Clarissa Grace Gines (she/her) is a Filipina-American cultural worker and arts administrator whose multi-layered identities as a child of immigrants, first-generation college graduate, mother, storyteller, and arts advocate informs her work in, and with community.

Born and raised on the Big Island of Hawaii, she moved to the Pacific Northwest to attend Pacific Lutheran University (PLU), acquiring a Bachelor of Arts in Art History in 2012. Her proudest achievement to date is graduating PLU with her 1-year-old daughter by her side.

Currently, she is the Tacoma Creates Program Coordinator for the City of Tacoma, and also serves on the W.W. Seymour Botanical Conservatory Foundation board. Previously, she was the Exhibitions Manager at ArtXchange Gallery, and has worked / volunteered in other galleries and cultural institutions, including Abmeyer + Wood Fine Art, Museum of Glass, and Tacoma Art Museum. Clarissa has served on funding panels in the cultural sector, and has organized events by and for the Asian-American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community. She is also a contributing writer for the International Examiner.

In her free time, she can be found either out in nature looking at flowers, in a museum looking at art, or in her kitchen baking (ask her about her baked goods!).