About the Madison Arts Commission
The Madison Arts Commission (MAC) consists of ten residents and one Alder. One full-time and two part-time staff support their work. The City created MAC in 1974 to guide the Mayor and Common Council on arts policies. The Mayor appoints commissioners, who are then confirmed by the Common Council. MAC is in the Department of Planning and Community and Economic Development.
The mission of the Madison Arts Commission (MAC) is to encourage artistic activities and initiate cultural programs that integrate, support, and advance arts and culture as an essential part of life in Madison. We value the role of art and artists in Madison. MAC supports a full creative life for all. We commit to policies and practices of cultural equity and empowering a just, inclusive, equitable city.
Commissioners
Papa-Kobina Brewoo
Papa-Kobina Brewoo, known as PKB, is a distinguished dance artist and educator. He was born and raised in Accra, Ghana, and moved to Madison in 2001. His journey with Hip-Hop began in 8th grade. It has since evolved into a dynamic career spanning over two decades. PKB works in Hip-Hop, House, Krump, Breakin’, Freestyle, Popping, Ballet, Contemporary, Jazz, Afro Styles, Modern, Salsa, Bachata, Merengue, Cumbia, Reggaeton, & Ballroom. He has been on MTV’s Made, America's Got Talent, World Of Dance, and the DanceOn Network. He organized the B.A.M (Battle, Arts, Music) Festival, The Shindig, Stop on the Dime Midwest Qualifier, & Honor the Warriors.
PKB founded The Hitterz Collective, Majestic Dance Crew, Fr3sh Trilogy, & Epic Flow Movement. The Hitterz Collective has produced regional and national dance competitions. Schools, community centers, summer camps, dance studios, and private workshops teach their street dance curriculum. PKB’s vision is to create opportunities for youth, community members, and working artists. His mission is to spread awareness of street dance styles by building a community that celebrates Black artists. As a commissioner he will promote awareness, healing, connection, education, & expression through dance and creativity.
Anna January joined Wisconsin Watch in November 2023 as the Director of Institutional Giving. She leads Wisconsin Watch’s fundraising efforts to cultivate relationships with foundations, corporations, and philanthropic organizations to generate sustainable funding to support the newsroom’s mission. She has previously worked in fundraising at PBS Wisconsin, the University of Wisconsin-Division of the Arts, and Madison Children’s Museum.
January has a background in philanthropy, arts administration, grants, and community development. She has a master’s degree in art history and communication studies from McGill University, where she also completed a Fulbright Research Scholarship. She is currently serving as president of the Association of Fundraising Professionals-Greater Madison chapter She has served on the Arts Commission since 2018.
Angela Johnson
Angela Johnson is Teaching Faculty in the UW-Madison Art Department teaching the Service Learning in Art classes, where students learn about Public Art as well as work with community art partners throughout Madison. Previously, she was the Exhibitions Coordinator at James Watrous Gallery, Director of the Wisconsin Regional Art Program and Non-credit art courses through Continuing Studies at UW-Madison and Art Studio Manager at Madison Children’s Museum. She is also a small business owner who was born and raised in Madison.
Johnson is also a teaching artist and creativity coach. She received a master’s in art education and an MFA from UW-Madison. Her art practice in alternative photo processes and installation revolve around nature, finding balance and storytelling.
Bethany Jurewicz is the Director of Public Programming and Community Outreach at Garver Feed Mill. Formerly, she was the Exhibitions and Events Manager at the James Watrous Gallery, a program of the Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts, and Letters where she remains on staff part-time as a financial advisor.
After gaining a master’s degree in Contemporary Art Theory from Sotheby’s Institute in London, she moved to New York City and developed an expansive career in the food, beverage, and event industries. She relocated to Madison in 2014 and currently lives in the Atwood neighborhood on Madison's east side. Upon arrival, she gained employment as the business manager for various organizations and simultaneously produced large-scale culinary and visual art pop-ups as fundraisers for local non-profits, including The Apartment Project, Municipal, Makeshift, and the CSArt Dinner Series. Recently, she co-produced Femmestival with the Culinary Ladies Collective and curated Outside Looking In, a drive-thru exhibition in the windows of Garver Feed Mill. She looks forward to planning public events at Garver and throughout Madison that highlight Madison's creative economy while supporting artists, musicians, and culinary entrepreneurs.
T.L. Luke (she/they) is a professional illustrator and small business owner in Madison, Wisconsin. Concerned with the political schism happening across the country, but especially in Wisconsin, Luke shifted her illustration practice (which previously focused on mental health, queer issues, and healthy escapism) to focus on well-researched comics and infographics on current events in local politics, state taxes, art equity, and more. It has become her goal to make complicated subjects more digestible and accessible, and to encourage communities to start thinking critically about local policies.
Luke is also a book illustrator, consultant, teaching artist, activist, and public speaker. She has illustrated children's books (for Lerner Publishing and Rebel Girls), provides art equity consulting for local organizations, business professionals, and emerging artists, and has run workshops for tech companies on best practices for hiring local artists.
Prior to starting her business in 2018, Luke used to work as Exhibitions Manager for the Madison Museum of Contemporary Art and Revenue Agent for the Wisconsin Department of Revenue; these are two very different positions, and yet they provide a panoramic perspective for how her work is informed today.
