Spirit Sculpture Showcase with Oletha DeVane

In the fall of 2022, artist Oletha DeVane led six Maryland arts educators through a practice of creating their own spirit sculptures as part of the MSDE Visual Arts Masterclass.

Kimberly Brown, Mygenet Harris, Sara Jafari, Samir Razzak, Angela Suggs, and Anna Szot worked closely with DeVane over a period of eight months to develop their spirit sculptures through a personal and cultural lens.

Join us in celebrating and showcasing the multimedia spirit sculptures made by these amazing teacher artists.

Schedule

6-9 p.m.

Light refreshments in Fox Court

6:30-7:30 p.m.

Visual arts masterclass with Oletha Devane
Presentation of artists’ work

7:30-8:30 p.m.

View artwork and meet the artists

Participants

Kimberly Brown

Kimberly Brown is a collage artist and arts educator. Her abstract approach to collage focuses on the tension and contradiction that can exist between the inner and outer self. She has 20+ years of experience in Arts Education. This California native studied studio arts at UC Davis in Studio Arts and education at Pace University in New York, before moving to Maryland to continue her journey in Arts Education. Kimberly has taught and learned from a variety of people and looks for new ways to advocate and increase knowledge through the arts. Currently, she teaches Fine Arts for Elementary school and is the Director for the Maryland Centers for Creative Classrooms (MC3) program.

 

Mygenet Harris

Mygenet Tesfaye Harris is an artist educator who loves making art and inspiring her students. Mygenet’s art ranges from paintings, illustrations, sculptures, and fiber works. Over the years, her work has been in exhibitions locally at Lowe Art Museum, the National Gallery of Art, and in many local galleries in the DMV area. Mygenet was born and raised in Ethiopia; she started her path to the USA at the age of 10. She earned her BFA & MAT from Maryland College Institute of Art. Currently, she has the pleasure of working with the most talented high school students of Montgomery County. She is the co-coordinator & instructor for the MCPS Visual Art Center Magnet Art Program. She has received national art teacher recognitions from Scholastic Art & Writing for her work with VAC Students. She has been an art educator for over 2 decades and an artist all her life.

 

Sara Jafari

Artist and Educator

 

Samir Razzak

Samir Razzak is an artist and arts educator. He creates art that tells stories, in his culture they call these kinds of artists “Griots”. His family came to America from West Africa. He blends the stories and cultures from his background to tell stories from a unique and creative perspective. Samir incorporates many mediums, including digital art, sculpture, assemblage, and acrylic paint.

 

Angela Suggs

I consider myself to be a multimedia artist, a person who uses a variety of tools and techniques to elicit specific motifs. As an art instructor with over 20 years of experience, I have seen firsthand the value of creating pieces that aim to detangle the complicated web of emotions that can swirl in our heads from time to time. It motivates me to craft pieces that are easily accessible, conveying messages that aren’t hard to decode. Simply, my work encapsulates the sum of experiences and life lessons I’ve learned over the years in an effort to highlight the universality of the human experience — from hope and sadness to confusion and joy…and everything in between.

 

Anna Szot

Anna Szot is a Harford County Public Schools Art Teacher with 27 years of experience working with students in diverse K-12 settings in Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Wales.

Versed in multiple mediums, with a specialty in ceramics and mixed media. Originally born in London, England, and raised in Virginia. Recently, searching for lost family ties in Europe has afforded me the opportunity to travel abroad and examine my past through an artistic lens. Peeling the layers of mystery surrounding my past and more deeply involving myself in current works, this Master Class has allowed me to become in touch with a part of my soul that has been abandoned for some time.