Instructors for Teen Courses

Cath Hughes is a British-Canadian visual artist who works in painting, drawing, collage and assemblage. She holds a BFA in Painting from the Ruskin School of Art, Oxford University, a MA in Museums and Galleries in Education from London University, and a Postgraduate Certificate in secondary art education from Goldsmiths College, University of London. Cath began her career in education as a high school art teacher in London, then worked for several years as a freelance gallery educator, programmer, researcher and writer in some of the foremost London galleries such as Tate Modern and the National Gallery. She moved to Vancouver in 2008 and now teaches at Emily Carr and at Burnaby Art Gallery.

Colette Parras works at the intersection of Architecture and Communications, crafting design narratives that connect people and place. Multi-disciplinary by nature, she brings a broad range of international professional experience to her projects. For over a decade Colette Parras worked as an architect and researcher at an office based in the Netherlands before returning to her home city of Vancouver.

Having honed her creative problem-solving skills while working at international architectural practices deeply rooted in design, theory and experimentation, Colette now works as an independent designer and communications consultant since launching narrativist design in 2018.

Since 2014, Colette has held the position of Adjunct Professor at the University of British Columbia, teaching in the Bachelor of Environmental Design and The Master of Architecture and Landscape Architecture program. In 2018, Colette accepted an appointment in the Communication Design Essential program at the Emily Carr University of Art and Design.

Darren Brereton has worked for a variety of Canadian and international animation studios (NFB; Disney- Paris & Vancouver; Cinar; Bardel; DHX; Atomic; etc.) as an animator, in storyboarding, direction, layout, posing, and special effects animation. An honours graduate of Emily Carr University of Art + Design in Animation and Sound Design, he is a hard-working animator, instructor, and fan of all things relating to character-driven animation. An excellent critic of script writing, boarding, layouts, timing, editing, sound design, and all other aspects of animation production, he can coax the best out of fledgling animators and students. He is also a keen observationalist, especially of the happy accidents in day-to-day life, as well as a prolific cyclist and seasonal softball player.

David Alba is an architectural designer specializing in digital fabrication. He has enjoyed the opportunity to be engaged in architectural projects across a variety of contexts, from his home province of British Columbia, as well as in Ontario, Europe and Africa. He is excited by the potential that design has to actively contribute toward community wellbeing and to facilitate extraordinary experiences.

David is passionate about providing opportunities for learning and creativity for a diverse group of students. He received a Masters of Architecture from the University of Toronto and holds a Bachelors of Environmental Design from the University of British Columbia.

Ghinwa Yassine is an anti-disciplinary artist based on the land of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh people, so-called Vancouver. Her work uses various media, including film, installation, performance, text, and drawing. Born in Beirut at the end of the Lebanese Civil War and raised in a traditional Shiite Muslim family, she witnessed the entangled historical traumas in Shiism and war narratives.

Ghinwa’s work confronts the ideological and patriarchal systems that she grew up in while exploring collective feelings and what it means to be a marked body. She seeks a radical historicizing of individual and collective traumas where embodied memories are put into question. Using hybrid forms of storytelling, where story manifests as somatic experiencing, ritual, and gesture, her projects are portals to factual/fictional dimensions that activate collective memory. She pursues community-based research around embodied writing and the healing potential of autobiographical art.

Ghinwa holds an MFA in Contemporary Art - Interdisciplinary Studies at Simon Fraser University in Vancouver, an MA in Digital Video Design from the University of the Arts Utrecht, and a BA in Graphic Design from the American University of Science and Technology in Beirut. Her works have been exhibited in the Netherlands, Lebanon, UAE, Canada, Iran, and Croatia. She is the founder of Arts Embodiment, a trauma-informed interdisciplinary education platform.

Hayley Carruthers is an artist currently living and making on the unceeded territories of the Coast Salish peoples including the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), Stó:lō and Səl̓ílwətaʔ/Selilwitulh (Tsleil-Waututh), and xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) Nations.

Hayley approaches making as a means of thinking, learning, and questioning. She works primarily in drawing and screenprinting.

Her work takes a speculative approach to reflecting on subjective experiences of mental imagery, perception, and other neural phenomena. Hayley’s work often entangles with ways of understanding from scientific knowledges within neuroscience and engages with histories of scientific renderings that visualize the invisible. In her process, she embraces ambiguity and what can’t be seen –the unknown– as a field of generative inquiry.

