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National Endowment for the Arts Announces Mario Garcia Durham as Director of Presenting and Multidisciplinary Programs
March 30, 2004
Washington, D.C. - The National Endowment for the Arts announced today that Mario Garcia Durham, founder and executive director of Yerba Buena Arts & Events in San Francisco, California, will join the agency as the director of presenting and multidisciplinary programs. In that position he will supervise the grantmaking and panel processes for performing arts presenting projects and multidisciplinary or interdisciplinary projects and provide leadership in those fields. He will begin his work at the Arts Endowment in June. "We are indeed fortunate to have someone of Mario Garcia Durham's experience and expertise to lead our presenting and multidisciplinary programs," said National Endowment for the Arts Chairman Dana Gioia. "His tenure at Yerba Buena Gardens and his history of curating and producing events will be valuable assets for the Arts Endowment in its ongoing commitment to artistic excellence and access to the arts for all Americans." Yerba Buena Arts & Events is based in San Francisco's culturally dynamic Yerba Buena Gardens Arts District. As executive director, Durham produces the annual Yerba Buena Gardens Festival that features more than 150 free presentations per year including performances of the San Francisco Opera, San Francisco Symphony, San Francisco Ballet, cultural and community festivals, music, theater, and dance series, and children's and family programming. The festival, which takes place from May through October, attracts a diverse audience of more than 100,000 people. A founding staff member of the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, Durham served as Assistant Artistic Director from 1992 to 1996, Performing Arts Manager from 1996 to 1997, and Performing Arts Curator from 1997 to 2000 working under the leadership of nationally recognized performing arts leaders including Baraka Sele and John R. Killacky. Durham serves on the Executive Committee of the Board of the Association of Performing Arts Presenters and on the board of the American Arts Alliance. In San Francisco he serves on the boards of Galeria de la Raza, Dance Art, Inc., and People In Plazas Concerts. He has served as a panelist for organizations including the Wallace Foundation, Arts International, and the San Francisco Arts Commission. He also has been an advisor for numerous projects such as the Executive Committee of National Dance Week - San Francisco and the redesigns of San Francisco's Civic Center Plaza and Union Square.
National Endowment for the Arts |
