WebAward Judge Profile: Luis R. Cancel

Entrepreneurial Cultural Consulting
CEO

Luis R. Cancel – artist, arts administrator, and distinguished public servant – was appointed Director of Cultural Affairs of San Francisco by Mayor Gavin Newsom, whom he served from January 2008 until July 2011. While serving in San Francisco, former Speaker Nancy Pelosi appointed Mr. Cancel to the National Museum of the American Latino Commission (2009-2011), established by Congress and the President to study the potential creation of such a museum as part of the Smithsonian Institution.

From 2005 until December 2007 he was Executive Director of the Clemente Soto Vélez Cultural Center in New York City, where he raised $14 million in capital renovation grants. For many years he has served as an independent curator and consultant in the areas of Information Technology and Strategic Planning for various foundations and government agencies including the Rockefeller Foundation, The Smithsonian Institution, The US / Mexico Fund for Culture and the Inter-American Development Bank and, in Brazil, the Rio de Janeiro Museum of Modern Art, the Rio de Janeiro City Galleries, and the Tomie Ohtake Institute.

Mr. Cancel was Commissioner of the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs (DCA). Appointed by Mayor David N. Dinkins in December 1991, Mr. Cancel became the first Latino ever to hold that position. During his tenure, he was instrumental in increasing by 20% the City's annual support to the cultural sector, raising it to $89 million, making it the nation's third largest public agency supporting arts and culture. In addition, Mr. Cancel oversaw the Capital Improvements budget of $100 million. As Commissioner, Mr. Cancel worked with leaders from all of the arts disciplines to document the economic contributions of the arts to New York City's economy.

He served as Executive Director of the Bronx Museum of the Arts (1978 1991), where he was responsible for the Museum's expansion from the Bronx County Courthouse to a 42,000 sq ft permanent building and successfully overseeing its capital renovation project.

Mr. Cancel holds Masters Degrees from Harvard University - John F. Kennedy School of Government (MPA), and from New York University (MA), and has lectured extensively on twentieth-century Latin American art. He earned his BFA from Pratt Institute.

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