Arts Instructors
Arts Instructors
All of our instructors are professional and talented artists. They are also committed teachers who have experience with children and knowledge of their art and craft.
Susan J. Atkinson was born and raised in England, but now makes her home in Ottawa with her husband and four daughters. After thirteen years working in the Toronto film industry, Susan decided it was time to turn her passion for reading and writing into everyday life. She now spends her mornings writing and playing with words, and in the afternoon teaches English in the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board, for which she won the Arts Recognition Award (Elementary Literary Arts) 2009-2010.
Susan had published four children’s books with Little Witch Press. Her poetry has appeared in many Canadian and international journals, and she also has a chapbook of poetry for grown-ups, Tasting Pearls.
Sonia Awad has been performing on stage for 18 years around the globe. She was a member of Culture Shock hip hop Company in Ottawa, and was one of 35 representatives of Canada at the Music and Arts festival in Beijing, China. She has competed in the United States and Canada, and won many opportunities to compete in national competitions. Sonia has trained in New York, Washington, and Boston as well as studied dance at George Brown College, training in Hip Hop, Jazz, Modern, Yoga, Ballet, Acting, Singing, and Musical Theatre. She was part of the hip hop company The HoneyKats with Dance Kraze Productions, and has performed in many industrials, fundraisers, and corporate events, such as Class Act with Dame Edna in Whitby Ontario, Urban Groove on BPM TV, and Dance Ontario’s Dance Weekend. She was also part of the dance company Sass, performing with Royce Da 5’9, Peter Jackson, Karl Wolfe- to name a few. Sonia performed at the 2005/ 200 fFIDA International Dance Festival, Kick Up Your Heels at Harbourfront in Toronto and Dance Ontario’s Dance Weekend from 2004-2010. She is also trained in Samba, afro and contemporary dances. Sonia continues to learn and share her training and knowledge with students in Toronto, Ottawa and around the world.
Jimmy Baptiste was born and raised in Montreal. He was influenced as a youth by cartoons, animes, comic books and his summer trips to Brooklyn, NY, where he would see his first of many graffiti and mural productions. Jimmy emphasized his craftsmanship on drawings, composition and colour, combined with a great knowledge of visual and art history, urban and popular culture. He has produced a style of illustration proper to his own. After a few years as a graphic artist for an international fashion company, Jimmy is now involved with the city of Montreal creating programs and teaching youth contemporary art. Jimmy is also a self employed graphic artist and has even designed tattoos!
Sharena Campo is proudly the new coach for the Ottawa 67’s OHL Dance & Cheer Team. After dancing with them for 4 years, she is now choreographing game day routines and performance pieces for the team. She started dancing when she was only 4 years old; her passion for the art of dance grew quickly as she started training extensively in various dance forms. She has competed throughout North American and in the United States in jazz, tap, ballet, pointe, contemporary, lyrical, and hip hop dancing. In addition, she specialized in the dance program at her high school and landed the lead role in her high school musicals. Following high school, she had the opportunity to train with Les Petits Ballets Dance Company while studying for her Honours Bachelor of Arts degree at the University of Ottawa. She has been a specialized dance instructor for the City of Ottawa now for many years and she also continues to choreograph dances for local high schools. Sharena is very happy to be returning to Long Bay Camp for another year. She is looking forward to sharing her knowledge and passion for dance with all the Long Bay Campers again this summer!
Andrew Carson Restrictions are important in Andrew’s work. He believes that rules are the catalysts for creativity. Restrictions and rules have lead Andrew to the photographic practice. Andrew graduated from business school and started working as an insurance broker. After a brief nine months in a cubicle Andrew knew he had enough. While working in the business world Andrew discovered the School of Photographic Arts: Ottawa. After studying photography at SPAO Andrew has become keenly aware that photographs play an important role in shaping society and forming the human memory. Andrew has come to appreciate that there are many routes to the completed photograph. His current research and teachings are focused on exploring the implications of making photographs. Andrew is investigating new printing processes and camera techniques in order to create a new visual language. Andrew’s deliberate and conceptual approach to photography can be summed up with a famous quote from Robert Frost’s poem:
The Road not Taken
“Two roads diverged in a wood, and I–
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.”
