Episode 26 - Leslie Weissman

Everyone in the art world needs to know Leslie Weissman. She knows the ins and outs of the creative and business side of art better than most. She is an artist, collector, advisor, curator, pop-up gallerist, lecturer, educator, networker, and avid reader. What’s more, she is very close to her husband Michael and children.

None of this is an exaggeration. I’m a friend of hers and I see her in action. She has boundless energy for everything she is passionate about. She has helped me so many times it’s almost embarrassing. That’s why I wanted to do a podcast with her. Listen to this episode and you decide for yourself.   Leslie B. Weissman received her training at New York University’s Interactive Telecommunications Program at the Tisch School focusing on Interactive Art and was graduated from Hobart and William Smith College with a B.A. in Art History/Art/Religion.

Leslie co-founded Presents For Purpose which was a socially conscious gift company where the sales benefited cancer and health charities. Currently she is the director of Loft Projects NY, a physical gallery and project space in Chappaqua NY that she founded in 2017. Under the Loft Projects banner, she is a guest curator in other galleries, at Art Fairs and at venues around NYC. Loft Projects focuses on bringing works of underrepresented artists to a gallery setting. 2024 Curatorial projects have included All The Small Things at Marinaro Gallery and the Future Fair presentation of Female Identifying Artists at The Salon at 13th Storey. 

Earlier this month she opened Pluperfect: an action of continued relevance at 81 Leonard, and has upcoming projects with Dimin Gallery, Marinaro, and Eyes Never Sleep Gallery.

In addition to her curatorial projects Leslie is an Art Advisor educating and assisting collectors to build and develop their personal collections. As a working artist and teacher, she has taught neuro typical children and adults, and within facilities that service cognitively impaired patients to help them express themselves with art.

Later this fall she will be a guest critic with the NY CritClub.

Her work has been in shows at The Hole Gallery in NYC, The Zwerner presentation to support the Children’s Museum of NY, and M+B in Los Angeles, Neighbors Gallery, as well as a contributor to the Rema Hort Mann Foundation’s Buy What You Love Event.

Leslie was with Philips Electronics as a member of their research staff and later serving as the Vice President of Marketing for their Internet division. Leslie is responsible for having launched some of the first internet sites built for the recorded music industry during her time at Philips Electronics and Polygram Records. She spent several years at Prodigy Communications, both full time and as a consultant where she explored the business-to-business applications available in the early stages of online technology. 

As a consultant, she worked for Jack Welch at GE in his best practices group to identify technology and applications for consumer use. In addition, she consulted to OMNICOM Media Group and their subsidiary agencies on interface design and marketing strategy related to the speed of internet application development.

Leslie currently sits on the board of Fountainhead Residency in Miami, FL and The Advisory and Acquisition Committee for the Ogunquit Museum in Ogunquit, Maine. 

She is a past Trustee of Blythdale Children’s Hospital in Valhalla, NY, where she served for nine years focusing on expanding their fundraising and development efforts and is now on the advisory fundraising.