Click on name to see each each individual artist's biography
THE FIRST PAST- AAJ SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENTS SHOW held at the Somerset Trust, 1416 Scalp Avenue
May 11 - June 1, 2009
Each year the Allied Artists of Johnstown award scholarships to students from the Cambria, Somerset, and Bedford County area who are continuing their educations in an art field. This year, an exhibit was organized to show what paths ten of our past recipients have chosen. Our thanks to the chairpersons who organized this exhibit - Marianne Krizner and Diane Safko.
BRIAN C. DUMM 1995
NORMAN ED 1977
JACQUELINE L. KELLY 1988
FRANCINE KEIFER 1976
JACOB KOESTLER 2003
ERIC J. ROMAN 1991
Artist Biography – BRIAN C. DUMM
I graduated from Bishop Carroll High School in 1995. My high school art instructor was Mrs. Kathy Burk. I then attended The Columbus College of Art and Design, majoring in illustration. I continued my education in art at Pennsylvania State University graduating in 2000 with a Bachelor of Arts degree. My post-graduate studies were completed at Indiana University of Pennsylvania, receiving my PA teaching certification, and I am currently attending Saint Francis College to complete my Masters degree in art education.
With my training and education in the arts, I have become a professional illustrator and art instructor. My current art representative is “Portfolio Solutions LLC” in New York, through which I do many types and styles of illustration assignments. Currently my work can be seen throughout the United States and some European countries. I work out of my studio in Ebensburg, Pa. I have been employed as an art instructor for the Central Cambria School District since 2002, as well as teaching classes as an adjunct instructor for Mount Aloysius College and Saint Francis College. Though the opportunity has arisen to “set up camp” elsewhere, I’ve enjoyed making my permanent home here in
west central Pennsylvania among family and friends.
Artist Biography – NORMAN ED
I attended Westmont Hilltop High School, graduating in 1977. In high school, I studied art with Mr. Glenn Brougher. I went on to attend Tyler School of Art, Temple University, graduating in 1981 with a B.F.A. in Interdepartmental Studies with a concentration in glass, and received my PA teaching certification. After graduating from Tyler School of Art, I remained in Philadelphia gaining varied work experience in carpentry, art restoration and the music industry in management.
Eventually I returned to the Johnstown area and continued my studies as a post graduate at Indiana University of Pennsylvania under the mentorship of Dr. James Nestor and worked in the construction and engineering fields. I then received a position with the Westmont Hilltop School District as an art instructor, which is my current profession. Throughout my life’s journey, I have continued my practice in art which is focused mainly on mixed media sculpture. I exhibit my work on a regular basis regionally, and on occasion there have been opportunities to exhibit along the east coast.
Artist Biography – JACQUELINE L. KELLY
I graduated from Richland High School in 1988 where I studied with Mr. Ed Pozun.
I received my undergraduate degree from The Cooper Union for the Advancement of
Science and Art in New York City in 1993, majoring in graphic design and photography.
From 1993 through 1994 I studied graphic design at the Allgemeine Kunstgewerbeschule
in Basel, Switzerland. I have 11 years of professional graphic design experience in New
York City design departments and studios that include: Jobson Publishing Corporation;
Page, Arbitrio, and Resen, and Sentinel Real Estate Corporation. In 2004 I moved to
Lewisburg, Pennsylvania, and founded YAY! Design with my husband, William.
YAY Design recently celebrated its fifth anniversary.
Artist Biography – DANIELLE MILLER-GILLIAM
I grew up in a steel mill town in the Laurel Highlands of western Pennsylvania. Being surrounded by beautiful rolling hills juxtaposed by bridges, railroads, and industry greatly affected my design sensibility. My work is geometric, often mechanical, and natural influences are stripped down to their core shapes.
When I was five years old, I announced to my parents that I was going to be an artist and, as a high school student, discovered my passion for metals while making a large scale welded steel sculpture. After graduating from Richland High School in 1988, I moved to Philadelphia to attend Moore College of Art and Design, intending to concentrate my studies in sculpture, but I became entranced by jewelry making. I transferred to Tyler School of Art/Temple University for their renowned Jewelry/Metals Department where I received a bachelor’s degree in fine art. After college I gained invaluable experience perfecting my skills working under a master goldsmith. During this period, I worked on my own designs at night and on week-ends. In 1995 I participated in my first craft show and by 1998 was able to devote myself full-time to my own business. Today, my jewelry designs can be seen in galleries throughout the country. I now make my home in foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains in South Carolina with my husband, Ben Gilliam, and our two sons. Ben, also a metal artist, teaches at the South Carolina Governor’s School for the Arts and Humanities.
Artist Biography – DARREN TREBEL
I graduated from Westmont Hilltop High School in June 1985. At Westmont I first studied art and art history under Ms.Colleen Goerlich. I went on to earn a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Syracuse University where I studied art history, painting, and art conservation techniques, completing the last year of my undergraduate studies in Florence, Italy in 1989. I was awarded a Masters in Art History (Italian Renaissance Art and Contemporary Theory) from the University of Virginia in 1992. I taught art history for two years at St. Anselm’s Abbey School in Washington, D.C., and then in 1995, I accepted an offer to join the art faculty at the Frankfurt International School in Oberursel, Germany. In 1999, I was offered the position of Head of Visual Arts in Frankfurt and continue to guide the program there today.
