Meet Our Elected Board Members
PRESIDENT
VICE PRESIDENT
VICE PRESIDENT
CARRIE MAKENNA
Carrie is a fourth generation Denver native. She's been a working artist in the metro area for more than thirty years.
"I make artwork to remind people of their inter-connection with each other, nature and the universe."
I have a BFA with concentrations in graphic design, marketing communications and painting from Colorado St
CARRIE MAKENNA
Carrie is a fourth generation Denver native. She's been a working artist in the metro area for more than thirty years.
"I make artwork to remind people of their inter-connection with each other, nature and the universe."
I have a BFA with concentrations in graphic design, marketing communications and painting from Colorado State University, and a Masters
in Counseling Psychology
and Art Therapy from
The Naropa University.
In addition, I have a host
of trainings and certificates
in management, marketing, communications,
conflict resolution,
train-the-trainer and other business activities.
My business career includes 10 years as the marketing communications manager at a national financial services corporation, 20 years as an independent wedding officiant, concurrent with 15 years as owner of Arts Carrie MaKenna Studio & Gallery.
I'm a co-founder and recent past co-director of D'art Gallery in the heart of the
Arts District on Santa Fe
in Denver.
Now I'm bringing my experience and expertise to the development and operation of the Colorado Women's Art Museum, while continuing with my life-long art practice.
VICE PRESIDENT
VICE PRESIDENT
VICE PRESIDENT
KATHY KNAUS
I have a deep interest in the land. I want to heal the fractured relationship between people and nature. My artwork is an attempt to make sense of the beauty and chaos in the natural world.
My artwork as been displayed in many galleries in the Denver area. A billboard of my artwork was chosen to display at the Denver Center
KATHY KNAUS
I have a deep interest in the land. I want to heal the fractured relationship between people and nature. My artwork is an attempt to make sense of the beauty and chaos in the natural world.
My artwork as been displayed in many galleries in the Denver area. A billboard of my artwork was chosen to display at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts chosen by the Commission for Denver Theatre Arts. I was the first Director of Ice Cube Gallery, a member of Ice Cube Gallery, Pirate Gallery and Zip Gallery. I am currently a member of D'Art Gallery. In 2000, I graduated summa cum laude from Rocky Mountain College of Art and Design in Denver, CO. I currently work and live in Denver, CO.
Professional Experience:
2009-2010 Director, Ice Cube Gallery, RINO Denver CO
2010-2014 Treasurer, Ice Cube gallery, RINO Denver CO
1998-2001 Colorado Council on the Art Board, Appointed by Governor Romer
1997-2000 Vice Chair Arvada Center for the Arts and Humanities. Gallery/Museum Development and Nominating Committees.
Education:
Rocky Mountain College of Art and Design, BFA Paining.Drawing, Summa Cum Laude, Denver CO
Naropa University, MA Art Therrapy, Boulder CO
Teaching:
2005-2007 Studio Arts
Experimental Painting and Intro to Painting
TREASURER
VICE PRESIDENT
TREASURER
BRIAN BOSTRON
Brian Bostron is a native of Brush Colorado.
Seasoned forensic accountant specializing in fraud cases, owner of interior design firm and art deco antique dealer. Art gallery employee.
Former board member of Colorado Mental Health Network, longtime fundraiser for Colorado Ballet, President of Young Democrats of Colorado State
BRIAN BOSTRON
Brian Bostron is a native of Brush Colorado.
Seasoned forensic accountant specializing in fraud cases, owner of interior design firm and art deco antique dealer. Art gallery employee.
Former board member of Colorado Mental Health Network, longtime fundraiser for Colorado Ballet, President of Young Democrats of Colorado State University and Phi Beta Lambda.
Interests: Architecture, interior design, antique Judaica and politics. Mental health advocate.community that values creativity and artistic expression.
Education: B.S., Business Administration (Finance and Real Estate), Colorado State University.
