Meet our Instructors
Multimedia
Dahlia Popovits
Weave a log cabin dish towel, Weava a Holiday Table Runner, Weave a Tapestry Wall Hanging. Handweaving has given Dahlia a lifetime of inspiration. She applies her design and weaving skills to the development of clothing and accessories, and the teaching of this very gratifying craft. Her shop and studio, located in Bostons, Art and Design district, is a special space where one can see and touch a variety of exquisite hand made textiles.
Patti Kelly
Creative Journaling. Patti Kelly is primarily an American romantic abstract artist known for her imaginative, tempestuous landscape paintings. Often borrowing from nature, her choice of colors is inspired by the impermanence of New England's charging seasons. Working in acrylic and watercolor, Kelly builds upon nebulous surface layered with sensual colors. Her gestural work presents the viewer and emotionally charged imaginary world.
Bridey McGlynn
Introduction to Screen Printing. Bridey McGlynn (she/her/hers) is a painter and printmaker from Northborough, Massachusetts. She received her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree at Syracuse University with a concentration in Two-dimensional Mixed Media and a minor in Entrepreneurship and Emerging Enterprises. She currently works as a Registrar and Printmaking Instructor at Worcester Center for Crafts in addition to pursuing her MFA in 2D Fine Art at Massachusetts College of Art and Design.
Rachel Benson
Felting Workshops. Rachel is a fiber artist & art teacher.
Ceramics
Holly Lauer
Wheel II: How to Make Better Pots, Berry Bowl Workshop, also Studio Support Tech. Holly studied neuroscience at UMass in Amherst and came to ceramics later in life. She uses her science background in studying glaze chemistry and applies that knowledge to capture the feel of the ocean in the glaze patterns on ceramic forms.
Tom O'Malley
Wheel 1.5 The Next Steps, Soda Firing Workshops, Introduction to the Lighting Studio. Tom O'Malley is the head of the Ceramics and Photography Departments, having joined the center in 1994. He has taught a variety of classes and workshops in both ceramics and photography while also leading the teams in each studio. Tom holds a BFA from the New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University and an MFA from the Rhode Island School of Design. His work has been exhibited extensively throughout the United States and internationally, earning him numerous citations in ceramic art publications.
Claudia Sarver
Intro to Hand-building. Claudia has been a playing with clay since 2002. She enjoys sharing her experience loving clay and expressing her personal journey. She learns right along with her students.
Lori Mader
Wheel II, Woodfire intensive workshop. Lori established Cedar Swamp Pottery at home and built a wood burning kiln in 2001. She has been a ceramics instructor at Worcester Center for Crafts since 2004.
Alondra Biberos
Intro to Hand-building. Creating Bisque Molds. Alondra Biberos was born and raised in the Pacific Northwest in Twin Falls, Idaho. She received her Bachelors Degree with an emphasis in Sculpture and Ceramics from the University of Idaho in 2019. She Currently resides in Worcester, MA and works as a studio artist, instructor, and social media manager at the Worcester Center for Crafts.
Metals
John Barrett
Creating Spoon Jewelry. John has been creating spoon jewelry since 1969. Pierce work is his technique in which he create spoon rings, necklaces and earrings.
John Stevens
Garden Metalwork, Forged Jewelry & Vessels. John loves to hammer and get into the creative flow of moving metal by hand. In his teaching, he emphasizes the planning of a project, becoming your metal, and the purposeful and deliberate working of the medium.
Louis Garcia
The Ring Cycle series (Ancient and Traditional forging). Louis Garcia is an Artist, Art Historian, and Experimental Archaeologist specializing in ancient metalworking techniques for non-ferrous metals and has taught at WCC since 2018. His passion is helping others discover the "Ancient Artisan" within them.
Joshua Swalec
Blacksmithing. Joshua has been studying and working in metals for 27 years, starting his journey at Worcester Voke Tech and the Worcester Center for Crafts. He Currently runs a custom architectural metal shop, Ferromorphics. Lately he has been focused on conceptual pattern welded cutlery.
Tiffany DeFreitas
Intro to Clay. Tiffany has been creating jewelry as a hobby since 2015, but launched her online Etsy shop in 2020 when the world went into lock down and she needed to do something so she didn't climb the walls while being stuck at home. She has been running her business, The Creative Catte, for three years part-time while she works as an Academic Advisor in the Academic Success Center at Worcester State University as her normal 9-to-5 job. When she isn't up to her elbows in clay, acrylic paint, and alcohol ink, she is spending time with her favorite human (her husband), and their three chaotic kitties!
