Staff Bios
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Douglas Back
Web Designer & Digital Media Producer
Originally from Chicago and now a Brooklynite, Douglas graduated with a B.F.A. in Lighting Design from The Theatre School, DePaul University. Douglas has worked in several off-Broadway and regional theatres, including Hartford Stage, Ford's Theatre, and the Goodman Theatre. After a multi-year stint with Apple, he merged his background in the arts with his experience in technology and joined LMCC. Outside of the office, he enjoys politics, typography, the ’85 Chicago Bears, and Oxford commas.
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Sean Carroll
Program Associate, Artist Residencies
Sean grew up on Boston’s North Shore and spent many years living Washington, DC before moving to Brooklyn in 2004. He moonlights as a bike tour guide and his varied occupations have included executive assistant, teacher, black-and-white film processor, caterer, science lab photographer, lifeguard, and paper boy. In his spare time he likes to take pictures, ride trains, read maps, and drive his bicycle in and around the city, and currently serves on the Board of Directors at the Camera Club of New York. He is a fan of the scenic route and the Boston Red Sox. Sean went to college at American University in Washington, DC and received an MFA in Photography from Pratt Institute.
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Anne Dennin
Director of Development
Anne comes to LMCC from Alliance for Resident Theatres (ART/NY), the service organization for New York’s vibrant not-for-profit theatre community, where she was Vice President for Institutional Advancement. Previously she was Executive Director of Performance Space 122, the distinguished East Village performing arts venue dedicated to presenting experimental theatre, dance, and performance art. She was a founding producer of the successful Jim Henson International Festival of Puppet Theater and ran her own arts consulting firm, Anne Dennin Arts Management, for 12 years working with many of New York City’s most distinguished performing arts institutions. Anne is a passionate arts consumer and enjoys working on behalf of all artists who make New York City the vibrant and exciting place that it is.
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Erin Donnelly
Special Projects Consultant
Erin Donnelly is Residency Director and Curator and has been with the Council since 2001. Independent and guest curatorial projects include Henry Street Settlement/Abrons Art Center, Gigantic ArtSpace, and “the lab” at the Roger Smith Hotel all in New York City, The Peekskill Project, and Kunsthalle Exnergasse in Vienna, Austria, among others. She has worked on exhibitions at the Lower East Side Tenement Museum; the Grey Art Gallery, New York University; and the New Museum of Contemporary Art. She has taught at New York University. She was awarded a Helena Rubinstein Curatorial Fellowship, Independent Study Program, Whitney Museum of American Art and received an MA from Gallatin School of Individualized Study and certificate in Museum Studies from New York University.
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Emily Katzif
Development Manager
Prior to joining LMCC in November 2007, Emily worked for two years in The MacDowell Colony’s New York office, writing grant proposals for its artist residency program and supporting the Colony’s centennial campaign. Before MacDowell, she was a member of the NYC development teams of Arts & Business Council and Americans for the Arts. In addition to grant writing for these and other nonprofits, her professional experience includes technical writing, teaching, and organic farming. Originally from Massachusetts, and having lived in various cities on both coasts and in between since receiving her B.A. from Syracuse University, she has now settled happily in Brooklyn. When not at LMCC, she would ideally spend her time writing, traveling, and eating good food (preferably in combination).
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Ben Kerrick
Program Manager, Artist Residencies
Ben Kerrick manages LMCC's Swing Space program, which matches visual and performing artists and arts groups with unconventional spaces in Lower Manhattan. Ben joined LMCC in 2005, first working as Executive Assistant before transitioning to the Artist Residencies Department. When not running around downtown, Ben is an occasional performer, director and choreographer. Past performance credits include numerous appearances with FLUXCONCERT and with the Guerrilla Dance Team, which Ben founded. He is a member of the Lincoln Center Theater Directors Lab, and holds a BA in Theater from Whitman College in Walla Walla, Washington. A native Idahoan, Ben is currently based in Brooklyn, where he grows vegetables on his roof and is an avid locavore.
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Adam Kleinman
Curator
Adam Kleinman is a curator and critic who has programmed numerous projects ranging from intimate site specific performances to museum-scale exhibitions, conferences and various print based endeavors. Although catholic, his main interests lay with architecture, economics, and history.
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Melissa Levin
Program Manager, Artist Residencies
Melissa Levin is currently Program Manager in Lower Manhattan Cultural Council’s Artist Residencies Department, overseeing the Workspace studio residency program, for emerging visual artists and writers, and the Paris Residency. Melissa received her BA with honors in Visual Art and Art History from Barnard College. Previously, she worked at Artforum International Magazine, Andrea Rosen Gallery, and The Whitney Museum of American Art. She has participated in panels at Dumbo Arts Center, Lower East Side Print Shop, Center for Book Arts, and Elizabeth Foundation for the Arts; and lectured at Parsons, The New School for Design, and The Cleveland Institute of Art. Melissa has also curated exhibitions at Cuchifritos Gallery, ISE Cultural Foundation, Andrea Rosen Gallery, LMCC, and Taylor De Cordoba Gallery.
