Drawing Teachers

ACTONART fosters the relationships of learning and growth, challenge and esteem-building, creativity and expression, experimentation and risk, accomplishment and pride. Learning to "draw" only scratches the surface of what students experience at ActonArt each week. Learning a process, developing a plan, maintaining concentration, coping with "mistakes" and creating artwork are daily experiences for drawing students.

Drawing and creating art are very personal experiences. That means the people who teach it must have skill, vision and empathy. The condensed biographies below barely hint at the richness and commitment that these individuals offer to ActonArt students every day in their studio classes.

We could fill a book with glowing adjectives describing our teachers. They ARE the quality in our programs. They bring remarkable energy and creative inspiration with them every day. They learn about every student in the classes and consider each and every one's needs to ensure they are both learning and engaged. Many of us had fantastic art teachers when we were young. We want your children to feel the same way when they are grown.

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Tracy

Tracy Reed — Tracy has been teaching at ActonArt since 2003. She is a skilled artist and a committed teacher. Prior to moving to Acton from New Jersey, Tracy worked in marketing and design for ArtGrafix, Inc. She also offered her own children's art program which she designed and taught. Today Tracy is involved in enrichment programs, sits on community boards, has worked as a teaching assistant in the Acton public schools and volunteers for countless activities, all in addition to the hours that she spends at ActonArt helping children learn to draw and develop fine art skills.

Roxanne

Roxanne Vanslette — Roxanne joined us in 2006 and is the Head Instructor at ActonArt. She's a highly skilled artist specializing in graphite and pastel portraiture. She has years of experience teaching art, crafts, and art history in a variety of programs. Roxanne is a certified Art Teacher in Massachusetts with a B.S. in Art Education and has worked in both public and private schools. Roxanne embraces the arts with a desire to learn all she can and share the knowledge with her students. She is also the driving force behind our Manga program and our advanced drawing classes like Faces, Features and Figures. Examples of Roxanne's own artwork can be seen here.

Julie

Julie McAskill — Julie began teaching at ActonArt in 2010. She is a professional artist working primarily in oil paint and an MFA graduate of the Massachusetts College of Art and Design. She regularly exhibits in local shows including the Brickbottom Gallery in Somerville, 1581 Gallery in Brookline, and the Somerville Museum. She has also shown in various parts of the county as well as the Pompidou Center in Paris. Julie's web site is here.

Chris

Chris Parent — Chris is a graduate of Monserrat College in Beverly, MA. He is a skilled illustrator and sculptor capable of working in a variety of subjects and mediums. Years ago Chris developed many of his current skills as a young Manga artist and today contributes his own knowledge and experience to our Manga 1 and 2 classes. His background with polymer clay as a sculpting medium has also made it possible for us to offer a sculpting workshop recently (with more to follow hopefully!). Chris is also a certified Art teacher in Massachusetts. His web site is here.

Joanne

Joanne Leunig Goodnough — Joanne oversees the business side of ActonArt. She is a Massachusetts CPA with a Masters Degree in Accounting. She has worked at Arthur Andersen, Avid Technology, and most recently EMC where she was a senior Finance Manager. She IS the sole left brained leader among us with the skill to make ActonArt work.

John

John Goodnough — John is the founder/owner/director of ActonArt, a teaching artist who is passionate in his belief that drawing is a life-skill that everyone can and should learn. He spent the early part of his career after graduating from Rochester Institute of Technology's College of Imaging Arts and Sciences working first as a biomedical photographer/illustrator, and then as a commercial Art Director and designer. In 2003, John combined his artistic talents, scientific interests, and natural teaching ability with Joanne's business knowledge and experience to create and offer the unique ActonArt Drawing School program.