Marc Bushelle

Marc Bushelle was born in Barbados. Since his father worked for the U.S. Foreign Service, the Bushelle family’s home quickly became different places around the world, including the Caribbean, Europe, and Africa. This unique childhood informed his imagination, fostered a love of art, photography, and film, and enhanced his ability to connect with a large cross-section of society. As an adult, his disruptive thinking combined with his family’s compelling history and his current residence in Brooklyn New York, Marc Bushelle’s photography and art has gravitated to projects focused on the human condition. Delivering a strong message is a constant focus, and, as a father, surrounding his young daughter with positive images is vital. His work shows emotion and he enjoys capturing them and evoking them with his work.

Liz Shepherd

Liz Shepherd, a sculptor and printmaker, received her MFA from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts/Tufts University in 2006. She is a member of the Boston Sculptors Gallery and is a past President of the Boston Printmakers.

Her sculpture has been exhibited widely in New England. Recent exhibitions include Interior Effects at the Fitchburg Art Museum, solo exhibitions at Artpace in San Antonio, Texas, and the Scuola Internazionale di Grafica in Venice, Itlay. Her prints are in the permanent collections of the Museum of Fine Arts (Boston), Edinburgh (Scotland) College of Art, Syracuse University, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston Public Library, and numerous corporate and private collections.

Patricia Michaels

Patricia Michaels, of Taos Pueblo, is a world-renowned Fashion and Textile Designer. She has studied at the Institute of American Indian Arts and completed a 4-year independent study at Chicago Art Institute with Nick Cave as her mentor, and she has worked at the Santa Fe Opera in the costume department and with an Italian tailor in Venice, Italy.

She was first runner-up in Season 11 of Project Runway. The Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian awarded her the inaugural “Arts & Designs Award”, and she was a speaker at the Bill & Melinda Gates Scholar Foundation. These are just two of her many other accolades.

Her work as a Native CEO of PMWaterlily LLC takes her around the world to places like New Zealand, South Africa, Canada, Europe, the USA and, at least twice a year, to NYC for fashion week to do fashion, lectures, presentations, workshops, fundraisers, artist in residencies, and inspirational speeches.

She has completed a home collection with “Akin Homes,” and uniforms and boutique collections for Hotel Chaco in Albuquerque, New Mexico, as well as the boutique collections for Hotel Eldorado Inn and Spa at Loretto in Santa Fe and El Monte Sagrado in Taos, New Mexico.

Patricia works as an activist with organizations like Missing & Murdered Indigenous Women, Community Against Violence, American Indian College Fund, Big Brother & Big Sister, Art Smart, and Preservation of Native Culture and Natural Resources. Social media and public relations are key to keeping the original Native Voice authentic.

Her biggest driving force is her two beautiful children Gabriel & Margeaux, helping the elderly and youth, and empowering women. Her cottage industry encourages a women’s voice and supports organizations like Missing & Murdered Indigenous Women, Community Against Violence, American Indian College Fund, Big Brother & Big Sister, Art Smart, and Preservation of Native Culture and Natural Resources.

As usual, Patricia is occupied with many developments. She is currently being filmed for an unscripted TV series about her and her companion James’s lives. She also sits on Taos Historical Museum Board and her works are continually emerging in 5-Star resort hotels, museums, museum shops and boutique galleries throughout the USA. She is actively working on the first Native American Opera as the designer for costumes and sets. In between this, she manages time for lectures and maintains an active involvement with her Taos Pueblo cultural lifeways and beliefs.

Merill Comeau

Merill Comeau is a mixed media artist who creates installations, murals, and garments that examine narratives of repair and regeneration. Comeau deconstructs, reconstructs, and alters clothing and linens to disrupt, reorder, and build stories exploring common human concerns. She is known for her work exploring women’s history, gender identity development, and autobiographical narrative. Comeau has participated in over 70 exhibitions including at Fuller Craft Museum, the Danforth Art Museum, Southern New Hampshire University, and FiberArt International 2019. Comeau has completed ten artist residencies including three month-long stays at Weir Farm National Historic Site in Connecticut, where she researched Weir family women’s lives to use as art-making inspiration. Comeau’s work has been showcased in numerous publications including TextileArtist.org, Fiber Art Now, Mass Cultural Council’s ArtsSake blog, and World of Threads Artist Interviews. In addition to her solo studio practice, Comeau has extensive experience as a teaching artist. Committed to the use of visual expression as storytelling, transmitting knowledge, and teaching values, she has facilitated over 30 community art projects. Since 2012, she has been a teaching artist for the Department of Youth Services, making art with youth at risk who are involved in the Massachusetts Court system and are residing in secure treatment centers.

Sally Fine

Sally Fine is a washashore to Cape Cod from a town just west of Chicago. She holds a BFA from Ohio University and an MFA from Boston University. Fine’s sculpture is constructed of a wide array of materials, ranging from wood, metal, glass, and new media. Her work is represented in local and international collections both private and public. Fine exhibits her work locally at Boston Sculpture Gallery in Boston’s South End.

Margot Stage and David Crane

Margot Stage is a multi-disciplinary visual artist who explores memory and legacy in sculpture, monoprints, and fiber art. She worked for 25 years as a National Public Radio host, reporter, and producer before turning to visual art in 2001, essentially coming home to an earlier self. Her art was immediately accepted into juried exhibitions and has been shown extensively in galleries, universities and museums around the U.S. Stage is a member of the Cape Cod Museum of Art, Provincetown Artist Association Museum, and Truro Center for the Arts at Castle Hill. Her work has appeared in Fiber Arts Magazine, The Boston Globe, The Lowell Sun, Wild Apples, The Middlesex Beat, The Ithaca Journal, The Boston Phoenix, and The Westford Eagle. Her art is held in the collections of Enterprise Bank, The Jeanne D’Arc Credit Union, The Lowell Health Center, and by many private individuals. She lives with her artist husband and their dog in Eastham, Massachusetts.

