Our Team
The team at Allens Lane Art Center helps to provide quality and innovative art and cultural programming for the Greater Philadelphia Region.
Tara Harrison Turner
Director of Operations
Tara Harrison Turner was born and raised in the West Mt. Airy section of Philadelphia and came to Allens Lane Art Center’s Summer Camp as a child. She has worked in the Healthcare industry for the last 15 years, gaining experience in Operations, Customer Service, and Provider Relations. As a seasoned Director of Operations, she is passionate about identifying and providing efficient solutions and communicating the most up-to-date information. Outside of work Tara, who is a current Glenside, PA resident, is also involved in the Springfield Township School District community as a member of the multicultural parents association. Tara has been married to her husband, Thomas, for 21 years and has a 17-year-old son. In her spare time, Tara enjoys time with family, hiking Valley Green, and Podcasting. Tara holds a BS from Chestnut Hill College and an MS from Saint Joseph’s University.
Anthony Skinner
Facilities Manager
Anthony Skinner has been with Allens Lane for over 20 years. He has decades of experience managing facility maintenance at various cultural institutions including Settlement Music School and the African American Museum in Philadelphia.
Letta Brown
Box Office Manager
Letta Brown
Box Office Manager
Autumn Blalock
Performing Arts Coordinator
Born in Prince George’s County, Maryland, Autumn Blalock is a Villanova University graduate with an MA in Theater and a Certificate in Non-Profit Administration. For almost five years, she has held positions as a Philadelphia arts administrator, educator, and dramaturg.
Autumn is an arts administrator and Theater for Health researcher. An acclaimed scholar with a focus on Afro-American phenomenology, Blalock focuses her artistry around embracing the wholeness of humanity. She is a published researcher, poet, and essayist. Autumn is currently the Resident Dramaturg of Azuka Theatre and the Managing Director of Philadelphia Women’s Theatre Festival. Some of her other credits include working in dramaturgy and stage management with Inis Nua, PlayPenn, Eagle Theatre, and Philadelphia Artists Collective.
Autumn loves to see the latest shows around the city and visit new restaurants. Have a favorite food spot? She is always accepting recommendations!
Leah Gelb
Development Director
Through her years of experience in the nonprofit field, Leah has developed a passion for advancing the work of cultural organizations and in providing sustainable support for equitable arts and community programming. A native Philadelphian, she believes strongly in the impact of community and mission-driven organizations, and in the transformative power of art. Most recently, she worked in fundraising at the American Friends Service Committee and Fleisher Art Memorial, where she served for over a decade. Leah just moved to Mt. Airy within the past year with her husband and twin 4-year olds, and is loving its strong sense of community as well as its amazing outdoor spaces.
Chloe Theodosiou
Art Studios Manager
Originally from New York, Chloe is a graduate of Alfred University with experience as a teaching, assisting, and exhibiting artist in NYC. Chloe has extensive knowledge of ceramics, fibers and theater. She has been living in Pennsylvania since 2020, working with local art spaces and non-profits to provide affordable, high-quality art education. She is motivated by community and humanity in the arts with an intense passion for all things clay with her practice focusing on where material experiments meet emotional articulation.
Jana Shea
Marketing and Communications Associate
Jana is a Philly-area native whose background as a freelance writer and photographer includes assisting corporate and nonprofit marketing campaigns and several years as a multimedia reporter, during which she covered both regional and hyperlocal news in Philadelphia and New Jersey for public media.
After returning to Philadelphia from the Netherlands 13 years ago, Jana settled in Mt. Airy, where she’s been ever since. She is a firm believer in the transformative power of art and collaboration is her guiding philosophy.
In her free time, Jana enjoys co-creating visual art and music projects with her spouse and son, intuitive gardening and impromptu dance parties.
Suzanne Seesman
Programs Director
Han McCoy
Visitor Services and Exhibition Coordinator
Michael Williamson
Interim Executive Director
A lifelong educator, artist, and Philadelphian, Michael brings decades of creative and organizational leadership to the Allens Lane Art Center. His career spans roles as a visual arts teacher, department chair, and Dean of Faculty at Germantown Friends School; director of a small arts school in California; and, most recently, gallery lecturer and Senior Instructor of Adult Education at the Barnes Foundation, where he developed and taught courses both in the galleries and online to students across the country and abroad.
Michael’s connection to Allens Lane runs deep. Raised on McCallum Street and a proud alumnus of Henry School and Central High School, he first experienced the Center as a child through summer camp, guitar lessons, theater, tennis, and friendships that shaped his early life. Returning now as Interim Executive Director is both an honor and a homecoming.
After retiring from the Barnes in 2024, Michael renewed his own studio practice at Firehouse Arts Germantown and co-chaired the Old Tennis Court Farm, reflecting his commitment to creativity, community, and the natural world.
Michael’s vision for Allens Lane is rooted in the belief that the arts transform individuals and strengthen communities. He is dedicated to supporting staff and teachers in delivering dynamic, high-quality programs that invite people of all ages to explore, learn, and create.
Board of Directors
2024-2025
Susan Matyas, President
Larry Liss, Vice President
Sigrid Lundby, Treasurer
Mary Kurtz, Secretary
Lynne Andersson
Baiyina Brown
ReVae Boyd
Cynthia Chatman
W. Roderick Gagné
Thomas Gartside
Debbie Lerman
Lindsey Norward
Marzena Quinn
Susan Richards
Melissa Torpie
Trudi Williams
