I work with Community Education through Rochester Public Schools to teach art.
I write grants to work with schools. My studio is also open for workshops and pop up shows. My community accessible gallery project called "smallärt galleries." is here www.mnsag.com My graduate thesis project is adiverse and inclusive list of Minnesota artists, resources and lessons for educators and students, find it here, www.alloftheartists.com
Gage Elementary "Many Hands Mosaics", funded by SEMAC with a school residency grant. The project started in January 2023. On a family engagement night, the students and their families voted for which animals to feature in the mosaics, one for each mosaic; Bayou, Everglades, MN River in Winter and MN River in Summer. After the winners were announced, all the students in school had an opportunity to draw the chosen animals. Once the drawings were complete, myself and Mrs. McClaren at Gage chose the drawings that would be featured in the mosaics. The students helped cut and texture pieces and soon will begin glazing. The project will be complete and presented at another family engagement nihgt, May, 11 at Gage Elementary.
The Process
Two Paint Your Own Pottery Classes, one at Community Ed. Rochester and on at Longfellow Elem., Rochester, Winter and Spring 2022. Spring 2023 we painted plaques.
A Wooden Sculpture Class at Community Ed. in Rochester. Winter 2022
Kasson/Mantorville Elementary January 2022 I was invited me to work with two third grade classes to talk about my work as a sculptor. We made some wire sculptures as well; talked about negative space and each student shared their inspiration about their creation. In March 2023 I did Blind Contour Drawings with the students
Printmaking class with Community Education. The students were from k-5 and used bubble wrap, paper bags, cardboard and rug grip to paint and make prints. January 2022.
Crafty Kids Class at Elton hIlls Elem. in Rochester through Community Ed., Fall 2021
In summer 2021, The Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation offered a grant of free paint to their communities. I desinged the ideas and the community helped me paint some containers at Lewiston Altura High School and the Play Ball mural was at a ball field in Altura. I had some great students come out to help, even in the scorching heat.
I work with Alexis Zaccariello at The Rochester Public School's ​​​Alternative Learning Center or ALC. ALC is an inclusive, accepting place for 9th-12th grade students to go that aren't thriving in a traditional school setting. I work with Alexis and the students on various projects, presentations, connecting with other artists and trying new techniques.
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In summer 2021, I partnered with Alexis Zaccariello to teach a sculpture class to students at ALC. We worked in the studio for three long days and then on the fourth day we went to Franconia Sculpture Park. It was nice to be back in person for awhile before COVID transformed our environment with Delta and Omicron.
In Fall 2020, René Halasy, the ED of RNeighbors in Rochester reached out for some help with making grants accessible for CARES Art grants for murals. I helped with the design of the grant application, made it easier to fill out etc., and held an online workshop to offer free support to help artists fill out the application. The Meadow Park Initiative, MPI (a local neighborhood group consisting of United Way, IMAA and Family Service Rochester working together for a better more equitable neighborhood) reached out and wanted a mural but needed an artist. I met with the neighbors and we worked on a design. We discussed the home as a symbol of native origin as well as the new home in Minnesota. We talked about similarities between cultures, arts and crafts and sports native to their origin homes that also relate to Minnesota. I worked on an outline on aluminum panels and we had a group paint day where the neighbors, mostly the Somali children, helped paint the panels. I then took them to my studio to add detail. After they were finished they were installed in Friendship Park in their neighborhood and the children got to explain all the meaning behind the designs. Our local newspaper, The Post Bulletin wrote an article about MPI and our project, read it here. The news came and did a story watch that here.
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In the Fall of 2019 The ALC received a Minnesota State Arts Board Arts Learning Grant. Myself and 3 other artists, Niki Havekost, Chris Rackley and Bobby Marines,  held residencies with the students to teach our respective mediums. The students came to my studio and learned to bend, cut, grind and weld metal to make tabletop sculptures. Once the sculptures were complete we had an opening reception at ALC where the students presented their work. The pieces were then moved to a skyway in downtown Rochester for a couple of months.  Finally, the students presented their work to the School Board in February 2020.
