Gio Benedetti Audio, Children's, Composition, Fiction, Folk Art, Illustration, Instrumental, Literature, Media, Music, Non-Fiction, Other, Painting, Puppetry, Storytelling, Visual Arts I like to make art. I draw and I paint. An artist I am. A not artist I ain't.

Dani Burlison Fiction, Literature, Non-Fiction, Other Dani Burlison (she/her) is a mom, writer, teacher, and activist. She is the creator/editor of “All of Me: Stories of Love, Anger and the Female Body” (PM Press, 2019), and the author of “Some Places Worth Leaving” (Tolsun Books, 2020) and “Dendrophilia and Other Social Taboos: True Stories,” a collection of essays which first appeared in her McSweeney's Internet Tendency column of the same name. She is co-editing an anthology about Northern California fires which will be published by Heyday Books in 2023. Dani has been a staff writer at a Bay Area alt-weekly and a regular contributor at Yes! Magazine, Chicago Tribune, KQED, and elsewhere. Her journalism, fiction and personal essays can also be found at Ms. Magazine, WIRED, Earth Island Journal, The Rumpus, Portland Review, Hip Mama Magazine, and in various anthologies and zines. She studied Activism & Social Change as well as Culture, Ecology & Sustainable Community at New College of California and lives on unceded Southern Pomo and Wappo land in Sonoma County, California. You can find out more at daniburlison.com

Mark Bush Audio, Composition, Fiction, Instrumental, Literature, Media, Music, Non-Fiction, Other, Performance Art, Photography, Poetry, Visual Arts, Vocal Musician performer songwriter composer Artist rocKabilly poP coWboy punK jazz PoetrY

Mari Capon Acting, Artisan, Arts Administration, Ballet, Ballroom, Children's, Choreography, Dance, Directing, Fiber Art, Fiction, Folk Art, Hip-Hop & Funk, Illustration, Improvisation, Improvisation, Latin, Literature, Media, Modern, Muralist, Music, Non-Fiction, Other, Other, Other, Painting, Performance Art, Poetry, Printmaking, Puppetry, Sculpture, Storytelling, Teacher/Instructor, Teaching Artist for Adults, Teaching Artist for Youth, Theatre, Video, Visual Arts, Vocal Mari has been professionally involved in the arts world for over twenty years. As a child, she was a creative dancer at Virginia Tanner's Children Dance Theater, and she oil painted and sang in choirs. As a teen she acted, and was a make-up artist, poet, essayist, and ballroom dancer, and in young adulthood, she was a tango dancer and professional performing artist as an Art Model for artists working for Disney, EA, and countless Universities, Ateliers, Institutes, and Studios, and especially enjoyed set, costume, and lighting designs for painters and illustrators. Upon realizing that she most enjoyed coaching artists through their process, she began teaching, first creating art curriculum for a K-12 after-school program while becoming bilingual in Peru, before returning to the U.S. to become a certified cognitive movement, creative dance, and preschool music instructor. She began providing, teaching, and consulting for bilingual preschools and Summer Camps, tutoring, and coaching gymnastics, and continued to teach the arts and sports. She also taught inclusive sex education and spiritual development for children at interfaith, non-denominational churches, and facilitated somatic processing, while attending weekly classes in various forms. As an undergrad, Mari authored an Interdisciplinary Arts Curriculum Program for Pre-K through 12th Grade and became credentialed. She will research, publish, and offer her program while continuing to teach Interdisciplinary Arts.

Leilani Clark Literature, Non-Fiction Raised in Hawaii and Los Angeles, Leilani Clark received a bachelor’s in English Literature from the University of California San Diego. She played in indie bands and traveled for a few years, before settling down to teach middle and high school English in New Mexico and Oakland. In 2008, she received an MFA in Writing and Consciousness from the California Institute of Integral Studies. Her writing has appeared at The Guardian, Mother Jones, Civil Eats, The Press Democrat, The Rumpus, and other publications. A former staff writer at the North Bay Bohemian, she was a 2014 California Endowment Health Reporting Fellow, and her feature story about a federal crackdown on Northern California cannabis dispensaries won a California Newspaper Publishers Association award. She currently makes her living in nonprofit communications and as the editor of a regional food magazine. She lives in Santa Rosa with her family.