Chiko Chazunguza is a visual artist (and drummer) from Zimbabwe where he has been teaching art for more than 15 years at different Universities and Colleges. A winner of numerous awards, he has exhibited in several shows in Africa, Europe and North America. Chiko earned his MFA at the Institute of Pictorial Arts in Sofia, Bulgaria majoring in printmaking. His work is inspired by contemporary social issues and the richness of African traditional culture, improvisation and the idea of working with what is available. As such Chiko is a versatile artist working with numerous media. Chiko’s engagement in community activities and the art scene has given him a vast range of experiences including organising and curating art exhibitions, art directing for movies and theatre. In Zimbabwe, Chiko established an artists resource centre, DAI, where artists and youth have the opportunity to learn about various techniques and approaches to art-making. Currently Chiko is establishing Multi-Cultural Art Workshops in Ottawa where he teaches the practical language of the visual Arts and guides students through the exploration of the different elements of seeing in a way that allows each student to tap into their own creativity and unique form of expression. In this exploration he uses drumming as a tool.
Adam F Davidson As an artist, Adam tries to create original, unique images and challenges himself to begin projects that are exciting and fun. He has had many years of experience teaching, running workshops and building his own visual arts career. Adam’s work with art courses has given him a new understanding of the range of art that can be accomplished. Just as teaching has given him thrilling experiences of how art is viewed through dealing with the artistic process, he encourages the same kind of excitement in his students. Adam keeps his classes fun and encourages each student into the direction where they have a much better understanding of their own art and new skills to advance into their own artistic endeavors. Adam currently runs youth art programs with the Ottawa School of Art and The Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario. www.theyodco.ca
Duncan Gillis has been a professional musician and instructor for nearly twenty years. He taught tin whistle, Irish flute, bodhran, mandolin and Highland bagpipes for many years at the Ottawa Folklore Centre as well as through Comhaltas Ceoltoiri Ottawa and at many folk festivals and music camps. In the last seven years he has turned his hand towards instrument-making as well, specializing in an extinct reed instrument called the hornpipe. Over the years Duncan has played with many bands and is currently a member of a West Quebec based group called Écosse.
Joey Gunn was born in Montreal and grew up in many cities, but spent his high school years in Ottawa. He has always been a fan of music playing rock, Ska, and Punk music since he was a teenager. A firm believer that playing music brings joy to everyone and has established an original program for teaching beginners and intermediate players how to play in a band environment. Joey has been volunteering teaching his method to both adults and children for the past several years. He also feels that the sociological and cultural aspects of popular music are key to learning and enjoying playing it, and so includes this as a component of his program. Composition is also a part of his program and his students really enjoy the experience of writing and playing their own music. Turn it up, bring the noise.
Since 2004, Julia has been educating students and teachers about Hip Hop culture and dance. After receiving her B.Ed last year, she has been actively teaching in both the Public, Catholic, and Upper Canada school boards in the Ottawa and surrounding regions. Her high energy as a teacher and ability to inspire youth, has led her to teach her Hip Hop/Breakdancing workshops in over 50 schools, including the Education Program at the University of Ottawa and for Professional Development days for Teachers. Each workshop is designed to address the Ontario Arts Curriculum and encourage students and teachers to find their inner groove!
Chantal Lafontaine quickly developed a passion for dance and teaching in her youth. With her mother as a studio owner, she has had the opportunity to start her teaching career at an early age. She has trained in Jazz, Hip Hop, Lyrical, Modern, Contemporary, Tap, Acro and Ballet. Chantal has always believed that the best teacher must always remain a student. She continues to expand her training by attending workshops all over Canada to deliver the most up to date materiel. Chantal continues to share her passion for teaching in studios and schools around the Ottawa area. Chantal always makes sure her classes are a positive and very fun experience!
