Celebrating Women's History Month 2023

Ma. Elizabeth “Mariles” L. Gustilo

Senior Director, Arts and Culture, Ayala Museum

In the face of challenges brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic in the Philippines Mariles Gustilo’s mindful approach to leadership was “simply…work…steadily,” which led to novel ways of experiencing the Ayala Museum in person and online. She led the building renovations, refreshment of the exhibitions and digitization of the rich collections. As a result a broader and younger generation of Filipinos are learning about the art and history of their country. 

Akeia de Barros Gomes 

Senior Curator, Mystic Seaport Museum 

Reframing narratives are at the heart of Akeia de Barros Gomes’s inaugural role as senior curator of maritime social history at the Mystic Seaport Museum in the U.S.

An intriguing topic she explored at a recent public talk was how America’s maritime history would be presented if it had always been told through Black and Indigenous voices. 

Ayesha Williams

Executive Director, The Laundromat Project 

The Laundromat Project makes art accessible and relevant in New York City neighborhoods where people of color live. The organization’s ambitious vision under Ayesha’s leadership connects community initiatives to art, thereby positioning artists and residents as change agents in their communities. 

Dr. Alka Pande

Curator, Art Historian and Art Consultant

For three decades Alka Pande’s visionary leadership has inspired the transformation of India’s museums. Her landmark exhibition ‘Women and Deities’ at the Bihar Museum is part of her continuing exploration of the range of women in the arts of India from the sacred to the popular. 

Cassidy Caron  

President, Métis National Council 

Cassidy Caron is the first elected woman to lead the Métis National Council. She is an advocate of Métis identity, history and culture on the national and international stage. Cassidy has said that she is guided by her ancestors who led before her while being mindful of the generations of leaders who will come behind her.  

Marcela Guerrero

Senior Curator, Whitney Museum of American Art 

Marcela Guerrero’s current exhibition about Puerto Rican art in the devastating aftermath of Hurricane Maria in 2017 is considered one of the most significant surveys of contemporary Puerto Rican art in half a century. Marcela’s exemplary scholarship, advocacy of Latinx art, and commitment to reaching more Latinx audiences are among the reasons why she is breaking new ground as a senior curator at the U.S. museum.

^{Photo credit Javier Romero.}

Farzana Wahidy

Documentary Photographer  

Born in Kandahar, Afghanistan, Farzana has been blazing a trail for women in the arts and media since the early 2000s when she became the first female photographer in Afghanistan to work with international media agencies. Breaking the conventions of a repressive society, she chronicles the lives of Afghan women with empathy and courage. 

Rakhi Sarkar 

Founder and Director, Centre of International Modern Art, Kolkata

Rakhi Sarkar is democratizing the world of art for artists and collectors in India. CIMA and its awards help new artists struggling to find opportunities to showcase their talent especially those from small towns or rural areas. The affordable Art Mela program makes quality works of art accessible to a new generation of younger collectors. 

Abra Lee

Horticulturist, founder of Conquer the Soil, author, thought leader

Abra Lee has championed the garden history of African Americans and their gardening traditions from slavery through Reconstruction to today. In doing so, she has also advocated for urban gardens. 

Dr. Claudine Booner

Vice-Provost, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, Acadia University

Dr. Claudine Bonner believes that change begins with education and understanding. It is in this spirit that she is leading transformational change at Acadia University in Nova Scotia, Canada. As its first vice-provost, equity, diversity and inclusion, Claudine’s role is to ensure everyone at the university feels accepted and supported so that they may thrive. 

Nicole A. Moore

Director of Education, The National Center for Civil and Human Rights

As a public historian, Nicole A. Moore takes the difficult histories and uncomfortable conversations around enslavement and makes them accessible to general visitors so the enslaved may be seen as resilient people with the same emotions, thoughts and talents as any other human. For visitors descended from the enslaved, Nicole hopes they leave the museum with a sense of pride for who their ancestors were, and not what they were.

Arpita Das

Founder-Publisher, Yoda Press

Arpita Das’s independent publishing house, Yoda Press, is a platform for authors writing about subjects outside the comfort zone of mainstream publishers in India. Her lists not only amplify voices tackling gender, sexuality, and feminism, but they are changing laws. Yoda Press’s books have been cited in court proceedings that have decriminalized homosexuality and recognized transgender rights.

Ilene Sova  

Artist Educator

Toronto-based Ilene Sova, Ada Slaight Chair of Contemporary Painting and Drawing at OCAD University, has dedicated her career to art and activism. Blank Canvases, an arts program for elementary school children, encourages them to think and live creatively. As a response to the attacks on women’s rights and trans rights in Canada and abroad, she founded The Feminist Art Collective, a platform for multidisciplinary art.   

Little Amal

Puppet and activist

Little Amal is a 12-foot puppet of a young refugee from war-torn Syria who has walked about 10,000 km across 13 countries searching for her mother. A charity fundraiser and public art event with a moral message from a child at its heart, Amal’s appeal to the world is, ‘don’t forget about us.’ The funds help Syrian refugees in Greece and Turkey through the British charity Choose Love. 

^{Photo credit The Walk Productions / Igor Emerich}

Arundhati Mitter

Executive Director, Flow India 

Arundhati Mitter’s organization develops programs and projects that connect students to cultural entities in India. In an educational system based on rote-learning, Arundhati’s mission is to prepare students for the 21st century as open-minded and collaborative critical thinkers by making culture relevant and accessible to them.

Kendra Walker 

Founder, Atlanta Art Week

When Kendra Walker saw that Atlanta’s thriving arts scene deserved national recognition she decided to do something about it. The result was Atlanta Art Week which brings together galleries, artists, collectors, and art enthusiasts in the U.S. city with a goal of promoting contemporary art and providing opportunities for growth and recognition.