Who We Are
Ambrose Liu
Ambrose Liu is the founder and project director of the Olney Culture Lab. He brings a unique combination of skills and experiences to drive the community-centered process of envisioning and leveraging cultural assets towards positive neighborhood development. His background in strategic planning, program design, project management, fundraising, and event production informs all the initiatives that he helps to incubate and nurture.
His professional credits notably include working with:
Mural Arts Philadelphia (March 2015 to November 2017), Philadelphia Education Fund / Arts Rising Initiative (2010 to 2013), New Jersey Performing Arts Center (2002 to 2010), and Appel Farm Arts and Music Center (1994 to 1996).
Ambrose is also a practicing musician, composer and lyricist, and writer and trained in the visual arts.
Melissa Talley-Palmer
Melissa Talley-Palmer is a Project Manager at Olney Culture Lab. She is an arts administrator with close to thirty years of experience in nonprofit community arts and education. In addition to Olney Culture Lab, Melissa has previously worked for Stockton Rush Bartol Foundation, the Philadelphia Jazz Project, The Village of Arts & Humanities and Art Sanctuary.
Melissa is an active dance practitioner and cultural movement artist who is a two-time recipient of the Leeway Art & Change grant. Her focus is in the preservation and promulgation of African-American forms of social dance, with a special emphasis on movement traditions grown in Philadelphia.
Beyond performance, Melissa is a certified trauma-informed teaching artist, modeling school graduate, and passionate arts educator. She has taught youth and adults across Philadelphia through programs like Dancing Classrooms Philly and charter schools, bringing dance, discipline, and cultural pride to the classroom.
varissa mcmickens-blair
Varissa McMickens Blair is Chief Strategies Officer for Olney Culture Lab. She is also the Founder & Executive Consultant of NOWWellspring Consulting, a boutique firm focused on the needs and vision of nonprofits and small businesses. Varissa is a seasoned nonprofit and arts education professional with more than thirty years of experience. As Olney Culture Lab’s Chief Strategies Officer, she supports organizational capacity building, fundraising and development, program design and implementation, podcast and digital media production, and provides direct support for OCL’s Founder/Project Director.
Marquise Lindsey-bradley
Marquise Lindsey-Bradley (MLB) is a classically trained clarinetist who uses music as a foundation for leadership and service in his community. He made his solo debut at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts in 2019 as the winner of the All-City Concerto Competition, and has performed and programmed concerts in a wide variety of schools, churches, bars, private homes, and community gardens, respectively.
In addition to a busy performance schedule, MLB serves as the Creative Program Coordinator for the Olney Culture Lab and the Marketing Manager for Artcinia, an organization that presents professional performing arts concerts in neighborhoods throughout the city of Philadelphia. MLB earned his Bachelor of Music degree in Clarinet Performance from the Cleveland Institute of Music where he studied with Afendi Yusuf, Principal Clarinet of the Cleveland Orchestra. He also completed an academic minor in Business Management at Case Western Reserve University’s Weatherhead School of Management.
Wesley Brown
Wesley Brown is Olney Culture Lab’s resident videographer and all-around multi-media professional.
Chamor thomas
Chamor Thomas is the Communications Manager at Olney Culture Lab, where she leads digital communications, engagement, and media relations. She brings over 15 years of experience working with organizations and nonprofits across human services, economic development, and arts & culture sectors.
June Lopez
June Lopez is an interdisciplinary artist: a freelance photographer, musician, sound designer, composer, and an experimentalist of Afro, Latin, jazz, techno, and electronic music. His work includes multimedia projects with acoustic and digital sounds, visuals, live performances, modular synthesis, and field recordings.
June Lopez has collaborated and worked with the legendary bassist Jamaaladeen Tacuma, The Last Poets, Brian Keith, Kurt Boyer, Richard Waller III, Max Martinez, Marco Berry aka Fantasy, Tony Catastrophe, Sean Dexter, Wadud, Philmorebrown, Malik B, cellist Monica McIntyre, Tommy Hogunz, and among others.
June Lopez will serve as sound designer and editor for all Olney Culture Lab projects.
Olney Culture Lab Advisory Committee
Stephanie Michel, Olney Community Collaborative
Professor Randy J. Gibson, Gibson School of Music & Arts
Wilhemina Gibson, Gibson School of Music & Arts
Paola Nogueras
Laurel Sweeney
Shannon Smith & Mark Smith
Tania Y. Ramos Otón, Thurgood Marshall Elementary School
Ellissa Collier
