From left: Grant Derderian, Luis Grane, Nic Cha Kim, Haven Lin-Kirk, and Timothy Thomas.
Armory Center for the Arts has announced the addition of five new board members who will help support the Pasadena-based visual arts nonprofit organization's mission to nurture its community and its young people by creating, learning, and presenting art to advance equity and social justice. This new leadership cohort was selected through a year-long nomination process and represents professionals from the Greater Los Angeles art, design, media, and technology sectors.
Grant Derderian serves as Chief Technology Officer for the University of Southern California. He oversees technology initiatives, including digital transformation programs and strategy, as well as operations, including platforms and infrastructure, cloud engineering, software and applications, cybersecurity, and service operations.
Since joining USC in 2012, Grant has led numerous university-wide technology systems implementation projects, ranging from new compliance platforms to transformational student services systems. He and his teams have worked to streamline and secure core administrative and academic processes and platforms while improving customer service and positioning IT as a trusted and reliable business partner.
Grant also teaches cybersecurity and enterprise information technology at USC’s Viterbi School of Engineering. He graduated from USC as part of the Order of the Laurel and Palm and studied Computer Science, Business Administration, and Cyber Security.
Born in Argentina, Luis Grane is a Los Angeles-based visual artist. He is known for his digital media, painting, and design work. He has exhibited video-based artworks at museums and festivals worldwide, including The Museum of Modern Art in Rio de Janeiro, The Royal Scottish Academy of Arts, and The Queens Museum in New York. He is also an adjunct professor at USC School of Cinematic Arts.
Luis worked in the entertainment industry as an animator and designer for major studios, including Sony and DreamWorks. His film credits include Ratatouille (Academy Award winner for Best Animated Feature), The Matrix, The Boxtrolls (Academy Award nominee for Best Animated Feature), Hotel Transylvania, Spirit (Academy Award nominee for Best Animated Feature), and Spider-Man 2 (Academy Award winner for Best Visual Effects). Luis is also the Supervising Director for the multi-awarded, critically acclaimed Netflix series City of Ghosts. Luis is an Emmy Award Winner for Best Directing in an animated series and an Emmy nominee for Best Writing.
Nic Cha Kim is the Senior Producer of Arts and Culture for PBS SoCal and KCET, where he produces the award-winning television documentary series, Artbound. A native Angeleno, Nic has lived in East LA, Westlake, and the San Gabriel Valley. However, he considers Downtown LA his home base, where he previously owned a video art gallery and co-founded the creative district Gallery Row. Passionate about telling stories about arts and culture in LA, Nic enjoys connecting with artists and learning about their creative processes.
Nic has won numerous journalism awards in his career, including multiple LA Emmy awards, and was recognized as “Television Journalist of the Year” by the LA Press Club in 2018. Devoted to increasing diversity and inclusion in the newsroom, Nic co-chairs LA Press Club’s Foot in the Door Fellowship.
Haven Lin-Kirk is a accomplished artist, designer, and educator renowned for her significant contributions to the art and design industry. Of Chinese heritage and born in Taipei, Taiwan, she currently resides in Los Angeles, California.
Haven holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from California State University, Fullerton, and a Master of Fine Arts degree from Claremont Graduate University in California. Over the past two decades, she has held various positions at the University of Southern California (USC), where she serves as the Dean of Art and Design at the Gayle Garner Roski School of Art and Design.
With an impressive portfolio of work, she specializes in design, publication design, and art direction. Her clientele includes well-known names such as LA Times, Ingram, Adobe, Pennzoil/NASCAR, Toyota, Fisher Museum/Lita Albuquerque/Robert Graham, and Random House. Her contributions to the industry have been recognized through awards such as the National Endowment for the Arts' Access to Artistic Achievement, CGU's Travel and Research Fellowship, and ten Maggie Awards for publication design.
As an artist, Lin-Kirk's work has been exhibited in various venues, and she has also curated shows and organized projects for places like the Pacific Design Center's Emerge Series, Avenue 50 Studio, Salon Oblique, Ruth Bachofner Gallery, Pacific Asia Museum, the Blue Sky Center, USC Visions and Voices, and A+D Museum. Moreover, she actively advocates for diversity and has participated in exhibitions and events celebrating Asian and Pacific-Islander American heritage through the Los Angeles mayor's office.
Capital Group Solutions Engineer Timothy Thomas is a Los Angeles-based user experience engineer, project manager, and creative. He earned his B.A. in Cognitive Science and B.S. in Computer Science from Rice University, where he also served within the Moody Center for the Arts and hosted a radio show interviewing local musicians.
In addition to his IT duties at Capital Group, Timothy is the chair of the company's Associates of African Descent Committee. Timothy also mentors young people as a volunteer with Good City Mentors and Read to a Child.
Timothy enjoys board sports, DJing, and street art in his free time. He also enjoys painting, a medium he has studied at the Armory with Teaching Artist Gabriella Carboni.