The Arts Foundation is excited to announce J. Gibran Villalobos as its new Interim Grants and Programs Director.
We’re pleased to welcome J. Gibran Villalobos as Interim Grants and Programs Director at the Arts Foundation.
Gibran is an arts administrator, curator, and educator with deep experience across civic engagement, cultural policy, and program development. He most recently served as Senior Program Officer at the Institute of Museum and Library Services and as Interim Executive Director of the Chicago Artists Coalition, and he teaches in the Department of Arts Administration & Policy at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. His prior roles include Assistant Curator at the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago; Partnerships and Community Engagement Manager for the Chicago Architecture Biennial; Cultural Liaison for the Chicago Park District; Curator-in-Residence for the Chicago Cultural Center; and Collections and Exhibitions Manager at Glendale’s Department of Public Art.
Gibran’s leadership and advocacy have earned national recognition: he launched a summit of Latinx artists and administrators, received the Chicago Community Trust’s Act Up Award, was named a Leaders for a New Chicago recipient by the Field and MacArthur Foundations, and was selected for the Americans for the Arts Leaders of Color Fellowship. He is a Civic Leadership Academy Fellow from the University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy, served as Chair of the Chicago Artists Coalition Board of Directors, and helped establish the Auxiliary Board at the National Museum of Mexican Art. His work has been presented internationally, including at Fabrica de Arte Cubano during the 2017 Havana Biennial.
Gibran holds a BA in Art History and a BS in Public Relations from Northern Arizona University, and dual MAs in Arts Administration & Policy and Modern Art History, Theory, and Criticism from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.
Please join us in welcoming Gibran to the Arts Foundation. More about his work: www.jgibranvillalobos.com.
Photo by Anjali Pinto