Compelled by the wonder and strangeness in her subjective experience of being, Hayley draws upon her own internal space to pull out images from memory and give them a material presence. One of the challenges her work explores is how to resist making the strange familiar –to let these images exist in their strangeness. She uses drawing as a process to perceive the intangible internal moments of her reality, not looking to understand but to wonder -to arrive at more questions. To remember that not everything is as it seems.

Jess MacCormack is a queer, mad artist working in Vancouver on the unceded ancestral territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and sə̓lílwətaʔɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations. Their art practice engages with the intersection of institutional violence and the socio-political reality of personal trauma. Working with communities and individuals affected by stigma and oppression, they use cultural platforms and distribution networks to facilitate collaborations which position art as a tool to engender personal and political agency.

Jess Mac’s digital work has been shared through various online platforms, such as VICE Creator’s project, PAPER Mag, and Art F City. Their animations have been screened internationally at festivals such as the Ottawa International Animation Festival, MIX-26 the New York Queer Experimental Film Festival, Transcreen Amsterdam Transgender Film Festival, LA Film Fest at UCLA, Inside Out, Imaginative Film Festival and International Festival of Films on Art (FIFA).

They have an MFA in Public Art and New Artistic Strategies from the Bauhaus University (2008) and were an Assistant Professor of Studio Arts at Concordia University (2010-2013). Jess is currently an instructor at Emily Carr University of Art + Design.

Joe Gianoglio is an experienced 2D artist with over a decade of experience across multiple departments and disciplines including 2D assets, concept art and UI/UX. He is fluent with Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator and Indesign with additional knowledge on XD, Figma and Unity. His background in 2D illustration + User Interface + promotional/marketing graphics + digital painting has gotten him involved in many different projects across multiple platforms (Console / Desktop / Mobile).

Joni Taylor is an artist / illustrator / writer, whose work is deeply informed by the eclectic influences of MAD Magazine (from the 70s, now known as Classic Mad), SNL (Roseanne Roseannadanna), the chaotic satirical work of Ralph Steadman, and the dynamic duo of Roald Dahl — whose characters and plots are always a little on the naughty side, and Quentin Blake — whose illustrations are decidedly quirky.

Passionate about the plight of the underdog (takes one to know one), Joni’s subjects are those who are unknown and unseen yet have incredible amounts to offer. From feminism to ageism and global warming, Joni feels strongly about setting the record straight — even if it’s just in her own mind. Her work is imbued with her own hyperbolic sense of what’s funny and what’s possible to get away with.

Josh Hite’s work is concerned with tactics for documentation and human movement through local spaces. He creates reorganized archives of particular spaces and behaviors either through recordings he makes himself or by appropriating content through sites like YouTube. He is a member of the Vancouver Soundwalk Collective and part of Ten Fifteen Maple, a two-year artist residency exploring multiple waterfront parks in Vancouver. He also regularly collaborates with theatre and dance companies. Josh has a BA in Philosophy, an MFA in Visual Art and teaches photography and media arts at the University of British Columbia.

Karin Schmidlin is passionate about user experience design (UX) and helping students bridging the gap between classroom learnings and their future careers. She holds a Masters degree in Digital Media (MDM) from the Centre for Digital Media in Vancouver. Before joining Emily Carr, Karin was a UX lecturer at the University of Waterloo. She loves teaching and received an Excellence in Teaching award for her efforts in the classroom. In September 2021 she will start her Ph.D. at the University of British Columbia with the research topic of Artificial Intelligence in Education. Karin's notebook game is stellar and she basically runs on black coffee.

Katharine Dickinson works as a professional artist, illustrator and educator in Vancouver, B.C. After completing her M.A. in London, England at the Slade School of Fine Art at University College London U.K. after graduating she worked for London illustration agent Artists Partners for ten years as a freelance illustrator for a range of clients (including The Financial Times, Harper Collins, Penguin books, Red Stripe and Philips Electrical). Katharine continued her career as a digital illustrator for animation in Vancouver, working for Mainframe and Bardel Entertainment.

Currently her interest and priority is teaching art to adults and teens while continuing with her own art practice of drawing and watercolour painting. She has a unique ability to demonstrate technical information in a way that inspires confidence and builds knowledge. Her method aims to achieve high levels of competence in technical and expressive forms, using digital and traditional art-making techniques.

