by CalArts Community Arts Partnership
CAPSA 2022 Photo Gallery
CAPSA 2022 began on July 5th and concluded on July 30th! All our students made amazing work!
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OUR PREVIOUS INSTRUCTORS
VISUAL ARTS
Oscar Corona
Art
Óscar Corona (b.1993) is a queer, mexican visual artist, with a body of work that spans from soft sculpture, painting, object making, and video installation. Oscar is an LA native, where they earned their BFA from California Institute of the Arts in 2017. Oscar is interested in addressing notions around personhood that pertain to queer subjectivity, assimilation, urban mysticism, and existing in a post colonial world... how we coexist with ourselves and the land. Currently, Oscar is planning to create some land art in the high desert as part of a new sculpture series tentatively titled: ‘Living With The Land’. They also are planning to start graduate studies (if they receive appropriate funding!) in visual art this fall at Art Center in Pasadena.
Bethlehem Tsehai
Bethlehem Tsehai is a Los Angeles- based artist working in painting, installation, performance and video. Her work addresses race, desire, identity, and pop culture through a critical lens. She is currently pursuing her MFA in Art at California Institute of the Arts.
Art
Nizette "ZZ" Camron Krebs
ZZ Krebs is a visual artist working primarily in sculpture and installation and is currently based in Los Angeles, CA. Her work focuses on time scales and life cycles on micro and macro scales. She is interested geology, biology, ecology, archeology and how humans fit into these spheres. She received her MFA in Art from California Institute of the Arts in 2019 and her BFA in Visual Art from the University of San Diego in 2015. She has 7 years of teaching experience and has taught classes at California Institute of the Arts, Long Beach City College, Washington Waldorf School, California State Summer School for the Arts, and Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions, amongst others. She is currently an Adjunct Professor of 3D Design at Long Beach City College and a shop technician at the Southern California Institute of Architecture. This is her second time teaching with CalArts Community Arts Partnership.
Art
Josiah Green
Art
Josiah uses photography, writing, and digital applications to advocate for and contextualize art in his community. Josiah's body of work is largely based on notions of the “archive”, in light of a rapidly changing Los Angeles landscape. He is a recent graduate of Calarts' Photography and Media program (BFA '22).
Andrew Bacon
Art
Drew Bacon is an interdisciplinary artist working in installation, film and traditional media. Drew has a passion for art history, music and all things visual. Drew is passionate about helping artists connect to their work.
FILM
Erica Sheu
Erica Sheu holds an MFA degree in Film/Video at CalArts. She had taught and assisted workshops with cinematic arts organizations such as Mono No Aware, and Third World Newsreel. She is an experimental filmmaker who focuses on the use of abstract expressions in cinema. Her work has been shown internationally at film festivals such as New York Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival, and International Film Festival Rotterdam, among others.
Film
Film
Rainey Chevako
Film
Rainey Chevako is an animator, documentarian, and essayist whose work engages with time, perception, and collective forms of existence. Through an eclectic filmography that ranges from fiction to nonfiction, animation to documentary, realism to experimentalism, they approach filmmaking with an eye for unique aesthetics that immerse their viewers. Her work has screened across the globe, including in Austria and at the Minsheng Art Museum in Beijing. She currently lives and creates work in Los Angeles and attends the CalArts experimental animation program.
Yusef Ferguson
Yusef Ferguson is a filmmaker based out of Los Angeles, CA. A creative at heart with a passion for storytelling, Yusef has over four years of professional experience working as an editor and camera operator. Yusef received his Bachelor's of Arts in Film from Georgia State University in 2020 and currently is in his second year as a Master's of Fine Arts candidate in the Program of Film and Video at the California Institute of the Arts. Yusef's work has been recognized by The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences Southeast chapter, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, and The William Rolland Gallery of Fine Art at California Lutheran University.
Film
Film
Ming En (Sam) Tan
Film
I am an LA-Based Chinese narrative filmmaker & screenwriter. During the last six years’ study in the USA, I’ve observed and experienced the significant gaps between races, cultures, communities, genders, generations, and individuals. I believe these are due to the unwillingness to communicate. Consequently, my narratives focus on conflicts that happen among characters from diverse backgrounds. The ultimate objective of my films is to explore and question the essence of humanity behind different ethnicities.
Gary Hankins
Film
Gary Hankins is a San Diego based media artist with a focus in film making, video art and interactive installation works. Graduating from the UCSD Visual Arts dept in 2018, Hankins currently received an MFA at CalArts in the School of Film/Video. Absorbed by themes of memory, sensory systems and the fragility of the body, Hankins aims to introduce a familiarity in images unfamiliar while creating environments which may evoke a state of internalization for a viewer.
MUSIC
Charles Burns
Music
Charles Burns is a saxophonist, composer and educator living in Los Angeles. He has been a regular feature on stages, in concert halls, in recording studios, at festivals, and in clubs throughout the world. As an educator, he loves to empower his students and to help them find confidence and courage within themselves.
