Artist Development Workshop Series 2024

Joan Finnegan has worked as a full-time visual artist since 2008, creating two-dimensional paintings on canvas. Her work is represented by juried art galleries, exhibitions and social media sites. She annually participates in juried solo and group art exhibitions, and has continued to expanding her art thru continuing education, studies with painting masters and teaching. She has been teaching art for several years through community classes,  group sessions and working one on one  with private students in her art studio. She engages with a broad audience through social media sites, art exhibitions and demonstrations. She has served as a panelist in Artist Development Workshop Series in greater MN, and her art has been featured in numerous publications, most recently on the cover Lanesboro Visitors Guide and Rochester Weekend Visitors Guide. Joan is a co-founder of Lanesboro Area Art Trail, a rural Minnesota Studio Art Trail, where they mentor emerging artists and bring art experiences into the lives of rural greater Mn residents.

Oliver Casillas is a local tattoo artist and owner of Tinta Sagrada Tattoo And Art Collective. He’s been tattooing since he was 14 years old and have recently started doing freelance graphic design for local and small businesses. As a troubled teen, he spent most of his time drawing, exploring nature, cruising around town on a skateboard, and doing just about any extreme sport or activity he could think of. His intention behind what he does, what it means, and the cause it serves is of utmost importance. “If you’re going to do something, do it with passion and enthusiasm. We are here to explore and unleash our infinite potential”. This is his guiding philosophy.

Belal Adel is an international commercial and fashion photographer and art director. His diverse portfolio includes work from Europe, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt. Throughout his travels, he’s managed to merge cultural influences into visually compelling narratives. With his B.A. in Business, Belal created new channels with existing worldwide clients via marketing. He uses his marketing experience to go deeper into his projects by seeking and understanding the objective behind the images he’s creating. By doing so, Belal is able to run an international business as an artist.

Jennie Autonoe is an independent artist, poet, illustrator and apprentice tattoo artist who started self-publishing her writings and artwork in the mid 1990’s at age 16, when zine culture was flourishing and Kinkos was open 24 hours a day for xeroxing pleasure! She more recently self-published her first children’s book “So, You’ve Gone and Joined the Circus, Now, What?! (An A to Z Guide to Big Top Life)” in 2019, and a book of her poetry “Ordinary Magic” in 2023. She is an avid proponent of independent publishing and do-it-yourself culture, and is eternally excited by examples of “by my own bootstraps” behavior!

Rocky Casillas Aguirre is an emerging, Latine and LGBTQIA+ artist originally from Tijuana, Mexico. In 2023, he self-published his first comic book titled, “Twitch and the Mystic Weenie,” which follows a flame on an epic journey of self-discovery. He also self-published a children’s book called, “Where Did Anxiety Go? in four languages to teach kids about anxiety and how to overcome it. Both books have been featured in articles by Northfield News, the MN Women’s Press, and the Department of Public Transformation (DoPT). Self-publishing mindfulness and mental health books for youth is the mission of his studio Rokaturas™ and something he believes anyone who can dream it, can achieve!

As a Program Officer at the Minnesota State Arts Board, Adam Wiltgen administers grant programs that give Minnesotans opportunities to engage in the arts through programming provided by Minnesota artists, arts organizations, and other public and nonprofit entities. A fellow of the Salzburg Global Forum for Cultural Innovators & an alum of the Blandin Community Leadership Program, Adam lives in Red Wing and has spent nearly his entire arts career engaged in relationship-based work in rural communities. At the Arts Board, Adam most enjoys making connections across the state and being a part of a dynamic hybrid-remote team of public servants supporting opportunities in the arts.

Anastasia Shartin is the new Executive Director of SEMAC’s board of directors. Her position started with SEMAC on June 5th, 2023. Anastasia is a community oriented connector, curator, arts programmer, and more. Having worked most recently in a primarily rural place with suburban and urban crossover of artists and audiences, she has experience navigating the nuance of rural-to-urban spaces, similar to that of the SEMAC region. Anastasia has a strong desire to help SEMAC support local artists and arts organizations bring their artistic visions to fruition. “Throughout my career, I have worked directly with thousands of artists and performers to plan and produce nearly as many gallery exhibitions, public events, performances, educational programs, partnership projects, and community collaborations,” said Anastasia, continuing with, “I deeply believe engaging with the arts has the power to create positive change in an individual and in society, and it is essential to thriving communities.”

Cecilia Cornejo Sotelo is a Chilean-American documentary filmmaker, artist and educator based in Northfield, Minnesota, the occupied ancestral land of the Wahpekute Band of the Dakota Nation. Locally rooted yet globally minded, her work examines notions of home and the immigrant experience while exploring the traces of historical trauma on people and places. An inaugural recipient of the 2020 McKnight Fellowship for Community-Engaged Artists, Cecilia’s work has received support from the Minnesota State Arts Board, the National Association of Latino Arts and Culture, the Jerome Foundation, and the Southeastern Minnesota Arts Council. Her film work, currently distributed by Women Make Movies, has shown at MoMA’s Documentary Fortnight and at multiple venues nationally and abroad.