SECRETARY
VICE PRESIDENT
TREASURER
NIKKI TOWNSLEY
San Diego State University MA, Speech Communications & Women's Studies MA, 1995-1996
Activities and societies: Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society, Forensics Program
Meet Our Working Board Members
BOARD MEMBER EXHIBITIONS LEAD
Diana Andersen Fundraising
BOARD MEMBER EXHIBITIONS LEAD
CATHERINE V. CARILLI
“Art is a journey to create a visual imprint of self, humanity and nature. “
Catherine began her career studying Psychology at Bates College, in Maine where she received her BA. Catherine’s love for expression through art lead her to the University of Wisconsin where she was awarded an MFA in Painting and Drawing. She
CATHERINE V. CARILLI
“Art is a journey to create a visual imprint of self, humanity and nature. “
Catherine began her career studying Psychology at Bates College, in Maine where she received her BA. Catherine’s love for expression through art lead her to the University of Wisconsin where she was awarded an MFA in Painting and Drawing. She currently lives in Boulder, Colorado, and taught Fine Art and Art History at Front Range Community College for many years. Catherine enjoys teaching in her studio and for various organizations and working at Art Events. She is an active member of the Denver Arts Community. The artist run galleries have been a big part of her career. Catherine is an early founder of Next Gallery. At Next Gallery Catherine directed, and curated, Next to the Mic, a poetry and arts event. In Boulder, she participates as a juried artist in the
Annual Open Studios.
Catherine has an ongoing passion for the importance of Women’s Art. She introduced the National Organization, The Women’s Caucus for Art to Colorado. She also served on the National WCA Board of Directors,1900-1994. She currently holds a position on the board of Directors for the Colorado Women’s Art Center and Museum, CWAM. Along with the CWAM Exhibition Committee, Catherine curates art to promote the fine artworks of women artists living in Colorado in
Denver Gallery exhibits.
Catherine V. Carilli exhibits her artwork nationally and locally. Her work is collected by the Ucross Foundation and others. It is her honor to have a painting in the permanent collection of the Kirkland Museum in Denver.
BOARD MEMBER EXHIBITIONS
Diana Andersen Fundraising
BOARD MEMBER EXHIBITIONS LEAD
KATHLEEN J GRAVES
Kathleen is a mixed media photographer and builder of retro character bots and new constructivist landscapes. Her primary work for 15 years has been about Landscape including interventions in the environment and more lately, endangered animals. Graves has shown in NYC, Virginia, Miami, Philadelphia, Colorado, Havana Viejo
KATHLEEN J GRAVES
Kathleen is a mixed media photographer and builder of retro character bots and new constructivist landscapes. Her primary work for 15 years has been about Landscape including interventions in the environment and more lately, endangered animals. Graves has shown in NYC, Virginia, Miami, Philadelphia, Colorado, Havana Viejo, Cuba, the Czech Republic, Italy, South Korea and on Long Island. Graves is in the collections of Langone, NYU NY, Parrish Museum NY, Zuccaire Gallery, Staller Center NY, Watermill Center NY, Patchogue Arts Council NY, Kunsthalle Bremen, Germany and Yesultong - The Street Museum, Seoul, South Korea. Graves was an adjunct Assistant Professor of Art at New York University. She also taught at Sarah Lawrence College, Pratt Manhattan and the International Center of Photography in NYC. Graves was the Director of the Advanced Digital Print Studio at NYU between 2005 - 2012. Graves taught the large format digital print and artists methods using the computer, formulating and devising digital techniques and an expert command of photographic work. In April 2023, Graves moved from New York to Denver, Colorado, where she grew up. Graves has a Studio/Gallery at KJG Artworks, 900 Santa Fe Drive representing her artworks. She has shown in many group exhibitions around Denver since 2024. Graves is a board member of the Colorado Women’s Art Museum and Center, a member of the WCACO, the Women’s Caucus for Art Colorado, CPAC, the Colorado Photographic Arts Center and the Denver Art Museum.
BOARD MEMBER FUNDRAISING
Diana Andersen Fundraising
Diana Andersen Fundraising
LYNN BURNES
Lynn is a Denver abstract and nonobjective artist who has been painting in oils, acrylics, and mixed media for over 20 years. She is a graduate of the University of Colorado, and her fields of study have included mathematics, philosophy, and science which have inspired her love of space, geometry, and time, revealed in
many of
LYNN BURNES
Lynn is a Denver abstract and nonobjective artist who has been painting in oils, acrylics, and mixed media for over 20 years. She is a graduate of the University of Colorado, and her fields of study have included mathematics, philosophy, and science which have inspired her love of space, geometry, and time, revealed in
many of her works.