Emily Pearlman works across disciplines as a performer, writer and dramaturg. As co-artistic director of Mi Casa Theatre, she has toured the multi-award winning Countries Shaped Like Stars to theatres, basements, bars, and living rooms across Canada and to New Mexico and is currently working on their next show Live from the Belly of a Whale, as company in residence at the GCTC. Elsewhere she has produced art festivals, created radio documentaries for CBC, and hooked up a golden bicycle to an amplifier so that when you pedal, it plays stories about cycling. The recipient of the 2009 Prix Rideau Emerging Artist Award she is currently a member of the Third Wall Theatre Acting Ensemble and a Scriptwriting instructor at Algonquin College. Emily has an MFA in Interdisciplinary Studies from Simon Fraser University. www.micasatheatre.com
Natalie Fraser-Purdy a graduate of Concordia University’s theatre performance program, has been working as an artist in Ottawa for the past fifteen years teaching singing, dancing and acting. She has worked for Salamander Theatre as a teacher and as a touring actor and continues to be an artist for the City of Ottawa and the Ottawa School of Speech and Drama. In the past year Natalie has appeared on stage in the show Doubt and Noises Off (which she also assistant directed) at the Gladstone Theatre. Currently she is working on Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dream Coat which will be presented at Centrepointe Theatre in May to raise money for the autistic community in Ottawa. Natalie has dedicated much of her career to working with high-risk youth, socially marginalized kids and special needs individuals of all ages and challenges. She even uses her art to be a facilitator for corporate training and youth leadership programs.
Kelly Rigole earned her B.F.A. with a Specialization in Theatre Performance from Concordia University. While studying in Montreal, she developed her craft with dance, corporeal mime, classical text and mask work. Some of her work includes They All Do It with Odyssey Theatre, A Midwinter’s Dream Tale with Company of Fools, Medea with Third Wall Theatre and Deluxe Hot Sauce (six Prix Rideau Award Nominations), and Blood Relations with Unicorn Theatre. She performed to theatre for young audiences in A Promise is a Promise and All the World, touring for six months around Quebec and Ontario with Geordie Productions. Kelly is also a co-founding member of Ditto Productions a theatre company dedicated to creating new work in the style of verbatim theatre. Ditto’s last production This Is a Recording won Best in Venue and Outstanding New Concept Awards at the 2009 Ottawa Fringe Festival. The show was then re-developed with the gracious support from the City of Ottawa and the Ontario Arts Council. This Is a Recording just completed a successful run at The Great Canadian Theatre Company’s inaugural undercurrents festival: theatre below the mainstream.
Jocelyn Ruano is thrilled to be returning to Long Bay Camp for the Arts! She has also taught theatre at the Ottawa School of Speech and Drama (OSSD), where she focuses on teaching story development and character work. Jocelyn has been involved with OSSD for the past eleven years. She is a proud member of the Conacher Players in the Classics Drama Group, producing modern interpretations of Greek and Roman theatre. She is a graduate of the Dramatic Arts Program and is now completing her BA at Trent University. Jocelyn has worked and volunteered with children for the past eight years. She brings enthusiasm and fun into all her productions.
Fana Soro is from the Senoufo tribe of northern Cote d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast). A hereditary master of the balafon, West Africa’s large wooden xylophone, Fana spent 9 years touring the globe as a member of the National Ballet of the Ivory Coast. In 1990, Fana immigrated to Norway where he spent 7 years as Artist in Resident at the famous Children’s Museum of International Art as well as touring through Europe with Super DjembeKan. Canada called Fana in 1997 and since then, Fana has lead his group Masabo to local, national and international acclaim. Over the years, Fana has found his true passion in sharing his culture, one on one, through music and dance in the classroom and has been one of Canada’s top teachers of traditional art in the Canadian school system. www.masabo-fana-soro.blogspot.com masabocc@gmail.com
Elizabeth Todd Doyle Transplanted from Canada’s west coast to Ottawa, Elizabeth regularly doodles on shopping lists, the back of phone bills, and on the margins of Very Important Documents such as her children’s report cards. When she is not doodling, she designs education programs for national galleries and museums, where she encourages children to play with art. She is currently the Chair of the Canadian Art Gallery Educators group.
