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Angela Washko: "The Future of the Hive" is 2026 Artprize Frontrunner

October 2, 2026
Six performers in surreal, elaborate costumes—including monsters, robots, and an unmasked woman with fox ears—sit at a long black table on a stage. Two fluffy white clouds rest on the glossy floor in the foreground against a dark backdrop.

ArtPrize 2026 public voting results were announced on September 26, and the frontrunners include a project by Stamps Professor Angela Washko. The Future of the Hive, a live theatrical performance and tabletop roleplaying game created by RetCanon Collective — Washko, Devan Shimoyama, and Terry Boyd — is in the New Media category’s top five pieces. 

The Future of the Hive takes place in an alternative galaxy where a colonizing force is beginning to expand its reaches. Seven player-performers take on the roles of members of unusual species and improvisationally play and perform — exploring space ecologies, multi-species commons, intersectional solidarity and collaboration, conflicting stakes on land, and collaborative worldbuilding through the wild façade of a space travel adventure game.

The piece, currently on view in Resonant Gallery on Western Michigan University’s Grand Rapids campus, has a closing reception on Friday, October 2 from 5 – 7 p.m.

Voting is open through Friday, October 2, at 10 p.m., and ArtPrize winners will be announced at an awards celebration at Acrisure Amphitheater on October 3.