Full-time Staff
Beth Giacummo | PAC•MoCA L.I. Executive Director & Sr. Curator
Beth Giacummo is a versatile artist, curator, educator, and arts activist with a BFA from the School of Visual Arts and an MFA from Pratt Institute. Her artistic journey has taken her across the globe, exhibiting in prominent venues from New York to Chile and Denmark, driven by her fascination with blown glass and immersive artist residencies in locations like Spain, Austria, Italy, and beyond.
Beyond her artistic pursuits, Giacummo has made significant contributions to the arts community. She co-founded the New York Contemporary Art Symposium (NYCAS) to foster cultural exchange through international residencies, collaborating with artists from around the world. Her leadership roles include serving as president of the Patchogue Arts Council, where she has spearheaded numerous community arts initiatives and received recognition from local and state governments for her dedicated service.
Professionally, Giacummo has held diverse roles spanning art education, museum management, curatorial work, and arts advocacy. She has curated exhibitions and developed programs at institutions like the Islip Art Museum, where she pioneered initiatives such as IAM, a Long Island artist residency. Currently, as the part-time gallery director at Farmingdale State College Memorial Gallery and executive director of the Patchogue Arts Council, she continues to innovate Long Island’s arts scene with groundbreaking exhibitions and events, such as MoCA L.I.ghts, L.I.’s first and only projection festival with multiple exhibitions. MoCA L.I.ghts transforms Patchogue into an open-air museum experience. Her efforts have secured over 3.5 Million dollars of funding from federal, state, and local agencies, supporting arts education and community enrichment across Long Island and beyond. Currently Giacummo is starting the process of her PhD with Napier University, Edinburgh Scotland. Her role with PAC started as founding member, Board President emeritis, and now she is the fulltime Executive Director overseeing all aspects of programing for PAC•MoCA L.I.
Part-time Staff
John Cino | PAC•MoCA L.I. Sr. Curator & Program Director
John Cino Program Director / Curator (Part-time) John Cino is a sculptor, art educator, curator and arts activist who sees all of these activities as part of a greater whole. He graduated from Hunter College of the City University of New York in 1985 with a Master’s Degree in Fine Arts. After holding positions as a gallery assistants for a noted NY artist and art educator for the NYC public schools John began teaching on the collegiate level in 1999. Highlights as a sculptor include the installation of one of his pieces on the Dubuque, Iowa Mississippi River water front, artist in residency programs including Stony Brook University and and two consecutive NYSCA Long Island Creative Artists Grants in 2013 and 2104. From those grants John first extended his work into public art with “Library at Babel: Patchogue” and then into multimedia performance with “Common Ground.” His work has also been exhibited in sculpture parks, museums, college campuses and lobbies including the Islip-MacArthur Airport. Cino has taught on the graduate and undergraduate levels courses in a broad range of studio practices as well as many phases of art history at a number of area colleges and universities. Currently he teaches sculpture and three dimensional design at Nassau Community College and modern art history and art appreciation at St. Joseph’s College of New York. While at Suffolk Community College he received a grant to create and implement an innovative course in mathematics which was taught math through art making. He has curated many exhibitions in New York City and Long Island including 14 Sculptors Gallery, Adelphi University, the Islip Museum and Nassau Community College. He has been the senior curator of the Patchogue Arts Gallery since its inception and has co curated two of its largest projects the Patchogue biennials of 2009 and 2011.
Cino’s work as an arts activist lead to his presidency of 14 Sculptors Gallery, a highly regarded sculptors’ cooperative in the 1990’s and to founding membership in the Patchogue Arts Council in 2008, served as President and currently is part off the staff as Program Director and Sr. Curator.
Contracted Program Based Staff
Linda Beckerman: Admin & PEACE Program Assistant Director
Linda Beckerman holds an M.F.A. in Painting from Rochester Institute of Technology and a B.A. in Art from Queens College, CUNY. She works in a variety of mediums from oils, watercolors, and pastels, to “painting with yarn” in tapestries. Her work is exhibited nationally in private collections from the tri-state area to California and Florida. For the Alliance of Queens Artists, she was Curator for juried art shows at venues including St. John’s University and Avery Fisher Hall.
