4Culture

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• Ronda Billerbeck

Ronda Billerbeck is the Cultural Programs Manager for the City of Kent. She oversees the Kent Arts Commission and their activities including an active performing arts program, community events, granting programs, a variety of publications and the City's Public Art Program and collection. She developed Kent's Spotlight Series of performing arts events, a season of professional performances and increased attendance by 66%. Ronda has served as President of Arts Northwest and is currently Advocacy and Lobbying Chair for the Washington State Arts Alliance. She is a founding member of the South King County Cultural Coalition and an active member of Western Arts Alliance, Association of Performing Arts Presenters, Americans for the Arts and the King County consortium of Local Arts Agencies. In 2004, she completed a Senior Management Fellowship at Americans for the Arts in Washington D.C.

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• Shelley Brittingham

Shelley Brittingham is an Assistant Director with the City of Bellevue Parks & Community Services Department and a former Recreation Coordinator for the King County Parks & Recreation Division. She has a dance background and extensive experience conducting arts programs for all ages through parks & recreation, afterschool programs and the Boys & Girls Clubs of King County. She has presented at national and local conferences on school age/youth care issues. Shelley is a Burien resident and also serves on the Burien Arts Commission.

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• Josh LaBelle

Josh LaBelle is the Executive Director of the Seattle Theatre Group which operates the Paramount and Moore Theatres in Seattle. He spent four years with the William Morris Agency in Los Angeles, and eventually worked as an assistant booking concerts in the Music Division. He spent several years as a professional musician, performing and recording, primarily with T-Bone Burnett & Sam Philllips. Josh is also on the boards of the Washington State Arts Alliance Foundation and the Association of Performing Arts Presenters.

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• Dan Mayer

Dan Mayer is the interim Executive Director for the Kirkland Performance Center where he has served as Associate Director for the past two years. Dan has an extensive history of non-profit arts experience in King County, as a free-lance planning consultant providing crisis and transition management for a number of arts organizations including On the Boards, Empty Space, Spectrum Dance Theatre, Photographic Center Northwest, The Jewish Film Festival, and nationally with the National Performance Network, Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts in New York and Chicago, and Arts International.

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• Eduardo Mendonca

Eduardo Mendonca is a resident of Renton and native of Brazil. He is a professional composer/musician and Director of Show Brazil Productions, a local Brazilian music and dance group well known throughout King County at numerous fairs and festivals. Eduardo is also the Co-Founder and Director for BrasilFest, an annual ethnic festival held at Seattle Center. He is a voting member of The Recording Academy (Grammy and Latin Grammy). Eduardo's street performance has been a part of 4Culture's Site Specific Program.

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• Latha P. Sambamurti

Latha P. Sambamurti serves on the Redmond Arts Commission as Chair of Community Programming. She is a teacher/lecturer on Indian art and a professionally trained vocalist and performer of classical Carnatic (southern Indian) music with a number of solo and ensemble performances here in the Northwest, Canada and India. She has formed bands with musicians in the Seattle area and in Vancouver, BC and given performances of popular (film) songs from India. In addition, she has written, directed and choreographed numerous productions for children based on the heritage and culture of her native India.

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• Karen Bouton

Karen Bouton joined the South King County Genealogical Society in 1994, serving as Vice President for two terms. In 2004, she became the Society's Historian and later, the Saar Cemetery Project Coordinator. For her cemetery work, Karen received the 2007 Washington State Genealogical Society award and King County's John D. Spellman Historic Preservation Award in 2008. At the Greater Kent Historical Society; Karen has been the organizer of the Society's obituary project since 2005 and has served as secretary on the Society Board since 2006. In 2007, Karen received a Certificate in Genealogy and Family History from the University of Washington Extension.

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• Brian J. Carter

Brian J. Carter serves as Education Director of the Northwest African American Museum [NAAM], which opened in March 2008. Brian graduated with high honors from Stanford University, where he majored in American History with a minor in African and African American Studies. He is also a graduate of the Master's program in Museology at the University of Washington, where he completed internships with the Henry Art Gallery and NAAM.

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• Ellen L. Ferguson

Ellen L. Ferguson has more than 25 years development and community relations experience in museums. From 1981 to 1994, she served as Development Officer at the Burke Museum and, since 1994, has been the Burke's Director of Community Relations. She holds a B.A. in Political Science and History from the University of Puget Sound and a Master's in Museology from the University of Washington.

