our team
SLATE’s mission is to create opportunities for people to live, work, and engage with art that delights and stimulates the mind and senses, inspires creativity and innovation, and expresses individual taste and values.
Danielle Fox
Principal Partner and Managing Member, Slate Art LLC
An art historian by training (PhD, Northwestern University), Danielle has over thirty years of experience in the art world as a teacher, writer, editor, curator; as Deputy Director of Business Development at Sotheby’s in London; as communications and project manager for Artakt Art consulting in London; founder of SLATE Contemporary Gallery in Oakland, and Principal Partner of SLATE Art Consulting. She brings to her work an understanding of the international art market; experience working with galleries and auction houses; and five years in the interior design field, which gives her a special understanding of the important role that art plays in architectural and design programs. Danielle oversees operations for SLATE Art LLC, manages SLATE’s Public Art program, and curates collections for key clients. She is also a Member of the Board of the San Francisco Art Dealers Association, Art Table, and Oakland Art Murmur’s Venues Committee.
Shelley Barry
Principal Partner and Managing Member, Slate Art LLC
Art is Shelley’s business. With an early career in sales and marketing for multi-national companies, she has over twenty years of experience in the art world, thirteen of which she spent as the sole proprietor of a small corporate art consulting firm. Shelley currently oversees SLATE’s business development activities, in addition to curating bespoke art programs for key account clientele. Shelley has served on various boards, such as the San Ramon Arts Foundation, the San Ramon Arts Advisory Committee, Student Art For Education’s Advisory Council, and was appointed by the Contra Costa Board of Supervisors to serve as a Commissioner At-Large for the Arts and Culture Commission of Contra Costa County. Formerly a Vice Chair on the Board of the Sandra J. Wing Healing Therapies Foundation, Shelley is also a member of Art Table and The San Francisco Art Dealers Association.
Jillian Piccirilli
Senior Associate
Jillian holds a BFA in Painting and a BA in Anthropology from Cornell University. She is a former exhibition manager for Cornell University Library’s Division of Rare and Manuscript Collections and Director of Operations for Oakland Art Murmur. Jillian has worn many hats at SLATE Art since she joined the team in 2015. She previously served as business manager and SLATE contemporary gallery manager, working with many of SLATE Art Consulting’s top clients in the architecture and design industries. Jillian currently serves on SLATE Art's general management team, as well as a project manager for SLATE Art Consulting, with a focus on the tech industry, higher education, and public art.
Ryan Robertson
Business Manager
Ryan received her BFA from Santa Fe University of Art and Design with an emphasis in painting & drawing. After graduating, she stayed in Santa Fe and interned with The International Folk Art Alliance and the Center for Diversity and Integrated Learning at SFCC. Since moving to the Bay Area in 2018, she has worked as a Production Coordinator and Office Manager in the film industry, collaborating on documentary passion projects as well as creating content for major corporations and tech companies. She is excited to join the SLATE Team and return to her roots in the Fine Arts world. When she isn’t at work, you can find her painting in her studio in the Mission, trying to hone her culinary skills at home in Berkeley, or somewhere along the California coast camping with her partner and elderly dog.
Carolyn Smith
Associate Director
Carolyn has been an advocate and supporter of Bay Area arts organizations since 2014. She has worked with Bay Area creative legacies FLAX art & design and Oakland Art Murmur. As a Social Media Marketer, she cultivates a culture of innovative problem solving, offering a diverse skill set of creative storytelling, content creation, and project leadership. Carolyn is passionate about her work in helping arts organziations tell inspiring stories that inform business decisions and build meaningful connections with clients and audiences both locally and worldwide. Carolyn is thrilled to join the team at SLATE Contemporary. When she’s not connecting with visual artists, you can find her playing guitar. Carolyn holds a Master of Music in performance from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music.
Lucy Spencer
Gallery Manager
Lucy Spencer returns to the Bay Area after attending Parsons The New School in New York, NY where she graduated with a BFA in Fine Arts and an emphasis in business administration. After graduation, Lucy spent another four years in New York City, honing her own art practice and working across all aspects of the industry. She focused on exhibition planning, and event production as Gallery Manager at ABXY Gallery on the Lower East Side, working with Goldman Sachs and The United Nations. Lucy also worked in art fair production at a variety of art fairs including SPRING//BREAK and ArtNY. Independently, Lucy curated shows through Brooklyn and New York City, and developed a consulting business for local emerging artists. Outside of work, find her spending time in the mountains snowboarding, attending Oakland art exhibitions, and reading in her blue chair at home in Oakland with her husband and two cats.