Professional Resume
Public Art Project Manager | Educator | Artist
Portland, Oregon | (971) 319-1882 | mariomesquitastudios@gmail.com | www.mario-mesquita.com
Bilingual arts professional with more than 15 years of experience in public art, museum education, higher education, and community engagement. Manage artist commissions, programs, budgets, and partnerships; supervise and train educators and project staff. An MFA in Public Practice and an ongoing social practice art project inform how I work with artists, students, families, and public agencies.
Skills
Project planning and delivery • Artist selection and panel facilitation • Staff supervision and training • Program design and evaluation • Budgets and grant documentation • Community engagement • Government partnerships • Research and reporting • English/Spanish
Professional Experience
Regional Arts & Culture Council — Portland, OR
Public Art Project Manager | September 15, 2026–present
Director of Advocacy & Engagement | January 2024–mid-September 2026
Manager of Advocacy & Engagement | January 2021–December 2023
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Manage public art projects from artist opportunities and selection through design review, site coordination, installation, and documentation. Track budgets and schedules and coordinate artists, panels, public-agency partners, and collection specialists.
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Managed the Multnomah County Elections Building mural by Daren Todd, completed August 2026: $14,000 artist commission, plus $1,000 design-proposal fees for each of three finalists. Current work includes Rockwood Community Health Center’s $25,000 mural and $20,000 artwork purchase process.
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Led Portland and Multnomah County implementation of the 18-month Arts & Economic Prosperity 6 study. Supervised two temporary staff, coordinated organizations and audience surveys, and communicated findings for arts funding and government relations.
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Reactivated Arts for All after COVID-era disruption, reconnecting more than 90 cultural organizations and forming a representative steering committee to support community leadership of the program.
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Led/co-led a six-site community engagement series during Portland’s cultural-funding transition; coordinated host partners, facilitated conversations, and synthesized feedback for RACC leadership, the Board, and City officials.
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Co-led RACC’s Equity Advisory Group, coordinated organizational assessments and training, and contributed recommendations on policies, programming, and workplace practices. Led Uprooted, a three-month exhibition with the City of Portland, coordinating artists, approvals, expenses, installation, and public programming.
Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego — San Diego, CA
Manager of Education | February 2017–June 2021
Education Associate | February 2016–February 2017
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Supervised approximately 10 Gallery Educators over the course of my management tenure, along with interns and teaching artists. Responsibilities included hiring, performance reviews, coaching, scheduling, and addressing performance concerns.
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Developed educator training through lesson planning, demonstrations, practice, observation, and feedback. Supported Spanish/English tours for adult and youth audiences with a team in which approximately half the staff were bilingual.
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Led Extended School Partnerships engaging more than 800 students annually, coordinating teachers, artists, museum visits, classroom activities, and student showcases. Mentored the Teen Advisory Group as students developed creative projects and public programs.
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Managed budgets, grant commitments, expenditure tracking, evaluation, and documentation with colleagues across museum departments. Helped adapt programming during COVID-19, including the March 2020 digital student showcase and catalog.
Earlier Higher Education Experience
Otis College of Art and Design — Seasonal Admissions Counselor | 2015–2016
Provided admissions outreach and guidance to prospective art and design students and families.
Portland State University — Bilingual Admissions Counselor | 2010–2013
Managed multi-state recruitment and bilingual student/family outreach, including school visits, presentations, and campus programs.
Portland Community College, College Assistance Migrant Program — Academic Advisor, 2009–2010; Program Assistant, 2008–2009
Advised approximately 10–20 first-generation students from migrant and seasonal farmworker families. Coordinated peer mentoring, tutoring, College Parent Day, stipends, participation records, and retention reporting.
Selected Art Practice
Paletas Communal Social Club — Founder, Artist & Project Lead | 2017–present
Develop participatory projects using a paleta cart, food, and conversation to invite stories about identity, memory, and place. Coordinate partners, public events, project resources, and documentation in Santa Monica, San Diego, and Portland.
Michelada Think Tank — Co-founder, Collaborating Artist & Facilitator | 2014–present
Co-develop public conversations, workshops, and collective projects with artists and cultural workers of color.
Education
MFA, Public Practice — Otis College of Art and Design | 2015
Bachelor’s degrees, Spanish and Multimedia Design — University of Oregon | 2005
Selected Service
Blue Sky / Oregon Center for the Photographic Arts — Board Member | 2025–2026.
Americans for the Arts — State & District Lead; 2025 Conference Committee.
Cultural Advocacy Coalition of Oregon — Former Board Member & Secretary; service concluded October 2026.
Artist CV
Artist | Educator | Public Art Project Manager
Portland, Oregon | (971) 319-1882 | mariomesquitastudios@gmail.com | mario-mesquita.com
Education
2015 | MFA, Public Practice — Otis College of Art and Design, Los Angeles, CA.
2005 | Bachelor’s degrees, Spanish and Multimedia Design — University of Oregon, Eugene, OR.
Selected Social Practice Projects
November 7, 2026 | The Lost Table — El Zócalo, Milagro, Portland, OR.
Creative activity facilitator for a community gathering organized by Milagro and Portland Grief House. Opening activity exploring memory, food, and relationships with loved ones who have died, within a shared evening of intercultural remembrance, offerings, and food.
2017–present | Paletas Communal Social Club — Santa Monica, CA; San Diego, CA; Portland, OR.
Founder, artist, and project lead. A mobile participatory art project using paletas, shared food, and conversation to invite stories about cultural identity, memory, and public space. Develop each iteration, coordinate collaborators and host partners, facilitate exchanges, and document participation.