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• Tom Ikeda

Tom Ikeda is founding Executive Director of Densho: The Japanese American Legacy Project, which teaches young people about democracy through the stories of Japanese Americans incarcerated during World War II. Prior to Densho, Tom was as a General Manager at Microsoft Corporation, developing multimedia CD-ROM titles. Tom holds a B.S. in Chemical Engineering, a B.A. in Chemistry, and an MBA from the University of Washington.

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• James Rasmussen

James Rasmussen is the third generation of his family to serve on the Duwamish Tribal Council. After graduating from Franklin High School, James attended the Berkley School of Music in Boston for two years, before completing his music performance major at Western Washington University. As a classical and jazz musician, James has toured nationally and internationally with established artists and ensembles, as well as forming an award-winning group, the Jazz Police, which he conducts and directs. Additionally, James is Director of the Duwamish Longhouse & Cultural Center and President of the Green Duwamish Watershed Alliance.

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• Elizabeth P. Stewart

Elizabeth P. Stewart came to her position as Director of the Renton History Museum in 2006, from Annapolis, Maryland, where she had served as Research Historian for the state-operated Banneker-Douglass Museum for six years. She has a B.A. from the University of South Carolina and a Ph.D. in American History from American University in Washington, D.C.

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• Ellen Terry

Ellen Terry has served as Director of Grants and Exhibits at Humanities Washington over the past three years. She previously worked as Curator of Public Programs at the Washington State History Museum after having served as that institution's Education Curator. Ellen holds a Master's Degree in Not-for-Profit Management from Seattle University, a Master's in Museology from the University of Washington, and a B.A. in Art History from Mount Holyoke College.

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• Heather Trescases

Heather Trescases joined the Eastside Heritage Center as Executive Director in 2005, following a move to Bellevue from her native Toronto, Canada. She holds a Master's in Public History from the University of Waterloo, Ontario, an Honors B.A. in History from Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario, and a Licence d'Histoire from l'Université de Paul Valéry in France. Heather currently serves as President of the Association of King County Historical Organizations [AKCHO].

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• Richard Anderson

Richard Anderson is the Executive Director of the Northwest Railway Museum in Snoqualmie. He has been with the Museum for 15 years and has guided the organization through a period of rapid growth, and through a transition from a volunteer-managed museum to one managed by a full time professional staff. Richard has an undergraduate degree from the University of British Columbia and his area of academic interest is the role railroads played in the development of the west. He is versed in collection care techniques for large artifacts including locomotives, freight cars and coaches.

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• Brooke V. Best

Brooke V. Best is a LEED certified preservationist and author, who received her M.S. degree from the University of Pennsylvania. After graduation, she served as field supervisor for the restoration of the c. 1765 Morris-Jumel Mansion in New York City. For seven years, she was employed by R. Christopher Goodwin & Associates, Inc., a cultural resources management firm in Maryland where she successfully managed a wide range of public and private projects. Since re-locating to Seattle in 1997, she has been involved with the Southwest Seattle Historical Society, Friends of Georgetown, AIA Seattle, and DocomomoWEWA. She is currently employed at Site Story, a small consulting practice that specializes in cultural heritage, public facilitation/outreach, historic preservation and sustainability.

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• Kathleen Brooker

Kathleen Brooker is the new Executive Director of Historic Seattle Preservation and Development Authority. Before coming to Seattle, she spent fifteen years as president and CEO of Historic Denver. Prior to that, she served as deputy state preservation officer in the New Mexico State Historic Preservation Office. Kathleen was also executive director of the Lowell Historic Board in Lowell, Mass. She has long held an interest in both the arts and heritage, and came to preservation and her interest in the built environment through her training as an architect.

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• Marc Brown

Marc Brown (chair) is an architect with Snyder Hartung Kane Strauss (SHKS) Architects in Seattle, where he works on large-scale institutional projects involving research and preservation design. Prior to this he was co-owner of Cristalli Brown, Inc., providing building design services and fabrication of hand-forged architectural metalwork and fine art. In earlier positions with Cardwell Thomas and others, he managed the design and construction of high-end residential projects incorporating original artworks, managing a large staff of architects, engineers, and specialty consultants.

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• Anita Halstead

Anita Halstead has been an arts educator and creativity consultant for over thirty years. With a Masters degree in Creative Education, she has conducted hundreds of workshops and graduate level courses for schools, businesses, and non-profits throughout the Northwest. Until her retirement in 2005, Anita was Director of Education at the Frye Art Museum. She lives on Vashon Island in Dockton, in an historic house with an award-winning garden. Anita is currently leading the planning and creation of a signed interpretive trail along the Dockton waterfront, where shipbuilding, brick-making, and fishing were the center of island commerce in the early 1900s.

