SACRAMENTO, CA – Governor Gavin Newsom announced on February 11, 2020, the following appointments to the California Arts Council: 

New Appointments

Lilia Gonzales Chavez, 66, of Fresno, has been appointed to the California Arts Council. Gonzales Chavez has been executive director of the Fresno Arts Council since 2011. She was program officer of the San Joaquin Valley Workforce Funders Collaborative from 2009 to 2011 and a field representative for Assemblymember Juan Arambula from 2006 to 2009. Gonzales Chavez earned a Master of Arts degree in administrative leadership from Fresno Pacific University. This position requires Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Gonzales Chavez is a Democrat.

Alex Israel, 37, of Los Angeles, has been appointed to the California Arts Council. Israel has been a contemporary artist since 2010, with a broad conceptual practice that examines Southern Californian culture, the entertainment industry and the American Dream. He was a salesperson for Hauser & Wirth Gallery from 2006 to 2008, an assistant for the artist Jason Rhoades from 2005 to 2006 and at Sotheby’s Contemporary Art Department in New York in 2004, and a curatorial assistant at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles in 2003. He earned a Master of Fine Arts degree from the University of Southern California Roski School of Fine Arts. This position requires Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Israel is a Democrat.

Jonathan Moscone, 55, of San Francisco, has been appointed to the California Arts Council. Moscone has been chief producer of Yerba Buena Center for the Arts since 2015. He was artistic director of the California Shakespeare Theater from 2000 to 2015. He is a member of the Homeless Prenatal Program Board of Directors and the board of Alice Waters’ Edible Schoolyard Project. Moscone earned a Master of Fine Arts degree in directing from the Yale School of Drama. This position requires Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Moscone is a Democrat.

Reappointment

Anne Bown-Crawford has served as CAC’s Executive Director for the past two years. With nearly 40 years teaching at the secondary level, Bown-Crawford is a champion for arts education in California. She is a founding member of the Create CA Leadership Council, a statewide collective impact organization with a mission to rethink and create an educational environment for all California students, featuring arts education as a central part of the solution to the crisis in our schools.

Outside the classroom, Bown-Crawford’s sphere of influence spans from community-based work, helping to link the creative industry with economic development; to statewide leadership as an arts advocate; to international impact, endorsing creative education in higher education and technology settings. She is a new media studio artist. Bown-Crawford holds a Master of Arts in Education from UC Berkeley, a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Design from Northern Illinois University, and was an MFA Design candidate at the California College of Arts.

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The mission of the California Arts Council, a state agency, is to advance California through the arts and creativity. The Council is committed to building public will and resources for the arts; fostering accessible arts initiatives that reflect contributions from all of California’s diverse populations; serving as a thought leader and champion for the arts; and providing effective and relevant programs and services.

Members of the California Arts Council include: Chair Nashormeh Lindo, Vice Chair Jaime Galli, Larry Baza, Lilia Gonzales Chavez, Jodie Evans, Kathleen Gallegos, Stanlee Gatti, Donn K. Harris, Alex Israel, and Jonathan Moscone. Learn more at www.arts.ca.gov.

The California Arts Council is committed to increasing the accessibility of its online content. For language and accessibility assistance, visit http://arts.ca.gov/aboutus/language.php.