Ms. Beckerman is the Vice President of Heartworks International, Inc., which develops products and media for language acquisition through the arts. She is a book illustrator and an audio editor of worldwide productions of English and foreign language learning publications, and has been an editor of bilingual manuscripts in English, Spanish, and French. Clients include Berlitz, Langenscheidt (Germany), Nathan (France), Voice of America, Pearson Education, Ladder Multimedia (Taiwan), and Yale University Press. She co-presented a musical play development workshop to music educators at Balanced Mind XI: Teaching World Culture Through the Arts at the Tilles Center for the Performing Arts, C.W. Post, Long Island University. For “The New Musicals Project”, she has served as Production Manager for a new musical play series, and for the Huntington Village Theater Company she was Project Manager for New York State Council on the Arts grants for the development of new plays.
Ms. Beckerman is also Co-Founder and Executive Director of Worldwide Voices, Inc., a non-profit founded in 2005, whose mission is to foster collaboration between disparate community groups through the arts. She has served on the Town of Brookhaven Anti-bias Task Force and has been a member of the Suffolk County Community College Immigrant Solutions Committee, in addition to a long-time volunteer for the SUNY Stony Brook Host Family Program for international students.
She is a founding member of the Greater Patchogue COAD, the Community Organization Active in Disaster, and has been serving as a member of the Architectural Review Board for the Village of Patchogue since 2012.
Ms. Beckerman has been a member of the Patchogue Arts Council since 2011. She is a consultant and office administrator and now serves as the Assistant Director for the PEACE Project.
Gabriela Manfredi | Social Media & Marketing Manager
Gabriela studied and received a BFA in Photography at the Fashion Institute of Technology in NYC and is passionate about supporting fellow female artists as well as the broader local artistic community. Professionally Gabriela works in Podcast Media as a Media Coordinator and part-time supporting the Patchogue Arts Council • MoCA L.I. as our PEACE Social Media Manager, creating content and awareness for the program.
Gabriela Manfredi is a Photographer focused primarily on Photo Manipulation & Documentary work. Gabriela’s work varies vastly in subject matter and style, but shares common themes of exploring the therapeutic artistic process and the exploration of light and color. Gabriela’s documentary work gives an intimate look at her close family dynamics, and her experimental work pulls inspiration from the psychedelic era with highly contrasted manipulated images of the natural world.
Gabriela is part of the curatorial collective for the Patchogue Arts Council including aspects of MoCA L.I.ghts.
Isabella Fernanda | PAC • MoCA L.I. Exhibition & Program Assistant
Isabella Fernanda received her B.A. in Film and Screen Studies & Art from Pace University. Presently, Fernanda is an exhibitions and museum assistant at PAC • MoCA L.I. where she works with the Program Director and Executive Director to assist in programs, exhibits, and events that help promote the arts on L.I. In addition, Fernanda works on special projects like PEACE and helps in translating materials from English to Spanish.
Previously, Fernanda held the position of Museum Educator & Administrator at Preservation Long Island’s (PLI) Custom House in Sag Harbor, NY. As a visual artist, her work examines the exploration of identity through the societal norms and peculiarities that emerge within our contemporary world. Fernanda’s work has appeared in exhibitions, film festivals, and virtual exhibitions both locally and nationally.Fernanda is currently exploring live art performance, painting, sculpture, and video as she continues to devote herself to the arts. Fernanda is part of the curatorial collective for the Patchogue Arts Council including aspects of MoCA L.I.ghts.
Meg Sexton | Development Consultant
Meg Sexton | Development Consultant
Meg Sexton is an arts manager with a BA in Theater and English from the State University of New York at Geneseo and an MA in Teaching of English from Columbia University, Teachers College. Her focus has been on non-profit arts organizations working in a variety of departments including education, development, marketing, and production. Presently, she is the Director of Marketing at The Suffolk in Riverhead, Development consultant for special projects at the Patchogue Arts Council, and she serves as a set and lighting designer for the Hampton Theater Company.
Eric Murphy | PAC • MoCA L.I. Exhibition & Program Assistant
Eric Murphy Graduated from Stony Brook University with a bachelors in Art History in 2014. Since then, he has worked in and has been publicly recognized for his contributions within the arts community of Long Island.
Since 2014 Eric has worked at and been involved in numerous events for Islip Art Museum, Patchogue Arts Council, Long Island Museum, Muneca Arthouse, Amulet Arts, Crozier Fine Arts, and the Simon center, Wang center and Zuccaire Galleries of Stonybrook University.
