Susan Moller

Product Strategy, Research & Design at Makermoto Labs

Susan Moller is a User Experience Designer working with entrepreneurs and business leaders to bring innovative ideas to life; designing app & web-based prototypes, running experiments to prove product-market fit, and working with technical teams to develop and scale fully working, useful and delightful products. Susan has worked in a wide variety of industries and has built award-winning products for JP Morgan Chase, Bloomberg, and thinkorswim, and is currently studying the potential of generative AI.  Susan is also an artist developing her contemporary figurative oil painting practice.

John Cimino

Arts Entrepreneur and Corporate Consultant

John J. Cimino, Jr. is Founder and President of Associated Solo Artists (1972), Creative Leaps International  (1992) and the RENAISSANCE CENTER for Interdisciplinary Thinking, Knowledge Integration and Advanced Applications of Imagination (2018).  He was educated at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and the Juilliard School; he holds a uniquely interdisciplinary perspective and works across multiple disciplines dedicated to learning, human development, leadership and creativity.  He has brought his “Concerts of Ideas” and other educational innovations into projects of the White House, the United Nations, the Aspen Institute, and the Center for Creative Leadership, as well as to dozens of major corporations including GE, Pfizer and IBM and to numerous universities and professional associations on six continents.  Also an award-winning operatic and concert performer, a composer and librettist, John was a winner of the First Luciano Pavarotti International Singing Competition and made his debut performing opposite the famous tenor in a production of LA BOHEME at the Academy of Music in Philadelphia.  John lives in the lower Hudson Valley with his wife, Dr. Rachel St-Vincent, and feline companions, Einstein, Luigi, and Simba.   He can be reached at jcimino@creativeleaps.org.

Amy Weisser

Strategic Planning and Project at Storm King Art Center

Amy Weisser is Deputy Director, Strategic Planning and Projects at Storm King Art Center, where she incubates projects focused on the institution’s strategic growth. Weisser has spent 30 years supporting cultural institutions undergoing profound development. Prior to joining Storm King in 2018, Weisser led exhibition development for the National September 11 Memorial Museum from 2005 to 2017 and helped open the contemporary art museum Dia:Beacon and the American Museum of Natural History’s Rose Center for Earth and Space. She has also taught Museum Studies at New York University. Weisser holds a doctorate in Art History from Yale University.

Joseph Minuta Jr

Principal Architect at Minuta Architecture

The honorable Joseph Minuta, architect, a first-generation American of Sicilian and Irish descent, discovered his passion for architecture amidst a family legacy of masonry craftsmanship and engineering prowess from RPI. After graduating from Pratt Institute, he provided architectural services on a global scale and founded Minuta Architecture, fostering it into a highly respected firm of design and diversity in the Hudson Valley and is the only architect licensed to practice in 49 US States, Washington DC & Canada. Committed to community and the arts, he served as an adjunct professor and NECSD school board member. As an Orange County Legislator he advocates for architecture and the arts and fosters inclusivity, balancing his architectural endeavors with a commitment to public service and the enrichment of his community.

Website: www.minutaarchitecture.com

Gilbert Guaring

Global Head of Marketing and Strategic Planning, Urban Arts Projects

Gilbert Guaring is a visionary marketer, sustainability advocate, and seasoned communications strategist with over two decades of experience in leading creative industries globally. As the Global Head of Marketing, Sustainability, and Engagement at UAP (formerly Polich Tallix), Gilbert collaborates with the company's leadership and management teams across North America, Australia, Asia, and the Middle East to drive creative outcomes for the public and private realm. 

In addition to his role at UAP, Gilbert serves as the Board President at the Orange County New Arts Council, where he continues to champion the arts, support the council's initiatives, and strengthen the arts' presence in Orange County, New York. In 2017, he founded Be Extraordinary, a non-profit that empowers small and medium-sized businesses in the art, design, and built environment industries via thought leadership and strategic marketing.

Prior to joining UAP, Gilbert held key positions in leading advertising and communications agencies, where he worked on global, regional, and local integrated marketing projects for renowned multinational brands such as Unilever and P&G. With a passion for engaging consumers and clients, Gilbert brings a wealth of expertise and a forward-thinking approach to every project he undertakes.

Gilbert earned an MBA (honours) focused on Sustainable Enterprises from Griffith University, Australia, a BS in Business Engineering and Management from the University of California, Los Angeles, and a BS in Civil Engineering from the University of the Philippines in Manila.

Bronwyn Whittle

Independent UX/UI Designer

Bronwyn Whittle, originally from Ireland but now based in Brooklyn, NY, is a multi-faceted artist turned UX/UI designer with a knack for blending aesthetics and functionality. Her journey from traditional art to digital and graphic design was driven by a deep curiosity for the intersection of physical and digital mediums. With a foundation in the arts, marketing, and customer service, Bronwyn is pursuing a career in UX/UI design, where she combines human-centered design principles with data-driven decision-making. Bronwyn has collaborated with clients across a range of industries, including entertainment, Web3, music, education, athletics, and hospitality. Currently, she's designing a music education app with The Donovans Venom, a company aiming to provide access to music education in underserved communities.

Patricia Walsh

Founder PAW Arts, Public Arts Expert

Patricia Walsh believes that the built environment should reflect the communities it serves through design, beauty, and use. For nine years she managed the public art and community development programs at Americans for the Arts where she designed trainings and conferences, provided advice, researched, and advocated for the importance and inclusion of the arts in public spaces across the United States. She has spoken nationally and internationally on the value the arts bring to communities, and she has written on the various aspects of implementing a public art project including artists selection, cultural equity, and community engagement. Patricia built partnerships with the American Planning Association and Smart Growth America that led to local trainings and an evaluation project to cultivate the use of the arts to address community needs. Throughout her time with the organization, Patricia was a key resource to the media and provided information and on-the-record commentary to ARTnews, Nonprofit Quarterly, NPR, WBEZ Chicago, Associated Press, Apartment Therapy, and Chicago Tribune, among many other national and regional publications and news outlets.

Patricia was the program specialist for the city of Las Vegas where she coordinated their public art master plan. For the city of San José, California, she was the arts coordinator for the public art program, where she managed the city’s 250+ art collection, archived their collection materials, managed temporary public art installations, and organized community engagement events.

Patricia has participated in artists selection processes in Maryland and Virginia and was appointed to the City of Palo Alto’s public art commission. She is an advisor for the Arts & Planning Division of the American Planning Association and is a former co-chair of the Placemaking Council for Urban Land Institute Washington. Patricia holds a Master of Science in Arts Administration from Boston University, a Bachelor of Arts in painting from State University of New York at Plattsburgh, and an Associates in Applied Science in Commercial Art from Dutchess Community College.

Patricia lives in Poughkeepsie, New York, near where she was raised and close to family.