Faculty Profiles
Jeremy Angier earned his MFA from the New York Academy of Art. He teaches at New Art Center in Newton.
Emily Bittner earned her degree in Art Education from Bowling Green State University in Ohio. She has taught art to children at Botanic Gardens Children’s Center, Peabody Terrace Children’s Center (both in Cambridge), and Mass College of Art & Design.
Terry Boutelle has been a painter for over 30 years, working in acrylic, mixed media, monotypes, and more recently, encaustic. She has studied art at Boston College, School of the Museum of Fine Art, Mass. College of Art & Design, and the Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown, and her education is continuous. President of Jamaica Plain Artists Association, and an active member of the Cambridge Art Association and Fort Point Artist Community, she has exhibited regionally.
Joy Cochran, a professional theatrical make-up artist, has designed make-up for many theater and film productions in the metro Boston area. Her favorite design focus is special effects, including blood-and-guts and creature make-up. She is Artist-in-Residence with the MIT Theater Dept. and teaches make-up for their technical theater classes. She has worked with The Footlight Club since 1983.
Paul DeVito graduated from Everett Vocational High School, where he majored in upholstery. He has worked for Borges Upholstery and Possick Upholstery. Currently the lead upholsterer at Mello & Sons Upholstery, he has been practicing his trade for over 20 years.
Marco DeVito is an upholsterer at Mello & Sons.
Nancy Dick-Atkinson has specialized in restoration of gold-leafed objects for over two decades. She serves on the Continuing Education faculty at Rhode Island School of Design, and is a member of the New England Conservation Association. She apprenticed with master gilder Nils Johnson at The Eliot School.
Mia Dunfey is a junior at the Newman School. Izzi Duprey is 10 years old. She has been collaborating with Joy Cochran on set design and make-up for many years.
Massoudeh Edmond is a painter and graphic designer. She teaches art at Austin Preparatory Middle School in Reading. She is participating in Open Studios at Arlington Center for the Arts in October.
MaryEllen Ehrenreich is founder and director of Kids Together in the Arts, a multi-disciplinary after-school and summer arts program now in its seventh year. She has taught art throughout the Boston area in settlement houses, alternative schools, after-school programs, and for home schooled children, as well as at The Eliot School. Currently Mary Ellen also volunteers to teach art with patients at Dana Farber Cancer Institute. She is a graduate of Boston University's Studio Teaching Masters Program.
Matt Files earned his BFA in woodworking and furniture design from Rochester Institute of technology’s School of American Crafts, with additional study at the University of Copenhagen’s Design School. His work has been showcased in galleries locally and abroad.
Michael Gleason has made custom cabinetry and furniture at Gleason, Hendrick & Devine since 1981. Before that, he made custom furniture and did antique restoration with Nils Johnson.
Lisa Goren has studied watercolor painting at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts Boston, Rhode Island School of Design, and elsewhere. Her work is in collections from Iceland to Seattle. She was named Artist of the Month by American Artist’s Watercolor Magazine in June and July 2008.
Cristina Hajosy has taught at New England School of Photography and Attleboro Arts Museum. Her work has been shown at Bernard Toale Gallery's Boston Drawing Project, Cambridge Art Association, and elsewhere.
Charlotte Halloran is co-chair of Proper Bostonian Quilt Guild.
Melissa Hanes has taught art to kids for six years. She holds a BFA from Boston University and an MFA in studio art from American University. Her paintings were recently featured in the summer edition of New American Paintings and she has exhibited in juried shows in Boston and New York.
Ron Horion owned and operated GHNK Caning Supplies for 17 years in North Quincy. He has taught caning for 35 years both there and at local colleges. His fine craftsmanship has been exhibited at historic museums including Monticello, Sturbridge Village, Plymouth Plantation, and Eric Sloan Museum. He has lectured at many local historical societies and clubs.
Jennifer Hughes earned her Masters in Fine Arts from the University of Iowa. She has studied with master printers including Judith Solodkin and Keiji Shinohara. Her prints have been shown in Boston, Chicago, and internationally. She has taught at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts Boston, Muskat Studios, and elsewhere.
Kymberlee Keckler is a chemical engineer whose talents include bookbinding, silversmithing and soapmaking. She has been making soap since 1985 and teaching soapmaking since 1997.
Kate Ledogar has taught at Arlington Center for the Arts, New Art Center and elsewhere. She is earning her MFA at Mass College of Art.
Ken Lindgren makes functional and abstract objects from trees fallen due to death, disease, storm or construction. He says, “My pieces are all handcrafted to show the beauty that results when people and nature are in harmony.” Ken’s’s professional career was as a chemical engineer. A member of the American Association of Woodturners, he has taught woodturning at Fuller Craft Museum and elsewhere.
Julie Martini works primarily in handmade paper and drawing. She is currently an Artist-In-Residence at the Cancer Center at Massachusetts General Hospital. She has been an Artist-In-Residence at the Barbara McInnis House, and has taught at UMass Dartmouth and Creative Arts. She earned her BA in Studio Art at Carleton College and her MFA at Massachusetts College of Art.
Michael Molinari served his apprenticeship in Cabinetmakers Local 51. He has worked at Scott & Duncan, F.B. Curry, and Barnett Bros. He represented the United Brotherhood of Carpenters & Joiners throughout the country for ten years.