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• Jennifer Meisner

Jennifer Meisner serves as executive director of the Washington Trust for Historic Preservation, a statewide preservation non-profit. For ten years prior to this appointment, she was lead staff to the Pioneer Square Preservation District Board for the City of Seattle, Department of Neighborhoods. Jennifer earned a Masters of Architecture, with a Certificate in Preservation Planning and Design, from the University of Washington, during which time she participated in the UW Rome Program. Since 1995, she has taught graduate level courses at the UW College of Architecture & Urban Planning.

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• Susan Stevens

Susan Stevens is the current owner of a house that is both on the National Register of Historic Places and a designated King County Landmark. Susan and her family have extensively restored the residence to its original state. Susan is also a co-owner of SGS Glass, a commercial glazing contractor that has performed window replacement and restoration work at several historic buildings in Seattle including the University of Washington's Savery Hall, the Compass Center in Pioneer Square, the Pier 59 Aquarium, and the Colman Building. Susan has 28 years experience in the glass industry, is a currently on the board of directors for the Washington Glass Association.

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• Uwe Bergk

With an extensive background in architecture and commercial design both in Germany and the United States, Uwe Bergk's career has been focused on commercial and specialty retail design. He has developed design solutions for clients that include REI, DKNY, Crate & Barrel, Mithun, and the Port of Seattle. He has worked in the academic field as Instructor and Academic Director of the interior design program at the Art Institute of Seattle. Mr. Bergk recently returned to the professional design field as an Interior Designer with SRG Partnership. A LEED™ accredited professional, Mr. Bergk believes in integrated design solutions where space is shaped by the seamless integration of architecture, interior design, lighting design and sustainable practices.

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• Kevin Carl

Kevin is a real estate developer, architect and urban designer with a deep interest in community enhancement and sustainability. He is principal of Urban Innovations Group LLC and UIG Applied Energetics, a strategic planning and development firm, focused on green energy systems infrastructure, policy development and planning. Among his signature projects is the Sleeping Lady Retreat and Conference Center in Leavenworth, WA, for which he served as architectural designer and project manager. A more recent project was the Mercer Slough Environmental Education Center in Bellevue, WA, which brings children ages 9-12 hands-on experiences of fresh water ecologies, biology and sustainable living systems. He is a former Board Chair of the Pioneer Square Community Association's Public Spaces Committee; Vice-Chair of the Seattle Arts Commission; and Chair of the SAC Public Art Committee. He brings urban planning and real estate development experience as well as public art expertise to the 4Culture Board and is a liaison to the Public Art Advisory Committee.

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• Stefano Catalani

Stefano Catalani serves as Director of Curatorial Affairs/Artistic Director at Bellevue Arts Museum. During his time as Curator and continuing as Director, he has conceived and organized acclaimed exhibitions exploring the ever-evolving field of art, craft and design and has championed Northwest artists in his exhibition schedule. Catalani has written and contributed to many publications and exhibition catalogues. He serves as a guest lecturer at the University of Washington, Evergreen State College and other educational institutions. With a classical education in his native Italy, Catalani relocated to Seattle in 2001, bringing a strong theoretical background in art history and philosophy to his work in the region. At Bellevue Arts Museum, he focuses on "craft as a cultural signifier," stressing the social implications of craft.

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• Claudia Fitch

Claudia Fitch's work in public art playfully re-invents selected icons familiar in popular culture and art history. The social, architectural, and functional realities of each specific site guide her in developing noteworthy imagery, as well as in choosing the material construction, scale, and placement of each piece. In recent years, Claudia has created work for Qwest Stadium in Seattle, Washington; the Eastgate Park and Ride in Bellevue, Washington; and the Lynnwood Regional Express Transit Center in Lynnwood, Washington. Claudia is also the recipient of numerous art fellowships and awards. Her work can be seen in frequent exhibitions across the United States, as well as in several private collections in Washington State.

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• James Hughes

James Hughes is a trans-disciplinary artist focused on the intersection between art and technology. His work is concerned with systems, agency and information. James' research involves the use of real-time audio/video processing, audio/video synthesis, computer vision, sensors, networks, robotics and artificial intelligence to create interactive installations and performance platforms. James heads up the Fabrication Lab at the University of Washington Center for Digital Arts and Experimental Media (DXARTS) where he teaches art students everything from programming and electronics, to woodworking and CNC machining.

