Summer 2024 M-TAC Gallery
TeenTix works in collaboration with The Colorization Collective, a teen-led organization which promotes diversity in the arts, to present the M-TAC program.
The Summer 2024 M-TAC Cohort focused on physical art, digital art, and writing. The physical art cohort was lead by AshaAung Helmstetter. Mentor Isip Xin lead the virtual digital art cohort and mentor Ettie Wahl lead the in person visual art cohort. Mentors Serena Chopra and Lila Bonow taught the writing cohorts.
Visual Art Cohorts
Abby Fuentes
Abby Fuentes is an artist based in Atlanta who works with multiple mediums, including gouache, oil pastels, and digital art, often combining these in mixed media projects. Their work explores various aspects of their binational identity and culture as a Honduran American raised in Honduras.
Abby has received accolades including two regional honorable mentions in the Scholastic Visual Arts Awards, being a semi-finalist in Georgia's Governor's Honors Program for Visual Arts, and winning 1st and 3rd places in the Clayton County All County Annual Art Show. Additionally, they have won 1st, 2nd, and 3rd places in the World Languages County Visual Arts Competition. Abby is currently part of the online Visual Arts Colorization Collective Mentorship Program.
Artist Statement
My artistic journey defies confinement to a single medium. I navigate the realms of gouache, acrylics, oil pastels, mixed media, and digital mixed media photography, among others. My process is deeply intuitive, emphasizing repetition, texture, and contrast, and drawing inspiration from modern contemporary and abstract influences. Art has been a vital outlet for me, especially given my lifelong struggle with communication, exacerbated by the challenges of balancing two languages and cultures. Raised in Honduras as a Honduran American, my bicultural identity shapes my vibrant, experimental, and contrasting themes. Through my work, I present everyday culture and experiences in unconventional ways, inviting my audience to feel joy, wonder, and reminiscence. My aim is for everyone to find a personal connection to my work, regardless of the emotions it evokes.
Ancheska Balbalosa
Ancheska Balbalosa is a 16 year old San Fernando Valley-based mixed media artist who creates colorful illustrations. Using a mix of media—such as oil paint, water color, oil pastels, and color pencils—her art is full of expression. Having grown up near Los Angeles, Ancheska has always been inspired by the art and film industry around her. As a child, she loved to doodle, which would slowly transpire into her need for the arts in her life. Through her work, Ancheska creates art that garners emotion and feeling through illustration. Her artwork reflects her vivid imagination of how she perceives the world, a lens into the world we live in. She has studied under Miles Lewis and is currently part of the MTAC program by Teentix under AshaAung Helmstetter.
Artist Statement:
Art is my lens to the world; it is an interpretation of how I depict the world and idealize it to be. When creating my pieces, my work is characterized through story to create an illustration, which sometimes has a message or is just visually pleasing. As an artist, I absolutely love using different mediums, for each works in its own specific way and gives so much life to my pieces. This oil painting in particular is very special to me, for it is based on when I went to the Philippines to visit my family. Summer balmy weather created a constant drowsiness to the city, and although the house was cramped and worn by age, I felt a constant warmth that one cannot find anywhere else. As an only child, I wanted to depict the overwhelming feeling of family that I experienced. Although not everyone is happy, the family is content with everything. Warm undertones fade into the piece, creating a vivid environment to depict the nostalgic atmosphere. My hope is for people to take away the surreal and experimental themes that pertain to my art.
Ann Yao
Annie Yao is a visual artist and writer based in New York. Her mixed-media creations blend texture and nuance to explore and represent complex issues like community and cultural experiences. Through her work, Annie aims to illustrate intersectional themes inspired by journalism, folk art, and environmental activism. She is a Silver Medalist in the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards and a Gold Award recipient in the Cornell Cooperative Extension Art Competition. Her work was juried and displayed in the Heckscher Museum of Art, as well as the Nassau All-County Exhibition. She has also been published in the 2024 Celebrating Arts Book and 2025 CCE Nassau Gardening Calendar.
Artist statement:
My storytelling, conveyed through complex mixed-media pieces, captures the humanness that lingers in still images. By combining texture and nuance, I can explore complex issues like personal and cultural experiences to represent their depth and significance. Some of my work features vibrant, hope-inspiring colors, whereas others may have punching, candid compositions that provoke critical viewing. Ultimately, my art shows how versatile art can be when creating dialog around intersectional themes that serve and enrich communities. Whether through collage, painting, or garden design, each piece portrays the overarching point of representing life unfold.
