Faculty & Staff
Karen Ami is passionate about facilitating collaborations, sharing knowledge and an informed understanding of mosaic art. and continues to be an ambassador for the school and the art form. In addition to establishing and leading CMS for 18 years, she is a curator, lecturer and practitioner and is currently pursuing a PhD in Creative Studies. MFA, School of the Art Institute of Chicago, BFA, The Boston Museum School/Tufts University. She has exhibited in over 24 countries and her works can be found in many public and private collections.
Founder & Executive Director
Karen Ami
Faculty
Martha Crandall
Faculty Chair
Martha received her BFA from Rhode Island School of Design. And is the director of Studio B Mosaic Design. Martha has been included in many local gallery exhibitions and her work was included in “Beneath The Surface” National Juried Exhibition in 2006, in Chicago. Her work can be seen around the Chicago area: a water feature at the Weisman Park Playlot in Lakeview, the entryway at Steep Theatre in Edgewater, New Life Covenant Church in Humboldt Park, and the Blind Rehab Center at the VA Hospital in Hines, IL. She is one of the initial faculty members of CMS with a specialty in Glass on Glass mosaics.
Sue Giannotti
Certification Director
Sue Giannotti is a graduate of Washington University in St. Louis, MO and has been affiliated with CMS since the school opened in 2005. She is the Director of the CMS Certification Program and is one of the most sought-after mosaic art instructors in the United States. She is the founder of Mosaic Opus Studio, in St. Louis, Missouri, where she creates public, private, and liturgical commissions as well as her own fine art work. Sue’s mosaics have been shown both in both national and international exhibitions. She was a juror of the Pictor Immaginarius Exhibition in Nazzano, Italy, and her work resides in businesses, institutions, and residences in the US, Italy, and France. As a teacher and artist, her passion is honoring and sharing the ancient words and time-tested techniques of the mosaic medium in a modern artistic voice.
Etty Hasak
Principal Faculty
Born in Tel Aviv, Israel, Etty completed her army service in the Israeli Defense Force and shortly after enrolled in the College of the Arts in Ramat Hasharon, Israel, graduating in 1986. Following graduation, Etty went on to manage an Art gallery for two years while also working in picture framing.
In 1989 Etty moved with her family to Los Angeles where she worked and then managed a frame store that specialized in high end custom made gold leafed frames. She continued to build her career in picture framing here in Chicago and opened a framing/ art studio business in Israel in 1995. It was in 1998 when she took her first clay class, which would become a huge part of her artist practice.
Etty was first introduced to mosaic arts in 2006. Falling in love with this medium, her work evolved as she gained more knowledge and experience merging ceramics and mosaic studies– resulting in numerous commissioned works throughout Chicago. Since finding the Chicago Mosaic School, Etty has participated in numerous shows and exhibitions in GOCM, the Museum of Biblical Art in Dallas, San Francisco, and most recently, the Society of American Mosaic Artists (SAMA).
Sue Coombs
Principal Faculty
Sue Coombs has been associated with the Chicago Mosaic School since 2006, as a student as well as an educator. Sue’s interest in glass and mosaic art began in 1980 as a custom stained glass artist. Her mosaic work has been included in national and local exhibitions, Ms. Coombs work has been featured in several international arts publications. Sue’s passion for leading students to find their own voice expressed in mosaic, has enhanced her own work as an artist. While working with After School Matters, Sue guided teens to design and fabricate several largescale mosaics in and around the Chicago area.
Casey Van Loon
Principal Faculty
Casey Van Loon is a mosaic and glass artist who creates works of various sizes, from large windows or wall hangings to intricate mosaic jewelry. As an instructor at The Chicago Mosaic School since 2012, Casey teaches a range of courses for all levels, including the After School Matters Program. Previously working as a stained glass artist for over 20 years her work includes numerous historical and original projects including the restoration of the Tiffany Dome at the Chicago Cultural Center, St. Patrick’s Cathedral [New York], and the world’s largest exterior glass mosaic at Tousaint Village [San Diego]. Van Loon’s original work has been featured in numerous galleries nationwide, most recently and the Gallery of Contemporary Mosaics in Chicago and the Museum of Biblical Arts [Dallas].