David Crane’s original work in sculpture started with welding steel during the 1960s. He later moved to wood carving, and then to wood assemblages. He uses found and cast-off detritus, collecting material from beaches, millwork scrap bins, dumpsters, and forests. Everything from exotic wood like purple heart, to CDX-grade plywood, to torn veneer can capture his imagination, becoming the ingredient that conveys messages inspired by the natural world. The process of bringing together various, often discordant, pieces of wood into a composite whole is a challenge that invites viewers to draw their own interpretations. Crane has exhibited in galleries around Massachusetts. His work is held in the collection of Thoughtforms Corporation and by many individuals. He is a member of Cape Cod Museum of Art (where he volunteers on the hanging/installing committee), Provincetown Artists Association Museum, and Truro Center for the Arts at Castle Hill. He lives with his artist wife and their dog in Eastham, MA.

Larry Pierce

Laurence Martin Pierce was born in The Bronx, New York on February 9, 1949, the youngest of three children. After graduating from the High School of Art and Design, he joined the Navy as a Photographer’s Mate serving 3.5 years before being honorably discharged. In 1973, he began studies at the School of Visual Arts, graduating four years later with a BFA. After a 20-year career in advertising in New York, he met his future wife and moved with her to Boston, MA. He joined several arts groups in Boston, participating in group and solo shows. In 2005, he founded the AfricanWinterGallery, showcasing his work and that of several local established and emerging artists. During this time he also began an 8-year career as a Head Start preschool teacher while continuing to exhibit work in Boston, New York and Atlanta. He continues to live and work in Dorchester, MA.

Jeffrey Chandler

I am a self-taught artist who lives and works in Boston, Massachusetts. I create art from wood that has been reclaimed from things thrown away. It is fascinating for me to find an object and problem solve how I am going to transform a discarded piece of junk into a treasure. I use recycled wood and other materials out of necessity and also as a statement about this “throw away society.” Recycling is necessary to sustain the planet’s resources and is my small way of using these materials to be innovative and creative as an artist.

My artwork often depicts people. Sometimes it is a portrait, at other times a couple dancing, a musician playing an instrument or person singing. Masks are a recurring theme in my work. I am inspired by African and Native American art and often use symbols from these cultures in my work. While African and Native American masks are used in ritual, my masks are purely decorative and serve as a reminder of my rich heritage. Sometimes I make art that hangs on walls, but many of my pieces are freestanding sculpture. Art chairs, doll houses, and castles are other projects that I like to make.

When I was first starting out as an artist, I used hand carving tools to carve wood. This process was satisfying but it took a long time. Eventually, I started using power tools. A Dremel, a drill, an orbital sander, a router, various saws and wood burning tools are what I use to get the job done. I transform a reclaimed piece of wood by using a rotary tool to gauge out a design, then it is sanded, then I might use my wood burning tools to make lines, shapes, and textures. Wood dyes, inks and stains are used to fill in color

What I want my work to convey is twofold – mastery of the medium and a clear expression of the vision I am trying to convey. I have been persistent in creating work throughout the years. During that time, I have learned a lot about what tools can and cannot do and about art and design in general. I now have a body of work that I am pleased with.

I am inspired by nature, my family, other artists, music, film and sports.

Kristina McComb

Kristina McComb is an interdisciplinary artist from western Massachusetts. She graduated with distinction with an AS in visual art with a concentration in photography from Greenfield Community College. She earned a BFA from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts University, where she focused on sharpening her skills in sculpture and continued her studies in photography, which resulted in being awarded the Yousuf Karsh Prize in Photography. Her work has been exhibited since 2014, most notably at the Brattleboro Museum and Arts Center in Brattleboro, Vermont, and the Philadelphia Academy of Fine Arts in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She is represented by the Abigail Ogilvy Gallery in Boston, MA.

Carol Krentzman, Jeff Olsen, and Jason Cheeseman-Meyer

For the Institute’s exhibit “A Seat at the Table,” the team of artists comprised of Carol Krentzman, Jeff Olsen and Jason Cheeseman-Meyer are pleased to be honoring the trailblazer Mary McLeod Bethune. Carol created a mosaic timeline of Bethune’s life to go into the seat of a wooden chair made by Jeff, with paintings on the front and the back of the chair by Jason.

Carol Krentzman has been creating public art for many years with a focus on stained glass and mosaics. She has studied with numerous mosaic and stained glass artists in many locations. Carol uses a variety of tiles, individually made fused glass, clay elements, and other materials when fabricating her indoor and outdoor mosaics. Carol creates commission mosaics, leads community mosaic projects, and teaches mosaics to many different age groups.

Jeff Olsen is a carpenter, woodworker, and remodeling contractor by trade who has been making furniture, mobiles, and sculpture for over thirty years. Jeff particularly enjoys repurposing things that have been thrown out, like the base of the chair he used for this project, which he found by the side of the road in Waltham. The chair is intended to evoke the benches and chairs Bethune made herself from discarded crates to furnish her first school.

Jason Cheeseman-Meyer’s oil paintings blend the tactile and illusionistic natures of paint to capture motion and depict human bonds and aspirations. Jason has studied painting on both coasts and works as an illustrator and a portraitist.