Ysabel Pinyol Blasi
Executive Director and Curator
Staff
Executive director and co-founder of Monira Residencies at Mana Contemporary (Miami, Jersey City, and Chicago). Originally from Barcelona, she earned a Master of Architecture from Escuela Técnica Superior de Arquitectura de Barcelona in 2006. Blasi began collecting art more than twenty years ago and from 2007 to 2011 directed a gallery in Barcelona that represented international emerging artists. Her publications include The Bull and the Donkey (Barcelona, Spain: Galeria Ysabel Pinyol, 2008); Trivium, (Miami, FL: Mana Wynwood, 2016); and “Alt-Art Spaces and the Question of Identity Refusal,” Brooklyn Rail, 2017. Ysabel Pinyol Blasi continues to curate diverse and ground breaking exhibitions through the Monira Foundation as Chief Curator.
Anne Muntges
Director of Residencies and Development
Anne Muntges directs grants and development for the Monira Foundation. Prior to joining the Foundation Anne was Program Officer of Fiscal Sponsorship for the New York Foundation for the Arts where she worked with artists to develop fundraising strategies and project development. She has worked with several non profit organizations including the Center for Book Arts in New York as well as the Western New York Book Art Center in Buffalo, directing education programs, studio and community development, and overseeing residencies. Anne received an MFA from the University at Buffalo and a BFA from the Kansas City Art Institute. She maintains an active studio at Mana Contemporary in Jersey City and an active exhibition schedule.
Juan Diego Roque
Media Director
Diego Roque aka Roq is a visually creative artist who produces media content for the Moniria Foundation. Roq received a BFA from New Jersey City University majoring in Media Arts and has worked in the field of video production for over a decade. He started his own company ROQ Initiative during the pandemic of 2020. ROQ Initiative is a creative entity that works to bring visual ideas to life through unique content, story telling, and multifaceted events. They handle all stages of video production with different brands, artists, and businesses providing a professional experience and cinematic outcome to the project that is undertaken. Diego’s personal work includes Emerge; an artist documentation series rooted in a drive to showcase the minds of different creatives and to also provide individuals with an experience both physical, at events, and digital, through cinematic content. He hosts a podcast called You Won’t Like This that exists as an experiment in freedom of speech and comedy.
Anam-Cara O’Brien
Digital Strategist
Anam-Cara O’Brien is Monira Foundation’s digital strategist. Prior to her work with the foundation Cara graduated from the NYU Stern with a BS in business. During her time at NYU she interned for 2 years at McCann NY where she was an associate on the regional strategic planning team.
Lidia Costa
Director of Public Programs
With a background in Art Education and Museum Studies, Lidia has worked as an Art Educator in Secondary Education for 8 years and taught college courses in Art, Aesthetics and Design as an Adjunct Professor. She has also worked in the fields of Museum Education and Public Programs Development & Coordination with art institutions such as the Brooklyn Museum, the International Center of Photography, as well as other museums and arts organizations in NY, UK and Spain, where she is originally from. Lidia has a Bachelor’s Degree in Fine Arts and as she became interested in Museum Studies and Educational Leadership, she completed MA degree programs in these fields of study and participated in learning and work opportunities that allowed her to pursue a career path that combines both. As Director of Public Programs at Monira Foundation, she develops the planning and organization of activities, educational resources and programs (online and onsite) that connect audiences, artists and institutions.
