Raised in the Pacific Northwest, Adam Collet has been taking photographs and making art since childhood. Adam went to school in Seattle, also attended Seattle Central Community College and the UW where he earned a BFA in Photography. In 2008, he began teaching and passing on an interest in art and design to the next generation. Still living in Seattle with wife, children, and cat.

Besides Adam’s photography and illustration work he’s also a Teaching Artist specializing in Visual Art with a focus on integrating Art and STEM disciplines. In addition to Arts Corps, he’s taught classes, and online content for King County Library System; Seattle Public Library; stArt Exploring, a project of Sound Transit; Seattle Parks and Rec; High Point Neighborhood House; Yesler Terrace, Youth Tutoring Program; Family Learning Program; and various schools in Highline and Seattle Public Schools.

Recent projects include Essentially Seattle – photographing essential workers for City of Seattle/SPU, from the Office of Art & Culture; Public Art Program – photographing publicly sited artworks for City of Seattle, from the Office of Art & Culture. Ethnic Artist Roster, Seattle; Creative Advantage Arts Partner Roster, Seattle; ShoreLake Artist Roster, Shoreline.

Ana María Campoy (she/her/ella) is a Chicana theatre artist, educator, arts engagement consultant, and activist. Theatre work includes: The 5th Avenue Theatre, Olympia Family Theatre, Seattle Repertory Theatre, Pacific Northwest Ballet, Book-It Repertory Theatre, Seattle Children’s Theatre, Seattle Shakespeare Company, Village Theatre, ArtsImpact’s Voices from the Fields, and Oregon Shakespeare Festival’s FUERTE Festival. One of her most cherished acting roles includes Catherine in a bilingual adaptation of David Auburn’s Proof, which she also produced and translated alongside director Arlene Martínez-Vásquez, and is now under consideration for publication. She has toured nationally in Living Voices’s solo show, La Causa. She’s developed multiple bilingual scripts for Seattle Shakespeare’s Touring Productions such as: Romeo y Julieta, The Taming of the Shrew, Twelfth Night, Macbeth, and Hamlet, the latter two she also directed. She was the Associate Artist ArtsWest in 2020-2021 and at Seattle Shakespeare Company from 2020-2023. She currently serves as a Board Member for Sound Theatre Company. In addition to her work within the arts, she founded and now runs the volunteer collective, WashMasks Mutual Aid. which works to provide care and creative joy through community organizing for migrant and seasonal farm workers and their families (www.washmasks.org; @washmasks on Instagram). 

Arielle A. Labra Campos (They/Them/Elle) is a Queer Latinx artist born to Immigrant parents in Zimbabwe. Moving to South America at the age of 5, living in Chile and Argentina before moving to Seattle in 2018. From an early age, Arielle has explored different art forms to express and find herself. Growing up, they would spend their school breaks at their grandparents beach house in Chile. In summer playing with the waves, the sand and seashells, and in winter Arielle would fill her time with drawings, paintings and crafts. She is inspired by the feeling of belonging and her long-life connection to the sea and their creatures – utilizing blue and purple colorways, and detailed lines and dots to bring her illustrations to life. Her art often combines the creatures of the surface (humans) with oceanic themes. In her work, Arielle brings together elements that sometimes looks like they don’t belong together, bringing harmony and balance to it.

Brian Dang (they/them) is a Vietnamese/Chinese playwright, poet, mentor, and mutual-aid worker based in Duwamish Territory (Seattle). Brian is a proud resident playwright at Parley. For Brian, writing is an act of envisioning an eventual communing, an opportunity to freeze time as we know it, and a reaching for joy. Their writing has been workshopped with Seattle Opera, Pork Filled Productions, Karen’s Secret Army, Theatre Battery, and the Sewanee Writers’ Conference as a Tennessee Williams Scholar. Brian was a 2020-21 Hugo House Fellow. They’re grateful for having somehow convinced the world they can read and write.

