Hunter Berry - Board President
Mr. Berry is a Reporting Analyst for the Please Touch Museum. Hunter has furthered the Portside’s mission by dedicating his time coordinating fundraising events, giving financial guidance, and building partnerships with local businesses and community groups. Hunter has been an active board member since 2010.
Monica Thompson - Board Member
Since 2014, Monica has helped Portside with annual fundraising events, programs and workshops. Mrs. Thompson is a local resident whose children have participated in Portside’s visual arts, music and volunteer programs since 2013. Monica is employed by the city of Philadelphia as a crossing guard. For over 11 years Monica has volunteered on the parent board at Our Lady of Port Richmond School and helped with many of the school’s fundraising efforts.
Luca Bernabei - Board Member
Luca first came to the Portside Arts Center as a volunteer for the After-School Arts Program. Luca holds a Bachelors degree in biology from Ursinus College and a Masters Degree in Environmental Biology from the University of Pennsylvania. After earning his Masters degree, he worked as a technical consultant for an environmental firm in NJ. Since 2016 he has been working in clinical research for the Abramson Cancer Center at Penn Medicine helping develop new treatments for blood cancers. Luca has lived in the Philadelphia metropolitan area for over 10 years and has developed a strong connection with the city. Volunteering for Portside is a way that Luca can give back to the city he has called home for many years.
Claire Pavlica - Board Member
Claire Pavlica studied art history and studio art at Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut before moving to Philadelphia in 1995. A member of the curatorial team at the National Museum of American Jewish History for over twenty years, Claire especially enjoys working with students and interns and has taught museum collections management graduate courses. Claire has been a Portside parent for five years and joined the board in 2018.
Jenna Wilchinsky - Program Director - Visual Artist
Program Director of the Portside Art Center, Jenna is a graduate of the Pennsylvania Academy of Art's four year certificate program in the Fine Arts; and, holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the University of Pennsylvania. Jenna started working at the Portside in January 2010. Currently Jenna is attending the Arts Administration Master's program at Drexel University.
Kim Creighton - Founding Director - Visual Artist
In 2007, Kim Creighton was on a mission.
A member of the North Philadelphia community since 1989, she had come to realize that the youth in her area lacked the opportunities for productive extracurricular activities and creative outlets.
Kim had a solution. An accomplished mosaic and metal artist, she decided she would found and direct a community arts center, where both children and adults could learn to tap into their innate creative energies.
In 2007, she landed on a old canvas factory in Port Richmond on the corner of Lehigh and Belgrade. From there, turning the building into the dynamic place it is now was an uphill battle. Creighton devoted her full resources to the project and also left a successful career in sales at United Packaging and Shipping in order to pursue her dream. For over 12 years at United Packaging Supply, Kim successfully identified major accounts and prospects, which she had ultimately sold and maintained. Ms. Creighton’s professional and educational experience lay the groundwork for her excellent managerial skills and her ability to lead the Portside Arts Center and the development of their programs.
Ms. Creighton has received art instruction at Fleischer Memorial, Cheltenham Arts Center and privately with well-known Artist, Mary Zaccarian. Kim founded and taught the Mosaics Hands On class at the Portside for seven years before passing the torch. Kim has a unique artistic style, which is based largely on geometric shapes and simple objects. She also enjoys working with several different materials such as metals, glass, tile, wood and paints. In turn, out comes beautiful and breath-taking sculptures, mosaics, floor and wall mirrors. Kim also likes to use found and recycled objects some of which are permanently installed at the Portside.
With her background for business and love for the arts, Ms. Creighton has dedicated her life to running the Portside Arts Center and seeing it become a cornerstone to the community.
A member of the North Philadelphia community since 1989, she had come to realize that the youth in her area lacked the opportunities for productive extracurricular activities and creative outlets.
Kim had a solution. An accomplished mosaic and metal artist, she decided she would found and direct a community arts center, where both children and adults could learn to tap into their innate creative energies.
In 2007, she landed on a old canvas factory in Port Richmond on the corner of Lehigh and Belgrade. From there, turning the building into the dynamic place it is now was an uphill battle. Creighton devoted her full resources to the project and also left a successful career in sales at United Packaging and Shipping in order to pursue her dream. For over 12 years at United Packaging Supply, Kim successfully identified major accounts and prospects, which she had ultimately sold and maintained. Ms. Creighton’s professional and educational experience lay the groundwork for her excellent managerial skills and her ability to lead the Portside Arts Center and the development of their programs.
Ms. Creighton has received art instruction at Fleischer Memorial, Cheltenham Arts Center and privately with well-known Artist, Mary Zaccarian. Kim founded and taught the Mosaics Hands On class at the Portside for seven years before passing the torch. Kim has a unique artistic style, which is based largely on geometric shapes and simple objects. She also enjoys working with several different materials such as metals, glass, tile, wood and paints. In turn, out comes beautiful and breath-taking sculptures, mosaics, floor and wall mirrors. Kim also likes to use found and recycled objects some of which are permanently installed at the Portside.
With her background for business and love for the arts, Ms. Creighton has dedicated her life to running the Portside Arts Center and seeing it become a cornerstone to the community.
