Ken Metzner, Executive Director of Philadelphia Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts, is a business lawyer turned arts administrator turned advocate for creatives. He has over 25 years of experience supporting artists, arts organizations and creative entrepreneurs in both the mission-driven and for-profit sectors. Ken joined PVLA in 2021 after 14 years of working in the trenches of the arts and culture community of greater Philadelphia following a 17-year legal career.
He previously served as executive director of the Colonial Theatre in Phoenixville, an arthouse cinema and music venue, and was earlier the founding executive director of Kun-Yang Lin Dancers and the CHI Movement Arts Center in South Philly. His experience in the law includes working as a litigator at two firms before joining the legal team at luxury retailer Saks Fifth Avenue based in New York, where he spent 10 years and ultimately served as senior vice president and general counsel. Ken's philanthropic service to the local arts sector includes five years as a PVLA volunteer attorney and stints as board president of the Philadelphia Cultural Fund and as a vice chair of the board of the Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance.
Ken received his formal education at the University of Virginia School of Law, Georgetown University, the New Seminary for Interfaith Studies and the London School of Economics.
