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Course Listing - by Instructor

Name Biography
Bayda Asbridge
John Barrett Learn more about John and his work here: Bladeandwheel.com
Rachel Benson
Jennifer Carey
Clay Studio Faculty
Michael Coffey
Julian De La Garza

Artist Bio

Julian De La Garza was born in New York, and raised in Rhode Island. He received his BA in Jewelry/Metals from Rhode Island College and then went on to work in the industry. During this period he was a diamond setter for Tiffany & Co. and then a model maker for C & J Jewelry working on high-end jewelry brands such as David Yurman, Haverhill Leech, and Tiffany & Co. All while also continuing his personal studio practice and jewelry business.

Realizing he had always wanted to teach at the college level, he left the stagnancy of the industry and decided to go back to school to obtain his MFA at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth in Artisanry with a focus on Jewelry/Metals. During his stay at the university he has received high awards for his jewelry design skills through juried competitions and has also had opportunities to teach as well as assist advanced classes.

Check our Julian's website here and his Instagram page here!

 

 

Rachel Dubicki
Paul Dumanoski Paul Dumanoski studied photography at the Worcester Center for Crafts under Peter Faulkner. The subject for his work is the environment, both natural and man-made. He has exhibited his photographs in juried shows throughout the region and recently won an award in Preservation Worcester's Architectural Images VI.
Kate Egnaczak Kate Egnaczak is a conceptual eco-artist. She grew up on a 68 farm in the Berkshires and brings that experience into her process as a maker. Her hybrid artistic approach practice is at the intersections of design thinking, sculptural methods, and anthropological fieldwork. Centering circularity as a guiding principle, Kate explores the complex interdependence of all life forms and waste. The most prominent example of this body of work is her multi-year durational exploration of the mere ponds of Elm Park in Worcester, MA. In this project, she found and collected trash and other debris from her paddle board. She considers the garbage she finds as treasured art-making materials. The materials are transformed and re-interpreted into sculptures and collages.
Louis Garcia
Jill Goyette
Peter Grigg Peter Grigg

Education

  • PHD. Physiology. State University of NY Syracuse
  • MS. Syracuse University
  • BS. Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

    Past work

  • Professor Emeritus U Mass Medical School

    Artist Statement

  • Even though I am a technician, I hope to enlighten my students by showing them the skills of enameling, using bold colors and durable product. I appreciate the many challenges that come with enameling.
  • Polly Marie Hansel www.pollyachiart.com
    Suzanne Head Suzanne Head is a multi-disciplinary artist currently based in Brooklyn, NY. She has developed a technique in which colored glass powder is sifted onto sheet glass and fired in a kiln. Over multiple firings, Suzanne creates imagery that looks similar to her paintings and drawings but is entirely made of glass. She was an Emerging Artist in Residence at Pilchuck Glass School in 2023. Her work is shown at Bullseye Projects in Portland, Oregon, the Penland Gallery in Penland, NC, and the Whatcom Museum in Bellingham, WA.
    Diane Hogue
    Patti Kelly
    Renee Knowles Renee Knowles is a multimedia artist with a focus on photography, ceramics, and the art of storytelling. She is passionate about art education and finds herself happiest while teaching.
    Brianna Ko Brianna Ko, a second-year art teacher at Marshfield High School with a BFA from the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, specializes in metalsmithing. Committed to creating a safe and supportive learning environment, she encourages students to develop skills, techniques, and a lifelong appreciation for learning. In her personal work, Brianna explores nature, light, color, and storytelling through metalsmithing, drawing inspiration from art history. Beyond the classroom, she enjoys hiking, traveling, and engaging in the arts. Brianna looks forward to continuing her artistic and teaching journey, eager to learn from her students.
    Jeanne Kowal
    Margaret Larson Margaret Larson joins us as an Artist in Residence in ceramics,  from the Seagrove area of North Carolina, where she has been working as a studio potter and intern, having received a Bachelor of Arts degree in 2019, from Guilford College, with an emphasis on ceramics.

    Margaret states of her pottery: “My pots are how I indulge my need to create, while producing somebody’s favorite mug, dish, or jar. I explore themes of nature, play, whimsy, and movement by decorating meticulously thrown functional pots, either with imagery or non-representational compositions. I throw all my attention into my forms and decoration as a way to ground myself or escape reality. Every aspect of the ceramic process lets me process emotions and experiences, and each unique surface and pot I create feels like a little love note or
    journal entry - to myself or others. I can imbue all my care, love, and emotion into an individual piece, and the accessibility and daily interactivity of pottery allows me to share that with friends or strangers. My favorite moments are in the studio decorating, and making myself or others laugh with an idea…”

    Holly Lauer
    Karli Ledford My name is Karli and I am a mandala artist from Massachusetts. I began drawing mandalas because I’ve always been drawn to their intricate and symmetrical designs. When painting or drawing each piece, I am able to enter a meditative state. Because of this state, or “flow”, I rarely plan out my work ahead of time (unless it’s for a mural or very large piece) which makes each piece unique. Creating mandalas, whether on paper, canvas, walls, mugs, coasters, bookmarks- you name it- brings me a great sense of peace which I hope can be passed on to whoever sees it.
    Caterina Maina
    Carol Martens
    Tom O'Malley

    Tom O'Malley began studying ceramics in high school and received his BFA from the New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University in 1985. He received his MFA, with honors, from the Rhode Island School of Design in 1994. O'Malley has exhibited nationally and internationally, winning numerous awards. He received an LCC Grant in 1998 and his pottery was the recipient of the People's Choice Award at the 2002 Strictly Functional Pottery National.

