President, SNAC Board of Directors

Advocacy + Legislation Committee Chair

Jennifer Kleven is a life-long Las Vegan who is committed to expanding access to arts and culture for under-resourced communities in Las Vegas. Her love of art and community was honed during her time at the University of Nevada Las Vegas where she received her BFA in Art and a BA in Art History. Upon completing her degrees in 2009, she opened Kleven Contemporary gallery in the now closed Emergency Arts building on Fremont Street, where she exhibited local, national and international artists who received great praise for their innovative work.

She is the Deputy Director of Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs for the city of Las Vegas and in that role she oversees the Cultural Affairs division: public art and galleries, festivals and performances, and special events. Previous to accepting the Deputy Director position in April 2024, she spent 13 years at the Neon Museum and was part of the team that opened the museum to the public in 2012. As the Director of Advancement for the last three years of her tenure, she oversaw fund development, membership, grants and events. 

She is a Creative West (previously WESTAF) Leader of Color, past president of the Nevada Museums Association and currently serves on the Las Vegas Arts Commission. She is a practicing visual artist, active independent curator and grant reviewer for Nevada Arts Council, National Endowment for the Arts and Creative West. In her free time, she enjoys tending to her plants, gardening, exploring the desert Southwest and spending time with her cats and husband.

Treasurer, SNAC Board of Directors

Mickey Sprott is the program administrator for public art at Clark County, Nevada in the Department of Parks and Recreation. Sprott manages the Public Art Office focused on creating large scale public art in both rural and urban settings, education for the professional artist, youth education, operates three galleries and oversees the conservation of the collection.  Sprott holds a master’s degree in public administration and a bachelor’s degree in art with a minor in art history. She is a member of the Americans for the Arts, Henderson Arts Advisory Commissioner, served on the City of Las Vegas Arts Commission 2017-2023, as Chair in 2021-2022 and was the project manager for the 1 October Memorial Committee and winning concept design from JCJ Architecture, the Forever One Memorial.

Secretary, SNAC Board of Directors

Application + Admin Committee Chair

Demecina Beehn is a Las Vegas-based cultural producer and art administrator whose work focuses on elevating the art and voices of underrepresented communities and cultivating intersectional safe spaces for dialogue and expression. During her fifteen-year career, Beehn has developed high-level projects, curated exhibitions, activated multiple local and international artist residencies, and managed a multimillion-dollar corporate fine art collection. Throughout her career, Beehn has architected organizational structures where there were none. She holds a M.A. in Museum and Exhibition Studies from University of Illinois - Chicago and a B.F.A in sculpture from School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Currently, she is Director Art & Culture of MGM Resorts International. The multifaceted art program of MGM Resorts features the MGM Resorts Fine Art Collection, Bellagio Gallery of Fine Art and numerous art-focused activations and partnerships.

SNAC Board of Directors

Raised in the Chicago area, Wendy Kveck has made her home in Las Vegas, Nevada for the past twenty-five years, where she contributes to the community in various roles as an artist, educator, and advocate. Wendy Kveck's artwork confronts popular images and historical depictions of women as cultural markers through the mediums of painting, drawing, collage and performance. She has exhibited her work nationally, and her projects have been supported by the National Endowment for the Arts, the Nevada Arts Council and the Nevada Humanities. She is an Assistant Professor in Residence at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas where she teaches in the Department of Art and coordinates the Graduate Program. She is the founder of Couch in the Desert, a collaborative curatorial project highlighting contemporary art and artists who have contributed to the presentation and discussion of contemporary art in Las Vegas. 

Communications Committee Chair

Holly Lay is a Visual Arts Specialist II for the City of Las Vegas, where she manages public art projects and develops initiatives that enhance the city’s cultural landscape. She is the co-founder and co-director of Available Space Art Projects (ASAP), an exhibition space that fosters experimental and contemporary art. With a passion for digital archives, cyberculture, femininity, craft, and kitsch, Holly maintains an active studio practice that explores these themes. She earned her MFA from UNLV in 2019 and is dedicated to supporting artists and expanding arts access in Las Vegas.

Accounting + Budgeting Committee Chair

Born and raised in Henderson, Nevada, Laura Machado is an experienced public art project manager and the Section Manager for the city of Las Vegas Public Art and Gallery Program. With over 13 years of service to the city of Las Vegas, Laura is deeply committed to both her profession and community. Her personal passion for the arts and strong sense of civic duty make her role in the city an ideal match.

Laura holds a bachelor's degree in Fine Arts from Gonzaga University. Above all, she considers her role as a mother to two boys, Vincent (18) and Dominic (11), to be her greatest achievement.

Fundraising + Outreach Committee Chair

Christy Sakamoto is the Regional Impact Manager for Meow Wolf. In this role she builds partnerships with the Las Vegas community supporting arts access, equity and education. She is a Honey Badger for life with the 2023 Leadership Las Vegas class, deepening her commitment to betterment of Las Vegas. Christy dedicates her time to Asian Pacific Alumni UCLA on the scholarship committee and volunteering with Neon Museum. She serves on the board of Pride Tree, and as an Advisory Board member for Black Mountain Institute. She was previously with the Mob Museum, and the Japanese American National Museum in Los Angeles.