ALLISON ANDREWS is founder and director of Fashion Week San Diego® (FSWD), president of APA Business Consulting and executive director of FAB Authority. A passionate entrepreneur, Andrews founded FSWD in 2007, growing the year-long event to become one of the biggest and most prominent Southern California events, and the only bi-national Fashion Week in the world. Prior to launching FWSD, Andrews founded APA Business Consulting, a consulting firm that supports startups and entrepreneurs with business, brand development, marketing, and sales strategies. She started the company in 2005, at the age of 20. In 2015, she also launched the FAB Authority, a non-for-profit organization, providing resources and events for emerging artists, designers and beauty industry professionals. Andrews’ passion for helping and empowering others is apparent in all that she touches. In addition to her full-time commitments with FWSD, APA Business Consulting, and the FAB Authority, Andrews is an active community member, sitting on the board of several not-for-profit organizations and donating her time to support others. She serves as a Board member and longtime volunteer for Rancho Coastal Humane Society (12 years) and is a volunteer and donor for Love on a Leash pet therapy and St. Paul’s Senior Homes and Services. A recognized and respected industry thought leader, Andrews speaks frequently at various San Diego events, led by professional organizations, as well as local colleges, graduations, networking events, seminars and other fashion events. In 2013, she was selected as a finalist for San Diego Business Journal’s Women Who Mean Business Awards. Andrews holds an Associate of Arts degree in Merchandise Marketing from Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising and a Bachelor of Science in Organizational Leadership from National University.

CHARLOTTE CAGAN is a non‐profit executive with extensive experience in organizational development, strategic planning, fundraising, community engagement and institutional revitalization. She has led six nonprofits to achieve their mission, vision, and goals, including an 11-county food bank and a city women’s commission. She has provided leadership for four museums in organizational rejuvenation, financial stabilization, and growth, community engagement, and re-branding.  She has developed strategic alliances, coalitions, and public/private partnerships, and she has a broad range of experience that spans arts and culture, education, human service, business, and government. Cagan has also been a consultant to cultural, educational and business organizations in marketing, fundraising, event planning, strategic planning and organizational development. She has served on numerous nonprofit boards including arts, environmental, human services and leadership development organizations. Cagan has a B.A. in political science, magna cum laude, from Cornell University with post-graduate study at Harvard and Columbia universities as well as continuing studies at Stanford University

JOSUE CASTRO is a Mexican photographer and painter.  As a photographer he is renowned for his powerful black-and-white portraits that explore themes of identity, cultural diversity, and the human experience. His work often delves into social narratives, especially those surrounding Mexican identity, the culinary world, as well as fringe and underground cultures. Castro’s distinctive style combines sharp contrasts, dramatic lighting, and a focus on raw expression, capturing the essence of his subjects with profound intimacy.   His textural paintings focus on the abstract, and most recently explore the nexus between art and science.In addition to his portraiture, he has been involved in various international collaborative art projects and exhibitions.  His artistry not only tells personal stories but also reflects broader social contexts, making him an influential figure in the art world.  Castro is the founder of The Kitchen Project, an innovative and influential forum for creating dialogue across multiple disciplines.  He was an early adapter of social media to promote both his own work and to embrace its global reach to drive cultural conversations.Castro’s work is in numerous private, corporate, and museum collections.

KANDACE CRYSTAL is a multi-hyphenate theatre maker and currently serves as the.Artistic Director of American History Theater and Associate Artistic Director of Trinity Theatre Company. Kandace spent 5 years working for Barbizon USA and is the creator of Theatre Alliance’s Roundtable series exploring issues that plague our industry. Additionally, Kandace developed a Podcast/Oral Documentary with Cloudcast Media entitled 8:46-The Catalyst for Change, in response to the disproportionate murder of black and brown people at the hands of police. You can find her performing around San Diego, most notably in the “Get Ross” commercials. Kandace graduated with a BFA in Acting from Florida State University.

THOM DANCY has worked in the arts non-profit sector for over a decade. He has had the pleasure of engaging with multiple dance organizations and company founders in program planning, outreach, social media marketing, development, and strategic planning. One of his favorite past projects was working with Joshua Manculich to win him the Princess Grace Award for Choreography in 2015. Thom has presented on the topics of social media and dance education to the Board of Directors at Arts for Learning San Diego, The Arts Empower Mega-Conference, and San Diego Unified School District. Thom has previously served on the communications committee for AERO San Diego, as well as on the executive committee for Rising Arts Leaders of San Diego. Thom studied Ballet Performance at the University of Oklahoma, and danced for Milwaukee Ballet II, Grand Rapids Ballet, The Big Muddy Dance Company, The Muny, and Malashock Dance. Thom is still an active teacher and choreographer, traveling nationally as a guest artist and has received multiple awards for his work at Youth America Grand Prix and various dance festivals. For the past three years, Thom has been a part of the The Rosin Box Project as the company’s inaugural Managing Director and now Executive Director. Through his work, the company has grown from a $30,000 to $300,000 budget and engaged students across San Diego in numerous dance education workshops. Thom is most proud of the success of TRBP’s flagship outreach program, The Ballet Machine, which will reach 40 classrooms in 2022.

