ArtHaus Instructors

LEA DONHOWE LOVELACE

DIRECTOR OF LITTLE MASTERS ART STUDIO, CO-DIRECTOR OF ARTHAUS

A Decorah native and a Luther College graduate, Lea has worked in the field of Art Education for over a decade. She has worn various hats including that of a teaching artist working with diverse populations of varied ages; a program director for a not-for-profit community art school; the manager of teacher programs at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago; and an independent contractor/consultant, connecting diverse audience members to museum exhibitions. Lea has her Master of Arts in Art Education from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. In 2007 she moved back to Decorah with her family, a mere two-block commute away from ArtHaus which she co-founded with Kristen Underwood in 2008.

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KRISTEN UNDERWOOD

DIRECTOR OF UPSTART CROW THEATREWORKS, CO-DIRECTOR OF ARTHAUS

Kristen Underwood has been a theatre professional for the past twenty-five years. She earned her BFA from the University of Colorado/Boulder, and her MFA from San Francisco’s American Conservatory Theatre. As an actor and director, Kristen has been involved in over one hundred professional productions for companies around the country, in addition to teaching theatre for CU/Boulder and Luther College, among others. After ten years as a managing Core Artist/Education Director for the Commonweal Theatre, Kristen founded Upstart Crow Theatreworks in 2002 and ArtHaus in 2008.

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KYRA BELLRICHARD

INSTRUCTOR

Kyra recently arrived to Decorah bringing fourteen years of experience working with youth in the fields of art, theatre and outdoor education. From the beaches of Hawaii to the green mountains of Vermont Kyra has been inspired by the variety of opportunities and the people she has met. Outside of ArtHaus, you will find Kyra creating at The Clay Studio, enjoying good company or hanging out with her nieces. Kyra is also the director of the 3rd Annual Oneota Film Festival.

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RACHELLE REIS BRANUM

INSTRUCTOR

Rachelle Branum has been a key ArtHaus instructor since we opened our doors and is now the owner of The Clay Studio on Washington Street. Rachelle is an artist/educator with a degree in Art Education from the University of Northern Iowa. She has experience teaching art in public schools and art centers, and as an artist-in-residence. She has also focused on museum education as a docent at the Minneapolis Institute of Art and is the former Assistant Curator of Education at the Joslyn Art Museum in Omaha, Nebraska. When Rachelle isn't teaching she is making her own work through Wise Owl Designs and Simple Joys Studios.

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ANNA CRENSHAW

INSTRUCTOR

Anna has been an American Sign Language enthusiast for the past six years. While attending MacMurray College, where she earned her Deaf and Hard of Hearing Teacher Education degree, she lived and worked at the Illinois School for the Deaf to build her sign skills on a daily basis. She has completed teaching assignments at the Phoenix Day School for the Deaf and the Wisconsin School for the Deaf, and now works full time for the Decorah School District as the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Educator. She has lived in Decorah for two years.

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SUZANNE ERNST

INSTRUCTOR

Suzanne Ernst taught flute and recorder on the music faculty of Luther College from 2001-2011. She taught and performed on recorder in the Luther College Early Music Ensemble and is a founding member of Dames' Rocket Recorder Quartet which began in 2005. She is a charter member of Quintessence Woodwind Quintet which is now in its 14th year, and taught flute and woodwinds in the Decorah Public Schools from 1994-2002. Suzanne maintains an active private flute/recorder studio in Decorah and has taught flute for over 25 years.

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LINDA ELKINS

INSTRUCTOR

Linda Elkins has a Bachelor of Arts in Education from Eastern Michigan University and a Master of Fine Arts degree in Fiber Arts from Eastern Michigan University. When Linda isn't creating her own artwork she is the Field Placement Director for the Luther College Education Department. Over the years Linda has taught classes in book arts, weaving, 2-D design, papermaking, and mosaics.

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LINDSEY HARMAN

INSTRUCTOR

Lindsey Harman holds an M.F.A. in Theatre Performance from Arizona State University and spends her creative time teaching theatre, voice and jewelry regionally. For the last three years Lindsey has been attending births as a certified Doula and midwives' assistant -- all four components weaving together to comprise Arrival Arts. Lindsey spends most of her time with her husband Andrew and their greatest gifts and creations, Ezra & Shepard.

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LISA LANTZ

INSTRUCTOR

Lisa Lantz is an Associate Professor of Theatre at Luther College. She received a BA in Theatre from University of Northern Iowa and an MFA in Costume Design and Technology from Southern Illinois University at Carbondale. She designs and makes costumes for the mainstage productions in the Theatre/Dance Department and teaches courses such as Design, Costume History, and Theatre History among others. Sometimes, when she's tires of sewing costumes, she sews handbags and occasionally clothes for her little boy, Van.