Alison Bruun
Introduction to jewelry. Influenced by folk art, Scandinavian modernism, and illustration, Alison delights in the play of light on hammered textures, and in blending bold and delicate lines to lend multiple dimensions to her hand-drawn designs. Her jewelry blends charm with elegance and brings joy to its wearers. Alison holds an MFA in Artisanry/ Metals from UMass Dartmouth, and currently teaches at Worcester Center for Crafts, The Steel Yard and The Bench.
Nicholas Hesson
Introduction to Jewelry and Small Objects, Enameling 100, Casting. Nicholas Hesson is an art educator, jeweler, enamelist, and CAD designer. His work utilizes a combination of digital and hand fabrication processes. He currently works as a Silversmith for Tiffany & Co. in Rhode Island.
Jay Kipp-McGowan
Intro to Chainmail Jewelry. Jay enjoys the process of creating and watching projects come together. While he loves working with a variety of materials including metal, leather, and ink, he is especially enthusiastic about chainmail and its unique tactile nature. He looks forward to welcoming students into the grounding and creative process of making maille by hand.
Healing Arts
D Zeutas-Broer
Uncovering What Moves Us, Creative Awareness. D is a trauma informed, neurodiverse sensitive, holistic practitioner. She believes creative expression, connection to nature and animals, and a sense of humor contribute significantly to healing and personal evolution.
Gina Cranford
Reiki Infused Sound Bath. Gina is a Gendai Reiki Master and a Certified Bliss Bowls Sound Healing Practitioner. She infuses traditional Reiki Energy sessions with healing vibrations from singing bowls and other sound healing instruments which enhance and heighten the overall effect of her energy work and also offers Sound Bath Meditation experiences in the local area. Gina holds both bachelor's and master's degrees in music education from The University of Connecticut, is a certified Music Together instructor, and has been teaching all ages for many years. She has been a student/participant in many natural healing modalities for over 20 years.
Rick Rocha
Tai Chi for health, beginning in October. Rick learned meditation in 1986 which turned into a spiritual path. He met his Tai Chi Chuan teacher in 2000. Who taught Rick many things related to health and wellness of mind/body.
Beth Woodruff
Essential Yoga I/II. Beth has been a student of yoga for 20 years, and has worked hand in hand and heart to heart with some of the most inspiring teachers. As your local yoga partner, we will work to find balance starting where we are, using what we have, and doing what we can. Let's be inspired together!
Youth
Jen Swan
Youth. Jen Swan is a teaching artist and mural painter. A graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design, she currently teaches classes for the Worcester Art Museum, Worcester Center for Crafts, Listening Wellness Center and as a Cultural Partner. Making connections between art and nature has inspired collaborations with the Audubon and EcoTarium. Her recent paintings explore art and ecology as she portrays the web of interrelationships in our environment. Through plein air landscapes and wildlife studies, she wishes to creatively propose new possibilities for coexistence, sustainability and healing.
Liviah Yeaw
Youth program. Liv is a natural fibers artist & film maker with a focus on sustainability and humor.
Brianna Ko
Forged in Fantasy & Exploring Enameling + Identity. Brianna Ko (she/her) is a third year art teacher at Marshfield High School. She teaches drawing and painting, and sculpture but her background is in metalsmithing. She graduated from the University of Massachusetts- Dartmouth in 2022 with her B.F.A in Art Education and a minor in Jewelry/Metals.
Laura Dusty
Proud to extend her over 15 year career in youth art education to children at the Worcester Center for Crafts!
Glass
Jeanne Kowal
Jeanne is a second generation stained glass artist. She finds stained glass to be an excellent medium to work with. As a designer, she loves creating unique and beautiful designs. As an artist, she loves working with color, light, and texture. As a craftsperson, she enjoys bringing it all together with knowledge and precision.
Jennifer Carey
Enameling: Multi-Level; Painting enamel. Jennifer is a professional enamelist who has been working in this medium for over 30 years. She is skilled in all techniques and my work focuses on enameling as contemporary art.
Tomo Sakai
Area of Expertise: Glass engraving. The inspiration for Tomos glass work comes from her experience growing up in Japan, where traditional crafts and modern culture exist in a close relationship. From this experience, she has learned to merge traditional glass techniques with modern forms and processes, creating something new, and hopefully, beautiful.
Peter Grigg
Enameling. Peter Is retired university professor. Has 20+ years experience in enameling Particular interest in cloisonne and screen printing enamels.
Photography
Caterina Maina
Intro to Digital Photography, Photography II, Photographic Storytelling. Caterina Maina is a Providence-based artist engaging in fine-art projects with a focus on portraiture and environmental photography. She graduated from Massachusetts College of Art and Design in 2020 with a BFA in Photography and a minor in Sustainability. Her work delves into the power of human relationships and one's connectivity with their environment while exploring the tensions that exist in society today.