As a veteran actor, it seems Ben Gougeon was born to play his latest real-life role – executive director of the nonprofit Quad City Arts, the organization’s third full-time leader in less than two years.
Gougeon brings more than 30 years of experience working in the arts, both as a theatre and film artist and in leadership and administrative roles with nonprofits in Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, and New York. His professional background also includes management roles in the hospitality and retail industries, bringing additional experience in operations, customer service, and team leadership.
As executive director, he will lead Quad City Arts in advancing its mission to enrich the quality of life in the Quad Cities through the arts by supporting artists, expanding arts education, and creating meaningful public art experiences throughout the region, according to a Tuesday release from the nonprofit.
“Throughout this search, our board remained focused on finding the right leader for Quad City Arts—someone who shares our commitment to artists, education, and community partnerships,” said Jenni Swanson, board president. “We are excited to welcome Ben as our next executive director and are confident he will build upon the strong foundation created by our staff, volunteers, board members, artists, donors, and community partners. Together, we look forward to expanding opportunities for the arts and continuing to serve the Quad Cities with creativity, collaboration, and excellence.”
There were 56 applicants for the job, with the majority from the Midwest and more than half of those local, Swanson said this week.
“Ben’s qualifications and experience helped him stand out from the rest of the applicants,” she said. “His knowledge of Quad City Arts, relationships with area organizations, partnerships and interactions with stakeholders helped move him to the final stage. Ben was unanimously selected by the board and is the best candidate to move Quad City Arts to a successful future.”
“Board leadership and Ben’s vast experience will enable Quad City Arts to reimagine and revitalize itself continuing to benefit the arts and expand our reach in our community,” Swanson said, noting the nonprofit will be restructuring “to be more flexible and agile as we navigate the future. This may result in new opportunities for additional staff in the coming year.”
Prior to this appointment, Gougeon served as events coordinator and director of community engagement at Quad City Arts (he joined in early 2022), where he oversaw the Visiting Artist Series, Chalk Art Fest, Riverssance Festival of Fine Art, Metro Arts Youth Apprenticeship Program, Arts Dollars Grant program, and numerous public art initiatives, including the upcoming Tapestry installation in downtown Moline.
As executive director, he succeeds Brian Allen, who left this past January, and Kevin Maynard, who served in the role from December 2018 to November 2024, when he became executive director of Opening Nights at Florida State University.
Gougeon said he is honored to serve the organization and community in an expanded role.
“Quad City Arts has a remarkable history of connecting people through creativity and strengthening our communities through the arts,” said Gougeon, who started with the group four and a half years ago. “In my previous role, I loved being able to serve as a connector and create partnerships with the many organizations doing necessary work throughout our region.
"I look forward to continuing to work alongside our talented staff, dedicated board members, artists, volunteers, donors, sponsors, and community partners to expand access to the arts and build upon the organization’s strong foundation. Together, we have an exciting opportunity to strengthen the impact of the arts throughout the Quad Cities for years to come.”
He's also served as host of “Talking Art,” a podcast produced in partnership with WVIK, where he helped share the stories of artists, arts organizations, and creative work happening throughout the region. His knowledge of the organization, relationships throughout the community, and commitment to the mission provide a strong foundation for continued growth and innovation, the Tuesday release said.
Seeing the QC from the outside
Gougeon said Wednesday (Aug. 12) he wanted the job “because I love the organization and what we do, honestly.”
“Moving here as an outsider and finding Quad City Arts has just been, I'm so grateful for it,” he said. “I've gotten to know so much about the community and the artists in our community through working here. And I see the work we do and I see the organizations that we're able to partner with and help. And that's so much of what we do.”
He considers them to be a service organization, acting as a connecting glue to make art a tangible reality in the six-county region.
Arts apprentices at their mural on the side of the Buckrop Chiropractic building, 331 4th Street West, Milan.
“We're helping so many different organizations do the work that they do. And for me, the opportunity to be of service in that way and to want to be able to continue that,” Gougeon said. “We've been around for 56 years, and I want that to be around for another 56 years.”
A 49-year-old Michigan native, he’s a graduate of Western Illinois University’s MFA Acting program (2007), and moved to the QC in the fall of 2019, to work at Davenport Junior Theatre, where he later became artistic director.
Before relocating to the Midwest, he had spent a decade-plus working in New York City as an actor, appearing on TV shows such as the Emmy-winning “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” “Law & Order: SVU,” “The Blacklist,” “Bull,” and HBO’s “The Deuce,” where he performed with Oscar nominated Maggie Gyllenhaal. He’s performed Off & Off-Off Broadway and at the Metropolitan Opera.
Gougeon’s acting work is applicable as new executive director, having to confidently speak everywhere – from with potential funders, his staff and elected officials, to local media, and a variety of students and artists.