SCOTT B. DAVIS has made photographs that explore unremarkable wilderness corridors and anonymous urban spaces in the American landscape since the 1990’s. A platinum printer for two decades, his night photographs and recent work with platinum paper negatives examine the far ends of the visible spectrum and consider the limits of human perception. His work with large format wooden view cameras (8”x10” up to 16”x20”) facilitates working slowly and affords large-scale negatives used for platinum printing. Scott b. davis’ work has been reviewed in the New York Times, Village Voice, the New Yorker, Los Angeles Times, and other print media. His photographs can be found in the collections of the J. Paul Getty Museum, Pier 24, the Nelson Atkins Museum of Art, the Santa Barbara Museum of Art, Museum of Photographic Arts, and others. davis’s photographs have been exhibited throughout the United States, Europe, and Asia. In 2012 davis founded the Medium Festival of Photography, an annual event that brings emerging and established contemporary photographers to San Diego for four-days of portfolio reviews, artist lectures, exhibitions, and related events.

CHI ESSARY is an artist, writer and photographer who promotes and explores the intersection of art, science and the public. She studied printmaking and photography at Pacific Northwest College of Art in Portland, Oregon and has an active practice in oil painting and found objects. She curates cross-disciplinary exhibitions that bring artists together with other fields of creative inquiry such as contemporary literature and science, as she is a firm believer that “the best gift to humanity is bringing people together.” In 2017 she curated “Extra-Ordinary Collusion”, pairing almost 50 scientists and artists for a massive cross-disciplinary exhibition encouraging further exchange in San Diego’s rich art and scientific communities. She also curated several lofts fro an immersive art takeover called SENSORIUM which was featured on the NatGeo Channel. Previously a board member of Vanguard Culture, Chi has been the lead contributor to the artists studio visit series: Poetic License. Her curating and writing has given her a unique perspective that she applies towards her mission to help build programs that support world-class art in San Diego.

BROOKSIE HUGHES – Named in 2021 BizBash’s top 500 event professionals in the US. Currently operating out NY, CA, and Baja California Mexico. Brooksie has worked across the country in event production for over 25 years. Her approach to her career has led to a unique skill set that enables her to produce just about any type of event. She and her team have produced events such as music festivals, band tours, city celebrations, theatrical events, corporate events, entertainment, multi-staged / venue events, social events, political, high end private events, public spectacles, parades, food & wine events and on! She has sound experience working with political figures & celebrity artists so can handle anything from the secret service to tough as nails tour managers. Brooksie’s strength is in collaborative development of ideas and executing them through a well-managed design and production team. She is known and respected for her ability to form teams that are creative, diverse, professional, and are all around good natured and ready to do what it takes to bring life to her clients vision. Brooksie also works as a Public Space Strategist and Placemaking Consultant. As part of this work over the past 18+ years, she has developed events programs, production feasibility studies, consulted on public space design and infrastructure, developed management & operations guidelines, developed budgets ad funding guidelines, and provided overall project management for the activation program. She has extensive experience in working with high level city and government officials, stakeholders, developers,

JORDAN JACOBO – Jordan Jacobo is a San Diego-based performing artist who has developed and appeared in various films and series. As a writer, Jordan’s work has been featured on stage at the Old Globe Theater as well as a myriad of media platforms. He currently serves as host of the KPBS digital series, “Jordan Loves,” in which he highlights the seldom-explored corners of his native San Diego.”

JOHN MALASHOCK brings 35 years of experience in dance, theater and film to his current endeavors as Artistic Director of Malashock Dance & The Malashock Dance School, during which time he has created over 70 choreographic works, dance/theater collaborations, theater and opera productions, and award-winning dance films. John founded Malashock Dance in 1988, after a distinguished performing career.  Under his leadership, Malashock Dance has grown to become one of California’s premiere dance companies and his work has now been presented throughout the United States, Central America, Japan and Central Europe. With the Tharp Company, he performed worldwide; appeared in the Academy Award-winning film Amadeus; was featured in numerous television specials; and performed in benefit concerts with Mikhail Baryshnikov. Malashock has many notable collaborative credits to his name.  He has choreographed for productions at the La Jolla Playhouse, The Old Globe Theatre, and the San Diego Rep.  His work has been commissioned by the San Diego Symphony, La Jolla Music Society and San Diego Opera. He has garnered four Emmy Awards for his dance films, which have aired on over 30 affiliate PBS stations nationwide.  His recent collaboration with The San Diego Museum of Art, The Floating World, was widely praised. A leader within the local and national dance communities, Malashock currently serves on the Board of Trustees for Dance USA and is proud to have taken the leadership role in conceiving, developing and establishing Dance Place San Diego at Liberty Station. As an Artist in Residence at the La Jolla Playhouse, John is currently developing a dance musical based on the life, work, and relationships of artist Marc Chagall.

