Lauren Kennedy has been working at the Urban Art Commission (UAC) as executive director since January 2015. Lauren brings to the organization extensive project and event management experience and a sincere enthusiasm for contemporary art. In this role, she has been invited to speak at WESTAF's Future History of Public Art Symposium in Honolulu, Hawai'i, ArtBAB (Art Bahrain Across Borders) in Manama, Bahrain, and UNFOLD in Dubai, UAE about public art processes and the current state of public art in America. She was previously the partnership manager for Ballet Memphis, where she focused on collaborative projects and opportunities with creative individuals and other organizations around Memphis. Lauren was also the founder and director of Southfork - Memphis, an alternative space for art and conversation from 2015 - 2017. She was a Center for Outreach in the Development of the Arts Fellow at Rhodes College where she received a B.A. in art history in 2008. Lauren was named one of Memphis' 20 under 30 by the Memphis Flyer in 2014, and to Memphis Business Journal's 40 Under 40 list in 2019.