Raven Chacon is a composer, performer, and installation artist born at Fort Defiance, Navajo Nation. A recording artist over the span of 24 years, Chacon has appeared on over eighty releases on national and international labels. He has exhibited, performed, or had works performed at LACMA, The Whitney Biennial, Borealis Festival, SITE Santa Fe, Swiss Institute Contemporary Art New York, and more. As an educator, Chacon is the senior composer mentor for the Native American Composer Apprentice Project (NACAP). In 2022, he was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in Music for his composition Voiceless Mass, and in 2023 was awarded the MacArthur Fellowship.

Chacon is the winter quarter spotlight artist in The California Studio: Manetti Shrem Artist Residencies.

Artist talk: Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026, Ann E. Pitzer Center. This artist talk is made possible with additional support from the William E. Valente Endowment.

On Friday, Feb. 6, 2026, the Gorman Museum of Native American Art will host a student ensemble from the Department of Music performing Chacon’s American Ledger No. 1 in the Gorman courtyard. The piece is about 20 minutes and begins at 4 p.m. In case of inclement weather, the performance will be held in the Ann E. Pitzer Center. 

Organized by The California Studio: Manetti Shrem Artist Residences in the Maria Manetti Shrem Art Studio Program.