Jason Cool Acting, Architecture, Artisan, Arts Administration, Ballroom, Ceramics, Children's, Choreography, Composition, Crew, Dance, Design, Directing, Equipment, Fashion Design, Fiber Art, Fiction, Film Office, Folk Art, Functional Art, Furniture, General Services, Glass, Hip-Hop & Funk, Illustration, Improvisation, Improvisation, Instrumental, Interior Design, Jewelry, Literature, Media, Mixed, Modern, Multi-Media, Music, Non-Fiction, Other, Other, Other, Other, Other, Other, Other, Other, Other, Painting, Performance Art, Photography, Poetry, Production, Professional Performance, Puppetry, Sculpture, Storytelling, Talent, Teacher/Instructor, Theatre, Visual Arts, Vocal, Woodworking

Jason Cool/Henson

Raised by musical and artistic tallent. from my grandfather Walter cool.writing and composing set designs on and off Broadway as well as music teacher. He tought me many things about music ,set design ,and writing stories making songs.mom colleen cool was a d.j for many years growing up .her morning talk show won an addy award. experience of the evolution of radio stations format from vinal,reel to reel,8 track,cassette,cd,to digital.learned lots about the insider secrets and politics , selling air time ,being a paid musical artist.and much more.on my dad's side .the "story family." his grandmother had 21 kids .4 sets of twins ,all natural birth!all musicians playing together ofton..on ed sullvon show and groucho marks.this popular family band and I would practice at grandma's regularly. As a kid growing up. i would try many instruments pianos ,drums,accordion ,banjo ,mandolin etc. I have been in theater,loved the arts, music ,writer. open to everything since i was a young kid.arts and music are my life!if i dont know how to do something,i will be honest!i ask,try and will do all things of interest with love !and any collaboration with heart.I Compromise to learn others perspectives because im always learning. preforming on and off stage.jamming with the public.sharing what i know. Learning what others are willing or able to teach.I loved all the music,art,storys,I have been a part of, or experienced 1999 to current over 15 countries I visited. World Share

Toby Daniels Acting, Artisan, Audio, Dance, Design, Fiction, Film, Graphic Design, Illustration, Instrumental, Latin, Literature, Media, Mixed, Modern, Multi-Media, Music, Non-Fiction, Other, Other, Painting, Performance Art, Photography, Sculpture, Teacher/Instructor, Theatre, Video, Visual Arts, Woodworking

Born in San Francisco, I grew up in Lucas Valley (Marin County) 15 years then, lived in Hopewell, New Jersey (between Princeton and Trenton) for 3 years, finishing high school. After graduation, chose to live in Bozeman, Montana (close to Yellowstone National Park and the Big Sky Ski Resort) for 5 years, attending Montana State University, earning degrees.

After obtaining a Bachelor's Degree in Business (Marketing Option) along with a Minor in Communication from MSU, I lived in Terra Linda (Marin County) for 6 years, continuing Multimedia studies, working.

In 1999 I moved to central Santa Rosa (Sonoma County, the "Heart of the Wine Country") and lived there for 10 years, attending a quality college for additional post-graduate studies. I broadened my education studying visual media (Computer Art, Applied Graphics, Desktop Publishing, Art, Multimedia, and web design) at Santa Rosa Junior College, while working.

With regards to my 11 years of college studies and two degrees that accompany two certificates (that relate to visual media composition and presentation), I have undertaken a variety of post-graduate studies and working in local businesses, I have expanded my knowledge of various programs that are applicable to corporate establishments and gained additional skill and knowledge of Multimedia and HTML, in pursuit of an occupation that relates to promotion, advertising or marketing.

I enjoyed the opportunity to develop my skills in project coordination, client services, problem solving and negotiating, applying my studies and abilities, seeking an opportunity where my experience, initiative and dedication to both personal and organizational goals will be valued.

Patricia Dines Fiction, Illustration, Literature, Non-Fiction, Other, Other, Painting, Photography, Visual Arts Patricia Dines has been a professional writer, graphic artist, and fine artist since 1992, and since then created on a wide variety of books, newsletters, articles, and more. Her currently featured work is a sacred healing storybook (for people of all ages), called The Goddess Who Forgot That She Was a Goddess. (I mean, who can forget such a thing? But she did!) This Goddess lived up high on a beautiful hill, but didn't see any of it, because of the sadness in her heart. Until one day she received an unexpected invitation to go into the forest.... You're invited to join the Goddess on her healing adventure, and savor the enchanting story, inspired artwork, and weaving of playful and meaningful moments. This timeless and universal tale is presented in a beautiful full-color hardcover book, illustrated with Patricia's original art. Patricia also offers art greeting cards and prints. All of her goodies are available directly and at local stores. To get more information, and find out how to get your own copies, see www.healthyworld.org/GB.