Anousha Baqai
Anousha Baqai is a mixed-media artist living in Southern California. She enjoys exploring expressionism and color, aiming to create art that evokes deep emotions and resonates with personal experiences. In this way, Anousha considers her art more experience-based and hopes to pursue a degree in Experience Design and Production. Her art has been published in three literary/art magazines, and displayed at the 2024 Emerge Art Festival, and Norco College’s art gallery.
Artist Statement:
Anousha Baqai is a mixed-media artist based in Southern California. Her art is deeply rooted in personal experiences, aiming to evoke profound emotions and connect strongly with viewers. Anousha's creative journey is characterized by the fusion of traditional and modern techniques, encompassing digitally manipulated photography, fine art, sculptures, and dioramas/installations.
Her portfolio has been recognized and showcased in three literary/art magazines, the 2024 Emerge Art Festival, and Norco College’s art gallery. Heavily influenced by advancements in the experience design industry, particularly in set design and theme park innovations, Anousha is passionate about exploring new technologies and methods to enhance her work. This inspiration drives her current projects, which involve bringing original storylines and scripts to life through 3D installations and concept design work.
Anousha's artistic practice is all about creating immersive experiences that challenge viewers to engage with art on a deeper level. She believes in the transformative power of art and its ability to evoke a wide range of emotions. By integrating various media and techniques, Anousha strives to push the boundaries of traditional art forms and create pieces that resonate with both personal and universal themes.
Follow Anousha's artistic journey on Instagram @anousha.in.progress or reach out to her at [email protected].
Cel Koch
Cel Koch is a queer, mixed-media Asian American artist who is focused on storytelling in all of its different forms. His art is very inspired by philosophy, poetry, and history but most importantly it is inspired by human connection and the complexities that is life. Cel has worked on multiple games, short films and comics and hopes to pursue a degree in character animation.
Camille Johnson
Camille Johnson is an Atlanta and Virginia based artist. She majors in strategic communications at Hampton University, where she has an independent study in animation with an emphasis in cinema studies. Some of her experience and accolades include her art being featured at the Georgia Capital, published video and animation at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, an internship with Peanuts Worldwide associated with the Armstrong Project, as well as a coloring book being published in fall 2024. She enjoys creating pieces with different art mediums such as digital art, animation, oil pastels, mixed media, and graphite, but her favorite would be digital illustrations.
Project Brief/Summary
I wanted to capture the essence and wonder of a young childhood perspective. I want to include moments of universal experiences such as playing tag with your friends and blowing bubbles.
Emma Ponce Arroyo
Emma Ponce Arroyo is a contemporary visual artist and curator based in Seattle, WA. Born in Mexico, Emma relocated three years ago and has since cultivated a dynamic practice focused on fostering and bridging community connections that deeply influence their artistic vision. Over the past year, they have curated Marine Mosaic at the Center for Wooden Boats, celebrating BIPOC artists, and were a member of the Henry Teen Art Collective.
Artist Statement:
“I, Myself, Arriero” is a piece dedicated to anyone who wears traditional clothing and has traditional dances. In this piece the clothing belongs to the tradition “La Danza de los Arrieros” in Capulhuac, Mexico. The tradition originated approximately two centuries ago to honor the religious merchants who traveled long distances to sell their goods. They worshiped Saint Bartholomew who is the patron saint of butchers, farmers and tanners and Our Lady of Solitude. The apron on the drawing symbolizes the hard work of the butchers and cooks. The hat represents the labor endured under the sun throughout long and arduous hours. The
“estandarte” on the left represents the faith of the “arrieros” on their patrons protecting their journey. This tradition has been passed down on my family through many generations, including mine.
Faith Livinus
Faith Livinus(they/them) is a Georgia grown, Media Arts and Design and Visual Arts student at The
University of Chicago. They explore how their queer Nigerian-American identity interacts with
themselves and relationship to others to create emotionally vulnerable pieces. Aside from personal
conceptual pieces, they enjoy incorporating media from the world around them into their own works.
They do a variety of art from digital, to acrylic, to printmaking. They have had their work shown in local
art showcases and have won a state competition for their digital art design. They are currently a mentee in an art program to expand their skills and get prepared for future highly rigorous art environments. In their free time they enjoy reading comics, writing poems, and thrifting.
Hoda Frihat
Hoda Frihat is a self taught traditional artist living in Kansas. Drawings are mainly in graphite pencil however will branch out to other mediums. Her art relates mainly to the joys and happiness that life brings, emphasizing the people in her artwork and their personalities in the artwork. She has created many art that will be displayed.
