Episode 287 - Leah Houghtaling

About Kayden: I'm Kayden! I'm a coffee-fueled and dad-joke-filled creative. I'm a fan of spreadsheets, climbing the occasional mountain, iced coffee (year round!), anything wood-related, and don't even get me STARTED on sushi. ​ I graduated from the nationally accredited Graphic Design program at the College of Saint Rose with a BFA. Throughout my career as a Graphic Designer, I worked in an agency, a newsroom, and on marketing teams for global companies, which gives me a strong sense of designing for a wide variety of industries.   Throughout my career as a craftsman, I have worked in flooring production, construction, a cabinet shop, and a countertop/table production shop. These experiences give me the skills and problem-solving capabilities that allow me to bring your vision to life with tangible materials. ​ My wide breadth of experience has given me the foundation to methodically apply what I have learned to my design, woodworking and signmaking processes. Attention to detail, problem-solving, and considering how people will interact with the final product are a few things I take into account when working on projects.​   Follow along with Kayden on his Website  or Instagram.

About Leah Houghtaling My woodworking and art have always grown out of functional needs combined with my desire to be in motion. Each piece I create explores the natural lines and contours of the wood, allowing it to come alive with textures, lines, colors, and shadows.  I use sustainably harvested local wood and non-toxic finishes to make art and custom furniture for homes and businesses. You may find her on her Website and on Instagram.

About Joy: I am honored to participate in the long history of creativity in the community of Santa Ana, California. From my shop downtown, I make commissioned pieces for my clients and forge objects that are entirely my own. While blacksmithing is my foundational practice, I also incorporate other mediums. Film photography, cinefilm, and stained glass, are all mediums I have explored to complement and support my work at the forge. I am also a teacher and consider that part of my work as an artist as well. I am a Certified Instructor with the California Blacksmith Association, a Certified Welder with the American Welding Society, a Community Education Instructor in blacksmithing and bronze casting, and a Welding Instructor at Orange Coast College. Also, I am also on the Governance Committee for the nonprofit Society of Inclusive Blacksmiths which provides opportunities, visibility, and economic support for marginalized communities in the field of blacksmithing. You can follow along with Joy on Instagram.

Laura Kishimoto is a designer/maker living in Denver and a graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design. She was initially drawn to furniture design because it occupies a unique position between the fields of fine art and design. Furniture can both exist as a product, addressing a specific need, or as a stand alone sculptural object. And in both cases, a user/viewer is necessary to complete the piece of furniture: whether to give it function by physically engaging with it or to give it meaning by imbuing it with their emotional narrative. Laura's creative process is defined by a constant balancing act between her intentions as a designer and the will of the material. With each piece, Laura strives to create a spatially complex, cohesive object that appears to have formed organically without human intervention. You can see her Yumi chair at the Denver Art Museum. You can follow along with her on Instagram. 

TINA TANG, CO-FOUNDER & CEO Tina is a systems engineer with graduate training in machine learning and computer vision from the University of Virginia. Prior to graduate school, she was an associate manager at Accenture focused on software product design and delivery. She has a background in art and generally loves visualization - from data viz to design to drawing and painting.  ABOUT US   Bristles, Inc. is a startup based in Durham, North Carolina. Our mission is to build creativity-enabling products that harness the insight of artificial intelligence to deliver powerful functionality as delightful, easy-to-use tools for visualizing ideas. Because sometimes, words aren't enough. We’re inspired by a classic creative tool: the paintbrush. It enables the artist to focus on illustrating their creative vision. All the while, thousands of tiny bristles are working to apply paint evenly and smoothly. In our products, we pack the power into the bristles, so you can focus on the rewarding, creative bits of your work.  Our first product is a mobile app for designing home DIY & upcycling projects. These transformations are massive creative undertakings, so we're empowering DIYers and Upcyclers to visualize, build on, and share their ideas.    You can find Bristles AI in the Apple store and Google Play store, or directly HERE. Become a patron of the podcast HERE.

Born and raised in Tennessee, Elizabeth showed great promise in both the arts and mathematics. She first specialized in engineering, earning an M.S. in civil engineering from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville and working in several engineering jobs. In 2012, she moved to Seattle, WA, and in 2015 decided to nurture her artistic side through woodworking. Her first creations included several pieces of furniture in the Arts & Crafts style, but she eventually turned to smaller objects and now specializes in bowls, spoons, and boxes. Her skills range from natural finish and simple forms to highly carved and painted forms that emulate natural motifs. She is the AAW's 2023 POP Artist Showcase recipient, and teaches woodturning at the Pratt Fine Arts Center in Seattle, WA and the John C. Campbell Folk School in Brasstown, NC. She serves as program director and Women in Turning liaison for the Seattle Woodturners Club. You can follow along with Elizabeth on Instagram.  Become a patron of the podcast HERE.

Tanya Nixon-Silberg (she/her) is a Black mother, native Bostonian, educator, puppeteer and founder of Little Uprisings- an organization focused on centering artivism, racial justice, and liberation with kids. Her primary artistic identities lie in puppetry and storytelling and her work moves through the lens of liberation in Black identities focusing on body remembrances of childhood and joy. Her puppetry productions and creative research have been funded by The Jim Henson Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts,Puppet Showplace Theater, Boston Cultural Council and The Boston Foundation. Tanya’s large-scale community-driven artistry has been exhibited at many Greater Boston institutions including the ICA, Massachusetts College of Art and Design, Peabody Essex Museum, and Fuller Craft Museum. She is currently in a multi-year partnership with Boston and Brookline Public Schools leading anti-bias/anti-racism professional learning and curriculum development. Tanya is also the co-leader of the Un-ADULT-erated Black Joy Collective with other Black mothers in Boston, and co-producer of Play for Change with the Gottabees. You will mostly find Tanya playing and learning from her 10-year-old, groaning from her husband's puns and imagining how we all get free together. You may find information on Tanya's upcoming public art installation here. You can follow along with Tanya on Instagram.

Katrice Kelly is an interdisciplinary artist, MFA Painting and Drawing student attending the University of Iowa. She has been making art her entire life. Katrice’s more realistic works have been influenced by dream studies and rest ministries. Fibers are the main materials used to create tactile and comforting paintings. Her goal is to create work that feels familiar for everyone. You can follow Katrice and her work on Instagram.  You can follow along with the podcast on Instagram.

Olivia Jade Juarez is a multi-disciplinary artist, designer, and fabricator located in Chicago. She recently managed the Metalworking and Forging Department at Chicago Industrial Arts & Design Center in Rogers Park, with past experience at the Anderson Ranch Arts Center in Colorado and Vivian Beer Studio Works in New Hampshire. Juarez attended high school at the Waldorf School in Rogers Park, and earned her BFA from Alfred University in New York. Her current studio practice ranges from digital design, sewing, felting, forging and metal fabrication. You can follow along with Olivia and her work on Instagram. You can follow along with the podcast on Instagram.

Gabs Conway is a sculptural ceramic artist based in Missoula Montana. Having grown up in Missoula, she was excited to return - as she relentlessly considers it home - after earning her BFA at the University of Wisconsin – Stout. Her work stems from the playful, mundane experiences of living. She explores relationships, such as that of siblings, friends, and lovers. Interested in creating forms for the reflection of human experience; asking the viewer to consider their appreciation of life, and to humble the adornment of our physicality. She remains curious of the inherent biological responses of living, and what it means to exist together in an ever changing world. You can follow Gabs and her work on Instagram and her Website. Follow along with the podcast on Instagram.