Julie Gieseke Acting, Directing, Illustration, Improvisation, Literature, Non-Fiction, Performance Art, Theatre, Visual Arts I am a speaker/emcee writer/performer consultant/facilitator coach/teacher that unfurls potential

People, groups, things reach a state of readiness to open. The timing of unfurling can be a mystery. I was furled for most of my life. I longed to be open but did not know how to get there.

My work in all these realms is about unfurling — groups, conversations, individuals, myself. Life can furl us, we can furl ourselves, intentionally or otherwise. Furling is part of the process. Unfurling is inevitable. Expression, liberation, breakthrough … is all part of the furling and unfurling.

Kelly Gray Creative Sonoma Grantee, Fiction, Literature, Non-Fiction, Other, Poetry, Teacher/Instructor, Teaching Artist for Adults, Teaching Artist for Youth Kelly Gray (she/her/hers) lives in Northern California on unceded Coast Miwok and Kashaya Pomo land. She writes about what she knows or is trying to know; parenting, eco-grief, mental health, dead things, monsters, prophetic animals, relationships to self and others, and rural life. She comes from a background in union organizing, birth work and reproductive justice, & is a certified UC California Naturalist and trained raptor handler, all of which informs her writing. Gray is the author of Instructions for an Animal Body (MoonTide Press, 2021), Tiger Paw, Tiger Paw, Knife, Knife (Quarter Press, 2022) and the audio chapbook My Fingers are Whales and Other Stories of Cetology (Moon Child Press, 2021). She is the recipient of the 2022 Neutrino Short-Short Prize from Passages North and has been a finalist for Best of the Net, nominated for Pushcart Prizes and Best Short Fiction. Her writing appears or is forthcoming in Northwest Review, Passages North, Menacing Hedge, Newfound, Pithead Chapel, Atticus Review, trampset, Literary Mama, and other incredible journals & anthologies. Currently, she is the Outreach & Assistant Editor at Bracken Magazine.

Elizabeth Carothers Herron Literature, Non-Fiction, Other, Poetry Elizabeth Carothers Herron www.elizabethherron.net is the Poet Laureate of Sonoma County 2022-2024 www.elizabeth-herron.com for "Being Brave" (poetry Project). She is the author of two collections of poetry with a third forthcoming in January 2023 from Fernwood Press; four poetry chapbooks, a book of short fiction, and articles on art and ecology. Her writing appears currently in a half-dozen literary magazines, including Arroyo, West Marin Review, Lindenwood, Free State Review and Reflections. Her prose has been published in Ions, Orion, Parabola, Jung Journal and Center for Humans & Nature’s “Questions for a Resilient Future” (www.humansandnature.org). The San Francisco Small Press Traffic Award, the National Endowment for the Arts, the Foundation for Deep Ecology and the Mesa Refuge for writer’s have all supported her work. She has been nominated three times for a Pushcart Prize in Poetry. Her history of collaborative work includes sculptor Bruce Johnson’s Poetry House project and his Santa Rosa Junior College library pieces, book arts broadsides, and over a decade of plein-air and gallery performances with dancers, visual artists and musicians. Her professional memberships include the International League of Conservation Writers, the Authors Guild, Poets & Writers, and PEN (Poets Editors and Novelists). She lives on the Atascadero in the Russian River watershed.

Jen Hyde Creative Sonoma Grantee, Literature, Media, Non-Fiction, Other

Jen Hyde is a writer, editor, and storytelling expert. Her essays have appeared in The Los Angeles Times, The Boston Globe, Longreads and elsewhere.

A 2016 finalist for the Creative Capital Grant in Literature, and Jen has received fellowships from Yaddo, The Millay Colony, and the Asian American Writer's Workshop. Most recently she has been a 2023 scholar at the Sonoma County Writer's Camp and a 2023 Creative Sonoma ACE grantee. She is currently at work on a memoir about chronic illness and Chinese diasporic identity.

