EXECUTIVE AND CREATIVE DIRECTOR

Leslie Thomas is the founding Executive and Creative Director of Art Works Projects. Meanwhile, she is also an architect, Emmy-award winning art director, and mom. A founding principal with LARC Inc. and LARC Studio, a national architectural practiced based in Chicago, New York and Los Angeles, Leslie is a graduate of Columbia University and the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service. Leslie’s work has been the recipient of grants from The National Endowment for the Arts, the Humanity United Fund and the Graham Foundation. Leslie is committed to the use of art and design for public good, and she uses all of her resources to accomplish her goals. Set aside the world of social media and Leslie can be considered a networking master. A self-avowed Luddite, Leslie doesn’t regularly use Twitter or Facebook, but her instinct for connecting people and her skill in mobilizing teamwork is what made Art Works Projects a reality. With the year 2008 seeing Leslie’s first blog entry, it’s hard to imagine what might happen next. When Leslie is not busy dreaming up a great new project or toting her son Nico to various destinations, she is discovering the joys of urban biking. She has also fallen in love with Haiti. E-mail lthomas@artworksprojects.org.

STAFF

Wendy Tng is a project coordinator and developer for AWP’s initiative on modern-day slavery, AT WHAT COST _ Human Trafficking/Forced Labor/Child Labor. She is a graduate of Oxford University and the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, and speaks Mandarin and a little French. She enjoys research and writing and constantly learning. She has lived on three continents thus far (Asia, Europe and North America) and aspires to cross more off her list. Part of her will always miss being right on the equator in Singapore, where she was born and raised. Wendy’s goals include understanding philanthropy and social entrepreneurship better, working for positive social impact and finding the perfect macaron. E-mail wtng@artworkprojects.org.

Chelsea Very is a graphic designer who hopes to use design in way that positively affects people and the environment. Chelsea studied at an individualized major of graphic design, marketing and visual arts, with a minor in Italian studies. After spending a semester in Florence, Chelsea found that Mr. Right only existed in Leonardo da Vinci. Chelsea loves The Paper Source and can only be dragged away from a yoga session with promises of red wine and sushi—she enjoys them separately but equally. Chelsea grew up in New Hampshire with three sisters, a sheep and a goat. She is a Chicago transplant that has learned to make the best of hibernating. Chelsea. E-mail chelseavery@gmail.com or visit www.chelseavery.com.

Kristin Esch is communications director for Art Works Projects and a project coordinator for Congo/Women: Portraits of War, The Democratic Republic of Congo. She is currently a research coordinator and associate editor at Cision in Chicago. Kristin has a bachelor’s degree from Illinois Wesleyan University with a double major in English writing and French. Upon graduation from college, Kristin taught English to francophone children in Martinique. She is interested in communicating news and events through various forms of media in order to connect the stories and reality of human rights abuses with the general public. Kristin spends her spare time identifying all possible graduate school options and Chicago area BYOB restaurants. E-mail kesch@artworksprojects.org.

Raven Moore is the program director for AWP’s DARFUR/DARFUR project. Having academically studied the use of image and alternative media as educational tools and “messengers” for creating political awareness, Raven is devoted to cultivating civic engagement in human rights issues. She graduated from Bates College with a bachelor’s degree in political science with a focus in cultural politics. Raven is always on top of Internet and social media trends. She bore witness to—and is responsible for—Leslie’s first blogging event. Raven often wonders if the growing popularity of using chickens as pets is really only a Chicago phenomenon. E-mail rmoore@artworksprojects.org or read her blog at www.thewriterbabeseries.com.

Matthew Dabbert is a computer expert and attends to AWP’s HTML needs. He attended Purdue University, originally pursuing chemical engineering, and then the University of Illinois at Chicago. His latest project is www.GreenStoreAndMore.com. Matt has also ventured into online radio. Matt is an expert at moving couches, and attempts to beat his own record of couches moved each year. He likes games as far-ranging as Scrabble and poker. Matt also likes Andrew Bird and Japanese movies. Matt grew up in Naperville and likes nothing better than a summertime Chicago street festival. E-mail matthewdabbert@yahoo.com.

