Our Board of Directors play a pivotal role, guiding our mission with strategic vision and dedication. Composed of accomplished professionals from diverse fields, their unwavering commitment ensures opportunities for artists with disabilities, fostering an inclusive arts community.
Illustrations by Greg Sindel.
John McCabe is Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of LSM Asia Pacific, based in Sydney.
Since joining Liberty in 1999 John has held several positions including Chief Financial Officer and LIU’s Global Chief Risk Officer based in Boston.
John’s current responsibilities include focusing on day-to-day management of 9 regional offices in 5 countries. He is also responsible for LSM Asia Pacific enterprise risk management, capital, legal & taxation structure and evaluation of new business opportunities.
In addition to his role on the Studio A Board, John is currently an executive Director on 4 LSM company boards and has held the position of Independent Chair of the Audit & Risk Committee of Tennis NSW. John is a Chartered Accountant (ANZCA); a Fellow of ANZIIF and a Graduate Member of the AICD.
Evan is a Melbourne-based Certified Practising Accountant and the Director of Lowensteins, an accounting firm that specialises in the arts.
He holds a Bachelor of Economics (Accounting) from Monash University and has a long history of advocating and supporting the financial needs of artists. In 2002 he started Lowensteins Arts Management with his father Tom and colleague Adam Micmacher. Core to the firm was a commitment to serve the specific needs of artists. Today the firm manages the financial affairs of approximately 3000 artists in all creative fields. Evan was also involved in the Save Super Art campaign that was set up to fight the recommendations of the Cooper Report on Superannuation and the adverse effects it would have on Artists.
Evan has also served on the Board of the Resale Royalties Art Market Professionals Advisory Panel and National Association for the Visual Arts, and has been Treasurer at Gertrude Street Artist Spaces, Westspace Artists Spaces, Theatreworks, Q44 Inc., Embraced Inc., Southern Disability Advocacy Inc. and more recently Southern Disability Advocacy Ltd., Sunshine Print Artspace Inc and Genesis Baroque Inc.
Deborah Ely is an arts consultant with leadership experience in the cultural, education and community sectors in Australia and the UK. She has held advisory roles with all levels of Government and has served on the boards and committees of numerous arts and community organisations. She has a background in cultural infrastructure development and consults on housing the arts issues. She has recently assisted Studio A in resolving its accommodation challenges.
Deborah was trained in the UK as a painter and art historian and continues to curate and write on the visual arts. She was Chief Executive Officer of the national cultural institution Bundanon from 2006 to 2021. Previous roles include Visual Arts and Craft Manager, Create NSW; Director, Australian Centre for Photography, Sydney; Director, Centre for Contemporary Photography, Melbourne; Convenor, Experimenta new media festival, Melbourne and Acting Director and Visual Arts Director of Watershed Media Centre, UK.
Deborah is a Fellow of the University of Wollongong and has worked in tertiary institutions across Australia, the USA, and the UK lecturing in cultural leadership, programming and risk management. In 2018 she was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) for her
contribution to the visual arts and to children’s art education.
Doug is the Principal and Director of Miller Noyce Lawyers and sits on the Board of Studio Artes, where he was Chair 2009 to 2019.
Doug joined Miller Noyce & Doust in November 1973 and became a partner in 1976. Since that time he has handled matters in most areas of law with a particular focus on business, commercial, property, deceased estates and estate planning matters. Doug was in the first group of solicitors in this State to be accepted (in 1993) as an Accredited Specialist in Business Law and has been re-accredited every year since.
Over the years, Doug has handled a wide range of legal matters for many people in many circumstances. He has extensive experience in acting for "people'' in most areas of the law, whether it is in relation to their personal lives or in respect to their business and commercial affairs. This extends from assisting people in buying and selling their homes and preparing Wills, Powers of Attorney and handling estates for them to advising and assisting on the sale, purchase and restructure of businesses and in acting for them in difficult commercial litigation in all jurisdictions. Doug also has extensive experience in advising people on estate planning and the re-structuring of their business and commercial affairs.
Ross Rudesch Harley is Emeritus Professor at UNSW’s Arts, Design and Architecture. An award-winning artist, writer and educator, his career crosses the bounds of traditional and creative arts research. His work has been presented at the Centre Pompidou in Paris, New York MoMA, Ars Electronica in Austria, the Biennale of Sydney, and at the Sydney Opera House.
After serving as head of the School of Media Arts (2009-2013), he went on to become Dean of UNSW Art & Design (2013-2020). In 2024 he was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) for significant service to tertiary education and the arts.
Lindsay is a communications consultant based in Melbourne, who is a passionate supporter and collector of Australian emerging contemporary artists. She began collecting almost ten years ago, which has cultivated a deep affinity with the creative landscapes of Sydney and Melbourne.
Her career in communications spans more than 15 years, with a brief stint in sports journalism before moving to communications roles with the Australian Football League and NSW Waratahs. She transitioned to corporate communications in telecommunications at Optus and Telstra, and insurance and banking with IAG Australia, Commonwealth Bank, and the Bank of Queensland. Currently working with Baldwin Boyle Group, she manages clients across Australia and New Zealand in the financial services, manufacturing, infrastructure, venture capital and start-up industries.
Lindsay is a non-executive director of Olympic National Sports Association, Judo Australia, and a previous committee member of the Museum of Contemporary Art (Sydney) Young Ambassadors program (Now MCA Next).
Imagine a future where artists with disability thrive in the arts, enjoying equitable opportunities, recognition and the backing to pursue their creative careers. Our goal is to shape a society that wholeheartedly embraces and appreciates the unique artistic offerings of artists with disability.
Your contribution serves as a meaningful investment in making this future a vibrant reality.