Amanda Janik Literature, Non-Fiction, Other, Performance Art Amanda Janik (yes, going for third person here, folks) lives in Sonoma County and spends her days writing, editing, proofreading, posting, cooking, drinking, saying 'no' to children, and trying to figure out who or what is pecking her chickens' eggs apart. A Cultural Ambassador for Out There Santa Rosa, Amanda's writing has also been published in The Sun Magazine, on Chacos.com, Silver Birch Press and throughout the Sonoma County Visitor's Guide, to name a few. She has also read her personal writing at Get Lit!, Lit Crawl, Lyrics & Dirges and more. In 2015 Amanda brought the hit stage show Mortified - which also has a documentary on Netflix and a popular weekly podcast - to Sonoma County. When not producing the local chapter, she can still be found performing on Mortified stages in San Francisco, Oakland, Portland, Los Angeles and New York, with more to come. She has participated on behalf of Mortified at SF SketchFest, SF ImprovFest, and at private events she's not allowed to talk about.

Chelsea Rose Kurnick Creative Sonoma Grantee, Literature, Non-Fiction, Performance Art, Photography, Poetry, Visual Arts Chelsea Rose Kurnick (she/her) is a writer and artist from southern California living in Sonoma County. She earned a BA in Linguistics in 2010 from the University of California Riverside, where she was also editor-in-chief of Mosaic: A Journal of Literature and Art. In 2013-14, she created and hosted The Casserole, an online literary reading series that aired live on Youtube featuring remote guests from all over the world. Chelsea began studying the craft of poetry at age 15 and began curating literary arts events at 20. She attributes most of her education in writing to community workshops and weekly open mics, which she has sought out since 2005 in every city she’s lived. Chelsea believes that poetry and storytelling are powerful tools for building empathy and are at their most vital when experienced in person. Chelsea’s work explores longing and loss, sometimes personal and sometimes global in scope; she writes of messy partnerships and humankind’s tenuous relationship to the material world we inhabit.

Angela Lam Fiction, Literature, Non-Fiction, Painting, Visual Arts Angela Lam is a visual artist specializing in acrylic landscapes and a published author of novels, romances, and memoirs.

Joy Lanzendorfer Children's, Fiction, Literature, Non-Fiction, Other I'm a writer living near Petaluma. I'm the author of the novel RIGHT BACK WHERE WE STARTED FROM, which came out in May 2021 through Blackstone Publishing. I'm also the host of What's The Story, a book-oriented radio show on 95.9 FM The Krush. Other work has been in The New York Times, The Atlantic, NPR, The Washington Post, Ploughshares, Poetry Foundation, and others. I'm a 2019 recipient of the Discovered Awards for Emerging Visual and Literary Artists and have received awards and residencies from the Speculative Literature Foundation, Wildacres Residency Program, Cuttyhunk Island Writers’ Residency, and others. My short story “Sleep Disturbance” was included in The Best Small Fictions 2019 and my essays were notables in the 2019 and 2020 editions of The Best American Essays.

Leslie M. Levy Acting, Artisan, Audio, Composition, Crew, Directing, Fiction, Film, Film Office, Folk Art, Improvisation, Literature, Media, Mixed, Multi-Media, Multimedia, Music, Non-Fiction, Other, Photography, Poetry, Production, Storytelling, Talent, Technical, Theatre, Video, Visual Arts, Vocal I am a developing multifaceted creative based in Sonoma County, offering a breadth of knowledge and growing experience. Currently a senior at Sonoma State University in Communication and Media, I am looking for collaborative and mentorship opportunities within Sonoma County primarily and the Bay Area at large. A writer to the bone, I have experience with video work of all kinds (mostly camera, lighting, and directing/producing, some with editing) as well as some audio experience (ever-expanding because it is my second passion next to writing). I believe I have a lot to offer in a wide range of areas and love helping creative juices flow like watersheds into a project.

Buzzy Martin Composition, Instrumental, Literature, Music, Non-Fiction, Other, Vocal Born in Grand Rapids, Michigan, Buzzy taught himself to play the guitar and piano at the age of 13. At the age of 15, he performed with his first band as the lead singer, playing guitar and keyboards. Buzzy has been making his dream real, one step at a time. After graduating from high school there were the traveling cover bands, steadily touring the Midwest from Michigan to Florida. In 1979, he moved to northern California, had a stint as a solo street performer at the world famous San Francisco Fisherman's Wharf. While wood shedding his composing skills, Buzzy became the much-in-demand host of a series of coffee house open mic nights, where his knowledgeable musicianship, sunny personality and non-stop encouragement helped the caffeine scene thrive. In 1980 he began to play with many local bands and musicians as a featured artist. In early 1981, he was hired as the mainstay guitar player for an Elvis Presley impersonator and became responsible for the direction and stage presence of the band. This became a highly enjoyable group to work with and afforded him the opportunity to travel the West Coast circuit. In 1984, Buzzy started his own Top 40-style band, which quickly became recognized by club owners. An established professional who loves the music he shares, Buzzy Martin is living proof of the rewards of following one's childhood dreams and is now the author of Don’t Shoot! I’m the Guitar Man. http://www.guitarmanthemovie.com/fullTrailer.html