Alexandra Guajardo is an exhibition coordinator for Congo/Women and AWP’s upcoming exhibition, BLOOD STONES. Alex graduated with a bachelor’s degree in art history and a minor in Italian from the University of Illinois. She has experience working in both the gallery and museum arenas at the National Museum of Mexican Art and the Zolla/Lieberman Gallery in Chicago’s River North gallery district. Alex is passionate about art appreciation and education as well as human rights. Alex grew up in Chicago and attended the Latin School of Chicago. One of Alex’s most embarrassing moments was confusing Spike Jonze with Spike Lee—to Spike Lee’s face. Lee responded by correcting her and snapping her photograph. Alex is also a fan of all things sparkly. E-mail aguajardo@artworksprojects.org.

Jaclyn Robbins is an exhibition coordinator for the Congo/Women project and AWP’s upcoming BLOOD STONES exhibition. She earned a bachelor’s degree in art history from Columbia College Chicago with a focus in non-Western art. During her time at Columbia College, Jaci assisted in the production of Pandemic in Print, an exhibit whose goal was to bring public attention and awareness to the AIDs epidemic in Africa. She is currently at work in enrolling in graduate program in art history and is devoted to working in tandem with AWP to bring awareness to human rights issues through artistic means. Jaci manages to always offer a fresh eye and a positive attitude. E-mail jrobbins@artworksprojects.org.

CREATIVE TEAM

Greg Doench is an architect and exhibition designer who has worked internationally on a range of cultural, commercial, and institutional buildings. As a principle in the national architectural design studio LARC, Doench brings years of international project experience as well as a background in large buildings and small scale furniture and fabrication. He provides the creative team with strong technical support in all of its installations. Doench’s experience in designing cultural centers also allows him to understand and account for the challenges and opportunities of the large international tours undertaken by AWP’s installations.

J. Matthew Jacob, a New York City-based video editor and post-production supervisor, has been an integral member of the DARFUR/DARFUR project since its inception. Professionally, his clientele includes Jaguar, Old Navy, ExxonMobil, Atlantic Monthly, and NASCAR. After studying experimental film at the University of Oklahoma, Jacob honed his skills as an editor and a sports photographer. After moving to New York, he found a niche troubleshooting documentaries such as Murderball, The Trials of Darryl Hunt, and How to Eat Your Watermelon, seeing these films through the finishing process and into the international festival circuit. He has since seen his client base expand to advertising and the art world as he advises and supervises productions on digital acquisition through post-production.

Jane Sachs is a founder and principle at HS2 Architecture. Since 2006 Sachs has worked helping to launch Darfur/Darfur and consulting on Congo/Women. With a degree in fine arts, a graduate degree in architecture, and 15 years of practice as principle at HS2 Architecture, Sachs has been valuable voice in determining the direction of Art Works Projects. In 2006, Leslie Thomas with Jane Sachs, Thomas Hut and Greg Doench formed the architectural joint venture LARC Studio, one of the 24 pre-qualified design firms selected by the New York City Department of Design and Construction for 2008 to 2009.

Hunter Hollins is currently at the U.S. Department of the Interior and has been working with museums and non-profit organizations for more than 15 years. Hollins was most recently a volunteer career counselor for the Women’s Center in Fairfax, VA. For five years Hollins managed International Arts & Artists, a non-profit organization which organized traveling exhibitions from Asia, Europe and within the United States. Hollins’ exhibition experience began at the University of California at Santa Barbara and continued to the Smithsonian and the National Gallery of Art. He was raised on cattle and sheep ranches in the northern part of California and remains active in environmental initiatives.