She previously worked in the field of philanthropy for 12 years, as both a Program Officer for two foundations, and the Executive Director of a small national foundation. Other interests took her into educational research and working with many nonprofit organizations for over
30 years.
Art history is one of her passions, and too often little value is placed on women’s art in museums and in galleries, both locally and internationally. Being a board member for the Colorado Women’s Center and Art Museum is both an honor and an opportunity for her to help correct this oversight and change the misperception that women’s art is somehow less-than.
Diana Andersen Fundraising
Diana Andersen Fundraising
Diana Andersen Fundraising
The Colorado Women's Art Museum is actively seeking additional Working Board Members.
Particularly in online research, website upkeep, CRM upkeep, and event production.
If you're interested please contact us for more information.
BOARD MEMBER FUNDRAISER
BOARD MEMBER
BOARD MEMBER
GAYLE LANDIS
Gayle has had a long career in Colorado in the Human Resources field.
Additionally Gayle has been actively involved in several arts organizations in leadership and fundraising roles. These include the Design Council of the Denver Art Museum and the Kirkland Museum of Fine and Decorative Arts.
BOARD MEMBER
BOARD MEMBER
BOARD MEMBER
PAM ROTH O'MARA
Painting is performance art for me. I work primarily in acrylic on canvas. Color and movement set the tone for the work. My work has evolved over the years. Originally, I placed the canvas on a table and added a coating of one or two colors: typically yellow and orange, or blue. Then sprayed, painted, dabbed, scraped, and d
PAM ROTH O'MARA
Painting is performance art for me. I work primarily in acrylic on canvas. Color and movement set the tone for the work. My work has evolved over the years. Originally, I placed the canvas on a table and added a coating of one or two colors: typically yellow and orange, or blue. Then sprayed, painted, dabbed, scraped, and dripped colors across the canvas. More recently I've added elements of color in broad strokes, lines, squares, circles, and rectangles. I build the layers gradually, balancing the entire work; adding color and shapes as needed to keep the piece balanced. A piece is done when it pops and the elements work together.
Other activities: improvisational actor and coach, guide at Plains Conservation Center, CO.
Board Member Vacant
BOARD MEMBER
Board Member Vacant
The Colorado Women's Art Museum is actively seeking additional Working Board Members.
Particularly in online research, website upkeep, CRM upkeep, and event production.
If you're interested please contact us for more information.
Board Member Vacant
BOARD MEMBER
Board Member Vacant
The Colorado Women's Art Museum is actively seeking additional Working Board Members.
Particularly in online research, website upkeep, CRM upkeep, and event production.
If you're interested please contact us for more information.
Meet Our Working Volunteers
VOLUNTEER EXHIBITIONS
VOLUNTEER PUBLIC RELATIONS
VOLUNTEER PUBLIC RELATIONS
REBECCA GABRIEL
Rebecca and her husband moved to Colorado permanently in 2019, after visiting Colorado with her family for over twenty years.
She has a Master of Fine Arts degree in Painting from the University of Massachusetts, where she was awarded a University Fellowship in Art. She also holds a Master of Science degree in Art Education
REBECCA GABRIEL
Rebecca and her husband moved to Colorado permanently in 2019, after visiting Colorado with her family for over twenty years.
She has a Master of Fine Arts degree in Painting from the University of Massachusetts, where she was awarded a University Fellowship in Art. She also holds a Master of Science degree in Art Education degree from the Massachusetts College of Art, in Boston.
Gabriel is a GOLD LIST AWARD ARTIST for Art Market International Magazine, where her work has been promoted in multiple issues. Gabriel’s art has also been featured in Calyx, Studio Visit, American Artwork, and World of Art MOMA publications.
Her work was shown at the Florence Biennale Xll, in Italy, and she has exhibited at the Schneider Museum of Art, Ashland, OR; Denver Art Museum, CO; De Cordova Museum, MA; Oakland Museum, CA; Herbert F. Johnson Museum, Cornell University NY, Arvada Art Center CO, The Dairy Art Center CO. Gabriel’s art
was on extended loan in
the Executive Chairman’s Office, at the National Endowment for the Arts in
Washington, D.C.
