Res Creativa Founders
The Opening Circle
(66 Founders as of June 8, 2026 | Join them)
The people listed here represent the early formation of Res Creativa: a developing civic network of artists, makers, performers, writers, designers, musicians, multidisciplinary creators, arts workers, and supporters of creative culture.
They come from different disciplines, generations, locations, and artistic traditions. What connects them is a shared belief that creativity is not peripheral to democratic life. It is essential to it.
This founding list will continue to grow as more creative people step forward to help build a stronger civic role for imagination, empathy, cultural courage, and creative intelligence in public life.
Res Creativa is not built around celebrity, status, or institutional affiliation. It is being built person by person. Across disciplines. Across communities. Across borders.
Founders
Kevin Acers—Writer, Bangkok, Thailand
Steve Adams—Writer, Memphis, Tennessee
Deborah Bailay—Dancer/Movement, New York City, New York
Kathy Biehl—Writer, Oak Ridge, New Jersey
Laura Bradley—Writer, Vershire, Vermont
Leilani Carinio-Kirby—Writer/Poet/Storyteller, Benicia, California
Julian Conway—Musician, Port Macquarie, New South Wales, Australia
Alison Cook-Beatty—Artistic Director/Choreographer/Dancer, New York City, New York
Susan Cortilet-Jones—Arts Enthusiast/Supporter, Durham, North Carolina
Sally Crewe—Musician/Composer, Austin, Texas
Annette Dion—Musician, Gloucester, Massachusetts
David Dobson—Theater/Performance, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Bruce Endres—Musician, Douglas, Arizona
Todd Faulkner—Writing, New York City, New York
David Fisher—Theater Artist, Dallas, Texas
John Fisher—Visual Artist, Santa Barbara, California
Curtis Lynn Gates—Multidisciplinary/Hybrid Artist, Wichita, Kansas
Demetrium Gladney—Musician, Phoenix, Arizona
Scott Gordon—Theater & Performance Artist, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Elaine Gormley—Musician, Ocala, Florida
Jackie Gottlieb—Photographer/Designer/Visual Artist, Raleigh, North Carolina
Jason Hagler—Multidisciplinary Artist, San Francisco, California
Clayton Henry—Arts Supporter/Enthusiast, Dallas, Texas
Vivian Henry—Craft & Material Arts, Saint Paul, Minnesota
Jeff Herrington—Writer, Dallas, Texas
Dan Hochberg—Musician/Composer, Seattle, Washington
Stephen Hooper—Actor/Director/Producer/Playwright, North Port, Florida
Betty Katkovsky—Design, Brooklyn, New York
Kathleen Kelly—Theater & Performance Artist, Goshen, Connecticut
Jeannette Keton—Writer, McKinney, Texas
David Kirwin—Multidisciplinary Artist, Sherwood, Oregon
Geraldine Kiser—Craft & Material Arts, San Antonio, Texas
Shauna Lee Lange—Arts Administrator, Cayucos, California
Amy Lillard—Writer, Des Moines, Iowa
Louis Lindenschmidt—Writer, Cincinnati, Ohio
Rick Allen Lippert—Film & Video Artist, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Jessica Llanes—Writer, Fort Worth, Texas
Habib Loriot-Bettaieb—Nonprofit Arts & Culture Fundraiser, Dallas, Texas
Margaret Malloy—Arts Enthusiast/Culinary Artist/Poet, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
David McClendon—Theater & Performance Artist, Temecula, California
Carmen Menza—Multidisciplinary Artist, Dallas, Texas
Julie Mierau—Writer, Omaha, Nebraska
Eric Mosley—Strategic Planner, Goodview, Virginia
Philip Nelson—Arts and Equity Advocate, Richardson, Texas
Mark Owen—Musician, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
Jimmy Paton—Multidisciplinary Artist, Durham, North Carolina
Kimball Pier—Writer, Minden, Nevada
Mary Catherine Reynolds—Musician, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Jeanne Rietzke—Visual Artist, Wilmington, North Carolina
Christina Schultz—Design, Spokane, Washington
Claudia Shambaugh—Community Broadcasting, Irvine, California
Latricia Shepherd—Writer, Washington, DC
Randall Smith—Musician/Composer, Payson, Utah
Harold Spiegel—Multidisciplinary/Hybrid Artist, Church Stretton, Shropshire, UK
Tracy Sterling Bristol—Writer/Designer, Colleyville, Texas
Whytne Stevens—Architecture & Spatial Practice, Atlanta, Georgia
David Streckfuss—Writer, Khon Kaen, Thailand
Renee Summers—Visual Artist, Austin, Texas
Susan Suval—Visual Artist, San Francisco, California
Madeline Taylor—Writer, Woodland Hills, California
Jon Traylor—Writer, Woodway, Texas
Jason Warman—Multidisciplinary/Hybrid Artist, London, UK
Randall White—Writer/Theater Artist, Dallas, Texas
Ronald White—Theater Artist, Lake Jackson, Texas
Kenneth Wincorn—Musician/Composer, Dallas, Texas
Carl Wittenberg—Arts Supporter, Ashland City, Tennessee
