Melissa Levin is a values-driven arts administrator, artist-centered curator, and steadfast advocate for just and equitable practices in the arts. For more than 12 years, Melissa worked at Lower Manhattan Cultural Council (LMCC) where she was the Vice President of Cultural Programs. Her role encompassed wide-ranging institutional and artistic leadership, overseeing LMCC’s major artist-centered and public-facing initiatives including the River To River Festival, the Arts Center at Governors Island, and LMCC’s artist residency programs. She next led a newly formed Artists, Estates, and Foundations division at Art Agency, Partners in its inaugural three years.

Starting in 2016, with collaborator Alex Fialho, Melissa has stewarded the legacy of and curated critically acclaimed exhibitions dedicated to the late artist Michael Richards, including Michael Richards: Winged (LMCC, 2016; Stanford University, 2019) and Richards’ first museum retrospective, Michael Richards: Are You Down? (MOCA North Miami, 2021). Together, they have also co-edited the first-ever monograph dedicated to Michael Richards, titled Michael Richards: Are You Down?, co-published by MOCA North Miami and Center for Art, Research and Alliances (CARA) and released in November 2025.

Melissa additionally currently serves on the board of Danspace Project, and from 2017–2025 served on the board of the Artist Communities Alliance. She holds a B.A. with honors in Visual Art and Art History from Barnard College.