Kathleen Gros is a cartoonist living in Vancouver, BC. She is the author of the graphic novels Anne: An Adaptation of Anne of Green Gables (Sort Of) (HarperCollins 2022), Jo: An Adaptation of Little Women (Sort of) (HarperCollins 2020), and Last Night at Wyrmwood High (Cloudscape Comics 2015). She is currently working on two more graphic novels slated for release in 2025. She received her BFA in Illustration from Emily Carr University of Art and Design in 2015. She has taught comics and graphic novels in the Continuing Studies program at Langara College, and teaches art to students of all ages around the Lower Mainland.

Keith Shapland is an industrial designer who specializes in the development of mock-ups and prototypes, both physical and digital. He has worked on projects ranging in scale from a full-size mock-up of a 747 to delicate medical devices. He has developed prototypes of aviation data recorder “black box’” systems and participated in the engineering destruction testing of the prototypes and production units. Keith has designed, fabricated and installed tradeshow booths and museum exhibits. He has fabricated architectural, topographic and engineering models. Keith also worked in the entertainment industry as an image compositor, utilizing his digital skills to extract 2D imagery from the 3D animations on such projects as Beast Machines and MTV’s Spiderman.

Morgan Martino is an interdisciplinary designer, researcher and facilitator, whose work focuses on building and supporting communities that can foster caring relationships, critical learning, and informed social change. Her current research practice explores how everyday material culture and designed systems inform and reflect our complex relationships to care. Morgan graduated from Emily Carr University of Art + Design in spring of 2021, studying Industrial Design and Social Practice + Community Engagement, and was the student speaker for her graduating class. Morgan currently works as a research assistant for Emily Carr’s Health Design Lab and coordinates the Roving Designers, a collective she founded in fall 2020.

Parvin Peivandi is an arts educator and multidisciplinary artist working across a wide range of mediums, including painting, drawing, sculpture, installation, ceramic, textiles, performance, and media art. She holds a MFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (2019), the University of British Columbia (2016) and BFA from Emily Carr University of Art and Design(2014). She has shown her works internationally and won awards such as Illinois emerging artist award and NCECA 2021 multicultural award. In 2020, her textile art was nominated for the Brandford/Elliot Award for Excellence in Fiber Arts by the Textile Society of America. Peivandi's recent exhibitions include the Art Auction/show in the Polygon Gallery, a solo show in Chicago at Amazigh Contemporary and group shows at Expo Chicago's international exposition of contemporary and modern art, Terrain exhibition biennale, Sullivan Gallery in Chicago and Trapp Projects and Centre A in Vancouver.

Peivandi’s main body of research is New Materialism and her interests include contemporary art and craft, architecture, performance art, community art projects and design. In her recent works in the BAF artist residency, Peivandi finds analogy between the human body and architectural sites. Each has public exteriority and complex, shifting interiors, and this duality underscores her use of dynamic forms and diverse materials.

Phoebe Nezil is an animator, illustrator and educator living on unceded Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh territories. Phoebe has a Bachelor of Media Arts from Emily Carr and a Bachelor of Education from SFU, and uses both to teach media arts and animation to high school students in Port Moody and Vancouver. In her down time, Phoebe shoots film photography, plays Minecraft and tries to convince everyone to watch Star Trek: The Next Generation. Phoebe lives with her cat, surrounded by books, and dreams of new ways to approach and pursue visual storytelling.

Sophia Zarders (she/her & they/them) is an illustrator, comic artist, and pop culture queen from Long Beach, California, and currently living in Vancouver, Canada.

Sophia's longstanding career as an illustrator spans publishing, editorial, educational, entertainment, and public art. They're most recent book You're Funny For A: The Illustrated Guide to Trans Comedians, Non-Binary Comics, and Funny Women in the Comedy Scene was published by Silver Sprocket in 2022, and they have self-published an expansive library of zines and comics. Their work was recently selected for Notes From the Bathroom Line, a Harper Collins book about women and trans comedians. Sophia's editorial work has been featured in publications around the globe, including PRISM, The Nation, Zora, and the Socialist Review.