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Maureen McMahon
Development Associate
Maureen joined LMCC in January 2008 after two years as Development Assistant for The MacDowell Colony. As LMCC's Development Associate, Maureen helps organize special events, from The Downtown Dinner, LMCC's annual benefit which raises upwards of $1 million each year, to VIP and cultivation events for prospective donors, current funders, and other friends of LMCC. She also produces the annual appeal, manages gift processing, and supports the Development team. Maureen graduated from Wellesley College in 2005 with a French major and an Art History minor. Since 2006, she has served on the New York Committee for the Wellesley College Friends of Art, an alumnae fundraising organization that supports the college's campus art museum. In addition to attending art and theatre events around the city, Maureen enjoys cooking (or at least attempting to), exploring the city's restaurants, and reading and writing about food.
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Marisa Olsen
Marketing & Communications Associate
Marisa considers herself a native New Yorker. She spent her first 10 years on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, and then made a brief detour to New Jersey. Marisa graduated from Connecticut College in 2006 with a BA in Art History. At Conn, she studied with Barbara Zabel, Joseph Alchermes, and Arnold Chang, and also curated a Contemporary Chinese Art exhibit from the Charles Chu collection. During a semester abroad, she studied with Libby Sheldon, famous art authenticator at University College London. During summers, she enjoyed working at the Visual Arts Center of New Jersey, the domogallery, and teaching ballet. She also had an internship in the Sotheby's Impressionist & Modern Art department. Upon graduating, Marisa worked at Sotheby's as an Editorial Assistant for Preview Magazine. After Sotheby's, Marisa spent a year in a Boston boutique staffing firm, where she honed her business and sales skills. Marisa is now thrilled to be back in New York City, where she enjoys visiting galleries, cooking gourmet meals, and working on her food blog, Les Foodités.
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Prachi Patankar
Program Associate, Grants & Services
Prachi Patankar joined the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council to cooordinate LMCC's regranting and professional development programs. Prior to joining LMCC, Prachi worked at the Tenement Museum as their Education Associate, where she curated the Tenement Windows Arts program bringing contemporary artists in dialogue with new immigrants through the Shared Journeys (ESOL) program. She also managed Kitchen Conversations, a daily public dialogue Program and the monthly immigration film series at the Museum. Prachi has a MA from New York University in International Education and Communications. She was born and brought up in India and moved to the United States at the age of sixteen. After receiving her BA from Swarthmore College in 2000, she went back to India where she established a school for children of people displaced by dams. She is a founding member of the 3rd I New York collective, a monthly film and music salon that showcases the works of South Asian independent filmmakers. In addition, she has worked in various capacities with media-focused nonprofits like POV and Youth Channel, as well as those focusing on social justice issues such as WITNESS, CHHAYA, and DRUM (Desis Rising Up and Moving).
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Diego Segalini
Acting President
Born and raised in Brooklyn, Diego is a first generation Italian-American artist and businessman living in New York City. Prior to joining LMCC in May 2007, Diego spent three years as Managing Director of 3-Legged Dog Media and Theater Group where he played a pivotal role in fundraising, financial planning and project management to establish a new multi-million dollar Art & Technology Center in Lower Manhattan. Most recently he worked for Nonprofit Finance Fund where he was responsible for performing financial and organizational analyses for clients nationwide. Diego has designed dozens of shows in his career from Shakespeare to Sartre to musical standards and continues to pursue his artistic endeavors as an independent producer and production designer for stage, film and special events. He holds a double B.A. in Drama and Mathematics from Vassar College and is a proud alum of Stuyvesant High School.
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Deborah Sprzeuzkouski
Production & Operations Manager
Born and raised in Viroflay, France, Deborah moved to New York after spending many years in Northern California. In the last 10 years she has become quite Americanized, but her friends take pleasure in mocking some of her lingering Frenchisms. She holds a BS in Business with a minor in Art Administration. She has worked at the Museum of Art & History in Santa Cruz, where she did not surf, but did assist in upgrading the museum's administrative department. She last worked at the Wattis Institute for Contemporary Arts in San Francisco, managing the gallery space and producing exhibits for the Capp Street Residency Program. Deborah enjoys making things happen, and has been fortunate to assist a wide variety of artists in accomplishing their vision.
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Kay Takeda
Director of Grants & Services
Kay joined the Council in March 2005 to develop and oversee the Council’s downtown-focused cultural grants, borough-wide grant programs and artist services. Prior to joining the staff, she served for five years as Program Manager of the Advised Funds and Regranting Programs division at Arts International, where she oversaw a roster of national-level grant programs providing support for visual and performing artists working internationally. Her background includes three years with Snug Harbor Cultural Center in Staten Island, New York as Assistant Director of Visual Arts, where she managed contemporary art exhibitions and public programs as well as a studio program that provided workspace and professional development opportunities for visual artists. She serves on the Board of Directors of Goliath Visual Space in Brooklyn.
