Toward a More Abundant Arts Ecosystem

Join Hamiltonian Artists at Umbrella Art Fair for a facilitated dialogue that will explore collecting, curating, and space-making in DC. The panel will include DC-based arts professionals Peter Chang, Ari Davis, Juanita Hardy, Anisa Olufemi, moderated by Lily Siegel.

Peter Chang
Co-Founder, Umbrella Art Fair, USAN USAN

A muralist and designer by trade, at the heart of Peter’s work is a passion for supporting small businesses and building community. An entrepreneur from a young age, Peter worked in events production, entertainment booking, marketing and sales before partnering to form No Kings Collective, a public art collaborative, in 2009. In recent years, in addition to running USAN USAN and Umbrella Art Fair, Peter has devoted more of his time to coalition building around causes passionate to him– supporting the artist economy and the AAPI community. Peter is the son of Korean immigrants and was born and raised in Montgomery County, MD.

Ari Davis
Art Collector, Kinetic Chair 

Ari segued from being an Emmy Award winning commercial production executive to the dynamic DMV real estate market as a realtor on the Your Partners team at Compass. Her heart is at the intersection of business and creativity with an underlying approach drawn from years of experience developing relationships, creative problem solving, successful fast paced negotiations, all with a keen eye for aesthetics. With a deep rooted professional history in visual craft, art patronage is a natural extension. In her free time she is on the Hamiltonian Artist’s Kinetic Board & the Hirshhorn’s Collector’s Council.

Juanita Hardy
Art Collector and Consultant, Co-Founder, Millennium Arts Salon

Juanita Hardy is Founder and Managing Principal of Tiger Management Consulting Group, a consulting firm specializing in executive coaching for business professionals and creative placemaking in the real estate industry. Hardy has over 45 years of business experience, including 31 years with IBM, and nearly 40 years in the arts as a nonprofit leader, trustee, collector, and patron of the arts. As Senior Visiting Fellow for Creative Placemaking (CPM) for Urban Land Institute (ULI), Hardy has spoken extensively on CPM to audiences across the US and in Europe. Her articles and essays have appeared in magazines and journals in the US and abroad. Her writing includes a sextet of articles on creative placemaking in Urban Land magazine. She is author of ULI’s 2022 publication “Recommendations from and Impact of Six Advisory Services Panels” and co-authored ULI’s 2020 Publication “Creative Placemaking – Sparking Development with Art and Culture.” Hardy’s 2023 essay “Gentrification without Displacement” appears in Volume 3 of The Place Economy published by Hoyne Communications based in Australia.

Anisa Olufemi
Fellowship Manager and Curator, Hamiltonian Artists

Anisa Olufemi is a curator, writer, and public programming coordinator dedicated to elevating underrepresented emerging artists—within and without arts institutions. They have worked primarily as an independent curator and cultural worker, mounting exhibitions in galleries and DIY spaces located in Washington, DC; and Chicago. Olufemi earned their BFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago with a focus in art history, arts administration, and writing.

Lily Siegel
Executive Director, Hamiltonian Artists

Lily Siegel is Hamiltonian Artists’ first Executive Director. Before joining Hamiltonian, Siegel was Executive Director and Curator at Tephra Institute of Contemporary Art (formerly Greater Reston Arts Center), Reston, Virginia, and has held curatorial positions at the Contemporary Jewish Museum, San Francisco; the High Museum of Art, Atlanta; and the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles. Siegel earned her MA in Modern Art History, Theory, and Criticism from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and BA in Art History, Theory, and Criticism from the University of California, San Diego.