As a traditional artist that uses multiple shades of graphite pencil, I find joy in capturing human experience and their joys. My work emphasizes people and things that make up themselves such as clothing and symbolic items. I strive to create a feeling of wonder and inspire to create a reality that you deem fulfilling through realism.
Jennifer Han
Jennifer Han is a 17-year-old artist from Washington with a passion for exploring the intricate intersections of culture, identity, and community through her art. Primarily working with traditional mediums, Jennifer's work is deeply rooted in her Korean heritage, which she works to integrates into her artistic practice. Her creations often reflect a vivid blend of colors and forms, inspired by her day to day experiences.
Artist Statement:
“Reiminicising” is a homage to the unblemished joy and simplicity of childhood. This artwork captures the bittersweet essence of nostalgia, evoking the pure joy that our younger selves once felt. As an older self reminiscing on these cherished memories, the background of the artwork is more subdued, with softer hues and blurred edges, representing the passage of time and the way memories fade yet remain ever present. The contrast between the foreground and background embodies the duality of reflection-the joy of remembering and the melancholy of time lost. Despite the changes in my life, my bedroom remained a stable, comforting backdrop to my memories, filled with familiar sights and the quiet assurance of continuity.
Jeslyn Chang
Jeslyn Chang is an Asian American artist from Houston. Her artwork consists of her #1 most important value- nature! She loves painting elements that are outdoors- and when not doing that, she enjoys the stylistic aspects of an anime art style in humans! Her art is an experimentation related to how she sees the world. She finds inspiration in animations and anime, such as animation movies like Arcane from Riot and Demon Slayer Series.
Jwan Magsoosi
Jwan Magsoosi is a multimedia, Seattle based artist, who can’t decide on one artform. Most of her work is inspired by her middle eastern roots and Iraqi heritage. She is self-taught in many techniques, such as oil paint, watercolor, collage, and other traditional mediums that she incorporates into digital art. Most of her work aims to convey narrative through texture, composition and color. has gone through programs such as the Art 4 Life Mentorship and the AIGA link art program, which have honed her skills and introduced her to art through a communal perspective. She is currently taking a watercolor course at Highline college, and hopes to explore many more mediums. When she isn't mindlessly sketching in her freetime, you can find her reading a good murder mystery, or skating through nature.
Elevator pitch
Hello there, I’m Jwan Magsoosi. I am a multimedia artist who started out doodling in composition books, before I knew what sketchbook paper was. Now, I have branched out to many different techniques and practices. I am a big fan of oil paint, watercolor, collage, and other traditional mediums that I hope to incorporate into my digital art. My goal is to convey narratives through texture, composition, and, mainly color. I believe that storytelling is most powerful when it's through feeling and emotion. Most of my experience is through the AIGA link program, which provides opportunities for youth to connect with each other through the arts. We have painted a few murals that are on display in the Seattle area. Currently, I am working on a short comic about two celestial objects that meet each other in orbit, drift apart, and find each other once more. I’m inspired by my own love for space, and experiences with loss. You can view most of my artwork on Instagram, @Jwanabanana, or contact me via email.
Naisha Simon
Naisha Simon, 16 year old, North Miami Haitian visual artist, makes work with the intention of creating an impact in communities displaying diversity, culture, and creativity. Using vibrant colors, diverse figures, and dynamic compositions to inspire and communicate a wide range of ideas and narratives. She utilizes acrylic paint yet additionally experiments with other materials, resulting in many mixed media and collage works. Starting as a self-taught artist until high school, Naisha took a variety of arts classes to better her methods, skills, and advance her art practice and profession. Naisha's designs aim to highlight the beauty of black culture while also sending positive messages to others. She accomplished having a piece displayed at the Bass Museum in a teen art exhibition and aims to reach wider audiences and venues as she grows.
ARTIST STATEMENT
NAI CREATIVZ is a digitally constructed acrylic painting that depicts black culture beauty statements such as grillz, jewelry, clothes, and hair. Separating the components so that each has its own focus. Using vivid colors to emphasize and capture the essence of everything, you are drawn into the painting, creating a sense of respect and awe at the portrayal of our culture and genuinely highlighting how we make statements not just through words but also within how we dress and express ourselves. This is an opening portfolio painting I created to demonstrate how I can recognize art in my surroundings and capture the beauty of community and culture. Using creative compositions, thoughts, and approaches to convey messages and ideas I have. With influences of Miami street art and other black artists like Kehinde Wiley, Mickalene Thomas, Ebony Patterson, and Kerry James Marshall.