Born in the Philippines, Carina A. del Rosario immigrated to the United States as a young girl. She earned her B.A. in Communication from Santa Clara University in 1991. She has studied photography with Magnum Photographer Alex Webb, Rebecca Norris Webb, Raul Touzon and Eddie Soloway, and a variety of visual arts media at Pratt Fine Arts, Cornish College of the Arts and other cultural institutions. In addition to her own creative and documentary projects, she is a teaching artist and helps youth use visual arts and digital media to explore their communities, advocate for what matters for them, and express their own experiences. She works with a number of schools, cultural institutions and community-based organizations to help students develop 21st century skills through the visual arts. She collaborates with non-profit organizations and educational institutions to help illustrate issues such as poverty, education, health and civil rights. She also founded IDEA Odyssey, a collective that promotes cultural diversity, community development and economic prosperity in the International District/Chinatown neighborhood through visual arts. In 2013, the International Examiner honored her with a Community Voice Award for an Individual Artist. Carina was recently recognized by KCTS 9 for her work as an educator and cultural worker in Washington State. See the full story here. Carina’s website

Cecelia DeLeon is a visual artist born and raised in Seattle, WA and works under the alias Mousy DeVilla. She studied Design at Cornish College of the Arts, utilizing her design background to convey ideas through her 3D installations, paintings, and digital illustrations. Working from her South King County home, she creates evocative responses to the tensions of  ChicanX Culture and current political and social conflicts of the US. She has trained with TAT LAB (Teaching Artist Training) and transitioned into a Teaching Artist through Arts Corps. She does this work while building community with other art organizations such as Creative Justice, Coyote Central and Urban Artworks.

My name is Contramestre Caxambu (he/him). After many many years of informal exposure to capoeira, sufficient time opened up in my schedule in 1995 for rigorous sustained formal training that continues to this day.

My first opportunity for working with children was given to me by my mestre in the late 90s, teaching in the basement of Mt. Zion Baptist church.

I strive to use the music, movement, and improvisational aspects of this rich art form of capoeira to propel the kids to exceed their self- and societally-imposed limitations, with surprising results.

Indeed, “sometimes magic happens!”

My name is Divya Lalitha. I am a creative practitioner. An inter- and multi-disciplinary performance artiste, my work is strongly driven by intuition and inspired by storytelling, rituals, healing & spirituality.

I was led into the world of mythology & folklore by my grandfather when I was still cooing in my cradle. I got acquainted with rituals while still in my mother’s womb. Theatre really had happened for the first time at the age of three when I participated in my first fancy-dress contest. And then it happened again several years later to change my life forever. One-woman performance storytelling is my forte. With over thirteen years of experience in theatre, I have performed in India, the Philippines, and the United States. When I perform a story, there never is a fourth wall.

I graduated with an MFA in Theatre Arts from Towson University in 2020. It is during my graduate program that I delved academically deeper into the semiotics of rituals and performance art which led me to explore site-specific immersive theatre. My creative process at its core has always been about asking questions, and not about finding answers. I believe that answers are always around us; but it is in asking the right questions that will lead us to what we are seeking.

This quest has led me to create a world of rituals called ‘Epiphany Sutra’ where I combine inter-disciplinary modals with creative questioning and experience design to create epiphanies for individuals and collectives.

Always a cultural thinker-conduit, I have volunteered with the Embassy of India on several cultural projects through their India Student Hub initiative.

A spiritual seeker and nature lover born with an artistic bent of mind, I thrive on several artistic pursuits – writing, drawing, painting, handcrafting, photography, folk-art – all of which have shaped my identity as an artist.

I am also a trained cinematographer, a certified Scuba diver and a Reiki healer. Experimenting in the kitchen and plating food is my current favorite meditation.

I have lived & practiced art in Mumbai, Chennai, Manila and Baltimore. I have been an artist-educator in schools in Chennai and Manila. I have also taught a semester of introduction to theatre at Towson University. I have facilitated several theatre- based workshops for children and adults. I was also the festival director and co- producer of the Short + Sweet Theatre Festival Manila for four seasons.

I am currently based out of the Seattle area. I live here with my husband, and we bond over hikes, gastronomy, and cinema.

Erica Merritt began singing and performing at 5. In middle school, she was featured in a band called “Starlighters,” which consisted of three student vocalists and a few members of the faculty. At 14, she joined theatre and music performance groups at Langston Hughes Cultural Arts Center. She studied voice and music in college, and began teaching choir through Northwest Folklife in 1998. She has continued to teach voice, songwriting and choir intermittently through various art organizations over the last 10 years. Erica has also worked in the field of social and human services for over 15 years and has enjoyed the amazing opportunity to combine her passions of social well-being and music through the art of teaching.

