Arts Leadership Praxis
Cultivating the leaders and visionaries of tomorrow
Studio Museum in Harlem Arts Leadership Praxis 2025 Cohort at the Studio Museum’s Headquarters. From left to right: David Lisbon, Devin Malone, Taylor Jasper, Naiomy Guerrero, Dhyandra Lawson, Ade Omotosho, Kendyll Gross, and Antoinette Roberts. Photo: Justin French
Designed with the long-term goal of redressing inequities in arts institutions, the Arts Leadership Praxis is aimed at supporting artists, curators, educators, arts professionals, and students from diverse backgrounds.
The Arts Leadership Praxis is an unparalleled, Museum-initiated program conceived specifically to support people with approximately five to seven years of experience in curatorial, education, or public programming positions in museums.
Drawing from the Museum’s mission, the program continues the institution’s longstanding role in cultivating the leaders and visionaries of tomorrow.
Participants in the 2025 Arts Leadership Praxis class
The annual six-month program provides professional development and cohort-building opportunities to mid-career cultural professionals of color and those deeply invested in Black cultural production.
Working in cultural institutions across the nation, the eight participants in the 2025 class were nominated by experts in the field and then reviewed through a rigorous application process. They are:
- Kendyll Gross, Assistant Curator, Newcomb Art Museum
- Naiomy Guerrero, Museum Specialist in History, Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
- Taylor Jasper, Susan and Rob White Assistant Curator of Visual Arts, Walker Art Center
- Dhyandra Lawson, Andy Song Associate Curator, Los Angeles County Museum of Art
- David Lisbon, Curatorial Assistant, Whitney Museum of American Art
- Devin Malone, Director of Public Programs and Community Engagement, Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco
- Ade Omotosho, The Nancy and Tim Hanley Assistant Curator of Contemporary Art, Dallas Museum of Art
- Antoinette Roberts, Assistant Curator of Contemporary Art, Baltimore Museum of Art
Participants in the 2024 Arts Leadership Praxis class
The selection of the inaugural class’s eight New York–based participants occurred through nomination by experts in the field and an application process.
- Dejá Belardo, Assistant Curator, The Shed
- Meredith Breech, Associate Director of Exhibitions, Fotografiska
- Carla Forbes, Curatorial Assistant, Brooklyn Museum
- Margarita Lila Rosa, Independant Curator
- Jenée-Daria Strand, Assistant Curator, Public Art Fund
- Tsige Tafesse, Curatorial Fellow, The Kitchen; Program Manager, Processing Foundation
- Gee Wesley, Curatorial Assistant, MoMA
- Imani Williford, Curatorial Assistant, Brooklyn Museum