Wendy Allen
As a designer of hats, scarves and other accessories Wendy has worked almost exclusively in wet felted Merino wool for over 20 years. She combines standard millinery practices with traditional and non-traditional felting techniques including sewn and needle felted surface embellishments to augment the wet felted construction. She draws inspiration from vintage fashion, literary and film characters and fantasy genres. While her work is both functional and practical in construction, she creates pieces that are an extension of a personal narrative, that tell a story or suggest an idea that is not necessarily a part of the reality of one’s day to day life. Felt, with its infinite sculptural possibilities has afforded her the perfect medium to execute work that is at once utilitarian yet evocative.
LEARN MORE LINK: http://missfitt.com and @missfitthats on Instagram
Emily Holmes
Emily is an artist and consultant who uses human-centered design methods to foster new mindsets and imagine new outcomes. She has combined design thinking with other methodologies to lead creativity- and innovation-related projects and training around the world for governments, startups, non-profits, and corporations ranging from NASA to the Smithsonian. Her work helps people to tap into their creativity to transform team dynamics, corporate cultures, individual creativity, and the design of services, products, and experiences.
Emily has degrees in Art History and Visual Arts from Duke University, and an MSHFID in Human Factors from Bentley University. In 2002, Emily founded and ran a successful stained glass production company that sold handcrafted work to more than 500 galleries around the world. She currently sells mixed-media paintings, stained glass, and metalsmithing work online and in stores. A passionate musician, she also was featured as a singer and guitarist in an off-Broadway production with renowned Broadway composer Stephen Schwartz.
In her careers both as an artist and as a human-centered design specialist, Emily has always believed that everyone has the potential to be wildly creative. She founded http://www.curio.us.com to help others find that spark.
LEARN MORE LINK: www.emilyholmesdesign.com
Lisa M. LeMair
Lisa M. LeMair is a multidisciplinary artist on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. She creates sculptural works and integrated collections of wearable art and jewelry. Lisa has a diverse creative and professional background, with experience in higher education administration and the nonprofit sector, along with her business, LeMair Handcrafts. She has a degree in Russian language from Georgetown University, and an Advanced Certificate in Professional Crafts: Jewelry from The College of The Albemarle. Lisa shows her work at juried fine craft shows and galleries throughout the U.S.. She is a member of American Craft Council, Piedmont Craftsmen, the former Carolina Designer Craftsmen Guild (where she served several years as a member of the Board of Directors), Dare Arts, and Society of North American Goldsmiths.
LEARN MORE LINK: www.lemairhandcrafts.com
Ashley Paskov
Ashley Paskov is a Ceramics Artist and Educator living and working in Elizabeth City, NC. Ashley began taking ceramic classes at Central Connecticut State University in 2011 where she received her BA in Ceramics in 2015. She later went on to receive her MFA from Edinboro University in 2022. Currently, Ashley is a Visual Arts Professor at College of the Albemarle and Elizabeth City State University, where she gets to share her love of art and making with her students and the community.
Using nature and progression as inspiration, Ashley’s work focuses on defense mechanisms in botanical organisms. Emphasizing the physical and inchmeal process of growth and healing using large-scale proportion, stamped and carved textures, and waxy matte surfaces.
Her functional work brings the softness of her botanical sculptures but avoids the deadly mechanisms. Creating intimate beautiful objects to have and use everyday in a home.
AshleyPaskov.com and @ashleypaskovceramics on Instagram.
Christopher Proto
Christopher Proto is an artist whose creative journey has traversed multiple mediums, beginning with writing and evolving through audio, video, and digital storytelling. His artistic exploration further extended into the tactile world of ceramics, crafting functional stoneware pottery, and later to the intricate art of metalworking and blacksmithing. Recently, he has ventured into the realm of AI, pushing the boundaries of traditional art forms. This diverse range of mediums reflects his enduring passion for making a meaningful impact in both the community and the wider world.
Christopher Proto’s professional background is anchored in the realm of information management and the entrepreneurial spirit of founding software companies. Leveraging his psychology degree from the University of Maryland, he has intertwined these digital endeavors with a profound understanding of the human experience. Residing with his wife on the scenic Outer Banks of North Carolina, Christopher’s art is a living testament to his commitment to innovation, a fusion of his multifaceted experiences into a singular, dynamic expression of creativity.
Scott Solter
Scott has been an audio engineer, producer, and mixer working mostly with independent artists in a wide range of styles for over 20 years. With a history in both tape and digital recording he also has an inclination for manipulating sounds with unorthodox and abandoned devices. His methods and techniques tend towards sound design, with an emphasis on radically shifting the input material to discover the deeper layers of any musical gesture.
www.scottsolter.com
Christina Weisner
Christina Lorena Weisner is an Associate Professor in the Department of Fine Arts at the College of the Albemarle. She received a Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) in Sculpture and Bachelor of Arts (BA) in World Studies from Virginia Commonwealth University (2006) and a Master of Fine Arts (MFA) in Sculpture and Ceramics from University of Texas at Austin (2010). In 2013 – 2014, Weisner was awarded a Fulbright Grant for Sculpture and Installation Art to Germany, where she worked on a series of site-specific sculptures based on the Ries Meteorite Impact Crater. Her work often employs found objects, scientific instrumentation and elemental materials, and has been shown both nationally and internationally.
LEARN MORE LINK: christinaweisner.com