He has been awarded numerous citations and proclamations from local ( Islip Town and Village of Patchogue), regional representaives, and state entities for his involvement with numerous impactful community programs in which he made major contributions. In addition his own work has been recognized by the 2014 president of Stonybrook University for his contributions and his work now resides in the presidents art collection.
Eric is part of the curatorial collective for the Patchogue Arts Council including aspects of MoCA L.I.ghts.
Christine Baum | PAC • MoCA L.I. PEACE Project Manager
Christine Baum is the Project Manager for the PEACE project, where she is excited to amplify the voices of her colleagues and deepen her impact within the arts and community. With a strong background in printmaking and youth literature, Christine has always believed in the power of art to elevate society and the role of librarians in supporting and nurturing creators. As a printmaker, she has worked in various studios in New York City, where she witnessed the power of co-operative print spaces and how innovation thrives on diverse voices. As a children’s librarian, she has dedicated herself to community outreach, programming, and sharing resources and diverse perspectives to the public. Christine’s multifaceted experiences have honed her ability to create and share valuable content, such as the research and findings that underpin the PEACE project. Christine continues to create and exhibit her own artwork while championing community engagement and collaboration in all her roles.
Mission Statement: The mission of Patchogue Arts Council, Inc. is to ambitiously educate, support, and elevate the arts- community. This includes artists at all stages of their careers as well as supporting the development of new works and public projects through exhibitions and innovative programming that emphasize community engagement while aiding in the revitalization and sustainability of the community. The Patchogue Arts Council, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation whose programming supports arts across all of Long Island.
MOCA L.I. Museum of Contemporary Arts Long Island (MoCA L.I.) is the exhibition space of the Patchogue Arts Council (PAC).By redefining PAC’s exhibition space from Gallery to Museum, opportunities for the community and the artists we serve grows exponentially. PAC has always been unconventional in comparison to other arts councils. Our primary focuses are to make current and contemporary art accessible to everyone and to serve artists across Long Island. We work to create inclusiveness in all of our opportunities for Long Island’s artistic communities. Through our programming, we support, promote, and encourage early, mid-career, and established artists working in all media and all walks of life.
Equity Policy: Patchogue Arts Council Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Policy
The Patchogue Arts Council is committed to shaping a diverse, inclusive, and equitable arts community. We strive to create a welcoming and affirming environment where all individuals feel a sense of belonging. We strongly encourage all staff, members, partners, vendors, and board members are treated with respect and dignity. And we strongly encourage participation from
members, artists, and community members from perspectives that have been historically underrepresented within our society, including but not limited to individuals who identify as BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color), individuals who identify as part of the LGBTQ+ community, and individuals with disabilities*.
For the purposes of this statement, Diversity refers to race, gender, ethnicity, nationality, religion, sexual identity, familial status, age, disability and socio-economic status; Inclusion is valuing, respecting, and encouraging the full participation of each individual in the life and leadership of the organization; Equity is a process that ensures all people have the opportunity to contribute, develop, and grow despite historical, structural, legislative, racial, and socio-economic inequities.
We are an organization that celebrates the rich diversity of Long Island. We will not tolerate discrimination, biases, harassment, or bullying of any kind. Regardless of race, socio-economic status, age, disability, religion, sexual orientation, nationality, gender, or marital status, we are an organization that celebrates the richness of our community.
As an organization and Board of Directors, we agree to be guided by these principles and pledge that they will be reflected in our vision, mission, strategic planning, programming, governance, and board composition. Our commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion extends to our staff, our members, and programs we develop and support.
*The Patchogue Arts Council understands these identity categories can be viewed as an umbrella terminology and should not be used when referencing a specific group or population. If you are mentioning a specific population or individual within these communities, use specific language to be as accurate as possible.
Land Acknowledgement: Patchogue Arts Council acknowledges that the land on which our space stands, at 20 Terry Street, Patchogue, NY, is part of the traditional territory of the Unkechaug Nation. We honor and respect the enduring relationship that exists between Unkechaug people and their ancestral territories. We recognize the deep cultural and artistic contributions of the Indigenous peoples, past and present, who have shaped and continue to influence this land. We honor and respect the many diverse Indigenous peoples still connected to this land on which we gather, create, and celebrate the arts.