ARTOMATIC

Veronica Szalus
President
Veronica Szalus is an industrial designer and the Director of Exhibits at the National Children’s Museum (NCM) where she is responsible for project conceptualization, strategic planning, art direction and exhibit development. Ms. Szalus came to NCM from Hixon Design Consultants in New York where she worked on projects such as Vanderbilt Hall Market at Grand Central Terminal, Pfizer World Headquarters lobby renovation and various exhibits for the United Nations. She has worked as a freelance designer on numerous projects including Bang Salon and the Black Fashion Museum in Washington DC, Explore-It-All in Maryland, and Light Projects in New York.

Ms. Szalus has designed stage sets for Fraudulent Productions, an avant-garde non-profit theater group in Washington DC and Opera Enterprises in New York City. She is a co-chair of the American Association of Museums PIC-Green Communications Committee and has been active in a number of community organizations including Hell’s Kitchen Neighborhood Association, she was a local council coordinator for Move On and has worked with the Arlington County’s Victim Witness Program as a graphic designer.

Ms. Szalus worked with a team of architects and interior designers on the design, layout and implementation of the exhibit system for Artomatic 2000 and designed and installed the environmental graphics and wayfinding system for Artomatic 2002. Ms. Szalus is currently serving as President of Artomatic’s Board of Directors and has shown her artwork at Artomatic, the Montpelier Arts Center, the Ellipse Art Gallery and the Studio Gallery.

George Koch
Board Chair
Mr. Koch currently serves as Chair for Artomatic, Inc. He facilitated the Artomatic Steering Committee in first four Artomatic events which provided a forum for all area artists and performers to convene perform and exhibit, strengthening the visibility, cohesion, and marketplace of Washington's arts community. In 1999, 2000, 2002, 2004 and 2007 Artomatic energized Washington artists and performers and demonstrated the city's creative energy, captured media attention, and drew residents from the tri-state area. He serves as a member of the planning committee for Creative DC a new cultural initiative in the District of Columbia.

Mr. Koch is a painter and founder of A. Salon, Ltd., an artist's service organization in the District of Columbia. Mr. Koch served in various leadership positions with A. Salon until 2000. Mr. Koch is a founding member and currently serves on the board of the Cultural Development Corporation. He was a founding board member of the Cultural Alliance of Greater Washington and previously served on the board for three terms. He was recipient of the Cultural Alliance’s first Tony Taylor Award.

Mr. Koch served as a member of the District of Columbia Arts and Humanities Transition Team in the first Barry administration and has completed five terms as a Commissioner with the District of Columbia Commission on the Arts and Humanities. His last appointment was completed in 2007. During his tenure he served as Treasurer and Chair of the Nomination Committee and the Arts Space Committee for the Commission. During his five terms of service on the Commission he has served as commissioner convener for the Visual Art, Design, and Media panels and the special Design Advocacy project Design DC. He has served four times as the convener for the Annual Mayors Arts Awards Panel.

Mr. Koch chaired the Arts and Culture Committee of the Metropolitan Washington Council, AFL-CIO, for ten years. Under his tenure the Arts and Culture Committee sponsored Arts DC in cooperation with the District of Columbia Commission on the Arts and Humanities. During the ten year life of Arts DC Mr. Koch served as its Chair. The Arts and Culture Committee championed and sponsored the creation of the D.C. Film Office.

Mr. Koch served five terms as an officer of National Artists Equity Association and the Artists Equity Fund. Mr. Koch was a member of the National Policy Committee on the Originating Artist established by the American Council for the Arts in 1985. During his tenure with National Artists Equity he also served as President of the U.S. Committee of the International Association of Art. He led the U.S. delegation to the 10th Congress of the International Association of Art in Helsinki, Finland in 1983 and the 12th Congress in Madrid, Spain in 1989.