Randy Nehila, a painter and printmaker, is a graduate of Massachusetts College of Art and a student at the Painters Workshop in Stonington, Maine. His work is in private collections across the US.
Frank Pettorossi served as a cabinetmaking apprentice in Naples, Italy. After moving to the US, he graduated from Boston Trade, joined Cabinetmakers Local 51, and worked in architectural millwork shops throughout the Boston area.
Carol Price designs and sells her own line of women’s apparel, pillows, drapes, backpacks, handbags, and dolls.
Ryan Rhoades recently completed a two-year furniture-making program at North Bennet Street School. He earned his BFA at Pratt Institute and taught English with the Peace Corps in Bangladesh.
Leon Robinson has focused for more than two decades on the Boston cityscape, chronicling its ever-changing character. He holds a BFA from Boston University. His paintings have been shown at the Museum of Afro-American Art, African Winter Gallery, Wendell Street Gallery, and elsewhere.
Maurice Rucker has been a visual and performance artist for over 20 years, and a teacher and creator of summer and after-school art programs for over 15. He is the former director of the Neighborhood House After-School Program in Dorchester and currently teaches art after-school at Ward School in Newton. Besides being an educator, Maurice is a blues musician.
Laura Salafia is the founder of Creative Roots, designing art programs for young children. She holds a BFA in Illustration from The Art Institute of Boston, and she is finishing her Masters in Early Childhood Development at Lesley University, focusing on the study of Reggio Emilia programs. Laura has extensive background in sculpture, drawing, illustration, painting, and graphic design. She is the mother of a one-year-old boy.
Charles Sandler has over 40 years of experience in woodworking and 37 years teaching in the Boston Public Schools. He has worked as teacher and Superintendent of The Eliot School for over 40 years.
Howard Shrobe is Principal Research Scientist at MIT’s Computer Science & Artificial Intelligence Laboratory. He has been a long-time participant in the The Eliot School’s wood shop.
Robert Siegelman teaches at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts Boston, and has taught workshops throughout New England and in Amsterdam. His work has been collected by the DeCordova Museum, Fogg Art Museum, and the Museum of Fine Arts Boston. He is represented by Gallery NAGA.
Joe Stanewick has been associated with The Eliot School since 1984 as a student and instructor. He learned cabinetmaking at Wentworth Institute and North Bennet Street School, and has worked as a furniture restorer at Trefler & Sons.
Laura Evonne Steinman is a Community Artist who earned her BFA from Rhode Island School of Design and her Masters in Art Education from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Recently she returned from working/living in Poland for 5 years. One of her many joys was soaking up traditional folk art techniques. Currently she is the Art Teacher at The Gifford School in Weston, MA and sews a bunch of "Colorful Matters". She lives in Somerville.
Elliott Strizhak is an electrical engineer and former college instructor who has been interested in the craft of functional woodturning for the past 40 years. He is a member of the American Association of Woodturners.
Laurel Stroman considers herself a storyteller who tells tales of her life, hopes, dreams, and the world around her through the craft of dollmaking. She combines sewing, fashion design, fine art/mixed media, beadwork, and needle/fiber arts to make dolls and to teach creative arts to adults and children. Laurel learned dollmaking from her mother as a child. She says: “My mom and I started out making dolls as toys for little girls. After her death, I began experimenting with combining different media and techniques and began creating art dolls. Later, I began focusing on the concept of creating something, from nothing and using recycled items and found objects.” Laurel has sold and exhibited her dolls at the Women’s Educational & Industrial Union, South End Settlements, and the Black Doll Convention. She is a member of Sisters in Stitches Joined by the Cloth.
Charles Tardanico started his cabinetmaking apprenticeship in Italy at age 10. With over 45 years of experience in cabinet and furniture making, he has been employed at Scott & Duncan, F.B. Curry, and Laing & Casson.
Peter Thibeault, a studio furniture making and sculptor, has operated a studio in the Boston area for nearly 30 years. He has taught design at Rhode Island School Design, Wentworth Institute, and elsewhere, and currently teaches at Massachusetts College of Art, where he helped develop the furniture design program in collaboration with North Bennet Street School. He earned his BFA at Rhode Island School of Design and his MFA at The Art Institute of Boston.
Jeannette Tobin is co-chair of Proper Bostonian Quilt Guild.
Christina Tonges earned her BFA in Art Education from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts Boston and Tufts University. She teaches painting and drawing to children at the Museum of Fine Arts and been a Student Teacher at Brookline High School for drawing, jewelry, and printmaking.
Jac Van Loon trained as a furniture maker in Holland, where he also attended college for interior design. With over 30 years experience in woodworking, he teaches model-making in Wentworth Institute’s Industrial Design program.
Susan Vannini has studied woodworking at The Eliot School and North Bennet Street School for over a decade. She now passes her knowledge on to children.
Brigid Watson teaches at Boston Center for Adult Education and Wentworth Institute of Technology. She earned her BFA from Tufts University and the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, and her Masters in Fine Arts from New York University. She has exhibited her work on three continents, with recent shows at Hunter College (New York) and Tinku Gallery (Toronto).