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PATSY MARTINSON & DEB PAULSON

INSTRUCTORS

Patsy Martinson has been cutting, stitching and decorating cloth since a very young age. She fell in love with various ways to hand-paint and decorate silk, especially the dramatic designs that emerge using the salt technique. Deb Paulson, a self-employed graphic designer and purveyor of fabulous women's clothing, was looking for another creative outlet. Luckily, Patsy showed her silk painting techniques and together they started their own sweat shop (Scarf It Up) and began producing silk scarves to sell to the masses.

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JUNE MELBY

INSTRUCTOR

June grew up in Decorah and then ran off to California where she became a comedian and performance poet. She has written music to accompany her words and performed with a live band in New York, as well as in Europe in London, Munich, Hamburg, and Amsterdam. Returning to Iowa, she received her MFA in Nonfiction from the University of Iowa. Her writing has been published by Water~Stone Review, Versal, McSweeney's Internet Tendency, National Lampoon Magazine, and heard on NPR. She is back in Decorah, and currently working on a memoir about her family's miniature golf course, entitled "Little House on the Astroturf."

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RICHARD MERRITT

INSTRUCTOR

Richard Merritt is Associate Professor of Art at Luther College teaching courses in drawing, graphic arts, and art history, among others. He has worked in many different disciplines and has published in diverse academic journals. Much of his academic research focuses on the historic interactions between the arts, literature, mathematics and science. His own artwork has been exhibited nationally and internationally and he has lectured throughout the United States and Europe.

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UFRA MIR

INSTRUCTOR

Ufra Mir is recent Luther College graduate with a life-long passion for Indian dance. Originally from the Indian-Kashmir region, she founded the college's Ethnic Beats dance group upon arriving at Luther, choreographing, dancing, and teaching "Bollywood" dance to dancers of all levels. She now works as the founding executive director, peace psychologist, and peace trainer for Paigaam-A Message for Peace, a global non-profit organization dedicated to peace-building, which educates and empowers youth through peace training and techniques.

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BEN MOORE

INSTRUCTOR

Ben attended Luther College majoring in Art and receiving his Bachelor of Arts degree in 2002. Studying painting and drawing, with a secondary focus in printmaking, at the University of Iowa, Ben completing his Masters of Arts degree in 2005 and his Masters of Fine Arts in 2006. He also studied printmaking and drawing at the Scuola Internationale de Grafica in Venice, Italy. After teaching as faculty at the University of Iowa and Kirkwood Community College, Ben finds himself full-circle as an Assistant Professor of Art at Luther College teaching painting, drawing, and new media. His work has been exhibited at Arizona State University, Grain Belt Artist Collective in Minneapolis, the Foxtax Gallery Minneapolis, and various other institutions throughout the US.

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AMANDA MORAN

INSTRUCTOR

Amanda Moran is a senior at Luther College majoring in Theatre/Dance. A teacher and student at the Eau Claire School of Dance for several years, she has also organized, directed, and taught fine arts camps and classes in Iowa and Wisconsin, and served as the director of dance at Luther's Dorian Summer Camps. She is interested in weaving together dance and writing, and is currently putting that interest into practice in a research project entitled, "Body of Stories."

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KATE NARVESON

INSTRUCTOR

Kate Narveson wrote her first sonnet for Kevin in fifth grade, and he gave her a mood ring. She now teaches Shakespeare and Renaissance poetry at Luther College. She's published articles on John Donne, one of the greatest English love poets, and has a book coming out soon on ordinary people who become writers in seventeenth-century England.

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ALYSSA RITTER

INSTRUCTOR

Alyssa Ritter is a 2011 graduate of Luther College studying Art and Social Work with a great passion for youth. She loves integrating creative projects into her daily life and work, including photography and making artwork out of recycled and upcycled materials. For several years she served as the art director at summer camp for children in Ferryville, WI. In addition to teaching youth visual art classes, Alyssa also leads the ArtHaus Art for a Cause workshop.

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JOHN SNYDER

INSTRUCTOR

After living in the urban landscape of the Twin Cities for ten years followed by the Blue Ridge Mountains of rural North Carolina, John has found his "golden plot of land" just outside Decorah, in 2007 where he lives and works in his studio. When he is not walking or driving around with his dog Jim, John enjoys listening to (who he claims to be the fab four) the Golden Gate Quartet. For decades artist John Snyder has wanted to find a "golden plot of land" upon which to build a chapel or grotto.

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JIM TRIPP

INSTRUCTOR

Jim has been teaching foreign language since graduating from Luther College in 2004. For the last few years, Jim has strayed from the traditional grammar study method of language learning, opting instead for an approach that seeks to immerse students in compelling, comprehensible language.

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Jeremiah Johnson with student in Paper Mache Madness class

Teaching assistant Ingrid Rotto with a student in Kinderclay class

ARTHAUS TEACHING ASSISTANTS

ArtHaus offers apprenticeships to young adults interested in hands-on teaching experience. We are thrilled to have a talented and creative core of assistants from Luther College and the Decorah community helping our students, and learning under our professional teaching artists. Thank you to Ingrid Rotto, Jeremiah Johnson, Di Yin, Devin Parker, and Allysa Ritter for all your hours of service this year!

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