Her art has received numerous awards: First Award, Henry Hopkins,
“All California Art Exhibition”; Finalist in Artist’s Magazine; and Jurors Choice award in the “Human Form” exhibit, Newport Visual Art Center, OR; and she has received
a Haines Foundation Grant,
in Southern Oregon.
Gabriel served on the
board for the Ashland Art Center in Oregon.
Her work is presented in two books on her art: “Woman’s Journey – A Life in Painting” and her recent release “Appearances-Experimental Portraiture” both published by Wellstone Press.
VOLUNTEER PUBLIC RELATIONS
VOLUNTEER PUBLIC RELATIONS
VOLUNTEER PUBLIC RELATIONS
DEBORAH
DEAL-BLACKWELL
Deborah APR is a businesswoman with
diverse experience.
After college, she started her career at the NBC network affiliate WESH-TV in Orlando, Florida. From there she went on to work for several advertising / public relations agencies, including her own.
While active in her community on numerous boards of directors s
DEBORAH
DEAL-BLACKWELL
Deborah APR is a businesswoman with
diverse experience.
After college, she started her career at the NBC network affiliate WESH-TV in Orlando, Florida. From there she went on to work for several advertising / public relations agencies, including her own.
While active in her community on numerous boards of directors she specialized in commercial and residential real estate, and the travel/hotel industry.
Her career took a nonprofit turn when she became president/executive director of Angel Flight Southeast. At AFSE she tripled the revenue for this 501(c)(3), oversaw 1,293 volunteer pilots and chapters in the southeast
United States.
Commercialization of technical innovations became her next passion when she teamed with her brother John (Grizz) Deal and created several companies that are spinouts from the U.S. National Laboratory system including one for nuclear power. Deborah was the first to bring the concept of a commercial small, modular, nuclear power reactor (SMR) before the U.S. Congress and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for regulation.
Today, she is still a partner at IX Power with her brother, where they are bringing water treatment innovations to the industries of oil & gas, mining, manufacturing, and environmental clean-up.
Deborah is a mixed-media and textile artist, and is the president of the Women’s Caucus for Art Colorado Chapter for 2024 and 2025.
Included in her wide experience with nonprofits, she served as a trustee of the Jefferson County Library system, and currently is the vice president of the Jefferson County Library Foundation.
She is also the founder of the fundraiser Colorado Women’s Day, which held its ninth consecutive annual event
in 2024.
VOLUNTEER GRANTS TEAM
VOLUNTEER PUBLIC RELATIONS
VOLUNTEER GRANTS TEAM
DON BURNES
Don is a Senior Advisor for the Community Economic Defense Project in Denver. Don, with his wife Lynn, are also the founders of The Burnes Institute for Poverty Research at the Colorado Center on Law and Policy. He has worked on the issue of homelessness for almost 40 years and has co-authored four books on the topic, the most r
DON BURNES
Don is a Senior Advisor for the Community Economic Defense Project in Denver. Don, with his wife Lynn, are also the founders of The Burnes Institute for Poverty Research at the Colorado Center on Law and Policy. He has worked on the issue of homelessness for almost 40 years and has co-authored four books on the topic, the most recent of which has sold over 20,000 copies. Prior to that, he worked in education policy research and evaluation for the federal government and for a national educational policy organization. He is currently working on three new books related to
people who have been marginalized. He graduated from Exeter, received his BA from Princeton, his MAT from Washington University in St. Louis, and his PhD in education from
Columbia University.
Thanks to his early interest in art, Don has become a serious art collector, and he is deeply troubled by the lack of recognition of women artists and their contribution to the international art scene.
Your Name Here
VOLUNTEER PUBLIC RELATIONS
VOLUNTEER GRANTS TEAM
The Colorado Women's Art Museum is actively seeking additional Working Voluneers.
Particularly in online research, website upkeep, CRM upkeep, and event production.
If you're interested please contact us for more information.
Give It Up!
Nomads No More!
Donate any amount right now to help
us ensure the future of the
Colorado Women's Art Museum.
We have a big vision for Colorado Women Visual Artists
that includes purchasing a home for the Center & Museum
in the heart of the Arts District on Santa Fe,
that will also help protect and ensure the continuation
of Denver Colorado's oldest Certified Arts District.
We are a fully accredited 501(c)3 non-profit.
All donations are fully tax deductible.