Olaitan Fadahunsi
Olaitan Fadahunsi is a Digital Designer and Graphic Illustrator based in Texas. She has a passion for Marketing, Designing, and Concept Art. Proficient in Ibispaint X, Canva, and Procreate, she draws inspiration from movies, TV shows, and social media. She interned at TeenTix, contributing to the “Button Design Project” and “the 2024 M-TAC application Design.” In her free time, she enjoys designing, drawing, and dancing.
Hello, my name is Olaitan I am a upcoming junior at Bowie High School from Texas. I have recently interned at TeenTix and I’ve been in art club at my school. I mostly binge watch tv shows, design, draw, and occasionally dance from time to time. I consider myself a digital artist and most of my work is often based on things I see either on pinterest instagram and just social media generally. My type of style has more of a cartoon or caricature quality to it as well as vibrancy with my colors I use. My art relates to my personality or the type of emotions I feel when I create it. I draw on the software /media Procreate and I draw on my sketchbook as well. My influences include shows I watch or artists I tend to look at or view on social media. The value of my art is the motivation and drive I put into creating my characters and putting time to add details just helps me improve. I wish to enhance my portfolio and work on character designs for tv shows, movies, and get more into marketing and animation. You can check my socials on linkedin and instagram. @susangirl130
Olivia Liu
Olivia Liu is an Asian American artist based in Cleveland, Ohio who primarily creates with oil paints, colored pencils, acrylics, digital painting, and mixed media. Her pieces center around themes of reflection and relations, including elements of growing up in an Asian American community, the pressures of a 21st century teenager, American historical landmarks, and modern political themes. In addition, she creates background design, concept art, and graphic design for advertising and print. She has interned at both the Cleveland Museum of Art in their TeenCo Program and the Santa Barbara Museum of Art as a teaching assistant. She has also received an Honorable Mention from the Scholastics National Art and Writing Competition in the category of Film/Animation. Overall, Olivia is extremely committed to fostering communication and connection through practicing the arts, using her work as an outlet to express diverse perspectives and advocate for a more integrated and inclusive future.
Artist Statement:
What does it mean to be “All-American”? Using elements of Asian diasporic cultures, revolutionary history, and jarring political perspectives, my art conveys the complex, chaotic nature of being an American. The nationality is multifaceted and at war with itself - clashes between color, culture, and movement boil in the melting pot. My art gives a voice to the “All-American” experience; through high contrast oil paint and colored pencil hatching and newspaper collages, I craft unfinished-yet-finished illustrations that portray the chaos in our 248 year old country. A focus on lighting and detail heightens the complexity of the messages embedded in my paintings, and I draw inspiration from my experience as an Asian American in suburbia. Perplexed anticipation and an awe at complex patriotism hangs over my pieces, challenging the audience’s perceived conception of what it means to be an American.
Paloma Lee
Paloma Lee is a 17 year old artist from Seattle, Washington. Her favorite medium to use is photography and darkroom printing. She loves to experiment with different mediums within her art and she loves a good collage. Her art usually focuses on themes of mental health, anxity, beauty, or whatever catches her eye. She lets the art guide her.
Artist Statement:
This mentorship has challenged me to think deeply about my art and the process it takes to get to the final product. This process cannot be rushed as I have realized. I’ve learned the value of trusting the process and doing exercises to help the creative juices flow.
To start, I like to let the art speak through me. I don’t plan too much ahead of time and I inevitably start cutting out random pictures from magazines and plotting them out as I go.
This piece represents the duality of my mind. My overthinking, loud, intrusive-thought ridden mind.
On one side, there is the calm, the reassured, the tranquil. It says “it’s there, why avoid it?” Which reminds me that thoughts come and go. That one test I’m stressed about, that one socially awkward moment, those backhanded compliments and rude comments are temporary. They don’t have to plague my mind forever. “This is your brain… Be brave,” a sentiment that means a lot to me. Courage is in short supply at times in this brain, but it is a good reminder to push through the doubtful thoughts.
The other side, with its bright, vibrant, chaotic energy represents that overwhelming feeling that everything is collapsing around me. It shows the tireless, vast emotions that course through my mind at all times. “Nuclear reactions… result of decay.” Representing the doomsday my mind creates and the rot that comes after. “Dont *!#&%$@ think about it,” the unhelpful conclusion it states in response.
