The Columbus Museum of Art has selected Cynthia Amoah as its 2026 Aminah Robinson Writing Resident, the museum announced April 23. Beginning May 1, Amoah — a poet, educator, and multidisciplinary artist — will spend three months living and working in Robinson’s renovated home studio in Columbus and will receive an unrestricted cash award in support of her creative practice.

Amoah, who identifies as a Ghanaian American poet and performer, said the residency carries both personal and communal weight. “To be named the 2026 Aminah Robinson Writer in Residence is both an immense honor and a responsibility I hold with deep care,” she said in a statement. “Aminah devoted her life to preserving Black life, history, and stories — her legacy a compass for many artists like myself. Through my lens as a Ghanaian American poet and performer, I hope to honor that legacy by creating new work that engages the Columbus community and nurtures the voices and histories she devoted her life to preserving.”

Aminah Brenda Lynn Robinson, a celebrated Columbus artist known for her intricately layered visual narratives, passed away in 2015. In her will, she bequeathed her artwork, writings, home studio, and personal property to the Columbus Museum of Art. The museum’s Aminah Robinson Legacy Project centers three ongoing initiatives: the documentation, preservation, and exhibition of Robinson’s work; the renovation and stewardship of her home studio; and a series of artist fellowships and residencies designed to support the next generation of African American artists, writers, researchers, and scholars.

Source: Columbus Museum of Art