This story originally appeared on KQED.org by Kevin L. Jones.
Ebony McKinney, a tireless advocate for the arts who pushed for diversity in the community and for unity among local organizations, died unexpectedly on Saturday from complications related to pneumonia and lupus. She was 41.
The San Francisco Art Commission (SFAC), where McKinney has worked off-and-on since 2005, announced McKinney’s passing in a statement released Monday afternoon.
“Ebony was a beloved leader in the Bay Area and national arts communities and we appreciate the outpouring of love and support from friends and colleagues,” SFAC’s Director of Cultural Affairs, Tom DeCaigny, wrote. “This is a shock for all of us.”
McKinney worked for 15 years in the art world, starting at a theater in Pittsburgh before coming to San Francisco in 2005. Here in the Bay Area, she held many positions that found or provided funding for various arts organizations and projects. She also served on the boards of influential organizations and committees, such as the City of Oakland’s Funding Advisory Committee and the Citizens Advisory Committee to Grants for the Arts.
“She was an absolute force in the San Francisco arts community. Ebony was a coalition builder, a deeply analytical strategist, and she walked the walk,” arts consultant and friend Marc Vogl said.
Though she worked enthusiastically on the funding side of the arts world, McKinney’s friends said her legacy will remain with the two organizations she helped start: Emerging Arts Professionals/San Francisco Bay Area (EAP/SFBA), a network focused on training the next generation of arts and culture workers; and Arts for a Better Bay Area, also known as ABBA, a coalition of San Francisco arts organizations that works to ensure the city funds the arts.
McKinney started EAP/SFBA in 2008 with local composer Adam Fong, who says the idea came up at a focus group hosted by the Hewlett Foundation. The topic was finding new people to fill leadership positions in arts organizations around the Bay Area.
“There hadn’t been a concerted effort to prepare young people to work in the arts community,” Fong said.
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