CAPITOL RIVERFRONT BID

Michael G. Stevens, AICP
Executive Director
Mr. Stevens is the executive director of the Capitol Riverfront Business Improvement District in the southeast waterfront area of Washington, DC – one of the city’s most rapidly developing business centers and urban riverfront neighborhoods. He also recently helped coordinate the Center City Action Agenda 2007 – a planning process to create a new strategic framework to guide development and public investment in downtown DC and its adjacent center city neighborhoods over the next ten years.

Mr. Stevens has been involved in the economic development, urban planning/urban design, and downtown/neighborhood development fields for the majority of his 30-year career. His work experience has included public planning agencies, private architectural and planning firms, nonprofit organizations, and business improvement districts. He recently served as the President & CEO of the Washington, DC Economic Partnership and helped build the organization as a partner in the District’s economic development initiatives.

As Vice President of Development for the Center City Commission BID in Memphis, TN, Mr. Stevens was project manager for numerous downtown development projects including the new AAA baseball ballpark (AutoZone Park), as well as the administration of the agency’s financial incentives. He helped create the first BID in Jackson, MS as a part of the implementation agenda of that city’s Downtown Urban Design Plan.

Mr. Stevens has participated in numerous downtown redevelopment efforts for cities such as Wichita, KS; Lubbock, TX; Dallas, TX; Nashville, TN; Memphis, TN; Jackson, MS; Washington, DC; and San Antonio, TX.

He holds a Master’s degree in Urban Planning/Urban Design from Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, VA, and a BA in Urban Sociology from Millsaps College in Jackson, MS.

MONUMENT REALTY

Michael J. Darby
Principal and Founder
Michael J. Darby is the principal and founder of Monument Realty, one of the top-performing and most active real estate firms in the Washington, DC area. Since founding the company in 1998, Monument has developed more than five million square feet of office space, nearly 5,000 residential units, and three hotels valued at more than $5 billion.

Mr. Darby has built Monument into a full service real estate firm with expertise in financing, project management, construction management, asset management, commercial leasing, residential sales and leasing and property management.

Through his dynamic leadership and visionary thinking, Mr. Darby has been a driving force in Monument’s success, including such high-profile projects as Half Street, Columbia Center, 901 New York Avenue and Franklin Square North. One example of his bold approach to development is Monument’s multiple award-winning The Odyssey Condominium in Arlington, Virginia, which features striking architecture, expansive floor plans, luxury amenities, and stunning views of the city across the Potomac.

An active member of the Washington region’s construction and development industry for more than 20 years, Mr. Darby served as a senior vice president for Akridge prior to founding Monument. He also directed a number of major downtown development projects while at CarrAmerica, including such landmark restoration projects as the Willard Hotel and the Southern Railway Building. Mr. Darby began his career in his native Australia, working with a Melbourne-based general contractor, and holds a degree in Construction Engineering and Business Development from the University of Melbourne.

Douglas D. Olson
Executive Vice President
Douglas Olson, executive vice president of Monument Realty, has been a leader in the Washington metropolitan real estate community for more than 20 years. He is a partner in the firm and serves on the Management and Executive Committees. Mr. Olson’s astute knowledge in the areas of property acquisition, development, leasing and marketing has contributed to the success of many of Monument Realty’s most significant business development opportunities and partnerships.

Mr. Olson joined Monument Realty in 2002. He oversees the acquisition of existing assets, plays a key role in procuring strategic development initiatives and third-party ventures, and directs the marketing and leasing of the firm’s comprehensive commercial portfolio. Prior to joining Monument, he worked with CarrAmerica Realty Corporation for ten years preceded by five years with the brokerage firm of Smithy Braedon Company.

Mr. Olson is past president of the Greater Washington Commercial Association of Realtors and has served consecutive terms on the Board of Governors of the Washington Building Congress. He has also served on the Board of Directors and the Executive Committee of the Downtown DC Business Improvement District, and was a mayoral appointment to the Interactive Downtown Task Force. A native
Washingtonian, Mr. Olson is a recipient of the DC Building Industry Association’s President’s Award, recognizing distinguished service to the industry and the community. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in finance from the Indiana University Kelly School of Business.