Teaching Artists

Lisa Horowitz
Mosaic Teaching Artist

Lisa Horowitz has worked in the area of mosaics for over 20 years. A former attorney and psychologist, she is now happily committed to working as a full-time artist. Lisa is passionate about the possibilities of mosaic artwork, pursuing advanced training in techniques such as three-dimensional mosaic art, concrete and hybrid armatures, Byzantine style mosaics, and “collage-type” assemblages incorporating a range of material including stones, metal, jewels, and found objects. She loves the vividness and vibrancy of mosaics, as well as the opportunities to explore texture and dimension. See more of Horowitz’s work on her Instagram and her website Lisahorowitz.com

Kelsey Joyce
Lead Teaching Artist, The Apprentice Program (TAP)

Kelsey Joyce has spent the past 4 years as a professional teaching artist, fundraiser, and arts event planner, working with a variety of organizations and student populations. She earned her B.A. in Studio Art from St. Mary’s College of Maryland. In addition, she has held positions of art instruction at Port Discovery Children’s Museum, CREATE Arts Center, Latin American Youth Center, VisArts Center, and the Zenith Arts Foundation. Since 2019, she has been a practicing studio artist and focused on creating sculptures that take inspiration from daydreams, storytelling, and the world around her. Joyce’s work plays with the idea of traveling in the mind, physical world, and finding an intersection to both with fantasy storytelling. See more of Joyce’s artwork on her Instagram and her website kelseyjoyce.com

Jadyn Covington
Assistant Teaching Artist, The Apprentice Program (TAP)

Bio coming soon!

Carien Quiroga
Founding Lead Teaching Artist

Carien was born in Pretoria, South Africa and in December 2002 relocated to the USA. She holds a BA in Criminology & Psychology as well as a BA (Fine Arts). Her award winning work, widely exhibited in her native South Africa and in the USA, deals with the feminine principle, social and environmental issues and her experiences as a woman. She also creates mixed- media mosaic public art and as artist-in-residence she works with community groups, schools and non-profit organizations to create public art in their communities. She teaches a variety of workshops and classes to all ages both locally and internationally.

Julissa Barrera
Assistant Teaching Artist, Youth Arts Movement (YAM)

Bio coming soon!

Serena Feingold
Consulting Artist

Serena Faye Feingold is a craftswoman and community artist who works primarily in ceramics, painting, metal, and performance. She was raised in a colorful, lively, Jewish household full of lyrical prayer and decorative objects and would spend hours in her Grandmother’s studio, painting by her side and playing with broken Italian ceramics and old Czech puppets. As she grew into her own art practice, that attachment to objects and ritual grew as well. Her current work is an exploration of narrative storytelling through hand-painted sculpture and musical performance. She translates her skills in craft and storytelling into her community arts work and always strives to create an open and creative teaching atmosphere.

Natalie Ramirez
Lead Teaching Artist, Youth Arts Movement (YAM)

Natalie Ramirez is a mixed media artist and art educator in Maryland, Her background in youth development and community arts enables her to build connections with young artists. She has traveled around the world to research cultures and study art in order to bring first-hand observations, artifacts and resources to her students. She hopes to inspire people to pursue their interests and seek answers to questions.

Christee Jordan
Lead Teaching Artist, Youth Arts Movement (YAM)

Christee Jordan is a mixed media artist and elementary art educator based in Maryland. She has over 10 years of professional teaching experience and over 15 years as a trained visual artist. She has expanded her skills and love for art through her many visual arts business ventures, including Christee’s Paint Parties and Custom Letters. She hopes to influence many young artists and entrepreneurs when it comes to following their interests and dreams.

Kristine Aono
Former Lead Teaching Artist, PYAO Apprentice Program

Kristine is a sculptor and installation artist whose artwork explores themes of history, racial and social justice, and her Japanese-American heritage. She has exhibited widely, with solo shows at places such as the National Museum of Women in the Arts (Washington, DC) and the Japanese American National Museum (Los Angeles, CA), and installations and group shows at the Long Beach Museum of Art (CA), Mary & Leigh Block Museum of Art (Evanston, IL), National Academy of Design (NY, NY), and the Washington Project for the Arts. Kristine is a MacDowell Fellow, recipient of numerous grants (NEA, MSAC, Painted Bride, etc), holds a BFA from Washington University (St. Louis), and attended the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture (ME). Kristine had been a teaching artist for several years before joining AOB in 2014. See her work at KristineAono.com.

Hector Catano
Teaching Artist Youth Arts Movement (YAM)

Originally from Bogotá, Colombia, Hector Catano is a visual artist and educator with more than 20 years of experience and two master’s degrees in Art Production and Art Creation and Research from Spain. Hector has taught visual arts to different communities in Colombia and The U.S. funded mostly by the government, including children in extreme poverty, children with disabilities, homeless people, as well as college, primary, middle, and high school students. As an artist, he has been featured in more than 30 national and international group exhibitions as well as 4 solo art shows.

Athena Corbin
Former Online Program Manager and Lead Teaching Artist, Studio Crew

Athena Corbin is originally from Silver Spring MD. Currently, she is a Teaching artist and Studio Manager for Arts on The Block. Athena has been a photographer for over 10 years and has dabbled in Illustration and other media for over 20 years. In 2019 she was given the opportunity to show work at Pyramid Atlantic’s 10 x 10 show. Athena decided to experiment with a new medium: Textile/Embroidery. The end result were 2 wonderful pieces that are a conversation about colonization and the imprint/legacy it leaves behind. Athena is currently in the works to further expand upon this work.

Melissa Ezelle
Former Lead Teaching Artist, The Apprentice Program (TAP)

Melissa Ezelle has spent the past 16 years as a professional teaching artist, fundraiser and arts administrator, working with a variety of organizations and student populations. She earned her MFA from Ohio University, and her BFA from Murray State University. From 2006-2016, Melissa worked as both an arts administrator and educator for organizations supporting adults with disabilities, including the award-winning Resources for Human Development in Philadelphia, and The Arc of Prince George’s County. In addition, she has held positions in development at the Foundation of the American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works (FAIC) and Studio Theater in Washington, DC. Since 2013, she has been a practicing studio artist and instructor at Pyramid Atlantic Art Center and currently teaches classes in the fine arts department at Montgomery College.

Teaching Artists

Let's connect!

Sign up for our newsletter!