Longtime Minneapolis arts leader Gülgün Kayim departs for Seattle

Gülgün Kayim, founding director of Minneapolis' Office of Arts, Culture and the Creative Economy, started a new position as director of the Office of Arts and Culture in Seattle in July. In this role, Kayim will run the Seattle office that manages public art programs, offers grants to artists and cultural organizations and manages city-owned art venues.

"It has been an honor to serve as the founding Director of the Office of Arts, Culture and the Creative Economy for the City of Minneapolis for the last 12 years," she said. "While I will dearly miss the Minneapolis creative community that has sustained and supported me for so many years, I am excited to be selected by Mayor Harrell to join his leadership team as the new Director of Seattle's [Office] of Arts and Culture."

Kayim had been in her Minneapolis role since 2011, founding and leading the office that supported artist entrepreneurs, creative businesses and arts and cultural nonprofits. Her work focused on underrepresented creative workers, underserved communities and collaboration with city departments and other research within the creative sector.

During her time at ACCE, she created the Creative Response Fund — Community Well Being grant program, which offers $15,000 per project as part of an initiative launched in response to the killing of George Floyd in 2020. In 2013, she started the annual public art competition Creative City Challenge, produced the Minneapolis Creative Index, a study of the city's creative sector and much more.

Before founding ACCE, Kayim was assistant director at the Bush Foundation, a co-founder and co-artistic/managing director at the performance company Skewed Visions and the Public Art on Campus Coordinator at the Weisman Art Museum.

Ben Johnson is the director of the new city of Minneapolis Department of Arts and Cultural Affairs. The ACCE office is now part of that department. Johnson, a native Minnesotan, started his position in March. He was previously director of performing arts for the Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs.