Instructor Roster

Renato was born in Italy and transplanted yearly till 1999. He currently lives in Wilmington and loves the port city. He is always looking for ways to push his work further using mixed media and clay. Innovation is his inspiration.

is a painter and printmaker living in Wlimington, North Carolina. He holds an MFA from UNCGreensboro (1995), where he studied under Walter Barker, William Collins and John Maggio. Benjamin Billingsley has exhibited work in the Southeastern United States as well as in Estonia and Russia – Ben has work forthcoming in a woodcut print exhibition in Kyoto, Japan, March-April 2011.

Ben works in a neo-expressionist mode, focusing on figurative and landscape subjects. He favors acrylic paint, and usually paints with a palette knife. A wide selection of his work can be viewed on his website http://benjaminbillingsley.com/home.

Along with teaching in the Museum School at Cameron Art Museum, Carignan teaches art to children at Dreams of Wilmington. He judged the 2013 Azalea Festival Art Show and the 2014 NC Silver Arts Fine Art Competition, both in Wilmington, NC. He exhibits regularly at Artfuel, Inc., The Occasional Art Gallery and The Wabi Sabi Warehouse, all located in Wilmington, as well as Manifestationz, in Cary, NC, and the Howl Gallery, in Fort Myers, FL.

Growing up in Western New York, Janice lived above her family’s tavern. While there was a lot of activity around her, she was often bored and would amuse herself by drawing for hours while sitting at the restaurant’s dining room table. Over time, this became a passion of hers, and Janice went on to earn a bachelor’s degree from Empire State College in Illustration and Graphic Design. While raising her family, Janice taught art classes and freelanced for companies like Random House, American Greetings and Modern Publishing. Later, she joined Fisher Price and created the look of hundreds of Little People figures and play sets, including Disney. She loved her job, but her true passion has always been watercolor. Janice finds the colors and flowing textures exciting. She also likes a good challenge and remains determined to master a medium that many find to be the most difficult. The subjects of her paintings are typically found in the natural world.

A North Carolina native, she earned an MAEd. in Visual Art at East Carolina University and taught in North and South Carolina schools. Ultimately, she started a long career teaching in international schools around the world. She credits the International Baccalaureate Curriculum with broadening her knowledge, her passion and skill in teaching. Along the way to retirement, she has participated in joint shows and won awards in large-scale sculpture and recognition for her textile art in batik and weaving. Her greatest pleasure as a teacher is helping students to see the uniqueness of their art and find joy and confidence in their creativity.

Melony is an Arts Educator and Fiber Artist residing on the NC Coast.
Having graduated from Appalachian State University and UNCW Watson School of Education, she is the Visual Art Teacher at Carolina Beach Elementary and an active exhibitor at local Art Markets. She specializes in Wall Hangings and Art to Wear using hand woven natural fibers, beads and wood block printed textiles.
Her textile designs have been featured in numerous galleries and museums across the Southeast. In the Fall of 2024 she will be an exhibitor in a two person show at the MC Erny Gallery at WHQR featuring her Wall Hangings and Contemporary Furniture Designs by her fellow exhibitor.

is a lifelong photographer. Alan picked up his first camera while in high school, carried it with him through a career in the US Coast Guard and has had one nearby ever since. While in the Coast Guard, he performed Public Affairs work as well as providing news, editorial and documentarian photography. Alan has provided photographic services for several local and national non-profits and worked as a photojournalist. With his own photography business, he has done portraits, weddings, product and industrial photography as well as nature and fine art photography in Southeastern North Carolina.

Carolyn attended Ringling College of Art and Design, received her Bachelors and Masters degree from East Carolina University, then furthered her studies in Taiwan, Japan, and France. She was recognized in the Washington, DC area as a surrealistic painter and for her teaching program for both children and adults. She has continued her artistic and teaching path since moving to Wilmington several years ago. Carolyn has been selected to exhibit her work in many juried national and international exhibitions by well-known artists and curators. Her works are in private collections nationally and in France. Faulkner feels it very important to find and nurture the creative side of each student. She tries to help them see things in a different way in order to approach the world with an open and seeing mind. Faulkner believes the combination of a strong foundation in technique and creativity contributes to one’s total art experience.

grew up in the Piedmont region of North Carolina and studied painting at UNC-Charlotte. After graduating she worked as a textile artist for many years, designing woven fabrics for the Home Furnishings Industry.

Evelyn has a lifelong interest in working with diverse artistic mediums. The result is an eclectic artistic journey and a wide range of skills. This quest to learn and explore sparks her creativity and is a source of inspiration. Evelyn’s 3-D work consists of carved and painted gourds and recently, hand-built ceramics.  For the last four years, she was selected to participate in the annual Airlie Gardens Art Exhibit. Each year ten oversized fiberglass sculptures are painted by local artists and displayed throughout the gardens. She also enjoys  painting with oil and acrylic paint and creates mixed media pieces by sculpting paper clay to achieve a bas relief effect. Creating Ukrainian eggs is one of her passions and she loves this meditative process.