LINDA MARIANO – With a career that spans 30 years, Linda is a leader in marketing, brand management, e-commerce and promotion initiatives for major retailers, specialty retail, art industry, licensing partnerships, media and entertainment, as well as entrepreneurial business environments. For Redwood Media Group, Linda oversees the marketing and brand extension efforts of the company. Her expertise and strong track record of exceeding marketing and sales goals, building brands and driving business success makes her a vital part of any organization. Whether conceiving a breakthrough media-based retail concept for Discovery Channel, driving an integrated growth strategy of the core demographic as the chief architect of the Thomas Kinkade brand, overseeing every aspect of a major event, or coaching an emerging artist, Linda achieves success. She has built and managed branding, marketing, PR and communications programs. She has created programs that added multi-million dollar sales via directing strategic alliances and partnerships with Disney, Warner Bros., Elvis Presley Enterprises, NASCAR, Major League Baseball and others. Linda’s expertise in the art and licensing industries, as a licensor, a licensee, a consultant and an agent, has made her readily recognized for her expertise and strategic approach to integrated brand and business strategies. Her engaging attitude, professional demeanor and clear ability to have fun and inspire others make Linda a persuasive change agent with strong consensus building skills and valuable insights into making every effort count.

KAMAAL MARTIN’s passions are arts & culture, community development, finance, improving our local food system and raising the quality of life throughout the San Diego/Tijuana region. Before founding San Diego-based social enterprise and consulting firm, Art Power Equity, he developed a unique skill set and network through professional experiences including: Director of Advocacy (Southern California) with the California Charter School Association, Adjunct Faculty (Political Science) in the San Diego Community College District, Government Relations Specialist with the San Diego County Regional Airport Authority and years as a staffer in the California State Assembly, including roles as Field Director, Special Assistant to the Speaker and District Director. A graduate of the University of Oregon, with a B.A. in History and an M.A. in International Studies, he’s served on the boards/advisory groups of numerous community organizations including: years on the board of directors with Project New Village 501(c)3 and Somali Youth United 501(c)3 and is a former chair of the NAACP San Diego’s Political Action Committee.  He currently lives in Lemon Grove, CA, with his partner and two teenage daughters.

ROB MARLBROUGH is a technology and marketing pro who knows his stuff when it comes to WordPress, site integration, development, and digital marketing. A San Diego Magazine Top Tech Exec Award nominee, Rob started his own web development company in 1997, and today Press Wizards is a leading WordPress services and web hosting provider. He also co-founded Fandom Marketing, a social media marketing agency in 2011, and created Minglestream.com, a Tweetwall service. He also teaches WordPress through the WordPress Web Help Meetup group. His prior 20 year career in Software Engineering and IT management was most recently with Nik Software (acquired by Google), creators of Apple’s 2011 iPad App of the Year, Snapseed. He was a past board member of AIGA San Diego as Marketing Strategist, and past Event Director on the board of Social Media Club San Diego.

ALEXANDER SALAZAR, Harvard Graduate and well-respected International Art Dealer, leads San Diego Art Advisory in Hillcrest. He holds a Master’s Degree in Theology and Art from Harvard University and a second Masters in Sociology and Art from Boston College. While an undergraduate at the Colorado College he lived in London to study Modern and Contemporary Art and then moved to Florence Italy to study Masters such at Bernini and Botticelli. With over 20 years’ experience as an Art Dealer, Alexander Salazar has built private and corporate collections worldwide. Specialties Corporate Art Collections, Hotel Art Collections, Art Appraisals, Art Investments, Private Collectors, Young Collectors. Salazar has developed a reputation for his expertise in modern and contemporary art, as well as his dedication to supporting emerging and underrepresented artists from both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border. He has operated several gallery spaces and has been involved in notable art fairs and exhibitions, helping to elevate the presence of emerging and established artists art in the international market. His passion for community and cross-cultural exchange has established him as a significant advocate for the arts and an influential figure in the San Diego art scene.