Eris Eaton is an avid singer and performer who loves exploring many art forms as a way to connect with others. As a performer, board member, and social engagement leader for the Level Up! Vocal Ensemble, Eris brings her passion for art and music to the broader community.

She chose to pursue a BAS in Youth Development to better support youth in those communities. As a teacher, she brings her optimism and joy in full blast in order to create spaces where youth feel they truly belong.

Greg Thornton is a teaching artist, small business owner, visual artist and screen printing instructor who has a great passion for teaching youth.  Greg was a restaurant manager and had been for many years when he was asked in the fall of 2013 by a local school district to present a curriculum for an art program in the district’s middle schools.  From the first minute of his first class, Greg knew he had found the job that he wanted to do for the rest of his life – teaching and engaging students with art. At the beginning of his teaching artist career, Greg also had an opportunity to teach teens at an inpatient drug/alcohol treatment facility and at programs involving court-involved youth.  Those experiences solidified Greg’s desire not only to teach students in a public school setting, but also to work closely as a teacher and mentor at-risk youth and youth in need. Greg engages students in the creative process by focusing on them as individuals, helping them to express their fears and their dreams, to set goals, and to develop the desire to succeed despite possible difficulties.  Greg’s main goal is that each of his students learn to express their own voices in a creative and positive way. Greg’s lessons also teach skills that translate to other areas of the students’ lives – collaboration, leadership, acceptance, empathy, public speaking. Greg realizes that not every youth will become a great artist during his courses – but that truly is not the goal. Greg simply asks each student to embrace the journey of discovery and hopes that creating art helps build confidence in his students and that they have fun.

Jullian B. Rocha (He/Him) is a Latino American neurodivergent individual who was born and raised in Seattle, WA. He is currently a student in the OLS Program at Bellevue College. As a fourth-year student, he is working towards his Associate’s Degree in General Studies. He is a proud member of the OLS Program (Occupational and Life Skills) which is a work skills program for young adults with learning disabilities. Jullian is a self-taught visual artist starting from age 6 and continues to hone his art skills to this day. He also has experiences in other mediums of art including ceramics, paper mâché, acting, and more! He specializes in digital art creating characters with a story and a background. He enjoys drawing digitally on his Parblo tablet and editing his designs in the Krita software. Jullian became connected to Arts Corps through an internship experience via OLS Bellevue College. He started in February 2023. Jullian hopes to gain more experience and dreams of becoming a character designer for video games, TV shows and other media in the future.

Jeff Young is a class assistant for Arts Corps. He has worked with youth, of all ages, for over ten years, usually around writing and poetry. Whether it’s helping set up an activity or helping to rehearse for a performance, his goal is to help provide opportunities for youth to gain a sense of community and self confidence through their chosen art form.

 

Maria Luisa Guillen Valdovinos (Poesia Mariarte) is a visual creative thinker/artist, educator/art therapist and Indigenous Rights observer in environmental, food, and social justice movements; based in occupied Coast Salish Territories. Art ingrained in cultural experience, she graduated in 2010 from the University of Washington in Bio-Cultural Anthropology with a minor in Gender & Sexuality Studies. She was born in Zihuatanejo, Guerrero Mexico and after studying graffiti in Lima, PERU IN 2009 with Jorge Miyagi and drawing flowers in Biology projects begun building creatively  in cultural political movements, traveling with the National Indigenous Congress, parents of the 43 students of Ayotzinapa, and visited Autonomous Zapatista communities as a human rights observer with FRAYBA, an indigenous human rights organization based in San Cristobal de las Casas, Chiapas Mexico. Featured as a performer in BBC’s 100 Womxn in Mexico City 2016 and A Published Writer featured in  “Chapter 9: Travels of a Diaspora Community: From La Sierra Madre Y Tierra Caliente to the Pacific Northwest” MEXICAN-ORIGIN FOODS, FOODWAYS, AND SOCIAL MOVEMENTS: A DECOLONIAL PRESPECTIVES, The University of Arkansas Press 2017; Publication “Xin Fronteras”, Seattle Journal for Social Justice Seattle University School of Law. Overall she is a lover of all things creatively expressive.

