We offers wide range of art classes for all ages.
A Hudson Valley-based emerging artist, whose work is deeply influenced by the beauty and magic found in nature. Her photography, encaustic work and paintings have been locally exhibited and published. Her love of antiques often finds her work framed in vintage frames she restores herself.
Paula has been both an artist and a teacher most of her life. She has a BFA from Hartford Art School and an MS in Art Therapy from College of New Rochelle. She was a visual arts teacher for 30 years at Lakeland High School in Shrub Oak. Paula taught Ceramics to hundreds of students throughout the years. She has inspired and guided students to find their own voice through the act of creating.
Paula believes that the process of art is very important. She draws on her experience in ceramics, painting and mixed media work to make her functional ware. Using the potter’s wheel as a tool to create a three dimensional canvas, she explores various surface treatments. She is very interested in how her forms and manipulated surfaces interact in the atmosphere of reduction, wood and and salt kilns. The unpredictability of the final piece is very exciting. Having retired in 2023, Paula can now be found on most days in her studio at Peekskill Clay Studios developing her own voice and body of work. She is currently an active artist in the Hudson Valley and has shown work at Peekskill Clay Studios, Garrison Art Center and Putnam Arts Council.
In the Fall of 2025, Paula began teaching a wheel-throwing class at the Adams School of Art located at the Hammond Museum in North Salem. She is thrilled to share her love of pottery with students once again.
Amanda, a graduate of Parsons School of Design majoring in illustration, began her artistic journey illustrating miniature books for Borrower’s Press. She also self-published her own collection of small-scale books called Tiny Tales. Amanda’s early career included freelance illustration and watercolor work in advertising, before she shifted her focus to creating watercolors for exhibitions and sales.
An award-winning member of the Salmagundi Club and a signature member of the Northeast Watercolor Society, Amanda has had numerous solo shows and regularly participates in art center group events across Manhattan, Putnam and Westchester. Her work, which she describes as an artistic interpretation rather than a photographic representation, blends realistic and impressionistic styles.
Before pursuing her passion for art, Amanda danced with a professional Ballet Company for four years. She continues to share her love of dance by teaching classes at Club Fit.
Website: www.aewatercolors.com
Erin is a K-12-certified dance and yoga teacher, professional dancer and dance educator. She has taught in private programs and studios as well as in public schools. Always devoted to music and dance, Erin has performed in many dance/theater productions in NYC and throughout the US and Europe. Her classes use music, breath, rhythm, individual attention and imagination to create a present, joyful movement experience. As a children’s dance teacher for over 20 years, she continues to be inspired by their creativity. Erin holds a Master of Arts in Dance and Education from NYU, a B.A. in Psychology from Bucknell, and yoga certification from Sonic and the National Yoga Alliance. Follow Erin on Instagram: @dancinglight36
My passion for clay began over 50 years ago and has taken me through extensive studies – including NYU, Penland School of Crafts, and work with American Masters. As educator I emphasize exploring, and experimenting along with the basics – form and function. I strive to inspire students to engage their creativity and design with attention to technical details.
Art runs through Alex in various threads of form and creativity is as necessary to her as breathing. She is an artist, photographer, writer, traveler and teacher. She has a Master of Fine Arts in Writing from Manhattanville College. Her art, photography, poetry and short stories have been published in the internationally acclaimed literary journal Inkwell, Quiddity, Anak Sastra, riverSedge and Emerge Literary Journal.
Sean holds a Master’s in Art Education (K-12) and brings a rich background in commercial illustration and animation to his work, having created branded artworks for television for companies like Crayola and Green Mountain Coffee.
As a digital artist, he teaches a wide range of art classes, from traditional techniques to digital media, at Mahopac High School. A dedicated member of the Putnam Arts Council, Sean is thrilled to be teaching classes in the community he serves.
Charlotte is a detail-oriented illustrator with a deep interest in the sciences. Nearly twenty years of dance training inspired Charlotte’s passion for anatomy and how internal structure informs superficial shape and function. She loves to research and truly understand the inner workings of the subjects of her drawings. Charlotte attended Rhode Island School of Design where she earned her BFA in illustration in 2018. Through her coursework at RISD and position as a teaching assistant in a medical illustration course at Brown University’s Alpert Warren Medical School, Charlotte discovered how to combine her love of art and science in science illustration.
Charlotte has worked with institutions, companies and individuals across multiple areas of science illustration. Her projects include work with researchers in entomological illustration at the American Museum of Natural History, botanical illustration at the New York Botanical Garden and as a medical illustrator for Buoy Health.
Charlotte recently completed the year long Bartels Science Illustrator residency at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. During her time at the lab, Charlotte worked directly with the editorial team to create illustrations for Living Bird Magazine and has contributed to textbook and academic figures, membership gifts and Bird Academy materials. As part of her residency, she worked as a teaching assistant for the Art and Science of Birds Course at Cornell and led tutorials and workshops for students as well as Ornithology Lab members and visitors.
