Alyssa is the Operations Manager for Artshine. She is an alumni from the University of Waterloo, having graduated with an Honours B.A. in Legal Studies and a double-minor in Sociology and Social Development Studies.

Alyssa holds a certificate in Indigenous Canada from the University of Alberta and a certificate in Foundations of Diversity and Inclusion from the Canadian Centre for Diversity and Inclusion. 

Throughout high school and university, Alyssa took fine art and art history classes, and has visited art galleries across North America. Over the last five years, she has worked for many Kitchener-Waterloo based companies in guest service and program coordinator roles. 

Alyssa's go-to coffee order? A grande brown sugar oat americano!

manager@artshine.ca 

Brianne is the Art History Consultant for Artshine. She has both an undergraduate and graduate degree in Art History, receiving her Master's from Queen's University in 2017.

Brianne has been working in the field of museum education for over five years, and is passionate about Artshine's mission to provide exceptional and affordable art education to a diversity of demographics.

What would Brianne do with 1 million dollars? Buy a house on the ocean!

Brittany is a part-time high school teacher and has been with Artshine since the beginning! She has a Bachelor of Fine Arts and Theatre from the University of Guelph and a Bachelor of Education from Brock University.

Brittany started with Artshine teaching programs in various schools and moved into the role of Curriculum Developer for elementary students, adult, and corporate programs. She loves creating projects that inspire and challenge students to bring out their individual creativity. In her spare time, Brittany creates and sells custom artwork, and hand lettered calligraphy. She also loves to paint, draw and make messy memories with her two children!

Brittany's favourite T.V. show growing up? Buffy the Vampire Slayer!

Coming with humour, joy, and a most sacred love for uniqueness, Caroline is the hybrid instructor that blends an anthropology background to her current career as a portraitist, illustrator, and wall art painter.​

Emerging from a blissful six years in the French traditional sphere of education, she's further developed her connection with children of all ages by doing daily collective art masterpeices, bathing ears and minds in sounds that take the creation process to roleplaying levels. "Natural order comes from a human whose senses are engaged in creating...", and it's all about bringing a higher sense of appreciation for self, as art is this meeting sone within, that eases your ability to choose what you want to do, in harmony with who you are. Always.​

So wave your magic wands everyone, because you are ageless. You are good. You are everything this world ever was curious to meet.

Caroline's favourite cereal? Dry Cheerios with raw olive oil and herbs!

Celeste is excited to be a part of the Artshine team as the Community Engagement Coordinator. Her first involvement with Artshine was actually at the age of 16 when she was a councillor at an Artshine summer camp. Celeste is a recent graduate of Master’s College & Seminary with a Bachelors Degree majoring in Theology. She is a Spoken Word artist/poet and loves to infuse messages of hope into all her art pieces. Celeste is passionate about seeing young people develop their artistic abilities to their fullest potential. Any type of art you want to show her, she wants to see. She especially loves hearing the stories and meanings behind personal art pieces.

In her spare time, you can find Celeste somewhere outside hiking, swimming, biking, snowboarding, etc.

Celeste's favourite movie? Little Women!

connect@artshine.ca

Emily is excited to join the Artshine team, she has always loved being creative and is a hobby artist. Her background is in Recreation and Leisure Services (Conestoga College), and she is currently completing a Gerontology certificate through Ryerson University. She has worked in long-term-care providing recreational programming to residents and often incorporated arts into her programming as form of therapy, encouraging seniors to tap into their creativity and express themselves.​

Emily enjoys spending time in the outdoors and finds peace in the beauty of nature. She is the mother of two active children and loves sharing her passion for the natural world with them.

What would Emily do with 1 million dollars? Invest, donate, and travel!

office@artshine.ca 

Jeff is a hard-working and determined person with a distinct passion for making people happy, especially through art. He graduated with an Advanced Diploma in Sport and Recreation Management from Lambton College, and shows a clear love for all sports.His dream job would be a MLB General Manager.

For Jen, there is no greater joy than sharing her passion for art with others. Jen was born and raised in BC and has since lived all across Canada. She received her Bachelor of Fine Arts from Concordia University in Montreal, studied graphic design at George Brown College in Toronto, and began teaching art to children and adults in Halifax. She now resides in Vancouver where she is exploring the thriving art scene. ​

She considers herself to be a multifaceted artist and designer who loves illustration, painting and learning new forms of art. She believes that art is important for everyone at all stages in their lives and she loves to help people discover their inner artist. Jen's favourite thing about teaching art to children is the sense of pride they feel after completing a piece and watching their confidence grow.​ She is so excited to be a part of Artshine!

