“See, I have this day set you over the nations and over the kingdoms, To root out and to pull down, To destroy and to throw down, To build and to plant.”
Will “Topiltzin” Sanchez - Born Guillermo Sanchez Jr., In the small town of Adrian, Michigan. Of Mexican descent, he first embraced his culture at a very young age relocating with his family to Cleveland in 1978. A veteran of the U.S. Army serving from 1991 to 1999, where he continued his technical education in the electronics field started during his attendance of Aviation High School. Until 1998 when he was recognized for his analytical ability and given the opportunity to begin his Quality Management career as a Quality Engineer, fully enjoying the documentation, communication and issue resolution which he excelled at. An artist since childhood, from the very beginning of becoming more intrigued with art, he has won contests, awards and organized numerous art shows. In 2002 the first Latino owned and managed art gallery in the greater Cleveland metropolitan area was born, La Cosecha Galeria, literally translated, The Harvest Gallery. It stood for much more; it was an understanding, a union, an opportunity to display an identity. A window providing insightful analysis of current events, political opinion and creative vision from the leading artist’s perspective.
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Chosen among the 25 Cleveland City Champions by the Guardian, Cleveland Plain Dealer & For Freedom 2020, Progress Institute 2019 Panelist for Creative Placemaking and Creative Placekeeping: Honoring the Cultural Lives of Legacy Communities in Transition. 2019 Think Tanks: Early to Mid-Career Arts Administrators of Color Charrette supported by the Joyce Foundation and the Art Leadership Development Program Design Incubator Design sponsored by The School of the Art Institute of Chicago and nominated to apply for the upcoming 2020 Joyce Foundation Award. Named Cleveland Magazine’s Most Interesting People for 2019, one of twelve artists selected from Cuyahoga County to participate in the Center for Performance and Civic Practice's Learning Lab, supported by Cuyahoga Arts & Culture.
Highlights:
• 2000 – Honorably Discharged from U.S. Army: Honor Platoon Leader, 10K track team champion, High Security Clearance Classification with Accommodation.
• 2001 - First professional art show and sale.
• 2001 – Won first juried art show.
• 2002 – Founded La Cosecha Galeria.
• 2003 – P.R.F.A.A. major effort to register local residents, outreach to local youths and motivate those registered to vote. As well as an advisor on several boards.
• 2004 – Began study of Six Sigma methodology and QMS implementation. Progressively advanced within the company, setting several production records along the way. Created process system for Arts & Entertainment and nonprofits as an industry.
• 2005 – Professional Graphic Design, fiscal agent duties, grant writer, preparing service proposals, document specialist, fundraising, event and personnel management standards.
• 2006 – Created Marketing & Communications standardization: process, work instructions, 8D reporting, CAR, MRB, control plans, FMEA, flow charts, cost of quality analysis, statistical analysis.
• 2007 – Founded Six Sigma Solutions. All phases of Quality Control and Assurance. Fabricating AWS STDS, Powder Coating to Military Spec. ISO 9001/2000 certified in 6 months, Weld Qualified, ISO 9001/2008 in year 2, Only second company in Ohio.
• 2008 - Solar Turbines Liaison. Material Review Board Specialist. Aeronautics/Aerospace, FDA, Medical STDS.
• 2009 - Julia De Burgos Cultural Arts Center - Board member
• 2009 – Began Journalistic career with articles in several media outlets. Tapped for several Major concerts as event manager and marketing.
• 2010 - Metro Health “Amigas Unidas” Program – Volunteer. Metro Health Cancer Care Center – Vision Advisory Council. The Ohio Latino Fest: Amate Fashion Show, first fashion show with breast cancer survivors as the models. Metro Health “Amigas Unidas” Program. Event Manager. Convención Hispana: Hispanic Roundtable – Community Development Co-chair.
• 2011 - Hispanic Heritage Celebrates “One World”: First Hispanic based event held at the CSU Wolstein Center. Event Manager.
• 2012 – Tu Decides: Marketing & Communications. For the first time ever, we successfully organized the Faith Based Community around voting and civic involvement. Gran Campana: Inaugural Faith Based Health Fair. Marketing, Graphic Design.
• 2013 - Convención Hispana: Marketing Coordinator.
• 2014 – Consortium of African-American Organizations Minority Good Works Award. The Minority Good Works Award is a partnership between CAAO, the Urban League of Greater Cleveland, and CSU Black Studies Program.
• 2017 – Reestablished La Cosecha Galeria.
• 2017 – Research & Development abroad: Paris, France, Rome, Italy, Amsterdam, Netherlands and Landstuhl, Germany.
• 2018 – Center for Performance and Civic Practice Selected Learning Lab Artist.
• 2018 – Research & Development abroad: Athens, Mykonos and Santorini, Greece.
• 2018 – First International Artist Consortium production in New York, New York.
• 2019 – Named Cleveland Magazine’s Most Interesting People for 2019.
• 2019 – Early to Mid-Career Arts Administrators of Color Charrette held in Cleveland, supported by The Joyce Foundation.
• 2019 – Art Leadership Development Program Design Incubator Design, sponsored by The School of the Art Institute of Chicago.
• 2019 – Cofounder of advocacy group LACHA, Latinx Arts & Culture of Hispanic Alliance.
• 2019 – Organized historic first Artist of Color Symposium in Cleveland.
• 2019 – Progress Institute 2019 Panelist for Creative Placemaking and Creative Placekeeping: Honoring the Cultural Lives of Legacy Communities in Transition.
• 2019 – Chosen among the 25 Cleveland City Champions by the Guardian, Cleveland Plain Dealer & For Freedom.