Lydia Shepard
Principal Faculty
Lydia is a graduate of the University of Vermont with a Bachelor of Arts in English and Studio Arts. Since moving to Chicago six years ago, she has been active in the arts in a variety of ways, including as a contributing writer for an online arts publication, curating and preparating for art galleries, large-scale public art, community outreach, and fundraising for nonprofit arts organizations. Since being introduced to mosaic arts, she has studied in Ravenna, Italy, and is currently a CMS Certification student. Her knowledge and skills in mosaics are constantly evolving, and she is so excited to be part of a community full of other incredibly talented artists.
Laura Marie Sanchez
Core Faculty
Laura Marie is a long-time student, volunteer, and friend of CMS. Her work has been recently featured in the Gallery of Contemporary Mosaics 2017 exhibition “Cuyler’s Last Stand.” She currently acts as an open studio monitor for CMS and teaches the Groupon Mosaic Basics Workshop in rotation with other core faculty.
T.J. Hine
Teaching Artist
After retiring from a 30-year career as a commercial food photographer, T. J. Hine began pursing other creative interests, including woodworking and jewelry making. He started taking classes at the Chicago Mosaic School in 2016 and continues to take classes and workshops in all aspects of the mosaic arts. He designs and sells his handcrafted picture frames and jewelry in boutiques and local art shows. T. J. has been a volunteer open studio monitor for the past five years. Currently he teaches the Groupon Mosaic Basics Workshop in rotation with other teaching artists.
Karen Germain
Teaching Artist
Karen has been studying with CMS for several years and her work has been recently exhibited in the Gallery of Contemporary Mosaics student exhibition “Class Act 2022". Currently she teaches the Groupon Mosaic Basics Workshop in rotation with other core faculty.
Teaching Artist
Cassandra Schifano
Cassandra graduated from the University of Notre Dame, with her Master of Fine Arts in Sculpture. She earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee with a double major of Ceramics & Fiber Arts. Her practice focuses on textile processes as a sculptural medium to explore intergenerational trauma and memory. Cassandra discovered her love of teaching during her graduate program where she taught sculpture & fibers courses. She continues to teach classes in and around the Chicago area and is currently the instructor for the After School Matters program.
Ashley Samson
Core Faculty
Ashley is a long-time community member who has supported CMS in a number of roles, including as an instructor and administrative assistant. Currently she works as an art therapist and continues to teach the Groupon Mosaic Basics Workshop.
Brenda Montanile
Core CMS Faculty at Bethany Arts Community in New York
Brenda L. Montanile is a mosaic artist and teacher residing in Puerto Rico, where she founded a nonprofit organization which has been developing and creating community-based mosaic projects and educational workshops since 2011. As a student of The Chicago Mosaic School since 2012, she has completed its full program of workshops. Brenda has participated in both juried and invitational shows in galleries in Puerto Rico, the Gallery of Contemporary Mosaics in Chicago, Bethany Arts Community in New York, and Mosaic Arts International.
Staff
Lucy Senner
Administrative Arts Director
Lucy Senner has been instrumental in creating the growth and development of CMS over the last five years. She is passionate about the arts and has a deep drive toward administration and support for art organizations through collaboration and community service. She is co-curator of GoCM and facilitates outreach and programming through our curriculum.
Sarah Lewis
Communications Director
Sarah graduated in 2016 from Kendall College of Art and Design in Grand Rapids, Michigan. She received her B.S. in Art History and minored in studio arts focusing in ceramics. She moved to Chicago in 2017 to join the diverse artist community here. She strives to combine her love of art historical practices with contemporary art creation.
Micaela Petkus
Administrative Arts Assistant/Teaching Artist
Micaela is a Chicago-based multi-disciplinary artist, creating and selling original artworks and commissioned pieces.