Jennifer's favourite T.V. show when growing up? Rugrats, Hey Arnold, Arthur, and Recess!​
His dream job would be a MLB General Manager.

Julia took the opportunity during COVID to return to school to pursue her passion for photography and design. Now entering her final year of her Graphic Design studies, she is excited to return to the Artshine team not only for the camp season, but also as the interim graphic designer.

A quiet and reflective individual, Julia expresses herself through dance, photography, design, and cooking. Julia lives her life by the motto “enjoy life!”, words of wisdom she credits to her Nana, and which she intentionally seeks to follow every day.

Recently bitten by the travel bug, Julia is looking forward to continuing visiting places on her bucket list with her loved ones (there’s never been a beach Julia hasn’t loved)! When not travelling or on an adventure exploring local places of interest or catching a live concert, Julia finds the time to do what matters most to her: spending time with her loved ones, encouraging them in their own passions and endeavours.

Julia's favourite cereal? Her guilty pleasure cereal has to be Captain Crunch!

Vanessa is a hard worker, motivated, and reliable. She has set goals for herself and has achieved some of her goals already.

Vanessa enjoys spending time with her family and friends. Some of the things she enjoys are reading, swimming, yoga, movie nights, baking, and going to the gym.

Wayne values creativity and connection above all else. He is from the East coast and is a graduate of the Film & Video Production program at the College of the North Atlantic. During school, his greatest strengths were project management and video editing. He moved to Ontario after graduating and has worked with bold and innovative companies ever since. Wherever there's opportunity to grow as an artist and make an impact in the community is where he'll seek to go. Hobbies include illustration, writing, photography, and watching/talking all about movies!

Wayne's favourite T.V. show growing up? Fresh Prince of Bel-Air!

subscriptions@artshine.ca 

Paul Field is the Founder/CEO of ARTSHINE INC and Founder/E.D. of ARTS4ALL UNLIMITED INC. He brings 12 years of experience in youth engagement, social work and arts education. Paul runs this company as a Social Enterprise after dealing with the frustration of attempting to acquire arts funding the traditional non-profit way. He puts profits from the paid programs back into each community in the form of scholarships, free Artshine in a Box kits and subsidized arts programs. Paul firmly believes that the act of creating and experiencing art can provide individuals with a healthy outlet to express their emotions, build self-confidence, as well as cope with current and past adversities. Paul has founded this arts social enterprise and non-profit with the vision to create communities where participation in the arts is not limited by income, ability or life circumstances.​

inspire@artshine.ca

Alanah is bear clan from Oneida Nation of the Thames. Her middle name is Astehtsi Otsistohkwa, which means Morningstar in her family's language. Art is very important to her and is a way to for her to share her culture.​

Check out Alanah's art: https://morningstardesigns.ca/

Ari is an undergraduate student studying at University of Waterloo and is thrilled to be involved with Artshine! Having spent a lot of her childhood with arts, she specifically loves watercolour painting and origami. Ari recognizes that children should express themselves freely and differently through art by using various art techniques and methods, and she encourages them to be as creative as they can be.

Ari's favourite T.V. show growing up? Friends!

Aziza has always been a hands on type of person. Even at a young age, she knew pursing an art endeavour was going to be a part of her future. Born in Edmonton, Alberta, she moved to Toronto to study at Toronto School of Arts for Installation and Sculpture and Life Drawing. A year later, she ended up at her desired school - OCAD University in Toronto. Majoring in Sculpture & Installation, and minoring in Intergraded Media, Aziza worked in two different departments at OCAD; as a studio technician in the metal shop, and as a manager for the Audio/Visual Cage. During her formative years at OCAD, Aziza’s bodies of work conceptually dealt with diaspora, relationships, and time/memories while also touching on human forms, geometric shapes and mould-making, by utilizing multiple mediums such as metal, wood, clay as well as audio & film aspects.

Aziza is a multi-disciplinary artist who truly loves exploring new mediums, and to consistently be learning. Recently, she has taken an interest into street murals and graffiti, as well as working in the Film Industry in the Art Department.

 Aziza is excited to be joining Artshine to help others on their creative journey and giving children a voice for exploration in a playful, artistic manner.

What was Aziza's favourite show growing up? I really can not choose just one, so some of my all time favs are... Reboot, Dinosaurs, The Magic School Bus, Recess, Rugrats, Arthur, Sailor Moon, Are You Afraid of the Dark? and Goosebumps - Just to name a few :)

Excited to be a member of the Artshine community, Becky brings a wealth of training and experience to the team. With multiple degrees in the areas of illustration, child development, special education, and applied behaviour analysis, Becky is looking forward to working with a variety of individuals and sharing her love of art!

