Meet Clive Chang, YoungArts’ new creative and pragmatic president.
Portrait of Clive Chang, YoungArts’ new president. PHOTO: BY GESI SCHILLING
Clive Chang began playing the piano at age five. He completed dual undergraduate music degrees at McGill University, a master’s degree in Musical Theater Writing at NYU/Tisch School of the Arts, followed by a Master of Business Administration from Harvard Business School. This dual music and business training paved the way for a decade-long leadership career at Disney Theatrical Group and Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York City collectively. Today, Chang actively plays, composes and directs music and writes for theater.
Philanthropist and real estate investor Lin Arison and her late husband Ted Arison, founder of Carnival Cruise Lines, wanted to give back to their community in Miami. In 1981, they established the National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts, now called “YoungArts,” with the mission of identifying and developing America’s young creative talent. Today, the program includes the highly anticipated National YoungArts Week showcasing teen talent, with winners augmented by masterclass training with celebrated career professionals and more.
Isabella Mellado’s “Forward” (2022) PHOTO: COURTESY OF ISABELLA MEDALLO
This year, Chang is recognized as the President of YoungArts (youngarts.org), the country’s premier nonprofit organization for uplifting emerging creatives, recognized for his immersive approach to administration and creative practices. Appointed in January 2023, Chang’s vision is to further the infrastructure for meaningful artists’ support and to celebrate and amplify creativity to communicate across linguistic, geographical and sociopolitical boundaries.
YoungArts chairperson Sara Arison was familiar with Clive Chang’s impressive portfolio as a board member of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts and the YoungArts Board of Directors, recognizing his knowledge of development, penchant for innovation and empathy for creative processes. He will oversee YoungArts annual Miami Art Week showcase, including a solo exhibition by Puerto Rico-born painter Isabella Mellado in the YoungArts Gallery, a 2014 YoungArts visual arts winner, as well as a one-night listening session by New York-based talent James Allister Sprang in YoungArts iconic Jewel Box—a few of the many exciting highlights to come from the Miami-based Foundation.
Photography by: Photos: By Gesi Schilling; Courtesy of Isabella Medallo