Liz Bucheit creates jewelry and body adornment inspired by her  Scandinavian ancestry and keeps close ties to her heritage by drawing  inspiration from Nordic folklore and myth. A goldsmith for over 30 years,  she holds a Master’s degree in metalworking and jewelry from the  University of Iowa, Iowa City and has trained in traditional jewelry and  metalworking techniques in Norway and Ireland. Liz has won numerous  competitions and been awarded grants from the Minnesota State Arts  Board, McKnight Foundation, Sons of Norway and the SE Minnesota Arts  Council. She was recently awarded a Folk Arts and Cultural Traditions in the  Upper Midwest Fellowship from the American Scandinavian Foundation to  study Sámi silver adornment in Northern Norway. She has exhibited in  museums and cultural centers and her bridal tiaras and wedding jewelry are  in many collections. Liz is an active speaker on the topic of Norwegian  filigree work and conducts workshops and classes in jewelry design and  fabrication. She owns and operates Crown Trout Jewelers in Lanesboro,  MN. crowntroutonline.com

Master goldsmith and art fair veteran of over 20 years, Michael Seiler turned his creative endeavors  towards founding Eye Prize Marketing in 2019. Recognizing the need for artists to successfully market  themselves prior to and during Covid, Michael developed user friendly programs designed to assist  artists in navigating the challenging landscape of website design and e-commerce. His expertise in target  marketing and key word research equips artists to achieve successful sales results and optimum web  presence. Michael was recently awarded a Southeastern Minnesota Arts Council grant in 2023 to assist  artists in identifying and creating anchor products for marketing online. Michael Seiler is co-owner of  Crown Trout Jewelers in Lanesboro, MN and has been working in the metal arts since 1995. He has been  awarded grants from the McKnight Foundation and the Minnesota State Arts Board for his signature  stone cutting and lapidary talent. He is currently the chair of the Lanesboro Entrepreneur Action  Network.

Joshua T. Berglan, widely recognized as “The World’s Mayor,” is a dynamic figure in the realm of media and a fervent advocate for social causes. His passion for media literacy, particularly in empowering inner-city youth, people with mental health issues, ex-convicts, HIV-affected individuals, and trafficking victims, forms the core of his mission. Through his expertise in the future of media, Joshua emphasizes how media serves as a powerful vehicle for realizing dreams and creating opportunities to monetize one’s talents and intellectual property, without the necessity of a degree or substantial financial investment.

Cedric Briand is a French/Breton expat currently living in the Minneapolis South Metro, and Greenvale Manitou is his main music project, which he created and lead. Cedric comes with eclectic tastes and loves to fuse World music with popular “Western” genres. His lyrics show hints of poetry and sociopolitical comments, something he acquired from the French chanson. As a teenager, he was trained by several professional North and Central African percussionists. His favorite signature is to play djembe or dun dun, but he also likes to incorporate Celtic, Nordic, Latin, Asian or Native American vibes and beats to his game. As a matter of fact, he very often plays his guitars and writes his lyrics as if they were a percussion ensemble. To Cedric, poetry often blooms best when rhythmic patterns come first.

Peggy Simonson is a retired Red Wing teacher, whose studio overlooks beautiful Lake Pepin. Her medium varies depending on the subject she is painting, from watercolor, oil using either brush or knife, collage, and mixed media. Her subject matter includes flowers, local scenery, birch trees, abstracts. and semi abstract. So, when she is ‘stuck’ she switches it around!

Tami Resler has been working with clay professionally for 30 years, running her own business, teaching in schools and art centers, chairing art festivals and tours, all the while experimenting and having fun with clay! First and foremost, she is interested in connecting people with the arts; mentoring and encouraging artists and all stages of their journey and no matter the media. Resler grew up in the Minneapolis area and now lives in Faribault, MN, where she and a group of like-minded women recently started a non-profit to do just that!

Bonnie Broitzman has made a living as an artist, first teaching in public school, then in retirement, co-teaching International Watercolor Workshops. She has a Masters from Hamline and has taught at the University of Wisconsin’s Indianhead Fine Arts programs. She describes her work as spontaneous, abstract compositions counterbalancing warm and cool hues in wet-in-wet techniques. Her paintings are available at the Albert Lea Art Center and Key West, Florida. 

Tracy Ingham has spent most of the last four decades as a photo-realist oil painter. Although he also creates in acrylics, watercolor and other mediums, his emphasis has always been on creating historically accurate works. From telling the stories of military veterans in his paintings, to the Renaissance, to creating western genre pieces that portray life in the 1800’s. His career includes 43 solo exhibitions, and over 70 group shows, with dozens of National and International awards. For two years Tracy has been working on characters for his trademarked ZooPops children’s clothing line. As well as doing digital design and graphics for other companies and small businesses.

Jovy Rockey is a artisan jeweler and owner of ORNO Gift + Home in Winona, MN. Since 2011, Jovy has been creating and selling her jewelry direct to clients, at fine art and craft festivals, small markets, and in boutiques and galleries. Her experience as an artist and as a shop owner has given her a robust understanding of the importance and the challenges of how you place value on your work. In June of 2019, Jovy wrote a feature article in the online publication, Handmade Sellers Magazine, which highlights the thought process behind raising her prices and the ways it benefitted her business. Over the years, Jovy has empowered many artists to priortize thier art and to understand how pricing impacts their livlihood.

Anne Scott Plummer is a ceramic artist who creates both functional pottery and sculpture. She has made a livelihood from these pursuits for several decades, and has approached the question of putting a value on her work from many angles. She has sold her work through galleries, stores, art fairs, online, and from her studio. Her current studio is Island City Clayspace, a storefront in downtown Winona, where she periodically organizes a pop-up gallery, and also sells her work at other local galleries, art fairs and the farmer’s market. She is a retired art professor, and has helped many students investigate the critical issue of valuing their work. “Artwork has a personal value for artists, but that is not the same as the market value of a piece of art. Research can help artists understand the potential market value of their work, and to identify the best market places to sell their work,” she suggests. “Showing their work, and talking to other artists, gallerists, and arts professionals can help an artist value their work
for the marketplace.”