Joy Glidden, Executive Producer + Host

As an art activist and curator, Joy Glidden is a force whose unrelenting dedication to the arts has fostered the careers of countless artists and helped reshaped the perception of contemporary art.  After moving from Canada to New York City in 1987, Glidden founded the DUMBO Arts Center (DAC) and the DUMBO Art Under the Bridge Festival in Brooklyn, NY where she served as the Executive Director from 1997-2006. Using art as a catalyst for change, Glidden’s steadfast efforts transformed what was once a fringe neighborhood into a successful waterfront development that has become a blueprint for many cites worldwide.

In 2006, Glidden relocated to New Orleans, LA to assist in the wake of post-Katrina devastation. Upon her arrival to the Crescent City, Glidden played a key role in the development of the Culture Plan - Unified New Orleans Plan (UNOP), compiled by National Performance Network (NPN), later used to inform Federal interests. During her tenure in New Orleans, Glidden helped structure The Porch: a nonprofit in 7th Ward, whose mission was to promote and sustain the cultures of the neighborhood, city, and region. Additionally, in 2007 Glidden founded the Contemporary Visual Arts Association of New Orleans (CVAANO) to unify various nonprofit art institutions by creating a single voice to advocate for National attention.

In the spring of 2007, Glidden took on the rewarding role as Director of Louisiana ArtWorks.  Located near the Warehouse/Arts District in New Orleans, the 93,000 sq ft’ artist service organization was a cultural destination.  Outfitted with artist residency, galleries, commercial storefront, lecture hall, work-shops for glass, metal, ceramics, and printmaking, ArtWorks was a hive of art activity that aimed to reinvigorate the New Orleans contemporary art scene by carrying it into national consciousness.

Glidden is the Executive Producer and Host of Art Index TV (AITV), a television series of informative and engaging half hour shows about contemporary art. Founded in 2009, AITV places contemporary art in context, demystifies and illuminates its creative process, and articulates the ways in which it impacts our culture at large. AITV features leading artists and art professionals who demonstrate the knowledge and breadth of their artistic practices with audiences around the world.

Apart from organizing curatorial projects and spearheading civic campaigns, Glidden has addressed non-profit policy at many esteemed institutes nationwide, including New York University, Pratt Institute, Maryland Institute of Contemporary Art, Maryland and Louisiana State University. Glidden has also presented numerous talks on the positive effects of an artist’s community and creative capital at the Danish, Norwegian, and Korean Consulates. Glidden currently works and lives in Brooklyn with her dog Tashi, a rescue from Katrina.