MARILU SALINAS (M A L U) is a classical and electronic musician based in Tijuana, Baja CA, México and New York City. M A L U ’s main focus had been in orchestral works and now she is focusing in electronic music compositions and performances, touring CA, US, MX, Asia and Europe. Recently, she composed the music for Portrait of a Nation short film honoree Dr. Anthony Fauci at the National Portrait Gallery in Washington DC. and performed for the Cesar Chavez Anniversary with son speaker Paul Chavez at the University of California, San Diego. Founder of South Train, festival that united more that 80 artists and art projects from two countries, four cities: Los Angeles, San Diego, Tijuana, and Ensenada to perform and promote in pandemic time. M A L U has performed in many festivals including Raw Festivals Canada and US, La Mesa Music Festival,US , La Jolla Playhouse SD, ART San Diego, ART Los Angeles, Latin American Art Fair, We Want Women of Liverpool, England, Cyberpunk & Underground Festivals in Mexico, SD & TJ Film Festivals, Buddhagaya in Japan, Música y Visuales Universidad de Artes UABC Ensenada, Das Vierte in Switzerland, Collateral Collective SD, SubStore Electric Fest, Tokyo, Heroic Procession House of Blues.

WHITNEY SHAY has been lighting up stages since her performance journey began at just 3 years old. Starting in musical theatre in her hometown of San Diego, Whitney performed in countless community and professional productions before earning a Bachelor’s Degree in Theatre with an Emphasis in Performance from San Diego State University. After college, Whitney found her true groove in soulful music—and she’s been on fire ever since. A five-time San Diego Music Award winner (including Artist of the Year in 2019) and recipient of a San Diego City Beat “Best Of” Award, Whitney’s talent has earned her local and international acclaim. Her latest album, “Stand Up!”, debuted at #1 on the Billboard Blues charts and topped the Roots Music Report. She’s completed 10 tours across Europe and South America and has lent her voice to numerous TV and film placements, including NBC, HBO, Bravo, BET, Hulu, and Disney+. Known as the #busylittlesinger, she’s kept an impressive pace, performing 200–300 shows a year. During the pandemic, Whitney discovered a new creative passion: design. While maintaining her rigorous music schedule, she earned two degrees in Interaction and Graphic Design from San Diego City College, one of the world’s top programs for design.  Whitney has since enmeshed herself deeply in San Diego’s design community.  She serves on the Events Committee for the San Diego User Experience Researchers group and has volunteered for San Diego Design Week, San Diego Design Trek, the International Design Celebration Summit, and World Design Capital events.  Whitney Shay is elated to join the Advisory Board for Vanguard, bringing her lifelong dedication to the arts full circle to serve and better elevate the San Diego arts community as a whole.

TATIANA SIZONENKO is a University Professor, art historian, and curator. She received her Ph.D. in Renaissance art history, with a specialization in Venice and the Mediterranean world, from the Visual Arts Department at University of California, San Diego. Ms. Sizonenko teaches courses on Western art, from ancient to contemporary, with a strong focus on the intended function of art objects in their respective historical settings and cultural contexts. Ms. Sizonenko’s research and teaching has been informed by her wide-ranging curatorial practice. Ms. Sizonenko held positions as curator for the University Art Gallery at UC San Diego; curatorial fellow at the Timken Museum of Art; curatorial fellow for the dean of the Division of Arts and Humanities at UC San Diego; curator of collections and special exhibitions at the Museum of Making Music in Carlsbad, CA; and guest curator at the La Jolla Historical Society in San Diego and at the Barrington Center for the Arts at Gordon College, MA. She received her M.A. in Museum Studies from John F. Kennedy University, Berkeley, CA, and a Diploma (MA equivalent) in Art History from Leningrad State University, St. Petersburg, Russia. Before coming to the United States, she was assistant curator in the Department of Medieval Art at the State Russian Museum in St. Petersburg, Russia. She has been the recipient of several fellowships including the Getty Foundation’s “Connecting Art Histories” Fellowship, the Timken Museum of Art Fellowship, the Dean of Art and Humanities Dissertation Research Fellowship from UC San Diego, the UC San Diego Visual Arts Department’s Funded Semester at Harvard University and Russia’s National Fellowship for Distinguished Scholarship in Art History.

RICHARD P. TRUJILLO is the Artistic Director at San Diego School of Creative and Performing Arts. Under his guidance the arts have flourished into five distinct majors and multiple programs of study preparing students for success at the post-secondary level.  In addition, the SDSCPA has had 18 YoungArts Award winners, received two Craig Noel Awards for Outstanding Resident Musical in partnership with the San Diego Repertory Theatre Company, and was awarded the 2018-2023 Exemplary Arts School Award from the Arts Schools Network.  He served as Multi-district Arts Director for the West Valley Arts Council and presented at several Americans for the Arts National Conferences on this unique systemic change model.  He was nominated for the Governors Arts Award in Arizona for his community partnership with the Herberger Theatre Center while teaching at Herrera School for the Fine Arts.  Mr. Trujillo is a proud member of Actors Equity Association, with over 100 shows to his credit as an actor, director and producer, and UNESCO International Dance Council.