Rosamond Au
My name is Rosamond Au, and I am a Cantonese/Vietnamese artist based in Seattle WA. I mainly try to aim for muted colors in my pieces to give them a calmer and soft look and feel even when conveying prominently negative emotions.
Artist Statement
I wanted to represent the two sides of one’s mind in this piece to show how the two worlds are interconnected with one another. The two portals/mirrors the fish is teleporting through is to show how a persons mind can randomly teleport into a bad place even when everything seems good in the moment.
Raidon San
Raidon San is a visual artist whose mediums span from painting to ceramics. Born and raised in Washington State, he is a second generation Cambodian American. His work revolves around the diverse cultures and natural world he’s surrounded by, believing everything is complex yet connected like the many mediums he uses. Raidon has partaken in art programs representing marginalized communities, most recently as a mentee under Seattle’s LGBTQ+ Center Peer Mentorship and the 2024 M-TAC Visual Arts cohort. He is currently pursuing an associate of fine arts at North Seattle College.
Salem Werede
Salem Werede is a young teenage artist of color based in the Seattle area creating art expressing her cultural identity and creativity. Salem often creates art using mediums such as acrylic paint, watercolor, and clay. Her artist education is a blend of self-taught learning and studio art and ceramic classes taught in school. Salem also submits art as a part of the Colorization Collective.
Artist statement:
The piece, titled “culture through coffee” is displayed on a canvas and created using both acrylic paint and marker. This piece is a representation of the cultural significance of the coffee ceremony in Eritrean culture. In this piece a woman is depicted pouring the hand roasted and brewed coffee out of the Jebena* into small cups. Traditionally, this coffee ceremony has 3 rounds of coffee served and most families observe the ceremony weekly on Sundays and on holidays. The background of this piece depicts greenery which represents the origin of coffee coming from the Horn of Africa.
* a Jebena is a traditional flask made of clay used by Eritreans to brew and pour coffee in the ceremony
Shirene Khandpur
Shirene Khandpur (she/her) is a seventeen-year-old visual artist from Kirkland, Washington. She started pursuing art in middle school, first getting into sketching and illustration. Since then she has explored a variety of mediums including graphite, colored pencil, gouache, acrylic, watercolor and clay, but she primarily sketches and paints. Her work explores themes of fantasy and interpersonal relationships, as well as her own emotions and experiences.
Artist Statement
This piece is titled Rain. It features a gouache painting of a cityscape shrouded by gray clouds. Standing against the painting is a collaged-on figure of a girl under an umbrella, illustrated in ink and colored pencil, as well as colored pencil clouds. The use of multimedia is a common motif throughout my artwork, and I enjoy the outcome it produces as it allows me to be creative with the way I balance the use of different mediums.
Initially, my idea for the piece was for it to represent a storyline, which I had wanted to develop on the side. But naturally, as I usually do, I ended up biting off more than I could chew and I realized I would have to refocus the concept behind the piece. I kept improvising the process along the way, and ultimately that led to me changing the conceptual idea behind the artwork. At first, I wanted to illustrate a dystopian fiction, but now I feel like the piece represents my artistic process of incorporating my emotions and making creative decisions. Ultimately, the process of creating it was the most important thing I got out of it.
Sky Ruelas
Sky Ruelas is a hispanic, visually impaired digital/traditional artist based in Los Angeles. They are 16 years old and focus on themes of fantasy in their art. They have painted multiple murals for their local arcade, and created work for indie games in the making. Sky has taken a teen mentorship program through TeenTix focusing on digital art. They strive to allow other people like them to feel included and represented in their art. They love games like Resident Evil, movies like Whiplash and LaLa Land, and will never miss out on a chance to jam out with their friends.
Ty Green
My name is Ty Green, I create both traditional and digital pieces of art. I am a queer artist that creates colorful artworks about whatever catches my eye to express the emotions that I cannot put into writing. I have studied under Joseph Coco at Centenary University in both painting 1 and Drawing 1. I have completed 2 large scale paintings, about 1 foot by 5 inches.
Writing Cohorts
Adrien
Adrien is a writer, filmmaker, and artist from the Seattle area. She is studying in the Bachelors of Film and Television program at Sheridan College in Ontario, Canada. She attended the Colorization Collective’s Mentorship for Teen Artists of Color, Rad Sechrist’s Filmmaking program, and exhibited at the A/NT Gallery. She is largely driven by the queer and immigrant communities around her and her desire to represent what can only be expressed from within those communities. She is inspired by politically active artists and writers, especially those in support of a free Palestine. Many of her poems have themes of queer love and Asian-American identity but she aspires to build a fearless career of radical art, film, and writing.