Nick Pjevach is the Donor Database Manager at Madison Community Foundation, having previously worked at Arts + Literature Laboratory and the University of Wisconsin Foundation. He is a lifelong resident of Southeast Wisconsin, having come to live in Madison on two separate occasions, both to pursue degrees at UW: an MBA from the Bolz Center for Arts Administration and a BS in Computer Sciences.
Outside of work, Nick chairs the Economic Impact subcommittee of Greater Madison Music City, a broad coalition strategizing for equity among all members of our city's music ecosystem. He was a course instructor for Constructing the Real, a free online school put on by Art and Labor Podcast. “Break Stuff: Luddism, the Californian Ideology, and How to Make Technology Work for Us” attempted to explore the current weird, wired world we find ourselves in and how to navigate it. A follow-up will explore artistic expression in relation to Frederick Jackson Turner’s Frontier Thesis if he ever gets around to finishing the syllabus.
Alder Rummel grew up on the south side of Chicago in a mixed-race household. She came to Madison to attend the UW and never left! She learned about US empire and the history of US radical movements. She worked at cooperative businesses including the Mifflin St Grocery Coop and the Rainbow Bookstore Coop. She also worked for seven years for the WI Department of Revenue/DOR where She was a proud union member of AFSCME Local 1 until retiring on April 1, 2022. She is currently an LTE at DOR. For the last several years, she has been an active member of the Madison Chapter of Democratic Socialists of America.
As a neighborhood resident, she got involved in the Marquette Neighborhood Association, volunteered at neighborhood festivals, and participated in city planning efforts for the Cap East District and McPike Park. She first decided to run for Common Council in 2007 and served as the District 6 Alder until 2021. She is proud of the work I did creating new neighborhoods and businesses along the E Washington corridor, expanding community oversight of police, and planning for the Madison Public Market.
Tony Sansalone
Tony Sansalone, currently the Director of Development at Wisconsin Humanities, first relocated to Wisconsin to pursue a Master of Arts in Business from the Bolz Center in Arts Administration at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. His passion for working in nonprofits developed during his time at the Mansfield Art Center in his hometown in Ohio, where he focused on grants and outreach programming. Tony finds joy in cultivating relationships and promoting the impactful work that nonprofits contribute to individuals and communities, especially in his new home state of Wisconsin. Tony also received a BFA in Studio Art with a focus in drawing, painting, and printmaking from Bowling Green State University (Ohio). His artistic practice is heavily influenced by his Italian family, and he shares their stories through his charcoal drawings.
Staff
Meri Rose Ekberg administrates public art projects for the Madison Arts Commission. She also assists in historic preservation planning for the Landmarks Commission.
Meri Rose has lived in Madison since 2015. She was the Assistant Director of the UW-Madison Public History Project before this. She managed educational programming at Overture Center for the Arts for several years. She has experience in curating, planning festivals and events, managing collections, digital archives, and web design.
She has a M.A. In Library and Information Studies from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, an M.A. In Contemporary Art History, Theory and Criticism from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, and a B.A. in Studio Art and Art History from Western Washington University.
Angela Puerta started as an AASPIRE intern in 2014 and has been working full-time with the City since early 2016. She is bilingual in Spanish and has a bachelor’s degree in Architecture from her home land Colombia and a Master’s Degree in Urban and Regional Planning from the UW-Madison. Angela’s planning focus areas are neighborhood planning, community engagement and urban design.
Angela is also a professional musician, currently oversees music-related projects for the Madison Arts Commission and is an active member of the Greater Madison Music City (GMMC) team. Angela leads the Tourism Music Hub GMMC workgroup and assists implementing the Task Force on Equity in Music and Entertainment recommendations.
Karin Wolf started with the City of Madison in fall of 2006. She has a background in arts project management, research, writing, and educational programs. She manages arts grants, gallery spaces, art collections, and public art projects.
Previously, she was the Special Programs Coordinator at the Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design. In that role she created award-winning programs for educators and K-16 students in art, design and technology. She also worked as an educational assistant at the Madison Museum of Contemporary Art. She has a M.S. in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and undergraduate degrees in History, History of Cultures, and Afro-American History.
She is a longtime supporter of the arts and arts education. She has helped organizations create exhibitions, education programs, film festivals, and public art projects.
Past Projects, Programs, & Partnerships Reports
Projects, Programs, & Partnerships 2020-2022
Projects, Programs, & Partnerships 2018-2019
Projects, Programs, & Partnerships 2016-2017
Projects, Programs, & Partnerships 2014-2015
The Commission provides endorsements or letters of support to artists and organizations. These are not grants, but can support work in fundraising, marketing, or partnerships. Email your request to madisonarts@cityofmadison.com two weeks before a commission meeting. View upcoming meetings here.
Requests should include:
- Written summary outlining:
- Project purpose
- Why MAC support is important for project success
- How the project fits MAC's mission - Project budget
- Name and address we should send the letter to
- Draft letter
Contact
Madison Municipal Building
Department of Planning & Community & Economic Development
215 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd, Suite 017
P.O. Box 2985
Madison, WI 53701-2985
madisonarts@cityofmadison.com
Founding Ordinance
Logos
Download the MAC logo to use for all promotional materials related to projects and events funded by the Madison Arts Commission. The logo is available in three colors. Right click the image to save it to your computer.