Music
Zachary Rosenstiehl
Zach Rosenstiehl is a bassist/composer/arranger who just graduated from the California Institute of the Arts this past school year with a BFA in Jazz Bass. He has studied with many great jazz artists from high school onwards, and has been a member of the Jazz Insitute of Chicago. He has also done a myriad of scoring work for animators, some of which have gone on to be showcase at festivals and producer showcases.
Music
Lily Guarneros Maase
Music
Guitarist, composer, producer and musical director Lily Guarneros Maase was born in Corrales, New Mexico and educated at the University of North Texas and California Institute of the Arts, with 15 years of professional experience in New York between degrees. She is the daughter of seminal session guitarist and educator Steve Maase (1946-2016), whose roots in the industry date back to the era of Buddy Holly and the legendary Norman Petty Studios in Clovis, NM. Lily is faculty of Guitar, Studio Practices & Experimental Pop at the California Institute of the Arts, and faculty of Guitar and Production at the Los Angeles College of Music. She is the leader of the Suite Unraveling on the East coast and Curandera in Los Angeles, and is endorsed by Godin guitars.
Holden Richard King
Music
Holden King is a multi-instrumentalist, video artist, filmmaker, and composer originally from Fresno California. He specializes in cross disciplinary art wether it is in the physical, metaphysical, or digital space. Jazz is the roots of his musical training, coming up as a bass player, so the entirety of his breadth of work is effected by improvisational thought.
ANIMATION
Mia Hernandez
Animation
Mia Hernandez is an animator and East LA native who completed her BFA in Experimental Animation at CalArts last year. As a former CAP and CAPSA student, Mia is so happy to be a part of the CAPSA teaching team and is especially excited to see what everyone will create!!
Joan Hui Ko
Animation
Joan is recent graduate from the experimental animation program at Calarts. She is specialized in making stop motion films. Her focus is mainly on pre production work, such as puppet and set fabrication.
Devin Crockett
Animation
Devin Crockett (he/they) is a multimedia teaching artist from Orange County, CA. First starting CAPSA as a high schooler five years ago, he has been teaching with CAP since coming to CalArts for the BFA in Experimental Animation program in 2018. He only has one more year to go before graduating and being able to devote more time to teaching! Yay! They love all things adventure time, astrology, and mental health awareness. They're really looking forward to co-leading this summer's CAPSA Animation lab and getting to know all the amazing students and their work!
Rika Nakayama
Animation
Rika Nakayama is a Japanese-born animator practicing experimental and stop-motion animation. She graduated from Rhode Island School of Design in 2021 and is currently enrolled in the MFA Experimental Animation program at CalArts. When she’s not animating, she likes to walk, see animals, doodle, drive, read, and watch shows.
Isabel Santos
Animation
Isabel Santos is animator and illustrator from Queens, New York. She has dedicated her artistic practice to traditional hand-drawn animation on paper and hopes to keep the practice alive through teaching. Isabel earned her BFA in animation from the Rhode Island School of Design and is currently earning her MFA in experimental animation from Calarts. When she is not animating Isabel can be found drinking too much coffee, looking at shiny things, and listening to as much music as possible. She is thrilled to be working with the CAPSA team through the Summer Animation lab and can’t wait to see what everyone will make!
DANCE
Robert S. Kelley II
Dance
Robert Kelley is an improvisational-based dance performer, receiving his AA from Valencia College, BFA from University of South Florida and MFA from The California Institute of The Arts. Robert’s performance background includes the works of Andrew Carroll, Jacques Heim, Cindy Hennessy, Alex Jones, Alonzo King, Robert Moses, Ohad Naharin, Paula Nuñez, John Parks, Jeanne Travers and, Xiao Xiangrong. International performances include Trinidad and Tobago, China, South Korea, United Kingdom and Vietnam. One of Mr. Kelley’s most recent performances was in The Comeback by Annalee Traylor in April 2022. Robert has presented his choreography at CalArts, Hillsborough Community College, Valencia College, Soul Music and Performing Arts Academy, Alvin Ailey Citigroup Theatre, St. Petersburg College, Dance Truck, The Music Box, University of South Florida, The Eissey Campus Theatre and, The Lyric Theatre. Most recent works include the premiere of Mercury as part of the Intermission show at The California Institute of The Arts. This was a collaborative work with LA-based artist, Joe Zhang. Robert is currently seeking work as a freelance artist within the growing and cutting-edge LA art scene.
Lily Wylde
Dance
I am a multi-media artist, film-maker, dancer, and performance artist who's work is meant to expand the possibilities of the old and mundane. I feel at home in creative communities that thrive off of supportive and mindful practices. I hope to provide opportunities for students to find their internal power and let it shine without negativity blocking their potential.