“Growing up in theater, you have that mindset of ‘the show must go on,’ and obviously we've had a lot of transition over the last couple of years, and the thing that I have been most proud of us organizationally is the fact that we've still done the work, even with gaps and transitions,” he said Wednesday. “We've still done the work and put in the time in the community that we've always done. And so I think that mindset of, we still have to do this. We still have this obligation to participants and the people that we serve to bring these programs to the public.”
And for Gougeon, being an actor, “it gets you comfortable in front of people. But I, for a long time, I was not comfortable enough,” he said. “I could be on stage all day, but public speaking was a whole different ballgame.”
About 15 years ago, he even worked as host of a late-night show in New York City at a bar and restaurant, for two years. “I hosted it and kind of forced myself to just, okay, be a host and be public speaking. And I was doing more commercial work where I was auditioning and booking roles as kind of a spokesperson,” Gougeon said. “That was what got me very comfortable, like, in a more public setting rather than being able to hide behind the mask of a role.”
One of the reasons he moved to the QC was to be with his now-wife, Liz, whom he met at WIU, and she was from here. They have a six-year-old son, and Gougeon also has two stepdaughters.
Restructuring the agency
Founded in 1970 as Quad City Arts Council (with a well-known Visiting Artist Series that launched in 1974 and Festival of Trees starting in 1986), QC Arts now has just four other full-time staff (marketing director, development director, visual arts director and gallery and program coordinator), and the new boss will work to restructure the organization, including putting on the mammoth Festival of Trees.
The largest Quad City Arts fundraiser, it runs over 10 days in November at the RiverCenter, and takes an army of 1,000 volunteers to make happen – including management and steering committees of 80+ people.
“We're gonna look at look at everything and how we can restructure some positions to fill all those gaps,” Gougeon said, noting he’s also doing without a Festival coordinator on staff (which they had last year). “For now we make it work. Like I said, keep doing the work.”
The 2025 Festival proceeds were steady with recent years, while costs are increasing, he said.
“This year, we're dealing with because of the war in Iran, helium prices have skyrocketed and we throw a big helium parade,” Gougeon said. “There's always challenges like that that you have to deal with. But I've seen in my time here how much Festival of Trees means to people and also impacts the Quad Cities. You know, we bring tens of thousands of people to downtown Davenport for 10 days.”
QC Arts has had to scale back its Visiting Artist Series (due to federal funding cuts), from averaging about 12 to 14 artists a year to about eight last year. For the 2026-27 school year, there will be five main artists, Gougeon said.
“What we have tried to do with those artists is where we lost some breadth is add some depth,” he said, noting the visiting artists will do more working with other local performers and school groups.
“There is a lot of value in the groups going in and doing an assembly in the school for all the kids and the cultural exchange and the introductions to new music or new styles of dance that happen there,” Gougeon said of VAS.
“Then adding that one-on-one collaboration. You know, that those kids that were able to do that were like, we worked with this really high-level ballet folklorico group when I was 15, and I learned X, Y, and Z from that experience that I then get to carry forward.”
Gougeon takes over just as the big annual Alternating Currents festival takes off in downtown Rock Island, Davenport and Bettendorf (Aug. 13-16).
“We're always excited to partner with downtown Rock Island, and we have our big Arts Alley block party on Thursday night that kind of kicks off Alternating Currents,” he said of the 5 p.m. Aug. 13 party right outside the QC Arts offices and gallery.
“That evening we'll have a gallery opening and also a silent disco out in Arts Alley, which is always really fun. And then we have two more silent discos on Friday and Saturday up in the Skybridge, which is always a highlight of Alternating Currents.”
And QC Arts helped coordinate four new murals to be created during the weekend, including two local artists. The four are:
* Atlanta Dawn – 251 Pershing Ave., Davenport (Klemme Motorsports)
* Key Detail – 311 E. 2nd St., Davenport (Ragged Records/Trash Can Annie)
* WENTPAINT – 1737 Grant St., Bettendorf (My Crystal Portal)
* Brando Punk – 512 24th St., Rock Island (Bent River Brewing)
Panoply of public art all over
When Gougeon became community engagement director at QC Arts, that was an expansion of his event coordinator role. Since he’s become executive director, that job will be unfilled for now.
Gougeon’s added responsibilities were coordinating public art initiatives, like the outdoor professional murals done recently in Aledo and at MLK Park, Davenport.
“Now we’re working with the city of Moline on this large-scale Tapestry sculpture that'll be at the Q Multimodal station,” he said of that multi-piece floral installation, that should go up in October. “A lot of the murals we do, like the one we just did at MLK and out in Aledo. I took on a lot of those roles and then also became the point person and also the person seeking out community partnerships.”
In those cases, Quad City Arts will connect property owners with possible funding, and head of the request for proposals or qualifications from artists, and then help choose them and draw up contracts.
