NWMI Art & Culture Summit

Juana Williams is an independent Detroit-based curator and writer whose practice centers on community, cultural memory, and the global resonance of Black artistic expression. She is the Consulting Artistic Director and Chief Curator of Detroit Salon, an ambitious international initiative that connects Detroit’s artists and cultural narratives with global audiences through exhibitions, convenings, and cross-border exchanges.

Previously, Juana served as Associate Curator of African American Art at the Detroit Institute of Arts and held curatorial and academic roles across Detroit’s contemporary art landscape. Her work explores cross-border intellectual history, identity formation, and the lasting impacts of colonial modernity, with a particular focus on art from Africa and its diasporas. She has guest-curated exhibitions in the U.S. and abroad, presented widely as a lecturer, and contributed to numerous exhibition catalogs.

Omari Rush is a statewide and national arts leader whose work is rooted in helping creative expression thrive in communities. As Executive Director of CultureSource in Detroit, he guides regional strategies that strengthen arts ecosystems, support cultural organizations, and advance equitable investment in creativity.

His civic leadership includes long-standing service on the Michigan Arts and Culture Council—appointed by three governors and twice elected chair—as well as a recent term as Board Chair of the National Assembly of State Arts Agencies, where he helped shape national policy and advocacy for the cultural sector. A lapsed clarinetist with enduring curiosity, Omari now channels much of his creative energy into riding his Rivendell Clem-L bicycle across Michigan’s streets and trails.

Laura Zabel is a nationally recognized advocate for artists and a leading voice in reimagining how creativity strengthens communities and economies. She is the Executive Director of Springboard for the Arts, a St. Paul–based organization run by and for artists. Under her leadership, Springboard has become a field-defining force in artist-led community development, creative placemaking, and cross-sector collaboration, with programs reaching more than 20,000 artists each year and replicated in communities across the U.S. and internationally.

A frequent writer and speaker, Laura’s work has been featured by outlets including The New York Times, PBS NewsHour, Stanford Social Innovation Review, and The Guardian. Her leadership during moments of disruption has helped shape new models of support for artists, including emergency relief funds, artist-driven community response initiatives, and one of the nation’s early guaranteed income programs focused on artists.