"Elaine walks a basket up to the forest every week
Books for Irene, Irene loves to hear her read
Then Elaine talks for hours, she’s got so much to say
Irene’s happy to listen, she just wants her to stay..."
You can find the rest of Adrien's work, The Palm Tree, HERE!
Jacquelyn Johnson
Jacquelyn {Jackie} Johnson (she/her) is based in Decatur, GA. She is an aspiring writer, artist, and musician. The themes of her work specifically focused on deep emotion written in poems. Jackie has attended Colorization Collective (virtual), Dekalb Virtual Career Academy, and is working to attend even more internships to improve her writing capabilities.
"The deception you caused cut me deep
I only realized in late-night thought that I was deluded by friendship
I didn’t see the wolf behind sheep’s clothing
Misled by kindness until it was too late
I got attached only for it to be fake
I felt so stupid..."
You can find the rest of Jacquelyn's work, Betrayal, HERE!
Kamaria Williams
Kamaria Williams (she/her) is an Oakland-born, creative writer, journalist, and editor. She absolutely adores fiction and if you ever read any of her work, chances are the plots will involve fantasy, superheroes, and the supernatural (with a small chance of slice-of-life!). In the past, she’s been a part of writing programs such as the Kenyon Review Young Writers Workshop, LMU Pre-College for Beginning Screenwriting, and The School Of The New York Times. When she’s not editing or working on stories, you can find her lying in bed with her headphones on, lost in whatever she’s listening.
"At the dawn of humanity, innovation was unborn. For the duration of their first decade, humans
aimlessly roamed the Earth.
Though they were not yet gifted with the privilege of thought, humans carried with them a
fascinating curiosity. Combined with the absence of fear, they interacted with the strange things
they saw and began to make sense of their once foreign planet. Through trial and (bloody) error,
these primal beings soon learned to conquer their predators, care for each other, and eventually,
give way to humanity’s first advancement: the ability to think."
You can find the rest of Kamaria's work, Origins of Morality (Elements of Morality Prologue), HERE!
Kangana Yadav
Kangana Yadav is a student currently studying in NIFT - National Institute of Fashion Technology. She has been writing for the past six years, everything from short stories, non fiction writing to academic writing, but her primary focus is poetry, a lot of which is based on her personal experiences. Kangana won the 2024 edition of slam poetry competition organized by Miranda House, University of Delhi. She was also the editor of Navchetna, her school magazine. Her work has been featured in Physicallis, the creative writing magazine of Miranda House, University of Delhi. She is a member of the MTec summer program 2024 in the writing cohort.
Artist Statement
I like to view my poetry as an interrogation. Which incepts in my notes application and slowly turns into this question which I pose to myself and to my reader. The intention is to make you reevaluate constructed and accepted beliefs. My work can be slightly unsettling, but I view it as a personal rebellion i rage against set standards of society. Poetry for me has always held an intimate peculiarity, the rendition of a vulnerability which reveals this bare and veracious self. To me, writing is like constructing a maze, where the readers feel the joy of traversing through its sentences to seek the truth at the end. I love experimenting with writing styles and themes and hope to continue doing so but it is of utmost importance to me that I have fun while writing. I aspire to inspire people through my work while I continue finding inspiration in them.
"Secrets want out, makes them harder to keep
Their sibilating whispers lacerating
the contours of lucidity
But then the sheer bestiality,
the stillness of time
a fracture within their own peculiarities
ripping the scarf off
your vulnerable being..."
You can find the rest of Kangana's work, SECRETS, HERE!
Michele Swaby
Chele Swaby is a fiction and poetry writer hailing from Stratford, Connecticut. She has been writing for almost 8 years in total, first writing fiction before adding poetry to her repertoire in her junior year of high school. She specializes in urban fantasy with a concentration in Christian mythology and personal poetry that stems from her lived experiences. Currently, Chele is a student at Howard University studying Public Relations and will be declaring a minor in English. Chele was published in Young Writers USA in eighth grade, received the Excellence in Creative Writing award for her art high school graduating class and is a member of the 2024 MTAC Writing Cohort.
Artist Statement
My writing is the result of surface-level Baptist teachings with little to no explanations, growing up as a first-generation Caribbean-American where the cultural divide was evident, and what I have experienced growing up as “the weird black girl” in a white suburban town. The sum of this peculiar upbringing has culminated in the urge to express my feelings and experiences in a way that was denied to me in my youth. To put it more frankly, writing about angels and demons is my fictional forte, and my poetry is the fragmented pieces of my childhood plastered into eloquently written verse.