Livya Howard Yashar
Dance
Livya Howard-Yashar is a dancer, choreographer, dramaturg, educator and musician native to Los Angeles. Her work has been presented at various Los Angeles and New York based venues such as Highways Performance Space, Human Resources LA, St. Marks Church, Center at Park West, Theater for the New City, and Theater West. She has also held workshops and participated in artist residencies in Israel, China, Greece, Ghana, Denmark and the UK. She has worked as a performing arts educator for over a decade within LAUSD and various non-profit organizations, primarily with underserved communities in the greater LA area. With an extensive background in the performing arts and cross cultural studies, Livya’s work draws upon the interconnectivity of language, music, and dance through storytelling.
Adzua Ayana Asha Amoa
Dance
Adzua Ayana Asha Amoa is an artist that lives to tell stories . She embodies life through her artistry. She is a vessel for art in its purest form
Lioness-Sia Foday
Dance
Hello! Lioness-Sia (you may call them Lioness-Sia, Lioness, or Sia). Lioness-Sia is from The Lioness Mountains, Sierra Leone, West Africa. They love animals very much, and they have two cats and two dogs. Their passions include music, dance, hiking, riding motorcycles, and reading.
CREATIVE WRITING
Collin Jonkman
Creative Writing
Collin is a writer, researcher, performer, and educator living in Los Angeles, where she is completing an MFA in Creative Writing at CalArts. She holds an MS in Communication Studies from Grand Valley State University in Grand Rapids, Michigan. She is interested in songwriting, personal essay, lyric essay, playwriting, autoethnography, and performance lecture. Collin writes around the themes of identity, memory, power, nature, and echo.
C Bain
Creative Writing
C. Bain is a gender liminal writer, performer and artist. He started out in poetry slams, then transitioned to experimental theater-making, and more recently makes sculptures and videos. His plays have been presented at NYC venues including the Tank and Dixon Place. He apprenticed at Ugly Duckling Presse, and participated in the first Center for Book Arts creative publishing seminar. He has a social work degree from Hunter College and an art MFA from CalArts. A Lambda Literary fellow, his first poetry book, Debridement, was a finalist for the Publishing Triangle Awards.
Keila Cone-Uemura
Creative Writing
Keila Cone-Uemura is a rising MFA 2 in the acting program at CalArts. She graduated in 2017 from UC Berkeley, where she majored in English and Theater, and had the opportunity to study playwriting under Professor Philip Kan Gotanda. She has been interested in creative writing and songwriting since high school, and spent several years post high school recording and performing original work as a singer-songwriter in LA. She loves stories that explore intergenerational relationships and temporal destabilization, and is so excited to be working with the students of Dorsey High this summer!
Abra Conn
Creative Writing
Abra Conn is an artist and poet working in Los Angeles. They hold a MFA in Poetry from Brown University and a BFA in Art from the California Institute of the Arts. Their experimental poetry focuses on both visual and linguistic elements to create works that blur the line between language and art.
THEATER
Sarahjeen Francois
Theater
Sarahjeen François is an LA based Haitian-American performer and playwright from Miami, Fl. Her creative work is an exploration of the Afro-mythic and participates in the rich, cultural story-telling practices derived from traditional and contemporary African ideologies. An MFA Acting graduate from the CalArts School of Theater, Sarahjeen’s artistic endeavors have led her to work with The Playwrights’ Center, The Atlantic Center for the Arts, Castello San Basilio, Emory University, Netflix, and QCODE Media.
Michael J. Lanham
Theater
Michael is a rising MFA 2 Actor in the Theatre Program at CalArts. Originally from Springfield, IL, and having spent time in St. Louis, MO, where he did his undergrad and worked before this program, he is a multi-disciplinary artist who creates collaborative, devised work through a variety of mediums. Michael is excited to play and explore with these brilliant young minds this summer!
Hao Feng
Theater
Hao Feng is an actor hailing from Atlanta, GA. An MFA Acting graduate of CalArts, he previously received his B.S. in Neuroscience and B.A. in Piano Performance from Emory University, and MPhil in Music and Science from the University of Cambridge. Hao has also been a teaching artist for the Alliance Theatre, Serenbe Playhouse, as well as CalArts. Aside from acting and teaching, Hao enjoys martial arts, piano, and photography, but most important of all, eating.
Dionne Robinson
Theater
Dionne is a second year MFA in acting student at CalArts! She was born and raised in Columbus, Mississippi; and has also lived in Atlanta, Georgia and New York City. Dionne has been acting for five years; and has eight years of classroom experience ranging from teaching preschool up to high school special education. She is more than excited and grateful to be a part of the CAPSA program!
Natalie Ferguson
Theater
Natalie Ferguson is a multidisciplinary artist whose practice includes visual art, installation, production & set design, and experimental film. Natalie designs characters from the perspective of real or imagined environments they inhabit. Natalie’s background in community art informs her work, based on human relationships and our relationship to food and nature. She studied Scene Design at California Institute of the Arts (MFA 2022) and lives and works in Los Angeles.