Mike Abrams
Union Arts
I have been a part of the dc Arts community since my arrival to the area in 1988. In 1989 I entered the Corcoran BFA program as a painter of landscapes and followed that vein of imagery continuously and developed my abilities as a sculptor able to work in the mediums of carving and metal work of several types in addition to learning the nature of slumped glass .I received my BFA from The Corcoran School of Art in 1993. In 1996 I began operation of the Carriage house studios on Capitol Hill the building is host to 7 working studios for Artists. In spring of 1998 I began the setup of operations For the Eye St Studios which later commonly became known as Goldleaf. This was a warehouse building located near Chinatown which was the host to 8 artist studios which grew to 11 artist studios. The building was sold for development and the studios closed February 2011 in addition to the operations of studio spaces I taught several sculpture classes at the Art League School in Alexandria from 1998 to 2008. These classes included Stone and wood carving, welding and steel fabrication, sculpture for teens and intro to 3d classes. Currently I am involved in the creation of an Arts centric building and have created additional studio work spaces and 2 large flex work /class/show spaces at the building location on 411 NY Ave NE which Ii call UnionArts and Manufacturing. The goal of the space is to provide a combination of work and educational opportunities at our location that can be accessed by local artists and the general public to use for promotion of the Arts. We are now in the process of branding and creating classes and workshops that will enable the growth and security of the work spaces for all forms of artistic endeavors. I have already produced several exhibitions of art and provided venue space for experimental music in Jazz.

Travis Bowerman
CulturalDC, Flashpoint
Travis Bowerman serves as the Deputy Director for CulturalDC. He began working with CulturalDC in April 2007 as the Director of Operations and became the Deputy Director in November 2011. He oversees all internal operations, including CulturalDC’s programs, finance, facilities and human resources. One of Travis’s earliest and proudest accomplishments with CulturalDC was taking on the transformation and renovation of Source, which had been saved from eminent closure and now, continues as a vibrant arts venue for the local community and home to several arts organizations.

Prior to working at CulturalDC, Travis was the Director of Programming for the Washington Performing Arts Society, where he coordinated and programmed a multidisciplinary performing arts series that brought world-class artists to venues throughout the metropolitan DC area. He oversaw the organization’s educational and outreach programs, artist residencies and commissions for new work. Previously, Travis served as General Manager for World Music/CrashArts in Boston, a leading presenter of global music, dance and cutting edge performance. He was also Interim Manager for Boston Musica Viva, a contemporary chamber music ensemble.

Travis is currently a member of the Grants Committee for the Arts & Humanities Council of Montgomery County. He has taught courses and lectured on arts administration and the music industry at Northeastern University and American University.

Travis graduated magna cum laude from Northeastern University with a Bachelor of Science in Music Industry and a minor in business administration. He also attended Boston University for graduate studies in arts management. At various times throughout his life, Travis has been on stage as a magician, musician and actor and has even tried his hand at composing. Now he continues to serve the artistic community by paving the way for others.

Kristina Bilonick
Founder, Pleasant Plains Workshop + Manager, DC Art Studios (A.Salon, Ltd.)
Kristina Bilonick is an artist, arts administrator and entrepreneur. In 2010 she founded Pleasant Plains Workshop- an incubator that houses art studios, a printshop, office space, gallery space, and a local goods shop in two storefront spaces near Howard University. Bilonick has over 10 years experience working in art galleries, studios and for art nonprofits in the DC area. In addition to managing her Pleasant Plains space, she is the director of DC Arts Studios- one of the largest and longest standing arts studios buildings in the area. DCAS was founded by George Koch in 1979 under the name A.Salon, and for over 30 years has offered affordable work spaces for dancers, theater groups, visual artists, and other creatives at it's sprawling 30,000 SF location in the Takoma neighborhood of DC.

Michael Janis
Washington Glass School and Studio
Founded by two Washington, DC area artists, Tim Tate and Erwin Timmers, the Washington Glass School and Studio is a unique educational program in the Nation's Capital area, operating as the sculptural glass education and resource center for the mid-Atlantic region, serving students, artists and the general public. As one of the largest and most successful warm glass centers in the United States, it has seen over 4000 students in its 12 years and sent many on to rewarding careers as artists and educators. The Washington Glass School’s goal is to introduce artists in other media to the depth, processes and joys of glass to enhance their work.

In 2003, Michael Janis joined the studio, and with his architectural background, the Washington Glass Studio has successfully completed many public artwork commissions, including the works for the EPA, NIH, Vanderbilt University, Safeway supermarket’s first public art project, and most recently, the new cast glass doors for the Library of Congress Adams Building.

Michael Janis developed a focus in glass artwork after working for twenty years as an architect in the United States and Australia. His work has been shown at major galleries and art fairs and is included in the permanent collection of the Art Institute of Chicago. In 2011, Michael mounted a solo exhibition at Boston’s Fuller Craft Museum. Awarded a Fulbright Scholarship, Michael went to the UK's University of Sunderland and National Glass Centre in 2012. American Craft magazine profiled of Michael's work in their April/May issue. The James Renwick Alliance has named him the “Distinguished Artist” for Glass 2013/2014 and will he will present and lecture on his work at the Smithsonian American Art Museum in May 2014.

Lisa Neher
Jackson School
Lisa Neher has been a working artist at the Jackson School Artists location since 1999. In 1979 the space was organized by A.Salon, Ltd. and the Corcoran School of Art and was signed over the Jackson School artists in 2001. These artists established the Jackson School Artist organization and continue to manage the space today.

Lisa has served as Secretary from 2000 until 2010 and currently serves as Secretary for the General Membership. She has chaired the Spring Open Studios since there beginning in 2001. In addition she worked as Sweat Equity coordinator from 2000 until about 2006 and she maintains the member roster, the website and the mailing list which she turned over in 2012.

Paul So
Founder, Hamiltonian Artists
Paul is the founder of Hamiltonian Artists, which is a five year old non-profit organization in Washington DC dedicated in providing professional development opportunities to innovative artists in their early careers. Through its signature two-year fellowship program and its Professional Development Speaker Series, Hamiltonian Artists aims to help promising emerging artists to develop important entrepreneurial skills and resources for a successful and sustainable art career. Paul is also a painter, art collector, entrepreneur, and a physics professor at George Mason University.