Emma Fernandez, Maggie Moore, Nora Donnelly, José Nieto, Steven Duede, and Jessica PepeAt this point, we can all recognize the Institute of Contemporary Art/Boston’s most visible faces, but there’s a whole team of devoted employees behind the scenes who’ve been just as integral to the new ICA’s momentous opening. Steven Duede, visitor services manager, welcomed more than 90,000 visitors in the ICA’s first three months, while Barcelona native and education and interpretation specialist Emma Fernandez spent the bulk of her time loading (and typing furiously away on) the iMacs of the Poss Family Mediatheque. Jessica Pepe, store manager, stocks the ICA Store with everything from books to designer housewares to artsy trinkets. Maggie Moore serves as production manager for the Barbara Lee Family Foundation Theater. Nora Donnelly, senior registrar, helps organize and mount the museums work, while also securing loans and coordinating shipment to the ICA — a sizeable task when it involves moving materials like 22 tons of Icelandic lava (true story). And senior graphic designer José Nieto handles the museum’s Web site, gallery graphics, and more, while also serving as principal of his communication design studio, Square Zero. This group may not see its names in lights now, but trust us: you’ll be hearing from them again.
PHOTO BY ERIC LEVIN