Meredith Arena is a writer and interdisciplinary teaching artist from New York City with 18 years of teaching experience for youth ages 5-15, both in afterschool and school-day arts integration environments. Before teaching at Arts Corps, Meredith was a teaching artist in Brooklyn, New York. Meredith holds an BA in Cultural Studies, a BFA in photography and an MFA in Creative Writing. She teaches at the intersection of creativity, self-awareness and community building. Her favorite classes to teach are Performance and Creativity (students explore theater as a tool for self-awareness and community building) Media Arts (students make, photo essays, podcasts and documentaries about issues of concern to them) and any Writing class that involves writing and performing poetry and monologues. She also facilitates meditation for adults and young people. Meredith endeavors to make her classes a joyful and safe place where students can examine and subvert the status quo. She wants students to know that creativity is all about making choices, both in their art and in their day to day lives.

Monty Rozema (they/them) is a queer multidisciplinary artist born and raised on Duwamish Territory (Seattle, Washington). They are a writer, artist, zine-maker, performer, designer, and administrator. They are an avid theatre artist and have worked locally with The 5th Avenue Theatre, Taproot Theatre Company, Reboot Theatre Company, and Washington Ensemble Theatre, where they are resident company member. They have written for The Ugly Radio, bestcolleges.com, great weather for MEDIA, F3LL Magazine, Mag 20/20, Prismatica, and many more. In 2021, their LGBTQ+ short story “Apple” was nominated for a Pushcart Prize. They are inspired by whimsy, rain, games, dreams, art history, fables, colors, sensory experiences, and surrealism. They are driven by curiosity, connection, celebration, and love.

My name is Silvio Dos Reis and I am known in the Capoeira community às Mestre Silvinho. I started the practice of Capoeira Angola in Belo Horizonte, Brasil, 35 years ago. In my hometown, I worked teaching kids and youths at public and private schools, and in social programs for adults and homeless youth. I moved to Seattle, WA in 2004 to direct the branch of the International Capoeira Angola Foundation (ICAF) here. Since then I have been teaching ongoing Capoeira classes at ICAF Seattle, organizing international conferences, and teaching summer camps for public and private schools. I also have taught classes for the University of Washington, Evergreen State College, and Western Washington University.

I see Capoeira as a powerful tool to educate, build self-esteem, and develop our critical view of the world. Capoeira promotes interpersonal and social healing through the learning of its fundamentals such as movements, music, history, and philosophy. 

My name is Sirichanh Sisavatdy.  I’ve been dancing and performing since the age of 6.  I specialize in Lao Classical/Folk Dance.  Lao Dance is expression through story telling via hands and body movements to create a sense of focus and balance and incorporates subtle graceful composition much like yoga and meditation. I hope to share my Lao arts and culture with everyone, kids and adults alike, and have fun through dancing to the sound of Traditional Lao Music. I see art as an ever changing landscape, a continual growth through the environment I am reflecting on and an opportunity to preserve my Lao Arts, customs, and cultures. 

I received my B.A. degree in Child, Consumer, and Family Studies from WSU in 1992.  I started working as a Counselor/Advocate with the Refugee Women’s Alliance (ReWa), an organization whose mission was a pioneer in it’s time.  Through my experience with ReWa, I found a love for social services, community involvement, and advocacy work.  I have written grants for the Lao Women’s Association of WA, served as an Auburn Arts Commissioner with the city of Auburn, and was on the Leadership Team with SoCoCultural Coalition. I hope to continue my contributions to make this world a better space for our kids and the next generations through the arts, arts equity, and social equity.

Sorel Nica (they/them) is a Romanian-American artist and youth educator living on Duwamish land (Seattle, WA). Their art looks at ghosts, bodies, and how places and language shape us. Within the local arts scene, Sorel has designed posters for plays and protests, as well as theater backdrops, logos, and tattoos. They first joined the Arts Corps community as a participant in the Arts Liberation & Leadership Institute (ALLI). They then made their way from classroom assistant to teaching artist. During the winter, Sorel works as a ski instructor on the slopes. In their free time, you can find Sorel volunteering at the Vera Project, tattooing their friends, or recording found sounds. Their favorite part of working with youth is getting to learn from their students.

Taylor-Nicole (She/They) is a Black Queer educator and artist, born and raised in Mississauga Territory (Detroit, Michigan). She’s an actor, trained voice actor, published writer, dancer, and mixed media artist with a BA in Educational Studies from Arizona State University. They have over 10 years of experience working with all ages from infants to high school students.

Their special interests are improv, comedy, spoken word, imaginative play, puppetry, and children’s media. They’d love to be an actor/puppeteer on a children’s show like Sesame Street one day!