Ashley Blakeney (she/her/hers) is a Los-Angeles based arts healing facilitator and cultural leader with more than a decade of experience working in arts organizations and education. As the Executive Director at the Crenshaw Dairy Mart since 2021, Blakeney works to help communities of color imagine new systems for a more equitable world. Working at the intersection of abolition and healing, Blakeney’s professional and personal focus centers on cultivating safe spaces for creative expression. Her recent projects as Executive Director include the inaugural Crenshaw Dairy Mart Film Festival at the historic Miracle Theater in Inglewood and the Fellowship for Abolition and the Advancement of the Creative Economy, which awarded a significant stipend and healthcare to three Black artists.

Blakeney has been a guest lecturer and speaker at LA Trade Tech College, the National Art Education Association Conference, SoCal Grantmakers, the J. Paul Getty Museum and the California Institute of the Arts. She holds certifications from the UCLArts and Healing Social Emotional Arts (SEA) program and the National Guild Community Arts Education Leadership Institute.

She received her BA at the University of Southern California, with a focus on creative writing and photography. Her current artistic practice includes facilitating and curating sound journeys that incorporate arts and healing practices. She has performed at spaces such as Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions (LACE) and was a 2023 artist in residence at Denniston Hill.