Sarah Damiano - Education Director - Visual Artist
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Sarah holds a Bachelors of Fine Arts (BFA) and a Masters of Arts in Teaching (MAT) from the Maryland
Institute College of Art (MICA). She is a Pennsylvania certified art teacher and has worked with children 3-18 in classroom and after school settings. As an artist she works mostly in drawing and printmaking mediums. www.sarahdamiano.com |
Claudia Bokulich - Marketing and Operations Coordinator
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Claudia received her BFA in Painting from Tyler School of Art at Temple University in 2015. She has since taught at various non profit art centers throughout Philadelphia. She lived in Western Colorado where she attended Elsewhere Studios Artist Residency and taught at a local art center there. Claudia continues her own artistic practice as a figurative oil painter.
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Rachel Nevins - Minnows Lead Teacher
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Rachel Nevins is the Lead Minnows Teacher at Portside Arts Center. Since 2014, Rachel has been an assistant teacher for the sharks and minnows during our summer camp and after school programs. She has a Bachelor's degree in Psychology with a minor in Childhood Studies from Stockton University. Rachel has a passion for learning about children’s interactions and what goes on in their minds. Her studies help her guide her students in their creative endeavors.
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Jean Murray - Minnows Assistant Teacher (Monday, Tuesday)
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Since 2012, Jean has had the pleasure of teaching and developing programs at the Portside. At the Portside Jean teaches inbound and outbound after-school arts programs as well as their full-day summer arts camp. Jean has taught craft classes for children and adults for over 10 years and has worked with teens in therapeutic painting class. Jean's always encourages her students to talk about what they have made and how they feel while they are creating art. When Jean is not teaching others she is working in her artist studio located in Bridesburg Philadelphia. She is an abstract painter, paper and paper collage artist.
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Christopher Windle - Minnows Assistant Teacher (Wednesday - Friday)
Sharks Assistant Teacher (Monday, Tuesday)
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Chris Windle is a practicing artist and community mentor. Chris attended the Tyler School or Art where he studied painting and worked several years as a studio assistant for local sculptor Zenos Frudakis. Chris served as a Rec Leader in the Philadelphia Department of Parks and Recreation for 13 years before retiring this past May.
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Natasha Mell Taylor - Sharks Lead Teacher
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Natasha is the Sharks Lead Teacher. Natasha received her BFA from Moore College of Art and her MFA from Massachusetts College of Art and Design. She has taught art education for over 10 years in various teaching settings. Natasha was the Executive Director at NL Arts from 2015 to 2019 where she developed and implemented various art programs. She has led an array of art classes at Fleisher Art Memorial and served as After School Program Teacher at Friends Select School. Natasha is excited to share her experience and passion for the arts with the Portside Sharks.
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Gabby Gnoza - Sharks Assistant Teacher (Wednesday - Friday)
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Gabby is an Assistant Teacher for the Sharks Classroom. Gabby has been teaching for 5 years and has worked with children ages 2-12. She enjoys working with children because they brighten her day. Gabby is a professional make-up artist and hairstylist and she uses her creative energies to inspire the children at Portside to create works of art.
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Jesa Minnick - Pirates Lead Teacher
Stained Glass and Mosaics Teacher
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Jesa Minnick is a Philadelphia based artist that gains inspiration from biological processes and human relationships. She is interested in collaboration, and creates visual art in multiple media, including: paper, glass, wood, metal, paint, digital works, and video projections. She studied at Millersville University for Art Education and PAFA for sculpture. Jesa has taught various classes at Portside including Mosaics, Stained Glass, Teen Portfolio Building, and Summer Arts Studio. Last year Jesa led the Pirates during the month of March as a Teaching Artist in Residence where she introduced students to sound art and site based instillation. Jesa’s Teaching style is choice-based, with emphasis on the students pushing boundaries of the medium.
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Joseph Whitfield - Pirates Assistant Teacher
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Joseph specializes in creative problem solving and visual storytelling with a focus on community-centered projects, multi-media art, and improvisational design. Since graduating from VCU with a degree in sculpture, he has worked with many diverse institutions across the arts, non-profit, and educational sectors including the VMFA, VisArts, Gallery5, Scrap USA, and Yes! And...Collaborative Arts. As a creative consultant and art educator, he has led activities covering a variety of 2D and 3D processes in an effort to help expand individual's communicative capacity, incite imagination, and battle threats to possibility!
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John Price - Upholstery Teacher
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John Price has over 35 years of experience with upholstery. Before going out on his own, John worked for Regent Upholstery in Old City, Philadelphia under, Isreal Kurman for 20 years. Now John has established his own Upholstery shop in Philadelphia where he specializes in bringing old furniture back to life. Aside from refurbishing the old, Mr. Price can build beautiful custom pieces from scratch. John will work with you to create your own design from the first stitch to the last staple! He can bring furniture back from the heap next to the hearth. www.JohnPriceUpholstery.com
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Kelsie Lilly - Creative Placemaking Art Partner with NKCDC
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Kelsie Lilly is a teaching artist who has been involved with the Portside Arts Center since 2014. She holds a Bachelor's Degree in Fine Arts from West Virginia University, as well as certificates of teaching from institutes such as the Barnes Foundation. Kelsie uses her art - and the artwork of her students- to spread visual messages that question environmental awareness and advocate for cultural diversity. "I wish to illustrate for our future world the current perspective of our society from the Philadelphian point-of-view." Kelsie is the visual art instructor at St. Laurentius Catholic School, a creative placemaking art partner for the NKCDC with NeighborWorks America, a scenic designer for high school musical productions, as well as the co-owner of ifacepaint.
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