Cézanne Charles is a designer, curator, and researcher with 20 years of experience working at the executive and senior management level within the creative industries (nonprofit and for-profit) in both the United States and the United Kingdom. Her work focuses on the intersection of art, design, technology, culture, economy, social justice, and public policy for future-making.

From 2008-2019, Cézanne served as director of creative industries at Creative Many, where she led the design and implementation of the company’s creative industries research. Here, Cézanne also designed and directed programs that provided the knowledge, funding, networks, and advocacy needed to help empower the practices of Michigan artists, designers, and makers, with a core focus on Detroit. Prior to that, she was executive director of New Media Scotland, the nation’s art and technology development organization. New Media Scotland provides production and commissioning funds, exhibition/performance, networking and dialogue and professional development opportunities to artists, designers, and creative technologists.

She is an active presenter at forums on creative industries research, place-based creative work, design, and new technology including the 2019 Include Conference; 2019 Re:Publica Sequencer Keynote; 2018 SXSW Cities Summit: Economic Growth for Everyone; 2017 Grantmakers in the Arts: Detroit Storytelling (Ford Fdn./Knight Fdn.) + Assessing Impact and Measuring What Matters (Emily Hall Tremaine Fdn.); 2017 Detroit Design Summit: Design + Race; 2017 TACA Perforum (Dallas, TX) Cross Sector Collaborations; 2017 Artist Thrive Convening (Berea, KY); 2017 Saint Etienne International Design Biennale (ShiftSpace + Universal Basic Policy Dialogues Curator); New Museum IdeasCity (2017 NYC + 2016 Detroit) 2016 SXSW SXGoodHub Arts + Impact (moderated by Mara Walker, Americans for the Arts).

Cézanne serves on the Stewardship Board for Design Core Detroit’s UNESCO City of Design initiative, the Allied Media Projects Board of Directors, the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs, the Americans for the Arts Creative Economy Advisory, and the Zoning Advisory Group of the Detroit Planning Commission. Charles has a Master of Public Affairs (formerly Administration) from the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy University of Michigan and a Bachelor of Arts in Theatre Studies from The Ohio State University.

Pronouns: she/her/hers
cezanne [at] rootoftwo [dot] com