Teacher Bios
The LASC works with a large roster of talented and dedicated Artists and Educators in the arts and sciences.
Listed in Alphabetical Order.
SUSAN ANDERSON
Susan has 18 years teaching experience with a specialty in science curriculum. She previously managed a 500 acre wildlife area in Boyle County and developed outdoor educational programs and environmental camps for school and youth groups. Susan also taught for Centre College’s Summer Science Camp and received the Cincinnati Zoo Earth Expedition Educational opportunity to work with teachers and schools in Belize.
DAN NEIL BARNES
Dr. Barnes earned his BA in Human Environmental Design from the University of Kentucky. After studying stained glass from Laura Hallock here in Lexington, Dan began creating his own original designs combining light, color and texture. He has been awarded top honors for his beautiful and unique stained glass.
BRIAN BERTUCCI
is a singer, songwriter, and recording engineer who taught Music Technology classes at Brevard Community College. He worked as a Sound Engineer and Composer at the Kennedy Space Center for seven years, and currently owns Launch Pad Audio, a production company for aspiring musicians in Lexington. His passion is to give people the tools they need to create music without limits.
CAT BERTUCCI
has been crafting since she was an active 5 year old and her mother tricked her into thinking chores were fun ways to express creativity. She started her own costuming and craft business in 1992 and now works at home as a seamstress and teacher while helping her husband in his sound studio and homeschooling her mad scientist son.
JULIE BLACKBURN
Julie graduated with a BS degree from the University of Kentucky and has been working within the Lexington art community for nine years. She uses her imagination and creativity to bring forth fun and innovative ways for kids to enjoy art with science. In her classes, Julie incorporates creative ways for students to notice the world around them.
FRANK BOYER
Frank is a local artist/musician who has been teaching at the LASC since 1989. In that time he has created many classes, programs, and events for diverse populations from preschool to adults. He is currently an instructor for the UK Donovan Scholars program and continues his love and exploration of computer generated art, music, and all things creative.
MELINDA BOYER
Melinda is a folklore herbalist, horticulturalist, artist, friend of nature, and long time tree hugger. Since 1987 Melinda has taught all populations of children and adults an infusion of art, ecology, botany, and history. She is the owner of New Day Herb and Native Plant Farm and is Nursery Manager of the Friends of Griffith Woods, a nonprofit restoration nursery. Melinda lectures and writes about herbs and country life throughout Kentucky. When not at work, she’s in the woods, tending her herbs, or out chasing butterflies.
SONJA BROOKS
Sonja Brooks is a visual artist who believes that each of us has an art gene and we should put it to good use! Teaching allows her to encourage children (and adults) to explore both the fun of art making and its power to nourish growth and change. In addition to being a teaching artist, Sonja is also a museum educator, art management consultant and Education Program Director of Sisohpromatem Art Foundation in Lexington.
ROBERTA BURNES
is an Environmental Education Specialist at the Kentucky Division for Air Quality but also is well known for creating and teaching various fiber art forms. She has worked as a naturalist, educator and artist in a variety of educational settings including the LASC, the Cincinnati Museum of Natural History, and at Lexington’s Arboretum.
MARIANNE BROWN
Marianne had devoted her professional life to clay since 1996. One of Marianne’s signatures is the texture she applies to her work from her hand-made clay stamps. She works with students of all ages, sharing her experience with them, and enjoys letting them see first-hand how versatile and forgiving clay can be. Potting full time has allowed her creativity and imagination to take off and she just wants to share with others.
SARAH CAMPBELL
Sarahis an artist and art educator. She was born and raised near Owensboro, Kentucky, then moved to Lexington where she obtained BAs in Visual Art and English Literature from Transylvania University. She then earned an MST in Art Education from Rochester Institute of Technology while pursuing a career in community arts. Campbell has worked as a staff member and volunteer at a number of schools and arts organizations including The Dazzle School of Visual and Performing Arts in Rochester, New York, James Lane Allen Elementary School in Lexington, Kentucky, the Lexington Art League, and the Lexington Visual Collective.
Campbell owns a home in Lexington’s North Side where she actively participates in her neighborhood association and community garden. She lives with her two dogs and her husband, Charlie Campbell, who is also an artist.
MICHELLE COMBS
Michelle graduated from the University of Kentucky in 2010 where she studied art history and photography. She has exhibited her photography in Lexington, Richmond, and Somerset, KY and began teaching at the LASC in 2010. Her other interests include learning foreign language, traveling and reading mystery novels.
JENNY CONATSER
Jenny just graduated from the University of Kentucky with a BA in art studio. She likes to explore both realistic and abstract subject matter through mixed media and painting. Jenny loves art and loves to share her art with others.
K. CRANE
A board certified art therapist with an MA in Art Therapy from the University of Illinois at Chicago, her primary mediums are textiles, oil bar, and wax. She currently lives in Lexington with her husband and two Boston Terriers.
KATE DAVIS-ROSENBAUM
Kate is a mom, an artist and a part-time assistant in a Montessori classroom. She earned a B.A. in Visual Art from Eckerd College, an M.F.A. in Printmaking from Univ. of Georgia, and taught drawing, painting, and art history for 15 years at Midway College. She is passionate about the visual arts, art history, family, friends and pets.
