Who We Are

OUR TEAM

Kristin Beal

Co-Founder and Executive Director

Kristin Beal is an arts advocate, administrator, and culture producer committed to fostering creative communities. She co-founded Harvester Arts in 2014 and currently serves as its Executive Director. Under her leadership, Harvester Arts has become a cornerstone of Wichita’s cultural landscape—building creative capacity through arts experimentation, public art projects, artist residencies, and professional development for artists.

Kristin also leads the Gallery Place Project, an initiative that transforms underused spaces in Wichita into vibrant hubs for artistic expression and community engagement. The project offers pop-up experiences and artistic activations that demonstrate the power of creative action to connect people and place.

She holds a BFA in Drawing and Painting from Wichita State University, an MFA in Painting and Printmaking from Virginia Commonwealth University, and has studied at the Kansas City Art Institute. Her expertise in grant writing and project management has helped secure major funding from the Knight Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the Kansas Arts Commission. Kristin continues to explore socially engaged art projects that activate communities and inspire collective action.

Mina Estrada

Managing Director

Mina Estrada dedicates much of her time to teaching, creating, and facilitating dance experiences for herself and those who care to join. She holds an MFA in Dance from Temple University, and her choreography and workshops—rooted in contemporary movement concepts and improvisation—have been commissioned by presenters across the country.

Mina has served on faculty for the dance programs at Wichita State University, Temple University, Old Dominion University, Christopher Newport University, and Drexel University. While in Philadelphia, she performed in the Live Arts Festival and Collage Festival, received the New Edge Residency at the CEC, and worked with notable artists including Jumatatu Poe, Silvana Cardell, Shavon Norris, and the Leah Stein Dance Company.

After relocating to the South, she served as Director of Artist Resources for the Arts Council of Greater Baton Rouge and taught at Louisiana State University. Now based in Wichita, Mina is the Managing Director of Harvester Arts, where she also founded Smack Dab Dance Lab, Harvester’s resident dance company dedicated to collaborative, experimental performance. She teaches at Wichita State University, and is the co-creator of Benevolent Instruction, a creative modality and podcast project.

When she’s not immersed in dance-making, Mina is in hot pursuit of great storytellers, generous muses, equilibrium, and more time to pet her cats, smile at her husband, and spend time with Mother Nature.

Emily Cass

Gallery Manager

Emily Cass is an arts professional based in Wichita, Kansas, with a background in both arts education and nonprofit leadership. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Art Education and a Master’s in Arts Leadership and Management. A former art educator in the local school district, Emily now serves as Gallery Manager at Harvester Arts, where she has been a vital part of the team for the past two years. In addition to her work at Harvester, she contributes to museum education at the Wichita Art Museum, blending her creative practice with a deep commitment to community engagement and arts access.