Teacher Bios

Victoria Angelo started to dance when she was 7 years old in her home village in Uganda. She has received grants from the PA Council on the Arts to pass on her dances to her daughters. She believes that Acholi music and dance is very beautiful and important. She believes it communicates strong African values and it teaches African history. She has performed with Martha Sam and their daughters at festivals and churches in the region.

Judy Baker has sold and exhibited her sculpture, porcelain, and stoneware pottery in local shows and galleries. Her introduction to ceramics began while she was a business major at Penn State. Years later, she enrolled in classes at the Erie Art Museum, and since 2001 she has had a private studio adjacent to ClaySpace. Since February 2007, she has assisted Kathe Umlauf with ClaySpace demonstrations and open studios.

Art Becker has been a professional photographer in Erie for over 17 years. A reluctant convert to digital photography, he now embraces the medium and has become a prolific stock photographer and has been sent by magazines, both local and national, to shoot on location across the U.S. and in Mexico.

Christine French holds an MFA from Kent State University. She recently relocated to North East after retiring from her career as a school art teacher in the Cleveland area, where she also taught at the Cleveland Institute of Art. She has exhibited widely in the Midwest.

Jay Hanes, PhD. is a member of the Art Education faculty at Edinboro University. He has studied Japanese tea ceremony for almost 20 years and has offered many lectures, demonstrations, and workshops for all ages. He owns Great Water Ceramics, a studio that specializes in Raku.

Heather Hertel received a BFA in Painting and an MS in Art Education from Syracuse University, and an MFA in Painting from Edinboro. Her enthusiasm for painting is contagious, she is encouraging and gives each student individual attention. “Heather’s approach is to encourage students as their work progresses. She indicates technique and enables one to experiment andlearn. She is excellent.

Esther Sung A. Hong received undergraduate and graduate degrees in Oriental Art in Korea with a focus in landscapes. She has exhibited and sold her work in galleries across the United States. “This class was both enjoyable and worthwhile. It taught me something unique about oriental art style and philosophy. The ‘Zen’ quality of oriental painting was relaxing.”

Cara Jung has been a working artist since 2001. Cara received her
undergraduate degree from Luther College in Decorah, Iowa and immediately
began to pursue her interest in clay. She worked as a Pottery Apprentice at
Clay Bay Pottery in Door County, Wisconsin, and as a Production Potter at
Banner Oak Pottery in New London, MN. She is currently a graduate student
at Edinboro University of Pennsylvania, and will be receiving her MFA in
Ceramics in the summer of 2008.

Karen Loell has been weaving since childhood and has been a member of the Chautauqua County Weavers Guild since 1972. She teaches beginning weaving to new guild members as well as private students. Karen also participates in weaving workshops throughout the year.

Yolanda Lorya was born in Sudan and came to Erie as a refugee several years ago. She is a master beadworker in the Latuko tradition. African dancers from a variety of ethnic groups seek out Lutuko beads to wear while they dance.

Dan and Jan Niebauer have been teaching and working in the jewelry field for over 35 years. They both hold master’s degrees from Edinboro University and are members of the Jeweler’s Vigilance Committee of America. Dan and Jan are the owners of Ralph Miller Jewelers.

Joseph Allen Popp has managed the Erie Art Museum Frame Shop and Gallery for the past 15 years. Joe’s framing skills encompass everything from matting, mounting and framing museum exhibits to archival framing of cherished family heirlooms for our region as well as large corporate framing projects.

Marta Sam learned Acholi song, dance, and drumming from her parents in the Sudan. She remembers when the moon was very bright the village would drum, sing, and dance in the fresh air because there was no TV. She has been dancing for over 36 years. Dancing and singing brings her great joy. She sings and dances to celebrate weddings and to mourn at funerals. She also believes it is very good exercise. When she has a backache after work she goes to her basement and dances and dances until she feels better and relaxed. She says, “When I sing songs in my language I feel like me. I am proud of it.”

Fran Schanz received his MFA in sculpture from Edinboro University. He has exhibited in numerous regional competitions, exhibitions, performances and installations. Fran has taught adult and children’s classes at the Erie Art Museum, the Martin Luther King Center, and Edinboro University.

Deborah Sementelli-Hoenes attended the Art Institute of Pittsburgh and received a BFA from Edinboro University. She has been teaching life drawing classes at Villa and the Erie Art Museum for the past five years. “Deb does a great job of giving suggestions with out criticizing. I have learned a great deal”

Jessica Stadtmueller holds a BFA from Indiana University of Pennsylvania in printmaking and ceramics. She has studied different styles of bellydance for the past five years. Jessica has done bellydance workshops at the YMCA and Gannon University. “Very interesting, would take again...she teaches the background of what bellydancing is and about the different cultures.”

Susan Stone holds a BFA from the Cleveland Institute of Art. She has exhibited her work in Pennsylvania, Maryland, New York and Ohio and has taught drawing at the Museum for many years. “My daughter learned a lot. I liked the teacher and learned new things. She made the art class understandable for me.”

Wilda Sundberg has been an instructor at the Museum for 38 years. She has had solo exhibitions at the Erie Art Museum, Theil College, the Schuster Gallery, and the Waterford Community Center. Wilda is also a juried member of the Pittsburgh Watercolor Society and a founding member of the Northwestern Pennsylvania Artists Association.

Kathe Umlauf has been a professional sculpture portrait artist and has exhibited widely throughout the region. She recently earned her MFA in sculpture from Edinboro University. She has taught art to children and adults for over 20 years. Some of her work is part of the Museum’s permanent collection.

Eliza Wolfe graduated from Edinboro University with a Bachelor of Fine Arts and Crafts degree. She taught Art, 1st through 12th grades, at Girard Alliance
Christian Academy for five years and presently teaches Art at Erie First
Christian Academy, 1st through 12th grades. She has been working in clay for
over fifteen years. She owned and opperated Eliza's Pottery in Erie and Girard
and presently has a studio, Main Street Art, in Girard. She has taught many
private and small group classes over the years. In Marcy of 2008 her work was included in a recent Edinboro student show in Pittsburgh.