CRIMSON DUVALL
Crimson has a BFA in painting and ceramics from Eastern Kentucky University and her MFA in studio art from the University of Kentucky. She lives in Richmond, KY with her husband and three children (which she gets the most inspiration for her artwork)! She enjoys making coiled ceramic sculptures, pottery, paintings and installations that explore worlds that exsist in her imagination.
BRUCE FRANK
Bruce is a photographic artist who exhibits his work in galleries and museums throughout the country. He graduated with a Master of Fine Arts in Photography from Florida State University, has been a graphic designer for 30 years, and has taught design and Photoshop classes at Bluegrass Community and Technical College. He is a juried member of the Kentucky Guild of Artists and Craftsmen and of the Kentucky Arts Council’s Visual Arts at the Market program.
VALERIE SULLIVAN FUCHS
Valerie is a Kentucky artist who works with video installation, digital imaging and sculpture. Her work has been exhibited extensively around the world including in Stockholm, Sweden; Parnu, Estonia; Graz, Austria; Belgrade, Serbia; the Speed Art Museum, Louisville, KY; and Santa Barbara, CA. She is the recipient of an Al Smith Fellowship from the Kentucky Arts Council and has been awarded grants from Sony Corp., and the Kentucky Foundation for Women. Fuchs has an MFA in Time Arts, The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, and a Bachelor of Architecture from UK. She has taught at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and Truman College and has lectured throughout Kentucky.
GARRETT GRADDY
Garrett spent her childhood summers making art at LASC, and this will be her tenth summer teaching there. She studied Theater at Yale, Religion at Harvard and teaches Geography and Honors at the University of Kentucky. Garrett lives in Lexington with her husband and daughter, while making excursions to nearby farms, forests, gardens, gorges, and hollows.
MARY ELIZABETH HAGER
Mary is a Music Education major at Eastern Kentucky University and has been playing the violin since she was seven years old. She is also the education intern for The Lexington Philharmonic, and helps coach students in music at Lexington’s public schools. Mary Elizabeth loves working with students K-12 and looks forward to combining music and art at the LASC this summer.
DEBBIE HARNER
Debbie has an M.A. in elementary education and over 20 years of teaching experience. She currently has her own tutoring business for elementary students in central Kentucky. Debbie also teaches science field trips and educational outreach programs for the LASC.
MARTY HENTON
Marty has a BA in Art education from Purdue University and an MA in Art Education from Western Kentucky. She served as director of LASC for 23 years and now teaches art education and supervises student teachers in the Art Department at the University of Kentucky and at LASC.
GEOFFREY HERSCHBERGER
Geoffrey is a cellist pursuing his Doctor of Musical Arts Degree at the University of Kentucky. Geoff has served as an educator for diverse organizations such as the U.K. String Project, the U.K. Symphony Orchestra, and has led educational programs in Marine Biology and Maritime History at the Ocean Institute in California.
JO ANN HUSER
received her BA in Anthropology from the University of Kentucky and currently works as Laboratory Supervisor for a local archaeology firm. At night and on weekends the scientist turns into accomplished crafter and a vocational interior decorator.
ISAAC JENSEN
Isaac earned a BA in Art Education from Arizona State University in 2008. He moved to the Bluegrass State with his wonderful wife Julie and loves being a part of the downtown community in Lexington. Currently Isaac is serving an AmeriCorps year tutoring ESL students through Tates Creek Middle School.
JAMIE KAROLICH
Jamie received her BFA in Printmaking from Eastern Kentucky University. She began volunteering with LASC in 2004 and has continued to participate in all the center has to offer!! She enjoys working with various mediums; printmaking, fiber, metals and paper. She enjoys teaching and is currently the Volunteer and Outreach Coordinator for the LASC.
DUANE KEATON
Duane lives in Nicholasville with his wife and son. He is the art teacher at Southern Middle School and has been teaching summer classes at LASC for the past 5 years.
CYNTHIA RYAN KELLY
Cynthia earned an MFA in painting and printmaking from UK in 1995, including a session at the Marchutz School of Painting in Aix-en-Provence, France. She is the recipient of two Kentucky Foundation for Women grants. Currently she is creating paintings for her exhibit “Stories About Mountaintop Removal” and teaching art to all ages, including her two children who are now 13 and 11.
ERIC KELLEY
Eric graduated from the University of Kentucky with a major in Physics and interests in astro- and nuclear-physics. He is the President of the Society of Physics Students at UK, where he has organized department-wide trips to laboratories and observatories, leading a team to construct a linear projectile accelerator. His enthusiasm is contagious and he looks forward to sharing his knowledge with youth at the LASC.
STEVEN LITTRELL
Steven is a graduate of the University of Kentucky with a BS degree in Architecture. He loves working in digital formats as well as traditional mediums. He is currently the Program Assistant and Webmaster for the LASC.