Evelyn is a member of the Wilmington Art Association and the Art League of Leland and participates in exhibitions throughout the Cape Fear region.

initially went to Arizona State for an undergraduate in photography, but switched gears to focus on ceramics. She fell in love with clay when she lived in Arizona and learned and explored the Native American cultures and pottery. Her focus is now on hand-building and functional pottery and ceramics. NC has a long and strong history of clay and pottery, and Shannon is always searching for ways to learn about its place in her life. She enjoys passing that passion on to others that want to learn how to incorporate it into their lives.

“Most of my paintings reflect a moment in time where the immediate impression captures my emotions and sense of design. I assess the composition, the values, the proportions and color, then I paint, all the while trying to maintain the initial feeling that drew me to paint the particular landscape, person or still life. ” She pursued a degree in Art Education, then followed careers in human services and higher education, and received a Masters in Public Administration. Joanne teaches courses in Wilmington, NC and conducts workshops for many organizations. Her paintings have won numerous awards in juried shows and are held in personal and corporate collections.

Amy Gibson, b. 1976 in Alliance Ohio. She is best known for her rich color and tonal hyperrealistic portraits that portray the complexities of the human condition. Drawing inspiration from people she is closest to; she creates oil paintings that capture their quirkiness, sarcasm, hope, neurosis, and ways they view and interpret everyday life and their environment. Amy earned her B.F.A in Painting at the University of Akron and is currently teaching at the Cameron Art Museum and Cape Fear Community College. She is represented by PoetsArtists and 33Contemporary Gallery in Chicago. Six of her works are archived for the moon as part of the Lunar Codex Project. Her artwork has been featured in American Art Collector Magazine, she has shown in PTFN at the Wausau Museum of Contemporary Art, and is Internationally collected.

Nominated for The Pushcart Prize, Best Small Fictions, and The Millions, Dina Greenberg’s poetry, fiction, essays, and articles have appeared widely in literary journals, anthologies, and peer-reviewed journals, both in the U.S. and the U.K. Her work facilitating creative writing workshops for combat veterans and military families precipitated Nermina’s Chance, her forthcoming novel (Oct. 29, 2021 with Atmosphere Press). Dina earned an MFA in fiction from the University of North Carolina Wilmington, where I served as managing editor for the literary journal Chautauqua. She facilitates writing workshops here at the CAM, and across expanding avenues of the World Wide Web. Find her at dinagreenberg.com.

After many years as a fashion illustrator and sportswear designer, Jeri turned her love of graphic design towards advertising for a while. Having time to devote herself to painting again – and falling in love with the pastel medium – has led to a new and interesting “next act” as full time painter and teacher. Feeling that “pastels are an immediate tool to express feelings” and the the perfect way to both “make the ordinary extraordinary” and tell stories in her paintings, Jeri works to constantly get a deeper understanding of this wonderful medium. With her background in illustration, Jeri helps her students get a strong drawing foundation down behind their color work. Jeri loves painting still life, urban interiors, figures and fabrics, and the occasional landscape.

is an award-winning author and arts journalist. She is also a Contributing Editor with Narratively Magazine. She has served as a PEN in the Community Writer in Residence while her written work has appeared in The New York Times, the Saatchi Gallery, Vice, Playboy, Brevity and more. Kenney earned a B.A. in Communications at American University and an MFA in Creative Writing from UNCW and has been a writing instructor with the UCLA Extension Writers Program since 2007.

Brooks Koff has been creating stained glass mosaic piece for over 20 years!  Her work can be found at Art in Bloom Gallery downtown as well in Airlie Gardens Bottle Chapel. Whether working on windows or 3-D sculptures her pieces are vivid unique and colorful!

September Krueger is the Director of Lifelong Learning at the CAM. She has taught a variety of studio classes and art history courses in higher education, and has worked with youth as a teaching artist in our public schools. Her primary medium is textiles, and she holds an MFA in Textiles from ECU.

began her love of art education as an intern at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. She went on to study studio art and art history at Bard College in upstate New York. Her work has been featured in group exhibitions in upstate, NY, Montreal and Wilmington. Since moving to Wilmington in 2005, she has been an art instructor at SOLA, the Racine Arts Center and Dreams. She began her work at Cameron Art Museum as the youth educator in 2006 and is now the Deputy Director.

is a passionate ceramics artist and dedicated instructor hailing from Wilmington, NC. With a creative spirit that knows no bounds, Anne’s work extends far beyond her studio walls. Through her outreach art programs in the community, she engages with children, fostering their artistic talents and encouraging self-expression through art.