“We always try not to guide people to a specific artist, because we want all the artists to thrive and not just hand-select anyone,” Gougeon said. “We have our artist index that we can share with them and say like, here, use this tool and you can find artists that you're interested in working with. Or guide them through a full RFQ process. Or if it's a project that's a good fit for Metro Arts in some capacity, work with them with our existing program.”
Every summer, he usually coordinates the Metro Arts apprenticeship program, where students age 15-21 earn a stipend and work five weeks to create a public mural, or do another arts discipline, like poetry.
The young participants work side by side with professional artists on real, public-facing projects. From murals and mosaics to poetry, live performances, and digital storytelling, apprentices shape and improve the creative landscape of the Quad Cities while gaining invaluable professional experience.
Whether a mural is done by Metro Arts or a professional depends on funding and specific site needs, he said.
“If someone wants something that is a higher profile piece of artwork, I think then we're typically looking at an RFQ situation,” Gougeon said, noting the two new MLK murals as a perfect example, working together with Friends of MLK and Downtown Davenport Partnership.
The new Metro Arts mural at EveryChild (420 23rd St., Rock Island), worked perfectly since it reunited lead artist Sarah Robb (whose done years of leading Metro Arts projects) and that organization, which she helped create the mural on their old building (formerly Child Abuse Council) on 6th Avenue in downtown Moline.
“A lot of times with the projects, it's a mix of people reaching out to us and saying, hey, we're interested in this, and then figuring out how we can make that work financially,” Gougeon said, noting the city of Rock Island helped cover the cost for the EveryChild mural (each usually costs between $11,000-$14,000, for stipends, materials and equipment).
“This year, there were a lot of different projects that we were considering for Rock Island,” he said. “There are several projects we've talked about with them that they kind of wait until the downtown refurbishment is all complete before we add that art to things.”
Tracy Singleton of TMBC Lincoln Resource Center in Davenport asked Gougeon to do a Metro Arts mural for their building this summer, and last month the center hosted the annual Metro Arts Showcase, which celebrates the summer student results.
Metro Arts did a poetry project with Rock Island spoken word artist and poet Aubrey Barnes, culminating in several poetry readings at the Coffee House in the Village of East Davenport, and QC Arts is working with a small publisher Barnes recommended to have the students’ work released in a chapbook this fall.
Metro Arts is Gougeon’s favorite program of Quad City Arts.
“I think those years of life, people go through so much transformation and find their voices, really, as artists, but just also as people,” he said. “I love getting to see some apprentice that we've had in year 1 when they're maybe 16 and still kind of quiet and shy, and over 4 or 5 years kind of blossom both as artists and a lot of them move into like our senior apprentice roles and learn leadership skills.
"And I just think that's a really, a really cool time in life. I loved college for many reasons, but I think it's that time when we figure out who we are as people.”
Mural apprentices have to make presentations to their clients to get designs approved, and Gougeon would like to add more business skills the program can teach.
“Because a lot of times with art school, you learn the art but you don't learn how to be your own business as an artist, which is what you have to do,” he said. “We're going to be looking to incorporate more of that moving forward, which I'm really excited about. And not all of those kids go on to be artists, but those skills are going to be applicable whatever field they go into.”
Arts Alliance Illinois has funding available for student apprenticeships in live theater, and since the QC has so much theater, Gougeon wants to pursue that to add to Metro Arts offerings in future years.
New art for Moline and Aledo
The Moline Public Art Commission “Tapestry” installation is a $400,000 project (funded by the city and MetroLINK), contracting with the Australia-based Skunk Control to create the illuminated “Tapestry” at The Q. That’s the multimodal station at 1311-1315 4th Ave., which will be the stop for the even-longer planned passenger rail service to and from Chicago.
“There's gonna be 9 very large-scale flowers that are made of stainless steel and then this transparent but dichromatic material that will both reflect light and also cast light onto the sidewalks leading up to the building,” Gougeon said. “Then the facade of the building will be covered with 50 or 60 sculptures of native plants and butterflies.
“It's a multi-piece sculpture. Those flowers range from like 15 to 20 feet tall that will kind of create a canopy over the walkway and cast light down on the walkway as people walk through it,” he said. “Then those kind of cascade up to the, for lack of a
better word, the bouquet of all the adornment on the facade.
"So it's going to be really cool. It's definitely the largest physical sculpture in the Quad Cities, even though it's multiple pieces.”
Quad City Arts has essentially served as project managers for that large-scale work.
“We coordinated the RFQ and the selection process with the Moline Public Art Commission, and then have also been coordinating all the working with the artists,” Gougeon said.
“We're working with IMEG on the structural plans. And then obviously with the city of Moline and the Moline Public Art Commission and MetroLINK. So we're kind of making sure all the wheels are greased and everything is moving forward.”