Elizabeth has illustrated children’s picture books with Little Witch Press. Her work has appeared in comic books and textbooks nationally and internationally.
| Lenny Graf grew up in a family of professional musicians, and has studied at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto, Eastman School of Music in Rochester N.Y., and York University, where he holds a degree in Fine Arts. He also attended the Creighton Academy of Dramatic Art, and Actor’s Equity Showcase, and is the recipient of the Grenick Award for outstanding potential in the arts. His diverse career as a musical entertainer/actor, musician, composer and bandleader has taken him across North America and beyond, and his award winning recordings have played on the Top 10 list on U.S. radio, including 4 of his songs which were featured on the Top-10 list on U.S. Radio. He has worked with such personalities as Petula Clark, Dinah Christie, Gordie Tapp, Sharon, Lois & Bram and Peter Appleyard among others. He currently makes regular appearances in concert, in festivals and on Canadian television, and his videos can be seen on YTV’s Tree-House channel. As Lenny Graf is conversational with many of the languages in Toronto’s multi-cultural mosaic, always with a greeting or more, for those who come from far away places. Todd Snelgrovehas been teaching for over ten years and holds both a Bachelor of Music and a Bachelor of Arts in Music from Carleton University. Todd’s teaching method is tailored to the student’s needs. He determines each student’s current level, discusses their musical goals with them, and uses their personal interests to help them get to their desired playing level. Todd teaches pop, jazz, rock, blues, folk, grunge and country. His own specialty is improvisation and composition.Lisa Thomashas been a multi-media artist in the Ottawa area for 25 years. She has exhibited her work in group and solo shows locally and abroad. Schooled in Fine Arts at the University of Ottawa, she has gone on to pursue numerous artistic directions. She has been active as an installation and performance artist, muralist, sculptor, illustrator and painter. Fifteen years ago, she began teaching studio art to children, teens and adults and is now the head instructor at Arts Under One Roof, a visual and performing arts school in the Glebe in Ottawa. She has become known for her open and explorational style of teaching, committed to the ideal of working with small groups of students. She believes that while it is important to teach children technique and formal procedure, it is more essential to be certain that they stay in touch with their creative spirits and their unique visions.Rob Hughessaw the magic of photography with his first trip to the darkroom when he was seven years old and has never lost the wonder. He has trained in school, but for the most part he learned by doing. He has traveled the world taking pictures and is always enthusiastic about sharing his passion and knowledge with others. As an instructor, he educates youth on the power of the camera as a tool for positive social change. He is one of the founders of the School of Photographic Arts: Ottawa and is currently the Coordinator of Part Time Studies at the school.Jane Renyk has recently come from Alberta where she completed a fine arts degree in New Media and participated in solo and group exhibitions. She has also had the opportunity to show her work in La Petit Mort Gallery in the Byward Market in Ottawa and is currently attending the University of Ottawa in the Education program. Over the past ten years Jane has combined her passion for travel with a keen interest in the workings of human interactions – themes that are apparent in her works of mixed media, including graphite and charcoal, painting, airbrushing, and photography. She specializes in realistic portraiture and has taken her fascination with the human face into the urban art world, using skate decks and “previously loved” materials as her canvasses. Inspired by such artists as Pablo Picasso, Faith 47, and Banksy, her works are eclectic in subject and medium, and always inspired by the captivating human spirit. She also created the world’s largest wagon wheel. Ask her about it when you get here! Onsite Nurse An important member of our team is our camp nurse. A registered nurse that comes with the skills to assist in the safety and well-being of our campers and staff. She is always available when our campers are not feeling their best. She is caring, nurturing and a good listener when they just need someone to talk to. |
Summer Arts Camp 2012
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