She received her B.A. in Fine Arts from Columbia College Chicago in 2022. Born and raised on the South-side of Chicago, Micaela is now a part of the vibrant Edgewater community. She intends for art to be her gateway to philanthropy to intertwine her passion for art, healing and connection.
She works as the Administrative Arts Assistant for The Chicago Mosaic School & The Gallery of Contemporary Mosaics and teaches Workshops through the Chicago Mosaic School.
Visiting Artists
Verdiano Marzi
Verdiano Marzi became a master mosaicist after studying at the Academy of Fine Arts in his hometown of Ravenna, the cradle of Byzantine Paleochristian mosaics (4th – 5th century AD). Master Renato Signorini had a workshop in Ravenna, and Marzi soon joined as a young professional mosaic artist. On arriving in France in 1973, he enrolled at the École des Beaux-Arts de Paris as a student of the mosaicist Riccardo Licata. He then joined forces with Licata and Giovanna Galli to found the Anaxagoras Group. Besides creating mosaics and showing them at his own exhibitions and with other artists, Verdiano Marzi is also a dedicated teacher. He worked for thirty years at the municipal mosaic workshop of Bagnolet where he lives, and created a mosaic workshop at the Musée du Louvre in 1994 where he worked for twenty years. Marzi’s creative projects include large-scale public mosaics. His first solo exhibition was at the Venice Biennale in 1986 (he was there again at the San Marino Pavilion in 2011). The Arian Baptistery in Ravenna (Unesco Heritage) was a special venue for his mosaic portraits during Ravenna Mosaico 2013. The Retrospective 1965-2014 of his works took place at the Museum of the Academy of Fine Arts in Saint-Petersburg, Russia.
Toyoharu Kii
Toyoharu Kii graduated from the Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music in 1977 and finished the Master’s program of the same university in 1980. He continued his studies in Florence, Italy, with a grant from the Italian government. In 1982, Kii returned to Japan and opened Mosaic Atelier ING, through which he has realized over fifty mural mosaics. He is currently a part-time lecturer at Joshibi University of Art and Design and Musashino Art University. His work has been featured in exhibitions worldwide, most recently in exhibitions in the US, Ravenna, Italy, and Turkey.
Dugald MacInnes
We are very proud that Scottish artist Dugald MacInnes is a Visiting Artist and mentor to The Chicago Mosaic School. MacInnes has a diploma from the Glasgow School of Art and a degree in geology from The Open University. MacInnes has also studied field archaeology at The University of Glasgow. His artwork has been exhibited in the United States, England, France, and Italy and has gained awards both domestically and internationally.
Pamela Irving
Pamela Irving is from Melbourne, Australia. Pamela has a Bachelor of Education (Art/Craft) and Master of Arts, from the University of Melbourne. Irving has exhibited widely throughout Australia as well as in Hong Kong, Russia, Japan and the USA. Her works are held in public and private collections in Australia, USA, HK, Russia, China and Japan . Collections include Museum Victoria, Bars Collection Russia, Art Bank, Ravenna Museum, Regional Gallery collections throughout Australia, Municipal Collections and Luna Park, Melbourne.
Carolina Zanelli
Born in Udine, Carolina earned her diploma in Master Mosaics at the Mosaic School of Friuli in 1995. She has been a teacher of mosaic at the school in Spilembergo for short courses for over six years. She currently alternates teaching mosaic in the studio laboratory, but also in state and private schools, centers for the disabled, prisons. She has created mosaics in Palestine (Bethlehem International Centre), the Netherlands (Savantis) California (California College of the Arts, Oakland), Chicago, South Africa (Spier Academy), Kenya (Nairobi), France (Grasse).
Gary Drostle
Gary was born in Woolwich in South East London and studied fine art at Camberwell, St Martins and Middlesex Polytechnic. He also studied in Italy at the Cararra School of Marble Sculpture. He is the proprietor of Drostle Mosaics in UK. His award winning mosaics can be seen around Britain as well as the United States. His “Feather” mural was part of a CMS Workshop in 2007 and is permanently installed at the Drummond Public School here in Chicago. (2008)