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• Robert Hutchison

Robert Hutchison is a principal at Hutchison & Maul LLC, a small architecture firm located in the Fremont/Wallingford area of Seattle. He has experience as both an Architect and Structural Engineer; he teaches architecture design studios as the University of Washington and Washington State University; he is a contributing author for numerous publications; he serves on the Board of the non-profit architectural organization Space.City; and he has implemented several conceptual art installations. Mr. Hutchison is especially interested in the overlap and relationships between Architecture and Art.

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• Kay Kirkpatrick

Kay Kirkpatrick's interest in public art originates from her background in ceramics, mixed media sculpture, and installation art. In her studio and public work, Kay explores intersecting patterns of the manmade and natural worlds. Her public art projects include the City of Wenatchee Washington Convention Center, the City of Seattle Southwest Police Precinct Building, and the International Arrivals Corridor at the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. Her work has also been displayed in exhibitions and collections throughout the Pacific Northwest. Kay's formal training includes a BFA in ceramics, as well as a Master's degree in Library Science, inspired by her interest in the research aspect of public art projects.

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• Susie Lee

Susie Lee's studio practice merges time-based sources such as video, sound and performance with compelling physical objects, both spatial and corporeal. This is an attempt to upend expectations of reality by giving substance to transitory elements. She has recently begun exploring the intersection of site-specific art and public communities through her project Still Lives, which is a series of video portraits generated from visits with long-term residents at the Washington Care Center, a Seattle area nursing home. Lee holds a Masters of Fine Arts from the University of Washington and a Masters of Arts in Science Education from Columbia University. She is represented by the Lawrimore Project in Seattle and Galleria Tiziana Di Caro in Salerno, Italy. Lee has received numerous awards and works as a curator, teacher and guest lecturer in addition to her studio practice.

The Board of Directors meets on the 4th Wednesday of each month (except when noted) at 4:00 in the 4Culture offices.

For more information, please contact Melissa Newbill, 206 296.4816.

2012 Meeting Schedule

January 25   |   February 22   |  March 28   |   April 25   |   May 23   |   June 27   |   July & August (no regular meeting)
September 26   |   October 24   |   November (no regular meeting)  |   December 5

Board Committee Meeting Schedule

Executive Committee: Monday, February 13, 2012, 3:30 - 5:00 PM

Finance Committee: Thursday, March 22, 2012, 3:30 - 5:30 PM

Government Relations Committee: Monday, February 13, 2012, 3:30 - 5:00 PM

Governance Committee: TBA

Real Estate Advisory Committee: TBA

all committee meetings are at 4Culture offices unless otherwise noted

The Arts Advisory Committee meets on the third Tuesday of each month from 3:30-5:30 in the 4Culture offices.

For more information, please contact Charlie Rathbun, 206 296.8675.

2012 Meeting Schedule

January 17   |   February 14   |  March 20   |   April 17   |   May 15   |   June 19   |   July 17
August 21   |   September 18   |   October 16   |   November 20   |   December 19

The Heritage Advisory Committee meets on the second Wednesday of every other month at 3pm in the 4Culture offices.

For more information, please contact Eric Taylor, 206 296.8688

2012 Meeting Schedule

February 8  |  April 11  |  June 13  |  August 8  |  October 10  |  November 28

The Preservation Advisory Committee meets at 3pm in the 4Culture offices on the following dates.

For more information, please contact Flo Lentz, 206 296.8682.

2012 Meeting Schedule

January 5  |  March 1  |  April 5  |  June 7  |  August 9  |  November 8

The Public Art Advisory Committee meets on the third Thursday of every month at 9am in the 4Culture offices.

For more information, please contact Willow Fox, 206 205.8024

2012 Meeting Schedule

January 19  |  February 16  |  March 15  |  April 19  |  May 17  |  June 21  |  July 19  |  September 6 & 27  |  October 18
November 15  |  December 20

The Local Arts Agency Network meets every other month on the 4th Thursday from 9:30 to 12:30. Locations vary.

For more information, please contact Charlie Rathbun, 206 296.8675

2012 Meeting Schedule

January 26   |  March 29  |  May 24  |  July 26  |  September 27  |  November 22   

Cross Cultural Committee

The Cross Cultural Committee meets at 11:00 am in the 4Culture offices on the following dates:

November 21, 2011  |  December 19, 2011  |  January 23, 2012  |  February 13, 2012  |  March 19, 2012  |  April 16, 2012  

For more information, please contact Debra Twersky, 206 205.8558