Instructors

 
 

Ashley C Walker

I am Ashley C Walker and I am a teaching artist who loves kiddos! I am often inspired by the creative ideas of the students that I seek to inspire.

I recently got married and moved to Kennesaw from Columbus, Ga, where for two years I was an art teacher in a public school. Before that I worked in the field of my degree as a Graphic Designer for over ten years. But now I am a teaching artist who loves sharing my passion for art and encouraging creativity in children. 

My personal art includes mixed media, art journaling, acrylic and watercolor. I believe that everyone has creative ability and that the creative process is therapeutic for all ages! I am crazy about using process art with students of all ages… that means that our art projects are more about creative exploration than copying a final product.

I believe that process art with young people allows us to learn by exploring and celebrating a student’s individual creative process and personality. 

Vanessa Sebastion

For 15 years, Vanessa has been a freelance graphic designer, web designer, and illustrator. She obtained an associates degree for 3D animation from the Art Institute of Atlanta after initially receiving her bachelor degree in chemical engineering. She has also been teaching character drawing classes and camps aimed at young students for about 8 years and recently started a traditional drawing class as well.

Vanessa hopes her students learn valuable art techniques while being entertained by the drawing process. She often jokingly tells her students "Failure is the path to success!" which reinforces the idea that constant practice, including all the mistakes made along the way, are what ultimately makes a successful artist. In her spare time you can find Vanessa watching Japanese anime, reading comics, playing video games, or teaching a martial arts class.

Diana Toma

Hi! I’m Diana and I see the Arts as an opportunity to touch, move and inspire others. Born and raised in an old South-East European country: Romania, I am now living in the greater Atlanta area, Georgia with my two artistic-inclined daughters who also want to pursue art when they grow up.

I love to explore the emotional aspect of what I observe around me, using classic mediums like watercolors, acrylics, and oils but also contemporary ones such as spray paints.

Alongside my studio work, I’ve been bringing together a growing community of art lovers by teaching painting classes and workshops to adults. My goal as a teacher is to facilitate participants to silence their critical inner voice in order to uncover beautiful images of the self by surrendering to play, in a quest to empower participants to become fully self-expressed through painting.

Coleen Carey-Mitchell

After spending a long career at various companies in Corporate America, and being retired with lots of time on my hands, I turned to The Art Place for inspiration. My focus was on something I could do with my hands, so Creative Sculpture was just the ticket! Learning how to manipulate clay and the various techniques used to build sculptures and functional items became my focus for a couple of years. Then I was fortunate to be considered for an instructor position in an area I had come to adore. I became and Instructor in Creative Sculpture at The Art Place in 2018. I have been fortunate to instruct some phenomenal artists since becoming an Instructor and continue to learn from both my peers and my students to listen to the clay as I’m building and be open to innovation when it pops up.

I also teach a knitting class at The Art Place. I’ve been knitting and crocheting most of my life. My grandmother taught me how to crochet at a very young age and a neighbor taught me how to knit when I lived in Pittsburgh in the early 1980’s. My grandmother taught me left handed (which is my dominant hand) and my neighbor taught me to knit right handed as she couldn’t figure out how to teach me left handed. This turned out to be one of the best skills I learned as it has increased my effectiveness in teaching both right and left-handers. My loyal following of students have participated in some very challenging Knit Alongs by our favorite Knitting Artist that have presented challenges to all of us. I’m proud to say we all overcame those challenges together! My beginner students have also overcome the challenges presented to someone new to the craft with determination and humor. My beginner students have been able to move much faster with honing their skills because of their determination and the willingness of everyone in the class to provide help and support.

I love what I do, and I’m proud to be a part of the group of very talented instructors at The Art Place.

Nya Echols

Coach Echols brings a wealth of talent to the table as she has extensive experience as a dancer, choreographer, and instructor. She is a graduate of Allatoona where she was a four-year member of the dance team and served as captain for two years. Her favorite memories of being a member of the Hotshotz are dancing at UGA Auxiliary Day, performing at football games and the team becoming an official GHSA sport in 2018 and competing for the first time.

Coach Echols began her dance journey at CkDanceWorks in 2006, and after her first two years of dance, she auditioned for their competition team. She danced competitively with them until 2015 and was able to experience two national championship titles. Coach Echols was also awarded Dancer of the Year in 2014. She is currently on staff at Frey Elementary as a Paraprofessional while completing her Bachelors in Business and Associates in Art at Valdosta State University (December 2023) where she has made the Dean’s List three times. In the summer, Coach Echols teaches dance camps for Cobb Parks. Following graduation, she plans to continue her journey and get her Masters in Education.

Cristina Conti

We always hear the term “life imitating art,” and just like her art, Cristina’s life is always adapting. Cristina’s mother knew she was imaginative from an early age, if the hidden crayons in her clothing were any indication. Encouraged to explore her creativity, without damaging walls and furniture, she began her art journey with paint by numbers and watching good ole Bob Ross. 

At Georgia Southern University, she began her studies in art only to have her advisor tell her to quit. She told her she could only be two things “a teacher or a starving artist.” Like any teenager, who wants to hear that? Thus, she pursued a career in interior design. Cristina was a hospitality designer for 12 years designing both chain and boutique hotels across the US. After feeling the industry burnout and The Great Recession, she accepted a career change to become an event coordinator for a local university. 