Bev is primarily a watercolour artist who enjoys teaching and plein aire painting while travelling abroad. Her work is based upon drawings from art journals, photos, observation and imagination. Her hope is that anyone who views her paintings can experience the excitement and vision that she had while creating them. Bev as an artist, teacher and mentor, continues to grow, explore, experiment and learn through her own experiences and from her students.

Bev’s paintings are represented by Fine Art America. https://fineartamerica.com/ and website: https://bev-morgan.pixels.com/

Desiree has a love for the pursuit of creativity.  She then worked in several creative and teaching jobs, including teaching art to children and adults from home. She has worked as an artist and teacher in the Palaeontology department at the University of Witwatersrand. She has also worked as a printmaking artist and teacher. She ran her own art consulting business until she left South Africa. When she moved to Canada, she volunteered for many years at the local primary school where her children attended. Desiree loved this as she enjoys being with people and find working with children to be exciting. Desiree loves contributing to her community and sharing her love for the arts.

Diane's mother enrolled her in an oil painting class when she was 8 years old. Her gift was the beginning of Diane's life long passion for art. Diane pursued her education in a joint program at the University of Toronto and Sheridan College, where she received an honors BA in Art and Art History.

As a museum curator, Diane designed exhibits and developed bilingual school programs, and took on a variety of roles within the elementary system. She am thrilled to be an art instructor for Artshine. It is Diane's goal to share her passion for art with children, just as her first art instructor shared their passion with Diane.

Diane's go-to coffee order? A Tim's double-double!

Heather graduated from the Univeristy of Guelph in 2017 with a major in studio art. Her passion is art and seh wishes to pass that passion onto others through teaching. She has worked with many mediums and has provided art instruction in different environments and to all kinds of wonderful people. She strives towards inclusive art instruction so that anyone can participate and not feel left out and because of this inclusiveness, Heather looks to combine her art experience and her expierence in supporting individuals with developmental disabilities in creating a safe and fun art expeirence for all.​

Heather actively works on her own artistic practice in-between instructor others in painting, drawing, sculpture, and more. Though she primarily focuses on piantings (either in acrylic, oil, gouache, or watercolour), she also enjoys creating acrylic pours or resin art in the spare time.

From as early as Karun can remember, the world of visual art has mesmerized me through multiple mediums. Whether it was a videogame or an animated film, Karun was hooked to the idea that these masterpieces were created from imagination and skill.

Karun has an animation education and has worked as a pre-production artist for 2 years. He then pursed my passion for storytelling and published his own children's books. Karun has been teaching children for over 3 years. It helps him to understand the new generation's psyche and understanding towards concepts for stories.

Katelynne is an Nova Scotia-based artist/illustrator currently residing in Halifax, ON. She recently graduated from the University of Toronto’s Art and Art History program where she specialized in drawing and painting. Katelynne's work in her artistic practice is often autobiographical, discussing topics such as body positivity and self care.

Katelynne is a firm believer that everyone is an artist—no matter the skill, practice, etc. What Katelynne loves about Artshine is that she gets to share my passion for art with children, as well as inspire the artist in every single person she teaches. The amount of creativity the children have in the Artshine program amazes her, as every child has their own interpretation on each project they do together. It’s inspirational, not only to them but they inspire me as well. Katelynne hopes to continue to spread the message that art is for everyone, and continue to inspire each child.

Katelynne's fvaourite movie? Encanto!

Lisa has always been passionate about art and creative expression throughout her life. Her family's background in performing, painting, and craftsmanship have helped her to develop and explore different art forms. She has always loved to build and create things with her hands and welcomes the opportunity to foster a love of the arts with others. Her current passions include decoupage, macro photography, and chalk sign painting.

Lisa is thrilled to be a part of the Artshine team and can't wait to work with a diverse range of artists through Miss Frizzle's motto: "Take chances, make mistakes, get messy!"

For as long as Liz can remember “creativity” has been part of her life. Watching her Grandpa and Mom paint were early inspirations. Attending Art camps and paint days were always joyfully anticipated.​

During school and varied work carriers, “creative projects “were never far away. Liz had the pleasure of organizing and teaching children’s art programmes for many years in Owen Sound, Walkerton and Hanover. She enjoys hearing from these past student “Picassos” that still call her “Miss Liz”.​

Liz is an award winning artist, wife, mother, friend and a new favourite “grandma”. Liz’s work can be seen in local venues in Bruce and Grey Counties, Durham Herb Fair, Folmer’s Spring in the Garden, Walkerton Juried Art Show, Davishill Nurseries, Legacy Gallery and Spirit of the Season. Since retiring, Liz has taken up the watercolour brush to add to her creative repertoire.