    His work has appeared in a number of publications, including Lark Books 500 Tiles, and is slated to appear in the forthcoming publication 21st Century Ceramics. He has taught at RISD, Rhode Island College, Becker College, Worcester State University and the Worcester Center for Crafts, and has presented a variety of workshops and lectures throughout New England. He has been a board member of The Studio Potter since 2005 and currently is the Studio Liaison and Program Director of the Worcester Center for Crafts.

    View Tom's Latest Work and Profile: Tom O'Malley Ceramics

    Dahlia Popovits Dahlia Popovits has been weaving creative cloth for 40 years. She designs and hand-weaves all the garments and accessories in her collection. The tactile aspect of the work also draws her in, as she encourages a visitor to feel the softness of a bamboo jacket. Bamboo has become a popular material for environmentally-conscious clothing designers because of its sustainability. “It’s an incredibly comfortable fiber that wicks away moisture and is comfortable year round.” Inspired by fashion, color, texture and nature, her clothing is comfortable, stylish and distinctive, with fans who know it when they see it on other women. “When somebody wears a Dahlia garment to a meeting or function and another woman says, ‘Oh, you’re wearing a Dahlia,’ it’s recognized, and that to me feels great.”
    Jamie Rhode
    Lois Rossiter
    Tomo Sakai
    Tomo graduated from Tama Art University in Tokyo, Japan, with a specialization in glass, and went on study glass engraving and coldworking in the Czech Republic. She was an artist-in-residence at Worcester Center for Crafts from 2012-2014, and now has her own studio in Worcester. She teaches regularly at the Worcester Center for Crafts, the Massachusetts College of Art and Design, and the Corning Museum of Glass.

    Instagram: @cruzesakai 

    Education

  • 2012-2014 Artist-in-Residence, Worcester Center for Crafts
  • 2004
  • SUPSS Kamenicky Senov, Czech Republic
  • 2003-2004 VOSS Novy Bor, Czech Republic
  • 2002 Dominik Biman School, Kamenicky Senov, Czech Republic
  • 1998-2002 BFA in glass, Tama Art University, Tokyo, Japan

    Artist Statement

    "My journey as an artist has been informed by my experience growing up in Japan - the nexus of a profound, traditional past in co-existence and interaction with an energetic, hyper-modern future. My choice of glass as a medium reflects my experience: it is both rooted in traditional techniques while at the same time projecting a modern materiality. I want to capture this reality in my work, balancing the old and the new, honoring tradition and innovation, exploring past and future."

    Exhibitions

  • The Krikorian Gallery, Worcester MA/Eight Elements - 2014
  • The Krikorian Gallery, Worcester MA/Opposing Directions - 2013
  • Imago Gallery, Warren RI/December Invitational Show - 2013
  • Cafe Siesta, Gifu, Japan/Bar Akadama - 2008
  • Gallery Tamamiseum, Nagoya, Japan/Arts & Crafts - 2007
  • Decin Museum, Czech Republic/Senovske Sklo Plne Zivota - 2005
  • Kamenicky Senov Museum, Czech Republic/The exhibition of 4th International Symposium of Engraved Glass - 2005
  • Koganezaki Crystal Park, Nishi Izu, Japan/Vessels - Exhibition of Contemporary Glass - 2003
  • Spiral Garden, Aoyama, Japan/Department of Ceramic, Glass and Metal Graduation Works Exhibition - 2002


  • Claudia Sarver
    Jennifer Swan Jen Swan is a teaching artist and mural painter who shares her love of art with the diverse community of Worcester and its surrounding cities and towns. A graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design, she currently teaches classes for the Worcester Art Museum, Listening Wellness Center, The Overlook, LACI Homeschoolers and in many public and private schools as a Cultural Partner. Making connections between art and nature has also inspired collaborations with the Audubon and EcoTarium. Her recent paintings explore art and ecology as she portrays the web of interrelationships in our environment. Through plein air landscapes, botanical and wildlife studies, she wishes to creatively propose new possibilities for coexistence, sustainability and healing.
    Marta Szemiot
    Victoria Taft
    Ava Travers
    Elena Trunfio Elena has been practicing yoga for over 10 years. In May of 2023, she completed her 9-month long 200 hr yoga teacher training led by Daniel Orlansky and Andrea Fotopoulos. Elena primarily practices Ashtanga/Vinyasa yoga, captured by the beauty, fluidity, and meditative qualities of these styles. Her practice is largely inspired by nature and she often practices outdoors when the weather allows.

    Elena is a certified aromatherapist and currently studies herbalism at the Boston School of Herbal Studies.
    Rachel Tufts
    Bianca Turner
    Beth Woodruff
    Liviah Yeaw Liviah is an interdisciplinary artist focused on sustainability and humor! She loves color and pattern clashing and funky relaxed aesthetics. She makes textiles, animations, music, interior spaces, and more. She was born and raised in Rhode Island and recently graduated from RISD in Film & Animation.