Archive

  1. Sam Alison-Mayne

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    Sam is a real estate and construction specialist who has been committed to New York City’s urban environment since 2007.

    Sam grew up in Los Angeles and earned his BA in philosophy at UC Berkeley (2003). After spending years in the construction industry in NYC, Sam earned a master’s degree in real estate development from Columbia University (2013). Sam founded Tankhouse that same year.

    Sam has served as an adjunct professor at Columbia University and has been actively involved in graduate student mentorship. He currently serves on the board of the Fort Greene Park Conservancy, the Myrtle Avenue BID and co-chairs the Steering Committee for the Gowanus Improvement District.

  2. Zaxx Abraham

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    Zaxx Abraham is an urban planner working on the intersections of mobility, commercial revitalization, and community development. She is a Chevening Scholar with an MSc degree in Urban Planning – Social Development Practice from University College London Bartlett School of Planning. She has drafted laws and published policy references on active mobility and public transportation in the Philippines, Brazil, and the UK. She is now based in New York City, where she begins and ends her day by walking her dog, Lichen.

  3. Saloni Sharma

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    Ms. Sharma is Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Le Roi Capital. As a seasoned public policy professional with over 15 years of experience in economic development in New York City; Ms. Sharma brings keen leadership abilities and an extensive background in strategic planning, fundraising, project management, public policy, and government relations. She spearheads Le Roi Capital’s partnership development with a keen ability to advance organizational strategic goals. Prior to Le Roi Capital, Ms Sharma led economic development for Brooklyn at the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce, where she successfully launched new lines of businesses to augment Brooklyn’s vast business, nonprofit and maker communities.

    She has had past experience working at the United Nations and other local NYC nonprofits, including Seedco Financial and the Downtown Alliance. Ms. Sharma holds a Bachelor’s in Economics from St. Olaf College and a Master’s in Environmental Policy and Education from New York University. She is an alum of Coro Leadership New York, a professional network that develops future civic leaders in New York City. She was raised in Zambia where her family still resides.

  4. Rose Jefferson

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    Rose Jefferson has been a proud resident of Boerum Hill and the Wyckoff Gardens community for over 40 years. As a dedicated community advocate/creative educator and member of Grand Street Settlement, she has volunteered as a tutor for youth and GED students and conducted arts and crafts instruction for the Wyckoff Garden’s Neighborhood Community Center’s senior center, afterschool and evening/weekend programs. As a former member of the Wyckoff Gardens Advisory Committee, she has played an active role in supporting community fundraising initiatives and youth-focused programming that foster engagement and opportunity for local residents.

  5. Jonathan Molloy

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    Jonathan Molloy is a licensed architect and designer based in Brooklyn, NY. He is a Senior Associate at Solid Objectives Idenburg Liu (SO–IL), where he leads some of the studio’s most ambitious projects. He recently completed 144 Vanderbilt, a 26-unit residential building in Brooklyn, and currently oversees the new Williams College Museum of Art. Prior to joining SO–IL, Jonathan worked at Marvel Architects in New York and Moneo Brock in Madrid. He has taught at both Swarthmore College and Cornell University. He holds a Bachelor of Arts from Swarthmore and a Master of Architecture from Yale University.

  6. Johnny Thornton

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    Johnny Thornton is an artist, curator, and art director that lives and works in Brooklyn, NY. He received his Masters of Fine Arts from Parsons the New School for Design in New York City. Currently, Thornton works out of his art studio in Gowanus and serves as the Executive Director of Arts Gowanus and Co-Director of Established Gallery in Brooklyn.

  7. Emily C. Bell

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    Emily C. Bell is the Communications & Outreach Senior Manager at Gowanus Canal Conservancy, where she manages organizational communications and the outreach effort for the Gowanus Business Improvement District Formation Effort. Working across fields to create compelling narratives and support changemakers and creatives, Emily’s experience includes arts administration and marketing, nonprofit operations, fashion sustainability, and independent media, including co-founding Unsettled Podcast. She has a BA from NYU’s Gallatin School for Individualized Study.

  8. Info Session — Common Build: Gowanus

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    Info Session — Common Build: Gowanus
    Tuesday, August 5, 4–5 pm
    Online only via Zoom (RSVP)

    RSVP

    A recording will be posted on vanalen.org following the event.

    In this info session, learn about Van Alen Institute’s open call for emerging designers and artists. Common Build: Gowanus will create a temporary lighting installation that serves as a “gateway” to Gowanus — while providing artists/designers with tactical support activating public space, connections with community members, and access to Van Alen’s rich network of design professionals.

    We’re seeking to create a site-specific, highly-visible lighting installation that activates underutilized public space. The project should be a bold visual anchor, reflecting the neighborhood’s unique character and energy. It should also encourage foot traffic to small business commercial corridors and reinforce GoWalkabout Gowanus (@exploregowanus), the area’s emerging wayfinding strategy.

    Please note, this Open Call is not a request for proposals (RFP). In September 2025, a shortlist of applicants will receive the RFP and a winning proposal will be chosen by late October. The selected project will be on display for up to 11 months, beginning in Spring 2026. A comprehensive project schedule can be found on the Open Call form.

    Shortlisted applicants will receive $2,000 upon submission of their design proposals. The winning artist/designer will receive a $23,000 fee for development and delivery of the project, and will be awarded $75,000 for direct expenses of the project’s production, fabrication, and installation. Shortlisted and winning artists/designers will chosen by a committee of local residents and community leaders, in collaboration with Van Alen Institute.

    Common Build: Gowanus is made possible by a Commercial District Lighting awarded through the NYC Department of Small Business Services.

    RSVP

  9. Tiffany Baker

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    Tiffany Baker (she/her) is a Chicago-born, Brooklyn-based visual artist, working in oil, acrylic, pencil, digital media, and glass. Tiffany works in a unique style of realist portraiture marked by vibrant palettes and considered attention to her subject’s grooming, often merging somber, regal, and mundane themes, bringing forth her subject’s essence. In her portraiture, she transmutes life experiences into emotive visual expressions that reimagine trauma, embed messages of connection, and celebrate her identity as a Black woman.

  10. Francesca Bastianini

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    Originally from Caracas, Venezuela, Francesca is now a Brooklyn-based Lighting Designer and Educator. She is the co-founder and principal of Sighte Studio, a practice that folds education, research, and community engagement into design. She is also a Part-Time Assistant Professor at Parsons in the Architectural Lighting Program.