 After suffering a brain injury in 2014, she knew her life would have to change again. Art became her therapy, her words. At that moment, she defied her old college advisor and pursued a career in her art. Cristina has been teaching since 2018. Loving every minute of being a teacher and starving artist. She lives in Marietta with her fur children, a pit bull named Georgia and black cat, Nyla. 

Sol Gomez

Graduated in Fine Arts at the Arts School at the Central University of Ecuador, specializing in sculpture and printmaking. Master in Education at the Pontifical Catholic University of Ecuador (PUCE). She displays her personal  work by giving value to the use and memory of various materials, and the encounter between each one. In addition, her interest has developed around art and education, reason why she works as a professor in the Visual Art's Department and in Master's programs at the Education Department at PUCE. She also works as an artist-facilitator in various artistic-educational processes in formal and informal education spaces.

Tikva Lantigua

Tikva Lantigua is a visual artist with a writing practice, combining language, image, and increasingly bright colors to study the glue of human connection, and the expanse and pitfalls of language to describe our interior worlds.

Born to Dominican parents, brought up in the American South, from one army base to another. Tikva earned an MFA in Print Media from Cranbrook Academy of Art in 2016, and her first solo exhibition in September 2020 at Day & Night Projects, Atlanta, GA. Living and making in Atlanta, GA, adopted hometown.

Nicole Rocheteau

Nicole Rocheteau is a graduate of Columbus State University and holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts with a psychology minor. Her primary art mediums are painting and ceramics. She began working at The Art Place in 2017 as an assistant for summer camps, and then became a teacher for the summer camps two years later. In the summer of 2023 she was promoted to art camp director and now instructs throughout the year at The Art Place. She teaches handbuilding and wheel throwing to a range of ages starting from age 6 to adult. She loves teaching and sharing her love of art with others.

Tifany Lee

Tifany Lee is a performing artist and coach who teaches voice and music. With experience performing in all sizes of venues and across multiple genres and disciplines of performing arts -- drama, dance, and music -- she brings a deep understanding of craft to her teaching. 

Bob Peterson

My interest and love for clay started years ago as an art student in college. Professionally my path in the arts has taken me to various careers, as an art educator, graphic designer, illustrator and picture frame gallery owner. I now spend my time as a studio potter and ceramics instructor which has always been a lifelong ambition of mine. I enjoy the process of taking a lump of clay and turning it into a visually interesting functional or decorative work of art. Every piece is fashioned by my hands and designed to be held, touched, passed around or just admired. My hope is that my pottery brings enjoyment to one’s life and makes their daily routine a bit better.

Julie Mazzoni

Contemporary mosaic art holds me in fascination because it is an allegory for life as we know it. Each individual piece is unique and its placement relates to all the others, contributing a crucial role in the whole work, playing off the tesserae near it. Mosaic constantly challenges me to toggle back in forth between the micro and macro levels.

My mosaics cycle through themes of nature, home, family and both the macroscopic and microscopic realms of science. Exploring innovative materials and techniques makes the search for expression always new as I devise the most sensitive connection between subject and medium. My identity is inexorably tangled in each work I finish, as I select, shape and place each piece in the labor-intensive process.

Ed Cahill

Ed Cahill is an award-winning artist from Marietta, Georgia with a passion for representational art and plein air painting. He was born in Rice Lake, Wisconsin in 1955 and developed a love for painting and drawing at a young age. After attending Firestone High School, Ed went on to earn his BFA in Painting from Carnegie-Mellon University in Pittsburgh, PA in 1977.

While raising a family and working in his family’s auto dealership, Ed continued to paint part-time and was eventually represented by the Golden Door Gallery in New Hope, PA. In 1996, he moved to Marietta, GA and began focusing on plein air events, winning over a dozen awards and eight first place finishes. Today, he is represented by the Frameworks Gallery in Marietta.

In addition to his successful career as an artist, Ed teaches oil painting and plein air at Kennesaw State University, The Art Place in Marietta, and the Chastain Arts Center in Atlanta.. He is known for his beautiful and vibrant landscapes, with a particular focus on the Chattahoochee River basin, Historic Roswell, and Mabry Farm, all located near his home in east Cobb County.

Jen Moree

Jen Moree is an artist and graphic designer with over 20 years of experience in the creative field. Originally hailing from Bogota, Colombia, Jen's artistic journey began at a young age, captivated by the joy of creating and the inspiring artists in her family. She embarked on her artistic education at The Art Institute of Atlanta, where her skills flourished, and she became immersed in the professional design world quickly. In addition to her graphic design prowess, Jen is a prolific illustrator and abstract artist. She creates captivating mixed-media artworks, including acrylic and watercolor paintings. Her compositions are thoughtfully crafted, showcasing both vibrant and nature-inspired palettes. Jen is also passionate about digital illustration and designing for apparel. Beyond her professional accomplishments, Jen participates in local art shows and art fairs, sharing her diverse artistic talents with the community. She also extends her passion for art through mindful art classes locally and online, offering creative inspiration and activities. She offers a supportive, empathetic environment that encourages anyone to live a more mindful life through artistic expression.

April Verdun Brown