The Love Show-gave a chance for Ella Kruse, a junior at ALC, a chance to sell her wares to the public to raise funds for her first trip to NCECA in Richmond, VA in March 2020. I was her adult guardian along with a fellow teacher, potter and ceramics professor. (COVID foiled our plans). I am also establishing a way for fine art to be directly sold in a less formal environment with more affordable prices. We had around 100 people and everyone sold some work. February 2020
The Alternative Learning Center held a Career Day. I presented what credentials I have and what I wished I had known about being a professional artist when I was in High School and College. December 10, 2019
Nikki Havekost held a stitching party at the studio to help her prepare for her Minnesota Arts Exhibition Program (MAEP) show in July 2020. Oct. 26, 2019. Find her at niki made.com
Raku fire with help from Lisa Truax ​before school started to help Alexis learn how to Raku fire on her own. I helped run a trash can with my daughter and ALC student potter, Ella Kruse. Local potters Laurie Cohrs and Jessica Taylor also participated. August 19, 2019
Postcard for Pop-up at Studio with Nikki Havekost, Chris Rackley and Kjellgren Alkire. July 26, 2019
Art Hustle workshop at studio. Nikki Havekost presented how she managed her resumé, applications and other helpful; advice on how to be a professional artist. July 17, 2019.
First official Raku fire with Lisa Truax's help. We set up in ALC parking lot and had a lot of students participate. While the raku kiln heated, Lisa taught the students how to make plaster molds. I just helped with trash cans and taking pictures.
​April 18, 2019.
March 2018 I made two Mandalas out of red clay with ALC students. First we cut out shapes with a pre made pattern I designed. After a bisque fire, we had students return to glaze pieces in white, gray or black. After they were fired for the second time, Alexis and I affixed to pieces to tables, grouted them and then covered in a self leveling clear resin. The students use them in a study area at school. March 2018.
I reached out to Alexis Zacariello at The ALC and asked her if she was interested in having me come and work with her students. I enjoy working with high school age artists and hoped to build a relationship with a school and design projects to help introduce them to more mediums. Alexis readily agreed and I brought my mini-press in and worked with students on monotypes. We got along great and a wonderful partnership has developed over the years. October 2017.
At the Rochester Art Center I taught summer classes to students in 8th grade for two weeks. These are a selection of their works. The top row are small polymer sculptures we placed around town. Middle row from left to right: Abstracted drawings of chairs in the manner of Franz Kline, wire sculptures to focus on negative space, and wood sculptures in the manner of Louise Nevelson. Bottom row left to right: air dry clay abstracted shapes in the manner of Henry Moore, a student working on wooden sculpture and finally students made self portraits that used a suitcase as the canvas. Some included sculptures, painted works, works etc. August 2015
At The Rochester Art Center I also taught a one week class to pre-k students. These are a selection of their works.
For the last day of class the work was hung gallery style and their parents were encouraged to come to the reception to see their child' works. July 2015.
In Lexington, Kentucky I worked for Lexington Art League. I organized events and community outreach efforts. During my tenure from 2011 through 2013 I established a relationship with Common Good, an after school community located close to The Lexington Art League or LAL. The students would make regular visits to the gallery and then do related art projects. After I left LAL I continues to work weekly with Common Good until moving to Minnesota in summer 2014.
At Lexington Art League I helped set up a live demonstration of graffiti artists in downtown Lexington as part of a pop-up sculpture show that coincided with the monthly gallery hop. Joel Feldman, a local printmaker and faculty at University of Kentucky, collaborated with myself and the students at Common Good to produce a series of prints about bullying. Once the series was complete LAL hosted the artists and families as Joel signed the work with the young artists and presented them with their own copies. 2011-2013
Bozart Cooperative was founded in Charlottesville, Virginia in 1994-95 by myself and two other women. It began off of the downtown mall and shortly moved to be right on the walking mall.
We created it for emerging artists to show their work. We held monthly openings, critiques and also had a program where we hung art around town in offices. Over the last 25+ years it has helped hundreds of artists show their work.
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