SPECIAL PROJECTS

Emma Ruby-Sachs is an assistant editor for the Congo/Women project. She graduated from University of Toronto Law School and works as an articling student at Sutts Strosberg LLP. She holds a bachelor’s degree from Wesleyan University in women’s studies.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Amy Eliot, AIA, is an architect and educator focused on the interface between architecture and interior design. She is a partner in the San Francisco design firm, Tom Eliot Fisch, where she provides leadership and direction to higher education, multi-family, and infrastructure projects for both public and private sector clients, as well as non-profits. A passion for interdisciplinary art and design thinking lead her to teach for a decade at the California College of the Arts, where she held the position of Associate Professor and Chair of the Department of Interior Architecture. During her tenure at CCA, Eliot was involved in both developing and implementing studio and theoretical studies which explored the boundaries between art and design and how they can inform each other in ways that expand how we see the world and respond to it. A graduate of the Harvard Design School and Smith College, she also sits on the boards of Creativity Explored, a visual arts center where artists with developmental disabilities create, exhibit, and sell art; and LINE, AIA San Francisco’s design journal, whose mission is to connect Bay Area architects and designers with the broader community by provoking dialogue about critical issues that affect architectural and urban design, environmental and economic policy.

Susan Leach is a lawyer who has practiced in California and New York. Her practice has been varied and has included complex business litigation including an emphasis on securities class actions, corporate governance and related counseling and regulatory and exchange proceedings, but her primary focus now is in public law, including election and constitutional law. Leach is a graduate of Georgetown University Law Center and Gonzaga University.

Alissa Lillie is an interior designer working in the San Francisco Bay Area. After working for other design offices in San Francisco, she founded Lillie Design in 2003. Lillie Design specializes in educational interiors projects and interiors for residential clients. She has also worked on large institutional projects such as San Francisco City Hall and Berkeley Civic Center. Lillie Design has worked with many non-profit organizations to create spaces that reflect their character and work.  From 1997 to 1998, Lillie served as the Director of 2AES/Center for Critical Architecture in San Francisco. This non-profit sponsors an architectural lecture series for the public and competitions to further design interest and integrity in the area.

Susan T. Rodriguez, FAIA, is an architect in New York City. She is a managing partner and design principal in Polshek Partnership Architects, an internationally recognized architecture firm whose work focuses primarily on projects for educational, cultural, scientific and governmental institutions. Rodriguez’s award-winning designs have been widely published and recognized with numerous local and national awards. Her work includes buildings and spaces for the Smithsonian Institution, New York Botanical Garden, Brooklyn Museum, Asheville Art Museum, Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation, Bard Graduate Center for the Decorative Arts, Lycee Francais de New York, Smith College, Sarah Lawrence College, Indiana University, NYC Public Schools, Common Ground Community and the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine. As an extension of her professional work, Rodriguez is actively involved in promoting the importance of design in the public realm. For the past decade, she has served on the Boards and Executive Committees of the Van Alen Institute and the Architectural League of New York.  She was appointed as a national peer for the General Services Administration and was elected to the College of Fellows of the American Institute of Architects in 2003. In the academic realm, Rodriguez frequently participates as a design juror and has taught numerous studios at Cornell University, City College and Columbia University.  She also serves as the Co-Chair of the Dean’s Advisory Council at Cornell University’s College of Architecture, Art and Planning and has been appointed to the University’s President’s Council for Cornell Women. Rodriguez received a bachelor’s degree in architecture from Cornell University’s College of Architecture, Art and Planning and a master’s degree in architecture from the Columbia University’s Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation.

Leslie Thomas also serves on the Board of Directors.

ADVISORY COUNCIL

Olivier Bercault
David Bobrow
Lyn Burgess
Denise Canter
Dolores Connelly
Helen Doria
Tracey Fletcher
Peter Haley
Hunter Hollins
Daniela Hrzic
Alexandra Kerr
Laurel Lipkin
Jayme McLellan
Kimberly Merlin
Lisa Odyniec
Karen Rutzick
Jessica Stuart
Jane Sachs
Gretchen Steidle Wallace
Clio Chafee

Art Works Projects  |  1137 W. Taylor St. No. 113   Chicago, IL 60607   info@artworksprojects.org