He’s especially proud of the new mural for America’s 250th in Aledo, which had a dedication July 3, for the art at 112 E. Main St.
Created by 19-year-old Illinois artist Madeline Dieters, the mural honors two influential women with ties to Aledo—Gertrude Abercrombie, the celebrated surrealist painter often referred to as the "Queen of the Bohemian Artists," and Doris Lee, whose paintings captured scenes of everyday American life and earned national recognition throughout the 20th century.
Through vibrant imagery inspired by their lives and artistic contributions, the mural celebrates the creativity, history, and spirit that continue to shape the community today.
The project reflects Quad City Arts’ commitment to partnering with communities to create public art that tells local stories, fosters civic pride, and makes creativity accessible to all. W.J. Albertson, who owns Aledo Opera House, contacted QC Arts about creating public art there.
“I went out there and met with him and we walked around downtown, and he showed us all the great things they're doing out there,” Gougeon said, adding he connected to Illinois Arts Council, which advertised its America 250 Public Art Grant. “It was like, this seems like a really natural fit. And was something that allowed us to go into one of our counties that's not just Rock Island or Scott.”
With the help of the state grant, this mural is part of a statewide initiative commemorating our nation’s 250th anniversary by investing in public art that celebrates the people, places, and stories that define Illinois. Quad City Arts was proud to be one of only 20 Regional Arts Partners selected to participate in this initiative, demonstrating how public art can honor local history, strengthen community identity, and create lasting cultural landmarks for generations to come.
Continuing to act in QC
Among the 230+ free events for this weekend’s Alternating Currents, Gougeon has a personal interest in one – the premiere of the Fresh Films feature “Groundhog Gary: 6 More Weeks,” in which he plays the father. It will be shown at Last Picture House (325 E. 2nd St., Davenport) on Saturday at 11:30 a.m. and Sunday at 12:15 p.m.
The 80-minute film follows 11-year-old Benny, who -- in a desperate move to stop his parents’ divorce -- kidnaps the town’s beloved groundhog to extend winter and buy himself six more weeks to save his family. It’s Home Alone-style mischief alongside heartfelt family storytelling. (See a trailer HERE)
Last summer’s filming in the QC was the first Gougeon had done for Rock Island-based Fresh Films, which gives teens hands-on experience in the TV and film business.
“I put in a self-tape for it and they cast me. When I was in New York, I kind of found my niche in the film world playing Midwest dads, because even though I wasn't a dad at the time, I just have Midwest written all over me,” he joked. “So it was really a perfect fit. And I was so impressed with the way that program runs. You know, I had talked to them about it before, but getting to see it first person and see all their students working through and learning how to be on a film set and working with the equipment and learning all the jobs that come with being on a film set was really cool.”
Fresh Films is similar to Metro Arts, and for the latter’s 2025 program, the students made a documentary about Metro Arts 25-year history, which was later broadcast on WQPT several times, and shown at film festivals, Gougeon said.
He also seems to have a soft spot for groundhogs, since for Groundhog Day 2023, Gougeon released a new music video in which he played the most famous one of all, imagining what Punxsutawney Phil would say. In the music video (named for the Pennsylvania town from which he hails), Phil bitterly sings (to the music of Lady Gaga’s “Paparazzi”).
Gougeon wrote the parody lyrics in 2013 for that weekly late-night show he hosted on New York City’s Upper West Side.
“We’d bring in different musicians and comedians every week different entertainment for the bar,” he said in 2023. “We were coming up with new content every week – new bits, new skits.”
For Groundhog Day, he wrote “Punxsutawney” for one of the shows, and it sat on his computer for years. “I just loved it and people who were audience members that night and I stayed in touch with would send me messages every now and then, ‘I thought about Punxsutawney today.’”
Currently, Gougeon is now playing Biff in the Arthur Miller classic, “Death of a Salesman,” produced by Mockingbird on Main at Black Hawk College, to run Aug. 20-29.
“I hadn’t read the play in years. Reading it again, I was like, oh yeah, I 100% connect with this guy,” Gougeon said of the 34-year-old character, son of Willy Loman. “So it's been fun getting to dive into that.”
His only prior Mockingbird experience (in the downtown Davenport building that later collapsed and was demolished) was in late 2021, in the area premiere of the unique two-person “An Oak Tree,” by Tim Crouch. Gougeon starred as a hypnotist with a different actor every performance, who didn’t see the script beforehand.
Gougeon plans to continue hosting WVIK’s “Talking Art,” which he averages new episodes every other week.
“I love getting the chance to meet and connect with so many different artists in our community,” he said. “It's very fun when I have someone I know on because there's a shorthand, but for me, it's even more exciting when there's someone I don't know or don't know a lot about them, because then I just, as the host, get to be very naturally curious and find out about the work they do and their background. So it's a great tool for them to be able to promote their work.”
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