Kalia Mussetter Artisan, Children's, Fiber Art, Literature, Mixed, Non-Fiction, Other, Other, Painting, Performance Art, Poetry, Teacher/Instructor, Theatre, Visual Arts

Eileen Nagle Acting, Artisan, Children's, Choreography, Directing, Fiction, Film Office, Folk Art, Improvisation, Jewelry, Literature, Non-Fiction, Other, Other, Other, Other, Performance Art, Poetry, Puppetry, Storytelling, Talent, Teacher/Instructor, Teaching Artist for Adults, Teaching Artist for Youth, Theatre Eileen Nagle M.Ed is an elementary/ middle/ high school teacher who specializes in Children's Theatre. A native of West Sonoma County, Eileen writes and directs children's plays and teaches acting classes. Shakespeare for Children; Musical Theater, Improv and Playwriting all for children are at the center of her creativity. She would love to go to your space and direct during school, after school drama clubs, teach playwriting and work with the home school community, having homeschooled her own children. At the university level she taught teachers how to integrate the arts into their regular lesson plans; enhancing the enjoyment and retention of the core subjects. Eileen leads workshops for adults and older children to teach Script and Text Analysis based on Character Roles, a way to look at your own or other's work and evaluate how sound the structure of the story is. Playwriting/ Screenwriting At the University level Eileen taught Public Speaking, Interpersonal Communication and Theater For Elementary Teachers courses. She was the Outreach and Workshop Coordinator for the Noorda Theater for Children and Youth. Eileen would love to partner with home school groups, afterschool programs; mixed adult children groups would be fun. She has worked in most locations so a 'stage' is not necessary. The time of day and week is workable.

Jennie Orvino Ballroom, Dance, Latin, Literature, Non-Fiction, Poetry, Teacher/Instructor As a freelance content provider, I offer you the benefit of my life experience an engaged, passionate citizen-artist. I received my first diary at the age of 14 and have been a writer ever since. I have worked as an elementary school teacher, journalist, radio producer and on-air host, and for community television, advertising agencies, newspapers, publishers and non-profit organizations. In my career, I have learned the art of active listening and creative collaboration… and I work diligently, with complete respect for deadlines, to earn the respect of my colleagues and clients. It may not be practical for your business or organization to employ an in-house writer for newsletters, fund-raising letters, blogs, eBlasts, press releases, ads, brochures, catalogs, web content, reports, case studies, feature stories, bios and profiles. I can help! I also have six years’ experience in writing successful grant proposals and grant reports submitted to private foundations and government funders. (see writing samples section) My intention is to assist you with language that is clear, organized, intelligent, deep or light-hearted as appropriate, geared to its audience, and that speaks with the values and in the voice of you, your business, or the group you represent.

About Jennie Orvino

Jennie Orvino’s commercial writing credits include 11 years in the Marketing Department of the Santa Rosa Symphony, where she provided copy for press releases, brochures, print ads, newsletters, postcards, flyers and solicitation letters, as well as all the organization’s eCommunications and web content. In addition, she wrote grant applications and grant reports for the Symphony over a 6-year period. (Among grants received include the NEA, Hewlett Foundation, Irvine Foundation, Community Foundation Sonoma County, Santa Rosa Sunrise Rotary, Heller Foundation and Target.) Orvino has written and/or edited newsletters for Hillel at Stanford, Face to Face/Sonoma County AIDS Network, Actor’s Theater, Santa Rosa Church of Religious Science (now the Center for Spiritual Living) and other non-profit organizations. She also worked as production coordinator for Campbell & Associates Advertising/Marketing/Public Relations, and the Santa Rosa Business Journal (now North Bay Business Journal). Orvino has been a Literary Arts Producer for KRCB radio (NPR affiliate, 91.1 FM Sonoma County), where she contributed on-air interviews and book reviews (more than 20 shows of “Come Said the Muse” and “Word by Word”). She has had features published in Rohnert Park’s The Community Voice, Petaluma’s Argus Courier, the North Bay Bohemian and Sacramento News & Review. Jennie Orvino is the author of the book Poetry, Politics and Passion: memoir, poems, personal essays (2012) and a Grammy-nominated spoken word CD, Make Love Not War (2002). Her literary awards include: first prize poetry in Copperfield’s The Dickens contest; second prize poetry in the North Bay Bohemian Java Jive contest and the Don L. Emblen Award from Santa Rosa Junior College. In April 2012, Orvino was one of 10 women honored at the 6th Street Playhouse Women in the Arts Showcase. In 2014, she read in, and co-produced, the Steamy Sonoma County Erotica Salon series.