The coastal landscape and sea creatures inspire Susan’s artwork, as do photos taken during her travels. In addition to teaching oil, acrylic, encaustic painting, and sculpture classes, Susan conducts lectures with Cameron Art Museum and serves on the Board of Directors for the Carolina Beach Mural Project. Susan has won numerous awards regionally and nationally, and her paintings are in public and private collections worldwide.

discovered her passion for art 20 years ago, and has been experimenting with mixed media ever since. She owned an art school and has taught in a variety of settings. Loulie is currently painting commissioned portraits and working toward an MFA in Fine Arts from the Academy of Art in San Francisco. A lifelong animal advocate, Loulie uses her art as a way to raise funds and awareness for animal rescue.

is an award-winning artist whose career spans the creative spectrum. Versatile in all media, her work is inspired by nature and a love for travel. Kirah is passionate about the connective power of art. She values and encourages exploration and expression of the individual voice. Kirah’s education includes undergraduate study in biology and art, a Masters in Medical Illustration, and an MFA in Painting.

Abby’s art is inspired by our biological world. Through studio practice and conceptual thought, she gives visual form to current ecological issues. Abby holds a BFA and MFA in Painting from East Carolina University.

is the author of Touching The Art: A guide to Enjoying Art at an Art Museum. He received his B.A. in Art History from the University of Memphis. Since 2005, he has taught and created curriculum in art appreciation and literature for students of all levels. Along with teaching in the classroom and online, Luc has shared his passion for art through tours at dozens of museums all over the country.

is an artist who uses her knowledge and experience with her practice to create within the realms of both interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary components for outcomes that focus on environmental and social issues, traditional fine craft and sustainability. She has a clear purpose in building and crossing bridges among the arts with a deep focus and balance between artistic practice, teaching, activism and invitation for participation.
Catherine has spent her life’s work developing arts curriculum and arts education opportunities for all ages, abilities and socio-economic backgrounds in all mediums of the visual arts in the Southeast United States. She is honored to have solid experiences rooted in museum education, rural advancement, non-profit arts organizations and community outreach and organization. Experiences with mediums that provide engagement with nature, processes and elements of surprise like ceramics, papermaking, printmaking and surface design techniques for fiber arts and textiles are experiences Catherine connects with during her personal art making most. Catherine is a practicing and exhibiting artist from North Carolina.

is a full time artist who has lived in Wilmington since 1988 following an installation exhibit titled Aquarium at St. John’s Museum of Art in 1987. His aquatic creatures can be seen in many public settings including The North Carolina Aquariums at Fort Fisher and Pine Knoll Shores and Schooling fish at three branches of the New Hanover County Public Libraries. He has spent the last twenty years at ACME Art. In the past few years Van Hout’s subject matter has expanded to include large scale animals and the human form.

received a Bachelor of Fine Arts with a concentration in drawing from the State University of New York at Purchase and a Master of Architecture from New Jersey Institute of Technology. She worked in Architecture for several years while teaching drawing at night through Wake Technical Community College in Raleigh, NC before transitioning to focus solely on teaching and her personal art. She went on to teach drawing at a small private art school in Norman, Oklahoma as well as college level Drawing and Art Appreciation at Oklahoma City Community College. Her artwork has been exhibited in shows in New Jersey, North Carolina, and Oklahoma. Currently a Teaching Artist at Cameron Art Museum in Wilmington, NC; Antoinette has a desire to foster a love for the arts in others while encouraging and inspiring her students to discover and develop their artistic abilities. The artist specializes in drawing, watercolor, and printmaking. Both nature and personal subjects are intertwined in Antoinette’s work.

has been a professional illustrator and fine artist for over 30 years. Weber’s work has appeared in Rolling Stone Magazine, The New York Times, and The Wall Street Journal. He has illustrated numerous children’s books and creates custom comics from his ACME Arts, downtown Wilmington, NC, studio.

Heather Wilson is CAM’s Executive Director. A writer and an arts administrator, Heather holds a MFA in Creative Writing from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington. She has a background in the publishing industry and was the founding editor of Ecotone, as well as a senior editor of Chautauqua. She is a certified expressive writing facilitator and has studied writing and health at the Duke Center for Integrative Medicine.

grew up in northeastern NC and came to Wilmington in 1984 after completing her MFA in Ceramics at ECU. She served as the first Curator of Education at St. John’s Museum of Art and then joined the art faculty at UNCW where she taught courses in design, painting and mixed media for 14 years. “After working abstractly in mixed media collage for many years, I have returned to my first love which was painting in oils in a representational manner.” Her works are included in public and private collections including the permanent collection of the Cameron Art Museum.