Mission

Pioneer Works builds community through the arts and sciences to create an open and inspired world.

Vision

Pioneer Works encourages radical thinking across disciplines by providing practitioners a space to work, tools to create, and a platform to exchange ideas that are free and open to all. We are driven by the realization that humanity is facing unprecedented social, intellectual, and spiritual challenges; our programs explore new ways of facing those challenges by using the arts and sciences dynamically as both a lens and catalyst. When humanity comes together and combines the ideas and talents of many, we have the ability to engineer what once appeared to be impossible.

Values

Pioneer Works values curiosity, critical thinking, creativity, and inclusion. At the core, Pioneer Works aims to improve how to understand and regard each other and the world. We believe our multidisciplinary approach creates a unique capacity to build bridges across ideas and communities, so that we may all think differently, together.

Pioneer Works is a non-profit 501(c)(3). View our Form 990.

Pioneer Work is W.A.G.E. Certified. To learn more about our commitment to introducing mechanisms for self-regulation into the art field that collectively bring about a more equitable distribution of its economy, visit https://wageforwork.com/.

Wage for Work

History

Pioneer Works is an artist-run cultural center that opened its doors to the public, free of charge, in 2012. Imagined by its founder, artist Dustin Yellin, as a place in which artists, scientists, and thinkers from various backgrounds converge, this “museum of process” takes its primary inspiration from utopian visionaries such as Buckminster Fuller, and radical institutions such as Black Mountain College.

The three-story red brick building that houses Pioneer Works was built in 1866 for what was then Pioneer Iron Works. The factory, which manufactured railroad tracks and other large-scale machinery, was a local landmark after which Pioneer Street was named. Devastated by fire in 1881, the building was rebuilt, and remained in active use through World War II. Dustin Yellin acquired the building in 2011, and renovated it with Gabriel Florenz, Pioneer Works’ Founding Artistic Director, and a team of talented artists, supporters, and advisors. Together, they established Pioneer Works as a 501c3 nonprofit in 2012.

Since its inception, Pioneer Works has built science studios, a technology lab with 3-D printing, a virtual environment lab for VR and AR production, a recording studio, a media lab for content creation and dissemination, a darkroom, residency studios, galleries, gardens, a ceramics studio, a press, and a bookshop. Pioneer Works’ central hall is home to a rotating schedule of exhibitions, science talks, music performances, workshops, and innovative free public programming.

Board

Board of Directors

  • Kyra Tirana Barry
  • Julia Bator
  • David Belt
  • Alex Black
  • Mary Cunney
  • Mark Dalio
  • Tiffiney Davis
  • Ron Elum
  • Austin Hearst
  • Stephanie Ingrassia
  • Neal Katyal
  • Tom X. Lee
  • Janna Levin
  • Charles Meyer
  • Abby Pucker
  • Matthew Putman
  • Richard Sarnoff
  • Cullen L. Sinclair
  • Theo Spielberg
  • Alan Tisch
  • Dustin Yellin
  • Leyli Zohrenejad
  • Alan Siegel, Chairman Emeritus

Advisory Board

  • Paola Antonelli
  • Darren Aronofsky
  • Sunny Bates
  • Carol Bove
  • David Byrne
  • Perry Chen
  • Jesse Dylan
  • Robert Hammond
  • Alanna Heiss
  • Paul Hoffman
  • Karen Brooks Hopkins
  • Marlon James
  • Michael Joo
  • Ben Lerner
  • Kweku Mandela
  • Shirin Neshat
  • Maria Popova
  • Tom Reiss
  • Rick Rubin
  • Esperanza Spalding
  • Mickalene Thomas
  • Justin Vernon
  • HRH Princess Eugenie of York

Ambassadors

  • Katherine Ikeda
  • Azita Ardakani
  • Deborah Berke
  • Greg Bousted
  • Matthew Brimer
  • Benjamin Bronfman
  • David Brooks
  • Gabriel Calatrava
  • Thomas Clapp
  • Bob Colacello
  • Lacey Dorn
  • Justin Durazzo
  • Gibby Haynes
  • Andrew Kern
  • Susie Lopez
  • Jennifer McCrea
  • Blair Miller
  • Justin Stanwix
  • Andrea Steele
  • Marquise Stillwell
  • Andrew Vanwyngarden
  • Robert Wong

Staff

  • Maxine Petry
    Executive Director
  • Dustin Yellin
    Founder & President
  • Gabriel Florenz
    Founding Artistic Director, Vice President
  • Janna Levin
    Chair & Director of Sciences
  • Abdirahman Sahal Hassan Ali
    Communications & Marketing Coordinator
  • Nimrod Barshad
    CTO
  • Kathleen Burke
    Manager of Stewardship & Patron Programs
  • Ben Castanon
    Chief of Staff
  • Vivian Chui
    Director of Exhibitions and Special Projects
  • Jacqueline Coston
    K-12 Education Associate
  • Renee Cuff
    Manager, Special Events and Partnerships
  • Noah D'Orazio
    Tech Lab & Residency Coordinator
  • Christina Daniels
    Head of Residencies and Classes
  • Jennica Drice
    Manager of Visitor Services
  • Devendra Durham
    Staff Accountant
  • David Everitt Howe
    Senior Arts Editor, The Broadcast
  • Joey Frank
    Editor, Pioneer Works Journal
  • Justin Frye
    Director of Music
  • Stephanie Hemshrot
    Director of Operations
  • Jesse Johanning
    Designer
  • Michael Jones
    Head of Content, The Broadcast
  • Danielle Kaminski
    Development Assistant
  • Kyle Keays Hagerman
    Technical Director
  • Daniel Kent
    Design
  • Tyree Leonce
    Head of Facilities
  • Darren Monrose
    Custodian
  • Minh Nguyen
    Associate Arts Editor, The Broadcast
  • Marisa Prefer
    Manager of Sustainability and Environmental Engagement
  • Ashley Ranich
    Associate Director, Marketing & Communications
  • Laurel Repsha
    Senior Institutional Giving Manager
  • Sue Roh
    Web Developer
  • Angelique Rosales Salgado
    Assistant to the Artistic Director
  • Anthony Seemungal
    Maintenance
  • Meredith Smith
    Science Studios Producer
  • Rob Spillman
    Senior Editor, The Broadcast
  • Taylor Spitzer
    Director of Partnerships
  • Marquita Taylor
    Maintenance
  • Julian Townley
    Head of Installations
  • Helen Tran
    Accountant
  • Willie Vantapool
    Construction/Installation Manager
  • Shishi Zhang
    Controller/Head of Finance

Opportunities

Pioneer Works offers a wide range of positions in an inclusive work environment. We are an equal opportunity employer. Please check back soon for more job opportunities!