In my fiction (and on the rare occasion my poetry), I try to blend Christian mythology and real people that it can affect. My main purpose of writing is to help myself and my audience make sense of it all, to explore themes and ideas we may have been unable to question before. But most importantly, I write to have fun–to immerse myself and people like me in worlds where we are main characters rather than side characters or stereotypes. I write so that sixth grade me, who wanted to dedicate her livelihood to fiction, knows that although the world shut its eyes to her, she is seen–and I thank her for where we are today.
"when i was young, my father went blind.
the television hummed as the game show came to a close
we held a routine, my father and i— watch the show, then the news.
it was what brought us together."
You can find the rest of Michele's work, the binding, HERE!
Sofia Armestar
I’ve been writing ever since I was a child. Stories and characters would form in my head, and I would put these ideas to paper. Writing gives me an outlet to express my thoughts and dreams. It allows me to create characters that have a goal, a mission they wish to achieve. They live in this world that I’ve created and go on action-packed adventures in the stories of my imagination. Their experiences reflect what I believe should be told. Some of these include things that I’ve been through, whether directly or not. However, the main objective is to take steps to make the world a better place to live in, whether that’s by creating a safe space for people or getting the message out of what needs to be changed.
In my novel Reborn, this is evident in the fact that it has characters coming from various backgrounds, conveying the themes of representation and the strength that comes from our differences. It’s a story that I deeply feel deserves to be told. It’s a collage of the stories and dreams that I’ve had over the years. It has served as a safety net, a haven of happiness that is interwoven into the story. The tragedy seems to contradict the hope it holds, but that’s what life is: tragic and hopeful. But life also holds resolution, something that readers should expect to feel both in and out of the novel. I hope audiences take away that sense of resolution if they allow the characters and the story to enter their hearts.
"Once, in 1025 A.D, there was a kingdom called Astrifjell. It was a peaceful place, where
the homes were close to the heart of the village. Fields laid at the bottom of the mountain where
crops grew. They resided in the Scandinavian mountains, where the land was rich with trees and
wildlife. Beautiful flowers grew everywhere."
- Excerpt from Reborn Prologue
You can find the rest of Sofia's work, Reborn Prologue, HERE!
Tejaswini Samanta
Tejaswini Samanta has been part of climate justice movements for several years as a writer, journalist, organizer and policy advocate. Tejaswini is a student at the University of Delhi in New Delhi, India. She is passionate about STEM and Climate Change. She has initiated campaigns and worked with various grassroots groups and coalitions everywhere from India and around the globe to build a sustainable world where every one of us can have a safe and joyful future. Tejaswini’s work has been published in the Ark Review and the Yale Daily News, and featured in The Stanford Daily, among others. She was also the editor of her school newsletter, Waves, and is a member of the M-TAC Colorization Collective (virtual) 2024 Writing cohort.
I am not shy, just quieter. Within the quietness of my demeanor lies a bustling world—a realm of thoughts, ideas, and dreams. I found a way to express and introduce them to the real world, through my writing. The amazing people I encounter, the events that unfold in my life and the extraordinary stories that I concoct, inspire me to pen them down in a notebook or, often, type away on my laptop. I amuse myself by building the world of my own by creating and curating characters, weaving their stories with my wit, which fills me with contentment and meriness. Through reading and writing, I reflect upon my choices, my perceptions, and the impact they have on my life. But it doesn’t end there. I aspire to extend this positive impact beyond myself to touch the hearts of others, provoke thought, and create connections through my art and voice.
"In India, 50% of the lung cancer cases are found in non-smokers. Reason - Air Pollution. Every
year between October and November, North Indian states including Punjab, Haryana and Uttar
Pradesh and New Delhi, get covered by Smog, the mixture of smoke, dust and fog, because of
stubble burning. New Delhi, the capital city of India, with a population of 324,90K, is the 4th
most polluted city in the world. Nearly 25% of air pollution is caused by stubble burning in
Northern states."
You can find the rest of Tejaswini's work, How Combating Stubble Burning Could Help Solving the Delhi Environmental Crisis, HERE!
