Who are we?

The Arts and Public Life initiative is comprised of a dedicated team of staff at the Arts Incubator in Washington Park and the Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts, a wide network of resident and visiting artists (including current and former participants in our residency program), community participants, programmatic partners, and friends.

Arts and Public Life seeks to engage diverse audiences—artists, South Side community organizations, youth, adults, and University of Chicago students, faculty, and staff—in conversation and exchange around the arts. Become a part of the family by joining our mailing list.

The Team:

Theaster Gates, Jr.
Director
Arts + Public Life, Office of the Provost
Professor
Department of Visual Arts
theaster@uchicago.edu | 773.702.8974

Darryl Anderson
Operations & Finance Manager
Arts + Public Life
Arts Incubator
dtanders@uchicago.edu | 773.834.0428

Quenna L. Barrett
Education Programs Manager
Arts + Public Life
Arts Incubator
quenna@uchicago.edu | 773.834.0224

Lori A. Berko, Esq.
Chief Operations Officer
Arts + Public Life
Place Lab
lberko@uchicago.edu | 773.834.7757

Nootan Bharani
Lead Design Manager
Arts + Public Life
Place Lab
nbharani@uchicago.edu | 773.795.1940

Harold Brown
Building Maintenance
Arts + Public Life
Arts Incubator
hbrown1@uchicago.edu

Jeanelle Chang
Associate Director, Major Gifts
Alumnia Relations and Development/Harper Court
Arts + Public Life
Arts Incubator
jchang09@uchicago.edu | 773.834.4324

Sabrina Craig
Cinema Programs Manager
Arts + Public Life
Arts Incubator
scraig1@uchicago.edu | 773.834.7826

Isis Ferguson
Associate Director of City and Community Strategy
Arts + Public Life
Place Lab
isisf@uchicago.edu | 773.795.1939

Mejay Gula
Building Strategist + Construction Manager
Arts + Public Life
Place Lab
mejay@uchicago.edu | 773.834.8869

Naomi Miller
Operations + Administrative Manager
Arts + Public Life
Place Lab
millern@uchicago.edu | 773.795.1654

Gabriel Moreno
Shop Manager and Preparator
Arts + Public Life
gmoreno@uchicago.edu | 309.299.2443

Nikki Patin
Community Arts Engagement Manager
Arts + Public Life
Arts Incubator
npatin@uchicago.edu | 773.834.5141

Carson Poole
Project Specialist
Arts + Public Life
Place Lab
clpoole@uchicago.edu | 773.834.8862

Maya Ruiz
Marketing Coordinator
Arts + Public Life
Arts Incubator
mayaruiz@uchicago.edu

Shirin Shahin
Project Management Coordinator
Arts + Public Life
Place Lab
shahin@uchicago.edu

Valentina Solano
Projects and Administrative Coordinator
Arts + Public Life
Arts Incubator
vsolano@uchicago.edu | 773.702.9724

Marya Spont-Lemus
Community Arts Program Manager, University of Chicago Charter School
Arts + Public Life
Arts Incubator
spont-lemus@uchicagocharter.org | 773.702.5255

Nadia Sulayman
Associate Director for Community Arts and Programs
Arts + Public Life
Arts Incubator
nsulayman@uchicago.edu | 773.834.9803

Sonia Yoon
Assistant Director of Communications
Arts + Public Life
Arts Incubator
soniayoon@uchicago.edu