330-983-9983

1684 Merriman Rd. Akron, OH 44313

Our Team

Ashley Cottrell, Studio Manager

Ashley has her Bachelor’s in Psychology from Kent State University and is currently attending Ursuline College earning her Masters in Counseling and Art Therapy. Ashley has always been interested in the connection between art and mental health because art has been a powerful tool for me personally in times of stress. The media I gravitate towards tends be acrylic painting, pencil drawing, and a little bit of digital art.

Mellissa Redman, MFA, Instructor

Mellissa earned her Masters in Painting from Kendall College of Art and Design of Ferris State University and a Bachelors in Painting and Drawing from The University of Akron. She is presently the Art Specialist at the Shaw JCC of Akron’s Camp JCC and the visual art coordinator for Akron’s 2017 High Arts Festival. During the 2015-16 school year Mellissa was a featured artist in the Midwest Artist Studios ProjectTM. Watercolor is her favorite medium to work with and her paintings tend to include drawing, serigraphy and collage.

Sara Vandygriff, MA, Instructor

Sara has her Bachelor's degree in Fine Art with a focus in painting and art history and has earned her Master's degree in Curriculum and Instruction for Art Education from the University of Akron. Sara is also a middle school art teacher.  Although she enjoys learning about, making, and teaching art of all kinds, she is especially passionate about oil painting, multicultural art, and figure drawing.  

Samuel Hoskins

Samuel is one of our studio assistants and instructors. He studied art at East Tennessee State University and has a background in teaching K-12 students. He has been a freelance artist for over 10 years. Samuel’s primary art mediums are mix-media/watercolor and digital art. 

Alexis Huntsman

Alexis is one of our studio assistants and instructors. She graduated from Kent State with a Bachelor's degree in Studio Art with a minor in Sculpture and Expanded Media. She is currently pursuing a Master’s of Humanities in Art and Visual Media at Tiffin University.  Alexis is a practicing artist in both Summit and Stark county. She is well versed in all areas of art creation with a focus on 3D work.