M-TAC Teaching Artists
AshaAung Helmstetter
AshaAung Helmstetter (She/Her) is an oil painter and mixed media artist who was born and brought up in Seattle’s Central District, where she is still based today. In 2017, AshaAung realized that she would dedicate very much of her life to art, and she has spent the years since actualizing that reality for herself. Having left school early to manage chronic health issues while focusing on her personal and artistic development, she has very little formal training. Through her work, she amplifies community-connection and finding freedom from within; which she also explores through teaching and participating in community spaces. Her paintings reflect her imagination, and perseverance: two things that are difficult to miss when encountering her person, or any of her creations.
AshaAung has developed several art workshops and she is currently a teaching artist with SilverKite Community Arts. In February 2021, she was SOIL Gallery’s Young Artist in Residence, and she was a 2023 cohort member of PrideFest’s Artist Retreat at Rockland Residency. She participated in Wa Na Wari’s 2021-2022 (extended to 2023) Artist in Residence cycle, and was Common Area Maintenance’s 2nd Ave Sign Project Artist in Residence in 2023. AshaAung was also recipient of the 2021 Foundry10 Young Artist Grant, and the 2024 Living Artist Grant. Asha’s work has been featured in the Northwest African American Museum, and on the cover of Real Change News.
Isip Xin
Isip Xin is an illustrator and tattoo artist based in New York City. She earned her BFA in Illustration at the Maryland Institute College of Art. She spends her days drinking Hojicha with her cat Artemis, and indulging in cheesy sci-fi media. Her clients include NBC, The Washington Post, Oxford American, Indeed, the UN, The New York Times, Xbox, Canva, and more.
Ettie Wahl
Ettie Wahl is a Mexican American artist, filmmaker, and artistic entrepreneur from the Pacific Northwest with a focus on women, non-binary, and LGBTQI2A+ stories and experiences. She has been actively engaged in artistic curation, event organization, and underground arts activism for the better part of a decade in the greater Seattle area through her foundational work with Bioluminescent Films, Inner Sleeve Magazine, Off the Wall Artist Collective, & Bard Rock Studio. Ettie now also works as a videographer for the world renowned radio station KEXP’s live sessions.
Serena Chopra
Serena Chopra is a teacher, writer, dancer, filmmaker, soundscape designer and a visual and performance artist. She has a PhD in Creative Writing from the University of Denver and an MFA from the University of Colorado at Boulder. She is a MacDowell Fellow (Stanford Calderwood Fellow, 2022), a Kundiman Fellow, a RedLine Artist-in-Residence and a Fulbright Scholar (Bangalore, India). She has two books, This Human (Coconut Books 2013) and Ic (Horse Less Press 2017), as well as two films, Dogana/Chapti (Official Selection at Frameline43, Oregon Documentary Film Festival, QueerX and Seattle Queer Film Festival) and Mother Ghosting (2018). She was a co-founder and actor in the poet’s theater group, GASP (Denver Colorado, 2011-2018), and in 2016 she worked with Splintered Light Theater on a full-length production of her most recent book, Ic, for which she composed the soundscape. She was a featured artist in Harper’s Bazaar (India), Revry, as well as in the Denver Westword’s “100 Colorado Creatives,” and has recent creative publications with the Academy of American Poets’ Poem-a-Day, Burrow Press Review, Sink, Foglifter as well as in the anthology Alone Together: Love, Grief and Comfort in the Time of COVID-19 (Central Avenue Publishing, 2020; Washington State Book Award, 2021). She has critical essays in Matters of Feminist Practice (Belladonna Collective, 2019), Rehearsing Racial Equity: A Critical Anthology on Anti-Racism and Repair in the Arts (Amherst College Press, forthcoming 2024) and in the republication of Judy Grahn’s The Highest Apple: Sappho and the Lesbian Poetic Tradition (Sinister Wisdom, 2023). In October 2020, Serena co-directed No Place to Go, an immersive, artist-made queer haunted house with choreographer Kate Speer and artist Frankie Toan. Serena is Assistant Professor of Creative Writing at Seattle University.
If interested in inviting Dr. Chopra for teaching, lectures, visiting artist workshops, retreats, readings or other performances or events, please send an email to [email protected].
Lila Bonow
Lila Bonow (she/her) is a poet from a counterculture family in Seattle, Washington. She is interested in memory, performance, the significance of place to the diasporic, the lacunae between deeds and desires, and artificial waterfalls. Currently, Lila is working on a collection focused on film, Blackness, voyeurism, and obsession.
Before pursuing her MFA in Poetry at the University of Pittsburgh, Lila spent five years working as a radical reproductive rights activist for the organization, Shout Your Abortion. She holds a BA in English with an Emphasis in Creative Writing from Seattle University. She loves dressing up, being immersed in water, walking, and sleeping.