I am a painter and have been fortunate to have had several recent solo exhibitions in the Frankfurt area in recent years. I am also an avid foil fencer and have been teaching beginning fencing at FIS for ten years. I live in Oberursel, Germany, with my wife
Masha, an art teacher at International School Wiesbaden, and my six-year old daughter, Hannah. I continue to teach visual arts at FIS, one of the oldest and biggest of the International Baccalaureate schools in Europe, teaching IB Diploma level classes as well as Theory of Knowledge. I am also a Visual Arts Examiner for the International Baccalaureate, traveling every year across Europe examining the visual arts students in other schools. I and my family return to Johnstown for summers once every two or three years and I am still very proud of and attached to my hometown.
Artist Biography – EDDIE “SPAGHETTI” MAIER
I have spent most of my 30 years dreaming about art and doing something about it.
I was born in Johnstown, but now call West Virginia home “because it is one of the most beautiful places on earth.” I draw artistic inspiration from the natural beauty of the state and the wonderful people I have met there. I graduated from Richland High School in 1994 and studied art at Edinboro University in Pennsylvania for two years, apprenticing with Kathy Martinez, a noted potter in the area. I recently obtained a BFA degree in printmaking and art education from West Virginia University.
I have traveled extensively, living and traveling throughout the United States, Europe, Australia, and Africa. My work is eclectic, reflecting my travels and life experiences. It is easy to spot the themes taken from rich artistic and cultural traditions that I have encountered. When I am not in the studio, I travel to share my art with others.Whenever possible, I follow the music festivals. I love music and often wish I were a musician…but that’s not my thing. So I tell song stories through my art. I work mostly with oil-painted woodblock printing on handmade paper, but my portfolio includes oil paintings, pottery, jewelry, and other items.
Artist Biography – JENNIE ELIZABETH THWING
I am a Philadelphia-based artist and educator who graduated from Westmont Hilltop High School in 1995. I received my BFA from Tyler School of Art in 1999, and received my MFA from University of Maryland, Baltimore Campus. I am currently an Assistant Professor at Rowan University in Glassboro, New Jersey. I am a member of Nexus Foundation for Today’s Art and Soho20 in New York City. I have exhibited my work at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Seattle, the Institute for Contemporary Art in Philadelphia, the Creative Alliance in Baltimore, the Center for Art and Visual Culture in Baltimore, the Fondazione Mudima per l’Arte Contempora-nea in Milan, and the Independent Museum of Contemporary Art (IMCA) in Cyprus.
My work explores identity in crisis. The video, animation and photographs in “Catch My Legs” includes experimental footage of myself and others presenting themselves as a collective of women workers who harvest legs for a living. Their attempts achieve various emotional and physical states and suggest that we all have multiple personalities which emerge when we least expect or desire.
Artist Biography – FRANCINE KEIFER
Since graduating from Greater Johnstown High School in 1976, under the instruction of John Varmecky, I went on to graduate from Indiana University of Pennsylvania in 1982 with a B.A. degree in Art Education. I later completed my education with a Master’s degree in Education from Indiana Wesleyan University.
Teaching art at Conemaugh Township Area High School in Somerset County has been my passion for the past twenty-four years. I love the students, and I love instructing all of the studio disciplines. Recently, I have been broadening the curriculum by accompanying students on various trips throughout Europe to study Art History and Architecture.
Artist Biography – JACOB KOESTLER
I am a photographer and musician who lives and works in Johnstown, Penna. I graduated from Westmont Hilltop High School in 2003 under the guidance of Mr. Michael Begenyi, Mr. Norman Ed and Ms. Colleen Goerlich. I then graduated, winning Best in Show, from the Art Institute of Pittsburgh in 2005 with a degree in photography. Since graduating, I have moved back to Johnstown to work on a commercial level. Most recently, I spent three years as staff photographer for Johnstown Magazine and taught adult photography classes at various institutions. I have also been working with others to open an independent gallery and performance space– 709 Railroad Street, and on releasing my first book.
This year has been a change of pace for me. I am currently working with others to get the Johnstown-based artist collective “My Idea of Fun” on its feet and to the masses. With a few publications and exhibitions under my belt, I will be spending the rest of the year traveling the country with my personal work. With the pairing of cassette tapes and handmade books, CDs and postcard sets, the goal is to blur the line between punk show in a firewall and an opening at a high-end gallery.
Relevant Websites:
Artist Biography – ERIC J. ROMAN
I attended Richland Senior High School, graduating in 1991. My high school art instructor was Mr. Ed Pozun. I then attended The Art Institute of Pittsburgh, majoring
in Industrial Design Technology. Since graduating in 1993 from the Art Institute, my travels have taken me from Pittsburgh to Rhode Island and back to Johnstown, working in many different industries utilizing my artistic talent. I began as an Exhibit Designer and Fabricator with Menna Designs. In 1995, I began working for C-Technologies which manufactured Virtual Reality Simulators. I created 3D ride films used in amusement parks and was also the in-house exhibit person for various trade shows. In Rhode Island I designed “Point of Purchase” displays at Accent Display for clients like Godiva Chocolates, Nike, Cannondale and Kenneth Cole of New York.
In 1999 I returned to the Johnstown area and became employed at H.F. Lenz Company as a CAD coordinator, which is my present profession. This job allows me to use my creative skills for problem solving rather than artistic endeavors. To keep my artistic talents polished I have started a freelance studio where I create corporate logos, business brochures, physical architectural models and architectural renderings. I have also been an instructor of 3D design, architectural design and computer aided drafting at Penn Highlands Community College for the past six years. To discuss my work or view my portfolio, please contact me at:
eroman@hflenz.com or
814-479-2066 (H)
814-341-4630 (C)