2025 | A Shared Table — Paletas Communal Social Club, Portland, OR. Artist and organizer; a shared-meal iteration connecting food, cultural memory, and stories gathered through Paletas.
2024 | Community Building & Identity, PDX Edition — Portland, OR. Artist and organizer; neighborhood visits, community conversations, and documentation.
2022 | Park Social — City of San Diego, CA. Artist and project lead; Paletas iteration completed in summer 2022.
2017 | Paletas Santa Monica — City of Santa Monica, CA. Artist and project lead; public conversations about the future of public art.
2014–present | Michelada Think Tank — Multiple locations, United States.
Co-founder, collaborating artist, facilitator, and organizer. Collective projects with artists and cultural workers of color addressing race, representation, institutional accountability, and sustaining an artistic practice.
Selected venues and convenings: Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions (LACE), Los Angeles, CA; San Diego Art Institute, San Diego, CA; Open Engagement, Queens, NY, Chicago, IL, and Pittsburgh, PA.
2017 | Common Field Convening — Michelada Think Tank, Los Angeles, CA.
Selected Curatorial Work, Exhibitions & Residencies
2022 | Uprooted: An Art Exhibition Inspired by Refugee Identity and Resilience — Curator/organizer, Portland, OR. Exhibition developed with the City of Portland for Welcoming Week; coordinated invited artists, approvals, artwork logistics, installation, and public programming.
2019 | Efímera — Curator, Los Angeles, CA.
2016–2017 | Thriving or Surviving as an Artist of Color — Michelada Think Tank residency and exhibition, San Diego Art Institute, San Diego, CA. Residency began in late 2016; exhibition presented in summer 2017.
2015 | Race, Art, Survival: Michelada Think Tank & Chats About Change — Artist residency with Michelada Think Tank, Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions (LACE), Los Angeles, CA.
2015 | Día de los Muertos Altar Exhibition — Participating artist, Museum of Latin American Art, Long Beach, CA.
2013 | Portland Institute for Contemporary Art — Resident collaborator, Portland, OR.
Selected Presentations & Talks
2022 | Leadership Portland: Arts and Culture — Portland Business Alliance, Portland, OR.
2022 | New Monuments Taskforce — Digital interview on reimagining monuments and public decision-making.
2019 | Creating Space as an Art Practice and Socially Engaged Practices — Artist talk, Claremont Graduate University, Claremont, CA.
2019 | Fundamentals of Art Practice — Artist talk, Otis College of Art and Design, Los Angeles, CA.
2018 | Radically Disrupting the Community/Cultural Planning Engine: Paletas Santa Monica — Americans for the Arts Conference, Denver, CO.
2017 | Teen Advisory Group Youth Partnership, MCASD — Open Engagement: Justice, Chicago, IL.
2017 | American Alliance of Museums — Presenter, St. Louis, MO.
2015 | Michelada Think Tank — Open Engagement: Place and Revolution, Pittsburgh, PA.
2009–2010 | College Parent Day — TRiO-CAMP National Conference, Washington, DC.
Selected Public Art Project Management
These entries identify my project-management role. Artwork authorship remains with the commissioned artists.
2025–2026 | Multnomah County Elections Building Mural — Project manager through RACC, Portland, OR. Artwork by Daren Todd; completed August 2026. Artist opportunity, selection, panel coordination, design review, permitting, scheduling, and installation. Artist commission: $14,000; design proposals: $1,000 each for three finalists.
2025–2027 | Rockwood Community Health Center Public Art — Project manager through RACC, Multnomah County, OR; in progress. Mural by Christian Téllez García, plus an invitational artwork purchase process. Mural commission: $25,000; artwork purchases: $20,000.
Selected Arts Administration & Education
Regional Arts & Culture Council — Portland, OR
September 15, 2026–present | Public Art Project Manager.
January 2024–mid-September 2026 | Director of Advocacy & Engagement.
January 2021–December 2023 | Manager of Advocacy & Engagement.
Public art commissions, arts advocacy, community engagement, and government partnerships. Led Portland and Multnomah County implementation of Arts & Economic Prosperity 6; reactivated Arts for All with more than 90 participating organizations.
Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego — San Diego, CA
February 2017–June 2021 | Manager of Education.
February 2016–February 2017 | Education Associate.
Led Extended School Partnerships and Teen Advisory Group programming; supervised and trained Gallery Educators. Coordinated student showcases, teaching artists, bilingual tours, and the March 2020 digital showcase and catalog.
Earlier Education Roles
2015–2016 | Seasonal Admissions Counselor — Otis College of Art and Design, Los Angeles, CA.
2010–2013 | Bilingual Admissions Counselor — Portland State University, Portland, OR.
2008–2010 | Program Assistant and Academic Advisor — College Assistance Migrant Program, Portland Community College, Portland, OR.
Grants & Professional Development
2024 | Precipice Fund support — Portland Institute for Contemporary Art, Portland, OR.
2018 | National Association of Latino Arts and Cultures (NALAC) Leadership Institute — Participant, San Antonio, TX.
Selected Panels & Professional Service
2025–2026 | Board Member — Blue Sky / Oregon Center for the Photographic Arts, Portland, OR.
2025 | Conference Committee — Americans for the Arts.
2022–2024 | Board Member — Parallax Art Center, Portland, OR.
2022 | Around Oregon exhibition panelist — Corvallis Art Center, Corvallis, OR.
2018–2019 | Grant panelist — California Arts Council.
Former Board Member & Secretary — Cultural Advocacy Coalition of Oregon; service concluded October 2026.
Languages
English and Spanish.