kristin and John Cecchi and Susanna and Jack Quinn, and founding chairs are Wayne and Catherine Reynolds. Host Committee members include Robert and Arlene Kogod, Rubenstein, and Patty Stonesifer and Michael Kinsley.
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