Sophia was recently an in-house illustrator for the Simbi Foundation, a leading non-profit in educational children's books based in Vancouver. In 2021, they were selected to illustrate a poster highlighting LGBTQ history for the New York Department of Education series, "Hidden Voices," and in 2020 they were invited to design a billboard for the public art group, SaveArtSpace, which was displayed in two locations in West Los Angeles. Numerous organizations and non-profits have commissioned Sophia for empowering posters and public art, including the ACLU, Arts Council of Long Beach, the LA County Office of Education, the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights, and Forward Together. Their visual art has been exhibited in the residency program at Somos Art House in Berlin, Germany, and more recently at Haight Street Art Center in San Francisco.

Stephen Pearce is an inspired instructor who specializes in teaching foundational to advanced courses ranging from life drawing and color theory to animation and conceptual design for environments, creatures, and characters in traditional and digital techniques. Stephen graduated from the Animation programs at Capilano University and Vanarts, and has gained extensive experience in the animation and games industries, working as a 2D and 3D animator, conceptual design artist, and senior artist for several games, film, and TV studios. Stephen's diverse portfolio includes collaborations with notable studios such as Mainframe, Bardel, Dreamworks, A.K.A. Cartoon, Backbone Ent., and IUGO, on high-profile projects including Action Man, Heavy Gear, Joseph, Sonic Rival 2, Monster Lab, Bomberman Live, Knights and Dragons, and Walking Dead Road to Survival. Through his exceptional teaching and real-world experience, Stephen imparts his expertise to students at all skill levels, from beginners to advanced learners.

Mx. Vee Chorabik (they/them) is a Polish-Canadian artist living and working in Vancouver, the unceded homelands of the xʷməθkʷəy̓ əm (Musqueam), sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) and səl ̓ilwətaɁɬ (Tsleil-waututh) Nations. They are a transdisciplinary artist with an MFA from Emily Carr University of Art + Design, 2021. Their practice includes installation, collage (digital and analogue), drawing, painting, collaboration, research, fun, and play. They use whatever medium best suits the conceptual and aesthetic nature of the project.

Vee teaches at Emily Carr University of Art + Design, and they've been working regularly as an exhibiting artist since graduating from Langara College in 2017. By queering art, language, and education Vee aims to create a more celebratory, loving, and accessible world.

Their current show line-up includes:
“Vancouver Outsider Arts Festival,” Roundhouse Community Centre, Oct 12-17, 2023
“The Pursuit of PLAYsure,” Slice of Life Gallery, Nov 23-28, 2023

Vjeko Sager is an artist, educator and curator, awarded, exhibited and represented in public and private collections in Canada, Japan, Hungary, Italy, USA and former Yugoslavia. He received a Masters Degree in Applied Arts from the University of Arts in Belgrade and was appointed a Associate Professor in Painting Techniques at the Faculty of Applied Arts & Design in Belgrade. Vjeko participated at numerous art events in Europe and in 1994 he moved to Vancouver. His recent works are exhibited at 35 international and local exhibitions and represented in the Slide Registry at the Drawing Center in New York. He curated the exhibition "Art in Exile" for Artropolis 2003 (visited by 10,000 people) and lectured at the UBC Grand Rounds, SFU Philosopher's Cafe and participated at many local art events.

Weronika Stepien is an artist that incorporates 3D animation, drawing, painting, and sculpture. In her work, she re-inscribes the representational tropes and technology of gaming and fantasy CGI animation into a visual matrix. Weronika graduated from Emily Carr University’s Film and Video and Integrated Media program in 2009 and the University of British Columbia's Masters of Fine Art in 2019. She has studied in the United States, Germany, and the Netherlands and has exhibited work in various galleries around Vancouver. She has 10 years of experience in teaching art and animation to students of all ages.

Yaazhin Pillay is a visual artist and post-secondary instructor based in Vancouver, BC. He aims to honor and explore Global Southern histories and perspectives to find new means for resistant action and decolonial methodologies. As an extension of his South African Indian roots, Yaazhin examines the experience of diasporic communities and attempts to highlight global networks of solidarity created by shared experience and tradition. His works promote an anti-apartheid, anti-imperial, anti-Eurocentric perspective, featuring imagery from Vedic philosophy and revolutionary histories. He places the continued prosperity of indigenous and liberated communities worldwide at the core of his work. Amandla Awethu!