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DAC Artist Profiles
One benefit the Artist Membership is being promoted on the DAC website on website and Facebook postings. Below are some of the Artist Members who chose to be featured. If you are interested in us featuring your artist bio, artist statement, and website join the DAC (if you're not a member) and contact us today!
JULIET CRYSTAL
Julie Crystal Peña is a musician best known as a harpist. She studied harp since she was 8 years old, under the guidance of Paraguayan maestros Pedro Gaona and Silvio Solis. She also studied piano at the Levine School of Music in Washington, D.C. under the Piano Chairman Gregory Sioles. This training, as well as her ability to transpose music, allows her to interpret novel compositions on the harp. Performing at gala events at age 13, The Washington Post has described her as "phenomenal" and the Washington Times called her "amazing."
She plays for weddings, memorials, and has performed for a variety of audiences before ambassadors and other officials. On international television since the age of 9, Julie has gained exposure on Univision. In July 1999, she performed before 40,000 spectators at the Pan-American Games Opening in Winnipeg, Canada. She recorded a Christmas album including her own composition, a CD of international music, and her latest release upon request featuring sacred harp music. Music demos are available on her website at http://JulieCrystal.webs.com.
In addition to her musical career, she holds a Doctorate in Medicine and Master's degree in Public Health from The University of Arizona.
CAITLIN COLLER
Caitlin’s interest in art began at a very young age and was enabled by her parents, Dave & Wendy Coller, graciously agreeing to shuttle her to multiple after school art classes.
It grew from interest to fascination at Shamokin Area High School, where she learned more about Art History and many different media. She honed her focuses on figurative drawing & painting under the instruction of Chet Davis, whose expressive style was a chief influence.
After a stint at La Salle University, she attended Bloomsburg University and received her BA in Mass Communication, minoring in Art Studio. Since then she has kept actively creating, through her job at SECV8 as a video editor, playing music publicly with her friends and family, and attending life drawing sessions in Bloomsburg, as well as painting classes. She now resides in Danville where she finally has wall space to hang her paintings and a studio in which to paint new ones.
You can find her work on fineartamerica.com or contact the artist directly at caitlatshaw@yahoo.com
NICOLE POLANICHKA
Nicole Polanichka was born in Dalton, Pennsylvania. She has been creating things for as long as she can remember. As soon as she could write, cards were hand-crafted and doodling kept her from being bored in school. Fueled by a strong dislike of fast food (and general lack of local job options for teens) she set up a mural-painting business in high school to earn extra cash.
After high school, she went to Princeton University, where she fought on the Tiger fencing team and explored the human psyche in books and on canvas. Nicole then migrated south, settling for a while in North Carolina and continuing her education at Duke University. The southern roots she tried to plant just wouldn’t take, and her mind and heart were drawn back north, to the hills of Pennsylvania.
Nicole is currently based out of Danville, where she has an artist’s studio and continues to study and tend to the human mind. When she is not painting, Nicole can be found helping children, teens and families throughout the Susquehanna valley, or crossing epees on the fencing piste. She is still always creating.
Nicole can be contacted at nicolepolanichka@hotmail.com or you can check out Nicole’s virtual studio at her blog, found at: http://www.nicolepolanichka.blogspot.com/
BECKY MARKS
Becky’s interest in glass began at a stained glass studio in New Orleans, Louisiana where she taught classes, designed and built glass projects, and sold retail glass supplies. She also worked on commissions and repaired antique pieces in the region.
While working on an art degree at Tulane University, she enjoyed glass blowing for several semesters. Glass blowing took her to the next step of working with glass that she describes as “live glass”. She enjoyed the movement and glow of “live glass” and went on to take flame-working courses at “The Corning Museum of Glass Studios”
Kiln work and fusing glass came next. Her studies under Miriam Di Fiore in Mornico, Italy added to her techniques. Miriam’s “Light Painting Technique” classes involved using glass stringers, glass powders and frit to create images onto the glass. Becky enjoys incorporating a number of techniques into her fused glass pieces.
To learn more about fused glass, to see a wide array of her impressive glass-work pieces, or to make an order of her art, you go to Becky’s web site Marks On Glass.
GLEN KLEIN
Born in Danville, Pa., Glen’s early influences in art were Saturday morning television cartoons, comic strips in newspapers, and Mad magazine. He was especially drawn to the style and humor of Don Martin of Mad, and spent many hours reproducing that cartoon. Glen decided in his early teens that he wanted to be a cartoonist.
In high school, Glen was introduced to an entirely new world of art. Charlie Berkey, his Danville Area High School art teacher, became a huge influence on Glen’s artwork. Painting, photography, and ceramics were new areas of art that Glen enjoyed.
Glen chose the college Mr. Berkey attended: Kutztown University. Although the idea of becoming a cartoonist was still in his mind, the closest thing Kutztown had to offer was commercial art. This field suited Glen and his art style, and when he graduated he pursued a career as a graphic artist.
Glen worked a few years for North Central Digital Systems as its advertising designer and draftsman. In 1985, Apple Computer produced a computer that would revolutionize the graphics industry. Thus, in 1986 Glen started his own business, Klein Artworks, centered around the Macintosh computer’s capabilities and his graphic design talents.
Outside of his business, Glen has continued to pursue photography as another outlet for his creativity. Most of his subjects are landscapes. He has delved into the endless possibilities that his computer and the program Photoshop has to offer to manipulate photographs. This has led to Glen developing what he describes as photo-cartoons. At long last, he’s finally found his medium to become a cartoonist.