ARTS! BY THE PEOPLE
Fine Arts
DANCE
WRITERS
Street Art
Hip Hop
Photography
Artists
Ellen Papazian has been working with young people to cultivate their love of writing for more than a decade. Her teaching is based on the philosophy that creative writing is accessible to all people, and that we each have the tools for powerful writing already at hand: our daily experiences, memories, feelings, and what the late poet and teacher Kenneth Koch called “the music of ordinary speech.” She currently leads writing workshops for youths ages 5 to 18 and senior citizens. Ellen has been writing since she was old enough to hold a pencil and staple pages together to create books. She has been publishing her fiction and nonfiction since she was a teenager in Norwalk, Connecticut. Her personal essays and short fiction can currently be found in the anthologies, "About Face: Women Write About What They See When They Look in the Mirror", and "The Long Meanwhile: Stories of Arrival and Departure". She also publishes essays, book reviews, and author interviews in several national print and online publications. She received her BA in Creative Studies from New College at Hofstra University and her MA in English from Rutgers University. She is the recipient of the English Department Award for Highest Distinction in Literary Studies from Rutgers University and the Young Alumnus Award from Hofstra University. "I believe that writing can help us express the magic of our daily lives and share with one another what is most deeply felt. I believe in facilitating writing workshops that help young people and seniors cultivate their own, unique voice and tell their vital stories".
Gustav Gauntlett is an experienced youth mentor in several Hip Hop programs in the Tri-State area. With the goal of spreading knowledge about the positive Hip Hop Culture, he has worked with the Optimus Foundation, Urban Art Beat, SCAN New York and is incredibly happy to be now working with a great arts organization like A!BTP that reaches out to the under-served communities. Gus is also bi-lingual and speaks English and Spanish fluently.
In just 4 sessions, the A!BTP artists have already completed a short Hip Hop Theater piece as well as music video about their hometown of Morristown, NJ and Gustav is incredibly excited for the next project. His art form of choice is Hip Hop theater where he writes feature length plays entirely in rhyme. His works “Big Apple Turns to Cider”, “Much Ado About Hip Hop” and “Future Insomniac” have all been produced in theater and schools throughout New York. "The process of building relationships based on trust is the key to success when working with young artists, and Gustav lays this foundation from the start of every program."
Watch a trailer of Gustav’s first Hip Hop musical here: Gustav
Urban environmentalism is another central lifestyle for Gustav as he builds vegetable gardens for people around the City in any space available. His upcoming play “Mother Nature is Hip Hop” is focused around this theme and will be produced in Summer 2011.
Willie Baez grew up surrounded by artists in the East Village of Manhattan, New York during the mid 60’s and 70’s. Although he was exposed to music and art at a very young age, it wasn’t until the 90’s that he decided to devote his creative energies to fine art. After graduating from college with a business degree and building his entire career around Information Technology, in 2006 he decided to pursue his passion for art full-time. Willie is experienced with both children and adults helping them explore their creative energies. In his workshops there is no such thing as “I can’t draw” or “I don’t know anything about art”. He has proved that with guidance and reassurance, individuals can tap into their hidden creative power and learn to paint and draw. Joining A!BTP is enabling him to give back to our communities and campaigning to keep art alive. For the past year, Willie has also been studying printmaking and his work was recently selected in a juried exhibition called “Arts on Paper” at the Monmouth Museum in New Jersey. Willie is a firm believer that as “creative beings we must continue to bring hope, to find peace and tranquility if only through the visual”.
Mr. Baez is currently hosting workshops for seniors at the Lester Senior Housing Community in Whippany and the Morris View Health Care Center in Morris Plains, New Jersey. Willie is bi-lingual and speaks English and Spanish fluently and is also active in group exhibits and art installations in the Hudson County and New York area. His art works can be viewed at www.williebaez.com.
Isabelle Garbani is an emerging artist who received an MFA from the New York Academy of Art in 2004 and has since been exhibiting her work throughout the New York metropolitan area and the Northeast.
Isabelle conducts workshops, based on her art installation "Knit for Trees", which will be occurring throughout the summer on Governors Island in New York City. She uses unwanted plastic bags to make artwork, collages, weaving, and knitting large 3 dimensional works. Her workshops center on recycling shopping bags for the town, and showing attendees how to make art with an abundant and nefarious material, transforming a negative into a positive.
