Seven New York Artists Added to ArtsWestchester’s Teaching Artists Roster
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
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Seven New York Artists Added to ArtsWestchester’s Teaching Artists Roster
WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. (March 17, 2020) – ArtsWestchester has added seven new artists to its Teaching Artist Roster. The Artist Roster includes over 80 artists from across the Tri-State area and serves as a resource for schools and community agencies looking to collaborate with artists and to host artist residencies. The Teaching Artist Roster includes artists in the fields of visual, literary and performing arts and is offered online as a community resource. Each roster artist has a proven track record of artistic achievement, along with the training and skills needed to bring learning to life through the arts in classrooms and other learning environments. Many artists on the Teaching Roster are placed in Artist Residencies at community sites facilitated by ArtsWestchester. These Artist Residencies are highly structured, multi-session workshops that foster learning in and through the arts. Teaching Artists develop and implement residencies in collaboration with educators or, in the case of human service and community agencies, with the site staff. In schools, residencies serve as an instructional strategy, helping students to master core curricula content in other subjects through the arts, as well as addressing the Common Core Standards in the Arts. In day-care centers, after-school programs, mental health facilities, shelters and other community settings, hands-on artist residencies foster cognitive, developmental, social and individual skills and abilities basic to success in school, in life, and in the workforce.
Artists of any discipline who live or maintain a studio/performance space in the New York-Tristate area are eligible and applications are accepted by ArtsWestchester on a yearly basis. If you want more information on becoming a Teaching Artist with ArtsWestchester or are interested in developing your own Artist Residency contact Jessy Mendez at (914) 428-4220. The 2020 deadline to apply to become an ArtsWestchester Teaching Artist is Friday, April 24th at 5pm.
Artists Added to ArtsWestchester’s Teaching Artist Roster Bios:
Lance Johnson
Mount Vernon, NY
Lance Johnson is a mixed media visual artist from Mount Vernon whose interactive mural work uses words paired with color schemes to help tell a visual story. Through his residencies, he has worked with a wide range of students at a number of different schools helping them to complete projects such as wall murals and designing park benches. Johnson encourages his students to be fearless and trust the process while creating.
Richela Fabian Morgan
Larchmont, NY
Richela Fabian Morgan is a mixed media artist and fine crafter who employs everyday materials such as tape, paper, and found objects to both create her work and to inspire her students to tell their personal narratives using these materials. Morgan has taught various craft programs to children and teens for the past 11 years in New York, Connecticut, and Massachusetts. She currently resides in Larchmont with her husband and two children.
Rashaun Allen
Brooklyn, NY
Rashaun Allen is a published creative writer and poet from Peekskill. He was SUNY Stony Brook’s MFA Creative Writing & Literature program’s first Fulbright scholar in history. His three independently published works became Amazon Kindle Best Sellers in African American Poetry. Using his previous teaching experience with several educational organizations throughout New York, Allen’s aim is to provide creative writing workshops for Westchester’s youth, elderly, and underserved populations.
Suzanne Altman
Ossining, NY
Suzanne Altman is a visual artist based out of Ossining who uses oil paint to create mainly still-lives and portraits, with an emphasis on realism and exploration of light and color. With 15 years of experience as an art educator and previous background in graphic design, she continues to teach hands-on art classes and presents courses in Art History to an array of different organizations.
Kristin Holmes Linder
Briarcliff Manor, NY
Kristin Holmes Linder is a Fine Artist and Educator residing in Briarcliff Manor. She spent many years as a decorative artisan working with designers and architects and was trained by a French Master Craftsman, working on interiors which were featured in publications such as Westchester Homes and Cottages, Design NJ, ASID Newsletter and Veranda. This led to her designing Collaborative Arts and Outreach programs which she has facilitated at Medical Centers, Schools and Correctional Facilities in Westchester and New York.
Rukhshan Haque
Yonkers, NY
Rukhshan Haque is a mixed media artist specializing in textiles and fiber arts, currently residing in Yonkers, NY. She is passionate about sharing her love of art and learning with others by creating and teaching. Haque develops and teaches arts programs independently, as well as in partnership with arts and cultural institutions, such as the Guggenheim Museum, the Morgan Library & Museum and the Brooklyn Museum. Haque has had the pleasure of teaching arts programs for people of all ages and backgrounds and consider her teaching to be an extension of her art practice.
Anita Brown
Anita Brown is a composer, conductor and music arranger, native of both northeastern Massachusetts and Metropolitan New York. Brown is an award-winning composer who has received international critical acclaim for her work. After an extensive teaching career as a school music educator, Ms. Brown embarked upon a freelance journey filled with new opportunities and challenges. Performing around metropolitan New York since 2000 with her band, Anita Brown Jazz Orchestra, she has toured extensively and released independently-produced music. Brown is in demand as a guest composer, conductor and clinician at all levels.
About ArtsWestchester
For more than 50 years, ArtsWestchester has been the community’s connection to the arts. Founded in 1965, it is the largest private not-for-profit arts council in New York State. Its mission is to provide leadership vision and support to ensure the availability accessibility and diversity of the arts. ArtsWestchester provides programs and services that enrich the lives of everyone in Westchester County. ArtsWestchester helps fund concerts exhibitions and plays through grants; brings artists into schools and community centers; advocates for the arts; and builds audiences through diverse marketing initiatives. In 1998, ArtsWestchester purchased the nine-story neo-classical bank building at 31 Mamaroneck Avenue which has since been transformed into a multi-use resource for artists, cultural organizations and the community. A two-story gallery is located on the first floor of ArtsWestchester’s historic building on Mamaroneck Avenue.