Brooks Palmer Acting, Children's, Composition, Directing, Fiction, Film Office, Folk Art, Illustration, Improvisation, Instrumental, Literature, Media, Music, Non-Fiction, Painting, Performance Art, Puppetry, Storytelling, Talent, Teacher/Instructor, Teaching Artist for Adults, Theatre, Video, Visual Arts, Vocal I'm a creative artist who loves to work in many fields. I write short humorous stories. I paint surrealistic art. I perform quirky improvisational songs and short stories on stage. I draw funny words-of-wisdom cartoons. I write books of surreal fantasy humor. I perform my As You Are show for eager audiences. I don't question my creativity. When it shows up, which is often, I put it on paper, or record it, or perform it. I love to put what I do out into the world, whether it's on stage, or online, or published as a book, or on a gallery wall. I love to uplift people with my creations. I hope my art makes people feel good about being alive, and inspires them to be creative in their own way.

Roy Parvin Fiction, Literature, Non-Fiction Roy Parvin is the award-winning author of two books of fiction, The Loneliest Road in America and In the Snow Forest. He has recently completed a memoir entitled My Year of Sleeping Dangerously and is also the author (under the nom de namaste of Yoga Matt) of Yoga for the Inflexible Male, forthcoming this fall from Ten Speed Press, a division of Penguin Random House. His work has been selected for inclusion in the Best American Short Stories series, has been nominated many times for the Pushcart Prize, and has been widely anthologized. He has also been awarded a National Endowment for the Arts grant, a Bread Loaf Fellowship, the Katherine Anne Porter Prize in fiction, and a Ucross fellowship. Roy is an accomplished teacher, having taught in the MFA program at San Francisco State University and at numerous workshops around the country.

Karen Pierce Gonzalez Artisan, Fiber Art, Fiction, Literature, Mixed, Non-Fiction, Other, Poetry I have been writing since I discovered paper and pen. My love of words led me to write fiction, non-fiction, and poetry which appears in many publications including Big Blend Magazine, Lagom Journal, Postcard Poems and Prose, Potato Soup Journal, San Francisco Chronicle, Tiny Thimble Magazine, Twist in Time, Voice of Eve and other publications. My work has been nominated for a Pushcart Prize and has received several state and local awards. I have facilitated creative writing workshops in the San Francisco Bay Area (Napa Community College, Santa Rosa Junior College Extension, local community centers, etc.). I am also a mixed-media artist. I work intuitively with tree bark, chalk/oil pastels, fibers, fabrics and, when lucky, salmon leather. I am also folklorist and am publisher of FolkHeart Press which has produced Write Your Own Family Folktales, Love Potions, Lotions, and Lore, Spanish Cuisine: One Region at a Time, and more. Literary Projects includes development of Mystery Writers in the Mausoleum, and memberships include California Association of Storytellers, North Bay Poetics, Santa Rosa Art Center, Sonoma County Folk Society, and Western Folklore Society.

Christopher Reiger Illustration, Literature, Mixed, Non-Fiction, Painting, Printmaking, Visual Arts

Originally from the rural Delmarva Peninsula on the mid-Atlantic coast, Christopher attended the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia, before moving to New York City, where he lived and worked for a decade. He graduated from the MFA program at the School of Visual Arts (NYC) in 2002.

Whether exploring an abandoned city lot or a tract of forest far from an urban center, he still feels the same excitement he felt as a boy, when he found many of his experiences in the "natural" world similar to those of Lewis Carroll’s Alice. Carroll’s premise that "things get curiouser and curiouser" guided Christopher through many an outdoor adventure. As an adult, his love of the outdoors has evolved into a fascination with natural history, conservation, and ecology, and his visual art, illustration, design, and writing projects wrestle with contemporary constructions of nature, and the human relationship to nonhuman animal species.

Christopher lives in Northern California with his wife and two young sons.

CREATIVES

About Jennie Orvino