Lonti Ebers, Founder and CEO

Lonti Ebers is a long-time art collector and supporter of contemporary art. She established Amant to create studios and exhibition spaces that would encourage artistic development and experimentation free of the financial burden and administrative confines that typically accompany art practice in New York. Lonti hired the renowned architectural firm SO-IL to design Amant’s innovative performance and art complex.

Lonti has served on the boards of several museums in both the US and abroad and is currently a trustee of New York’s Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), serves on the board of the Centre for Curatorial Studies at Bard College in Upstate New York, and sits on the European Committee of the Tate Gallery in London.

Ruth Estévez, Artistic Director

Ruth Estévez is a curator and stage designer. Her research work focuses on artistic practices that explore how the spoken and written language operates within the visual arts, contemporary culture and politics.

She is the co-curator of the 34th São Paulo Biennial, which opens in September 2021. From 2018 to 2020 she was senior curator-at-large at the Rose Art Museum in Waltham, and curator of Idiorhythmias, the performance program at MACBA in Barcelona. She was Redcat Gallery Director in Los Angeles and Chief Curator at the Carrillo Gil Museum in Mexico City, where she also founded LIGA, Space for architecture, a non for profit platform focused on spatial practices.

Nick Pilato, Director of Operations

Nick Pilato‘s ethos and approach to work and life were forged in the cauldron of self-discipline, collaborative leadership, and intense curiosity. He has over seven years of operational experience in art institutions across New York, most recently as the Director of Operations at Greene Naftali Gallery. Nick holds a MFA from the Mason Gross School of the Arts.

Juana Berrío, Curator of Public Programs and Associate Director NY Residency

Juana Berrío is a curator, writer, educator, and arts programmer. First trained as an artist, she has developed an approach that combines an analytical and cross-disciplinary perspective with an intuitive sensibility. She earned an MFA from the University of Minnesota and an MA from the Center for Curatorial Studies at Bard. She co-founded and directed Kiria Koula, a gallery and bookstore in San Francisco, worked at the Walker Art Center and the New Museum, and has curated exhibitions in various institutions nationally and internationally. Juana was born and raised in Colombia, and remains closely connected to and curious about her own roots.

Isabella Nimmo, Curatorial and Production Coordinator

Isabella Nimmo is an organizer of artistic projects. Prior to Amant, she was Assistant Curator of Public Programs at the Tate in London and Producer of IdeasCity at the New Museum of Contemporary Art in New York. She holds degrees from the London School of Economics and New York University. A social historian in another life, Isabella is especially interested in works that incorporate historiographical elements and allow for new ways of understanding and experiencing the past. A wandering Scot, she is currently based between Detroit and Brooklyn, New York.

Katia Porro, Associate Director Siena Residency

Katia Porro is a curator, writer and translator with a Masters in Contemporary Art and Curation from Sorbonne Université, and M.A. in the History of Design and Curatorial Studies from Parsons Paris–The New School. She has curated exhibitions at the Fondation d’entreprise Ricard (Paris) and Gether Contemporary in Copenhagen, as well as other independent and off-site projects. In November 2020, she joined the team of the Amant Foundation as the Associate Director of their residency program in Siena, Italy.

Vivyan Zhang, Communications Coordinator

Vivyan Zhang is a designer with experience in copywriting, fashion and arts education. She holds a BFA in Integrated Design from Parsons School of Design where she developed a collaborative work ethic, and a passion for social practice and alternative fashion strategies. As a visual storyteller, she expresses her sentimentality through floral arranging, illustration and sharing meals. She is currently based between Detroit and New York.

Rebeca Navarro, Visitor Engagement Coordinator

Rebeca is a museum educator. Born and raised in Mexico, she is a former actress and teacher but most of all a proud Latina. She holds a MA in Contemporary Art and the Market from Christie’s Education, NY, and a MA in Museología (Museum Studies) from Instituto Iberoamericano de Museología. She worked at The People’s Studio at MoMA, engaging with diverse audiences. She has a bilingual podcast about women artists where she shares her passion for art history.