Katie Stehura, originally from Columbus, Ohio, received her early training from Tony Calucci as a member of the Collaborative Dance Project. She continued her training in college, where she received her BFA in dance and graduated magna cum laude from The Ohio State University. While there, she performed with local companies The Dance Cure and Columbus Movement Movement as well as the Performance Improvisation Ensemble, of which she was a founding member. She was awarded a grant to train in Vienna, Austria and collaborated with fellow artist Victoria DeRenzo on a two-year long dance research project. Their choreography has been presented in Columbus, Akron, Tampa, Jersey City, Brooklyn and Queens. After graduating, Katie moved to Brooklyn, New York where she is currently living, dancing and making work. She has worked with artists Emily Faulkner, Nicole Smith, Kendra Portier, Lisa Race, Jenna Riegel and Tara Burns and is excited to now be working with ARTS By the People. See more of Katie’s work at: www.kstehura.com
Katie Stehura, originally from Columbus, Ohio, received her early training from Tony Calucci as a member of the Collaborative Dance Project. She continued her training in college, where she received her BFA in dance and graduated magna cum laude from The Ohio State University. While there, she performed with local companies The Dance Cure and Columbus Movement Movement as well as the Performance Improvisation Ensemble, of which she was a founding member. She was awarded a grant to train in Vienna, Austria and collaborated with fellow artist Victoria DeRenzo on a two-year long dance research project. Their choreography has been presented in Columbus, Akron, Tampa, Jersey City, Brooklyn and Queens. After graduating, Katie moved to Brooklyn, New York where she is currently living, dancing and making work. She has worked with artists Emily Faulkner, Nicole Smith, Kendra Portier, Lisa Race, Jenna Riegel and Tara Burns and is excited to now be working with ARTS By the People. See more of Katie’s work at: www.kstehura.com
Brad (Bisco) Smith Brad "Bisco" Smith is a creative professional based out of New York City and Los Angeles who focuses on music, design, art, and mentorship. Bisco’s tenure as a well rounded artist stems over a decade and continues to thrive. His artistic sensibilities are a unique mix of urban sophistication influenced by his roots in street culture and aerosol art.
Bisco’s visual work has been showcased on the walls of many galleries and published in art house books and magazines. In the music landscape, he is an award winning DJ, producer, and MC who has released several critically acclaimed albums with independent labels and toured both nationally and internationally. As a mentor, Bisco co-founded the New York City based non-profit, Urban Art Beat, an organization built on hip hop education which continues to empower the youth.
Presently, Bisco’s creative work includes his most recent venture, Daylight Curfew, a music and art based label in which he is a co-founder and creative director. As a member of The 5 Pointz Collective, the largest outdoor aerosol museum in the world, he volunteers his time and skills. In addition, he operates a boutique design studio, IV.Creative, founded in 2002, which develops branding, print, web, and mural design for clients around the globe.
With Arts! By The People, Bisco brings “Arts By the Street”, a workshop which intends to acquaint its participants with modern day visual street arts through history and the use of mediums commonly found in urban landscapes around the world: stencils, wheat paste, and aerosol.
Whether it be designing, writing, performing, or mentoring, Bisco continuously aims to share his inspiration and creativity with others in a positive direction.
Bisco’s visual work has been showcased on the walls of many galleries and published in art house books and magazines. In the music landscape, he is an award winning DJ, producer, and MC who has released several critically acclaimed albums with independent labels and toured both nationally and internationally. As a mentor, Bisco co-founded the New York City based non-profit, Urban Art Beat, an organization built on hip hop education which continues to empower the youth.
Presently, Bisco’s creative work includes his most recent venture, Daylight Curfew, a music and art based label in which he is a co-founder and creative director. As a member of The 5 Pointz Collective, the largest outdoor aerosol museum in the world, he volunteers his time and skills. In addition, he operates a boutique design studio, IV.Creative, founded in 2002, which develops branding, print, web, and mural design for clients around the globe.
With Arts! By The People, Bisco brings “Arts By the Street”, a workshop which intends to acquaint its participants with modern day visual street arts through history and the use of mediums commonly found in urban landscapes around the world: stencils, wheat paste, and aerosol.
Whether it be designing, writing, performing, or mentoring, Bisco continuously aims to share his inspiration and creativity with others in a positive direction.