CHANDRA LLOYD
holds an M.S. in Biomechanics and Exercise Sciences from the University of Delaware. She believes that being healthy should be fun, and loves to teach and share her knowledge of health, fitness, and human movement. She has been fascinated with science and nature since she was old enough to hold a book, and has been drawing and painting since she was old enough to hold a pencil. She greatly enjoys the the LASC and has been volunteering since moving to Lexington in September 2011.
JENNIFER STEPHENSON MCLAMB
designs and creates each piece of hand-crafted jewelry in her Bliss Studio and Boutique in Lexington. Jennifer combines her love of the earth and her creative passion to craft contemporary, one-of-a-kind, wearable art and jewelry that has a low impact on our planet. Jennifer is a juried member of the Kentucky Craft Marketing Program.
ERICA MEUSER
Erica has a BFA in printmaking and painting, which she earned while studying with the late UK professor Ross Zirkle. Her work is a reflection of who she is; a woman, mother and an emotional watcher of life around her.
STEVIE MOORE
Stevie earned a BA in Art from U.K in 2005 and currently has a studio at the Artists Attic in Victorian Square. He focuses on nature related artwork in traditional and digital media. Stevie loves teaching and has taught for 7 years at the LASC. Stevie’s interests include aviation, aquariums, nature, art, and history.
ELISSA MORLEY
Elissa grew up in Cocoa Beach, Florida and attended Asbury College and the Slade School of Fine Art in London, England. She has lived in Lexington for the last 5 years, teaching Art courses at Georgetown College and Eastern Kentucky University.
MARY L. NEHRING
Mary is a graduate from UK with a BFA in fibers. She enjoys all types of fiber related art, but her big love is putting color on fabric and yarn. Finding new ways to use the old craft, quilting, is another of her obsessions.
ISAAC POWELL received his MFA from Washington State University and now teaches painting and drawing at Eastern Kentucky University. His work has been exhibited recently at the prestigious Armory Show in New York City and at the Smithsonian Institution’s International Gallery.
LAURA RAY
Laura has a BA in Art Education and a BFA in Art Studio from the University of Kentucky. She loves exploring different media with her students. She loves teaching!
MEGAN STANTON
Megan is a graduate of the University of Kentucky with a BA in Studio Art. She has created and self-published several comics of her own. When she isn’t making or reading comics, she loves to ride her bike, cook Frankenstein dishes, and explore as much of this lovely world as she can.
MEGAN SAUTERMegan will be receiving her Bachelor’s Degree in Sculpture and Ceramics from Georgetown College in May 2011. She enjoys teaching children and adult ceramic classes and selling her jewelry and pottery. She plans to receive an MFA and teach at the college level.
TRICIA SPENCER
Tricia received an MFA in 2002 and an MS in Art Education in 200 from Radford University in Virginia and a BA from the University of Wyoming. In 1994 she studied metalsmithing at Artes Plasticas in Taxco, Mexico and later studied at the Instituto Cultural in Oaxaca. She has been a visiting artist at the Kemper Museum of Art in Kansas City, MO; Lawrence Art Center in Lawrence, KS; Kansas City Art Institute; University of Wyoming Art Museum in Laramie, WY; KAUAI Academy for Creative Arts in Kauai, Hawaii; and has taught at Houston Central Community College, the University of Kentucky, and at Radford University.
To see more of Tricia Spencer’s work and that of her students please go to:
www.artworksts.blogspot.com and www.artistictrekkers.blogspot.com
LAFE TAYLOR
Lafe, one half of 212ths.com, is a creative person who specializes in the development of cutting edge visuals that push brand development to the next level. With deep roots in the Lexington area, Lafe has worked with corporations, professional recording artists, awards shows, museums, urban fashion companies and local businesses.
LAUREN WILDERLaura recently graduated with an MA in Art Education from Eastern Kentucky University. Although her undergraduate work was mainly in ceramics, Lauren’s focus is now on nontoxic printmaking techniques, drawing, and mixed media art. Lauren lives with her two yearold son and three-legged wonder cat, and loves blowing bubbles, drawing portraits of wildlife, and glitter spray paint.
MOLLY COSTICH WILSON
Molly has a BFA from Auburn University in drawing and painting and a Masters in Art Education from the University of Kentucky. She is a locally exhibiting artist, has taught at LASC for 19 years, and is the LASC’s Art Education Coordinator.
STEPHEN WIGGINS
was a student at the Living Arts & Science Center and the School for Creative and Performing Arts (SCAPA) and graduated with a BA in Visual Art from UK. He is a member of the Bluegrass Printmakers Cooperative and has created artwork for the Christian Student Fellowship at the UK, Southland Christian Church, and the Children’s Cancer Association in Portland, Oregon.
KRIIS ZEPS
Kriis has a BA in Elementary Education and an A.M.S. Montessori graduate studies degree. She has taught in private Montessori Schools and public elementary schools over the past 20 years. She enjoys encouraging children to explore, learn and create using a variety of hands-on materials.
JENNIFER ZINGGJennifer is an award-winning artist who creates figurative and zoological sculpture using gourds and other found and natural objects. Jennifer is the art teacher at Good Shepherd School in Frankfort and also operates an after school art program at her studio in Frankfort.
