our team
Meridith McKinley
A co-founder of Via, Meridith’s involvement in public art grew out of her deep interest in how the arts can build community and how public policy can ensure the sustainability of the arts. With her extensive experience in strategic planning, community engagement, and curation, Meridith has worked with communities across the United States and Canada to develop public art plans and create new public art programs and has commissioned award-winning public art for public and private clients. She is also a frequent speaker on contemporary public art practice — including presentations at TedXStLouis, Americans for the Arts, the National Parks and Recreation Association, and the Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis – and was a co-convener of the international conference Monument/Anti-Monument. She serves on the board of Laumeier Sculpture Park.
Emily Blumenfeld
Emily co-founded Via in 1999 to support organizations working with artists on significant design and planning projects. An experienced public art consultant, curator, and art historian, she has managed award-winning projects in the US and Canada for public and private clients. She uses her strategic planning and project management skills and her deep knowledge of the public art field to maximize the visual impact and community benefit of each project she works on. Based in New York, she is also the co-founder of Works on Water and serves on the Climate Museum’s advisory council.
blumenfeld@viapartnership.com
Aliza Schiff
Aliza’s interest in public art comes from a broad humanities background and a deep appreciation for the ways public art can reveal layers of meaning connected to a place and create new meanings, connections, and memories. She has worked with Via since 2009, as well as at a range of municipal and non-profit arts agencies and cultural institutions, and brings a holistic perspective, an understanding of what it takes to build successful programs and make projects happen, and strong research and writing skills to Via’s planning and commissioning projects.
Serene McGroarty
Serene brings her academic and practical background in art, museum, and gallery work to Via’s projects. She has worked with the Smithsonian Institution and Apple at Carnegie Library and on many private commissions and curatorial projects where she honed her artist research skills and cultivated relationships with working artists. She has a special interest in curatorial writing and helping exhibition artists make the leap into public art. Originally a DC area native, she now lives on the Space Coast in Florida.