 “By doing what you love, you inspire and awaken the hearts of others”

Louise spent her girlhood immersed in the creative atmosphere of different cultures. This led her to study art, psychology, and architectural design, and later teach creativity and advocate for the arts and wellbeing. She is super happy to be part of the Artshine team.

Whether in French or English, she works with authenticity, kindness and humour. She focuses on the art-making process and its metaphors, encouraging imagination and discovery, rather than a defined end product.

Louise loves colour and flowers. The beauty and wonders of nature’s designs fascinate her. For more information about Louise please visit www.coCreations.ca

Go to coffee order: Chai

Bio coming soon...

Maygen Kardash is a mom, Girl Guide leader, social influencer, and drawer of window art and menu boards. You can find her take on mom life and beyond on her blog, Sneakers and Lipstick, and her daily musings on Instagram where she goes by @sneaksandlipstick.

Maygen's favourite book? Anything by Margaret Atwood!

Megan has had a passion for art since she was a little girl. She was enrolled in Saturday art classes and took every art and creative course that was available to her throughout high school. Her current passions include DIY projects, watercolour painting, and transforming old furniture with a splash of colour.

Megan is a Child & Youth worker working full time with young moms and their children. She became involved Artshine when Paul came and provided the young women she supports with an art class. Megan fell in love with the program and knew she wanted to be involved.

For Megan, Artshine is more of a creative outlet and she thoroughly enjoys seeing what the kids and youth she teaches comes up with.

Megan has always had a passion for the visual arts especially painting.

She loves working at Artshine because of her love for children as well as teaching and the arts. Megan hopes to travel and to continue to explore her creativity and art across the globe.

Megan's favourite T.V. show growing up? Scooby Doo!

Monica has loved art, especially drawing, since she could hold a pencil. For Monica, it has always been the best form of expression and conduit for her imagination. Her love for working with children led her to acquire a bachelor's degree in education.​

It was through Artshine that Monica not only got to use her two favorite skills, but she also discovered a passion for working with people of all ages with disabilities and special needs. Through these programs everyone is able to let their creativity loose and accomplish something beautiful, and Monica is proud and grateful to be a part of this process.

Monica's favourtie cereal? Honey bunches of oats!

Nivine is a student at Niagara College, who previously studied Graphic Design and is now working her way towards the Social Services field. Art has allowed Nivine to find ways to express herself and appreciate how much we can do with it. In the past, Nivine got to work with children of all ages. Working with kids brings her so much joy and she aspire to be a good role model for children by encouraging them to express themselves and be who they truly are. From a young age, Nivine always loved art and got to create her own projects and today Nivine hope to give back to the community by embracing art and helping kids find their passion! With her background in Graphic Design, Nivine had the wonderful opportunity to find her own style. She worked with mixed media and learned fundamental skills. She loves to create pointillism art, as it follow many design principles and elements such as contrast, balance, emphasis, movement and so on. Nivine excited to be a part of Artshine because she strongly believes that art should be encouraged and children are have so much talent that will shine right through!

What would Nivine do with 1 million dollars? Open youth shelters and travel the world! Also pay my student debts.

Renee has always loved to draw, even as a child. Creating different ideas and watching as it comes together. It was no surprise that she went to art school at Sheridan college and later on to Algonquin college for animation for television.

Working with children in the Artshine program has been a fun, creative way to motivate in a positive way. Renee considers herself a kid at heart, so we all can be silly! On the side she also oil paints and is part of a theatre group in her community. Renee says that "the “arts” have always been in my blood".

Renee's favourite book and movie? Lord of the Rings!

Studying for a Bachelor of Fine Arts at the University of Ottawa, Senka is passionate about helping students access their creative potential and develop their technical skills through fascinating projects. She believes that art should be open to everyone, regardless of experience or “talent.” Mainly practicing in sculpture and media arts, Senka is equally enthusiastic about painting and drawing, believing that all mediums and art forms can grow alongside one another. In her teaching, she encourages students to challenge themselves all the while remaining true to their creativity.

Senka's go-to coffee order? A hot cup of peppermint tea!