Explore Charlotte’s work on her website including her work for the lab on the Bartels 2022 page. Through her work, Charlotte hopes to inspire discovery and curiosity in the hopes of creating a larger community with whom she can share a mission to protect and defend our world and all the life that inhabits it. Specifically, Charlotte tries to focus on the importance of native plants and how they support our local ecosystems, including all of the birds she loves. When not in her studio, you can find Charlotte outside working in her pollinator garden.
Website: www.charlotte-holden.com Instagram: @charlotte.w.holden
Melissa was born an artist. Arts of all sorts fascinate her, but she has long-loved clay. An inspirational high school teacher led her to appreciate ceramics as a deeply spiritual, as well as therapeutic, medium of expression. She has been creating with clay ever since. Her specialty is hand-building, while her favorite forms are boxes and sculpture.
Melissa is a graduate of Arizona State University, majoring in anthropology and botany. She has also done graduate level studies in anthropology, botany, therapy, and nutrition. She has been a teacher in several forms – as a teaching assistant in cultural anthropology at the University of Kansas; and, as an after-school art teacher for Young Rembrandts locally in Mahopac, North Salem, and Katonah teaching children how to draw. She truly loves working with children and teens finding it always exciting and fun! Hand-building is her jam! She invites all who are interested to come explore clay, surface treatments, and glazing techniques.
Tooraj was born in Ahvaz, Iran in 1948. He received a Master of Art in Architecture in 1973. Parallel to his career as an Architect, he has over 50 years of experience in watercolor painting. His first watercolor painting exhibition was in 1975 in Tehran. He has taught art and architecture at the university level (in Tehran University School of Fine Art and School of Decoration Art in Tehran). He has exhibited his paintings in Tehran, Los Angeles and Manhattan. Tooraj’s works are a sincere representation of the visual beauty of everyday life.
Tooraj’s portfolio: www.toorajstudio.com
Rosalie is a professional painter, illustrator, and graphic designer and a faculty member at Putnam Arts Council. She has exhibited her paintings in New York, New Jersey, Colorado, Nova Scotia, and California as well as locally. Her artwork has been reviewed in many newspapers and magazines, including The New York Times, the Bergen Record (NJ), and ArtNews Magazine.
Rosalie has also designed books, fabric, brochures and corporate logos for clients including Warner Communications, King Features, Bloomingdales, and The National Organization for Women. She was also the art director for a housewares company in New York City.
She studied at Cornell University, New York University, and Naropa Institute, received her BFA from Nova Scotia College of Art & Design, and her MFA in painting from California Institute of the Arts.
Rosalie has taught art workshops at the Mahopac Public Library, Fulmar Road School after school program, and has been teaching at Putnam Arts Council for over 12 years. She is continuing to teach classes in drawing, painting, anime, and illustration for adults, teens, and young children.
Maria has a DVM degree from Cornell University and a BFA from SUNY Purchase. Her interest in animals and the natural world is obvious in her drawings and paintings where she tries to capture the details of time, place and gesture without losing the spontaneity of the medium in which she is working. Her veterinary training allows her to be well-versed in animal anatomy, physiology and behavior, while her art studies at Purchase taught her about the formal elements of composition, scale, line, tonal variation and color. Her “art heroes” include John Singer Sargent, JMW Turner, Andrew Wyeth and Louis Agassiz Fuertes.
Liz utilizes her educational and teaching experience to stimulate, motivate, and assist all children reach their academic potential. She holds a New York State Public School Teaching Permanent Certificate Pre-Kindergarten through Sixth Grade, Masters of Science in Teaching, Childhood Education Iona College, New Rochelle, NY, Bachelor of Arts, Major: Psychology, Minor: Spanish, Hobart & William Smith Colleges, Geneva, NY.
Liz is dedicated to keeping up with changes of educational needs. Her instruction is diversified by adapting to the learning styles of students. She is passionate about Multicultural and Character Education and possess strong classroom management skills. Bilingual in Spanish (written and verbal fluency).
Liz is an active community member, volunteering time in school as a PTA member. She designed the school mural at Thomas Jefferson Elementary School.
Heidi is a mixed-media artist who makes art daily and exhibits locally. Since 2014, she has gravitated toward gel printing to create painted papers with visual texture and pattern. Gel plate printing fuels her love of paper, vintage books, magazines, ephemera and recycled materials. Heidi contintues to explore the creative process of gel print-making using various texture tools. Then, she collages the prints together to make works of art.
Monica is a New York based vocal instructor with over 35 years of teaching experience. She has studios in NYC and Westchester/Putnam counties. She has taught voice classes at the Professional Performing Arts School in Manhattan, Master Classes for arts councils in Westchester County, New York, and at the University of Hartford’s Hartt School of Music. Her students are currently performing on Broadway, National Tours, off-Broadway, regionally, and appearing in commercials, television and movies. Alumni include: Lea Michelle, Scarlett Johannson, Ashley Tisdale and Laura Bell Bundy.
A dynamic professional with a proven track record of enhancing students’ academic performance and self-confidence through innovative tutoring methods. Kiley excels in fostering collaborative environments for art and other activities. She has years of experience in the arts and excels with ceramics after spending years practicing her hand-building and wheel-throwing skills.