Sonia has a lifelong devotion to art and children, starting her journey with art at the age of 2. Sonia has illustrated over nine children’s books. Her most recent book earned her the 2016 mom’s picks award and a bronze Moonbeam award.

Sonia has earned a bachelor’s degree in fine arts and a diploma in Early Childhood Education specializing in inclusion, supporting children with special needs. Sonia sees her role at Artshine as a perfect opportunity to connect both of her passions. She loves the art the children create through the program and she loves the positive outcome the art creates for the children.

Sonia's favourite T.V. show growing up? Looney Toons!

Stephanie has loved art ever since she was little. She have my Bachelor of Fine Arts Honours Degree from Queen's University and has been working in Arts Education.

Stephanie began teaching with Artshine in 2013 and immediately fell in love with the program. The focus was on process rather than perfection - teaching students to use their imagination and develop their technical skills in fun and engaging ways. When she's not teaching with Artshine, Stephanie runs her own art studio. Her work can be viewed at Paula White Diamond Gallery in Waterloo and at Canvas Gallery in Toronto.

For more info about me and my work visit: www.stephaniefehrenbach.ca

chayé is a multi-disciplinary artist with a great passion for painting and visual arts. She loves conceptual and abstract arts, and she believes that art is a great way to empower communities and make changes. She also really enjoys teaching to kids and watch them grow in their creative journey. She aspires to be able to help younger people to express and discover themselves through art. 

Tchayé's favourite cereal? It's a two-way tie between Krave and Frosted Flakes!

Tina is an artist with a passion for polymer clay. Having the privilege of teaching children's art for over 10 years has given her the opportunity to share my love of creating. A fine arts graduate from Georgian College, Tina is a wife, mother, pet owner, and outdoor enthusiast living in Innisfil, Ontario.

Trina Nadeau, active in community arts, enjoys creating and sharing in the arts experience with Artshine. Music plays a part in Trina's life, with various bands, and teaching. She is grateful for being part of the creative journey Artshine and music cultivates.

Vanessa is a Kitchener local who has always practised art. Whether it's painting, knitting, sewing, making jewelry or macrame, she's always creating something. She's excited to join the Artshine team and help others on their creative journey! 

Bio coming soon...

Julia took the opportunity during COVID to return to school to pursue her passion for photography and design. Now entering her final year of her Graphic Design studies, she is excited to return to the Artshine team not only for the camp season, but also as the interim graphic designer. A quiet and reflective individual, Julia expresses herself through dance, photography, design, and cooking. Julia lives her life by the motto “enjoy life!”, words of wisdom she credits to her Nana, and which she intentionally seeks to follow every day.

Recently bitten by the travel bug, Julia is looking forward to continuing visiting places on her bucket list with her loved ones (there’s never been a beach Julia hasn’t loved)! When not travelling or on an adventure exploring local places of interest or catching a live concert, Julia finds the time to do what matters most to her: spending time with her loved ones, encouraging them in their own passions and endeavours. 

Julia's favourite cereal? Her guilty pleasure cereal has to be Captain Crunch!

camps@artshine.ca

Courtney is a high school student in KW. An avid artist who loves all types of media including drawing, watercolours, Courtney has recently discovered her new talent in photography. She loves all dogs but especially her Rottweiler Jawz. Growing up in Thunder Bay, Courtney loves the winters and cold weather. Courtney is looking forward to working in the summer camps with Artshine.

Courtney will be working as an on-call counsellor this summer!

Ella's favourite art medium is acrylic painting. Outside of that, she does ballet, singing, drawing, and helps teach little ones dance. She cannot wait to work with everyone this summer and meet all of the kids!

Ella will be working at the Benjamin Tree Farm location this summer!

Victoria is a recent graduate of the University of Waterloo. She earned a one-of-a-kind Honours Bachelor of Global Business and Digital Arts degree. Although she enjoyed creating digital artwork, she plans on getting back to her roots by pursuing her passion for visual art.

Growing up shy, art has always been her escape. It is a way for her to express herself and say the things she’s not able to say with words. She has always found art to be therapeutic. It allows her to reflect upon her feelings and let her imagination run wild.

Victoria is aspiring to be an art teacher in the future. She would love the opportunity to inspire children to pursue their passions and motivate them to become artists, problem solvers, decision-makers, and innovators. That’s why she is looking forward to working as a Camp Counsellor at Artshine! With her extensive background in art theory, she is delighted to facilitate the development and fulfillment of children through art.

Victoria will be travelling to camps in the area to offer Artshine programming and workshops!

Victoria’s favourite pastime? Going to the beach!