aLOT of Art - The FAF Coalition

Robert Nexus Ortiz

My name is Robert “Nexus” Ortiz and I have been creating public murals with spraypaint since 1983 and I’m also a traditionally trained artist using a large number of creative tools. Moving to South Jersey (from the Bay Area California) in 2006, I have been active in the South Jersey art community since arriving.

Frank Chappell III (Trash Panda)

Frank Chappell III is a Philadelphia-born muralist currently based in Woodbury NJ. Frank’s subject matter is usually animal or nature based bringing to the surface issues of conservation that matter to him.

Erika Matyok

Erika Matyok is a Professional Artist and Art teacher. Her creative work is primarily inspired by nature and incorporates use of symmetry and relaxation techniques. Matyok exhibits and sells her art in the Philadelphia area and her murals can be viewed around the city and its surrounding suburbs. In addition to keeping an active painting studio, Matyok teaches Art full time to children at a private elementary school and offers workshops at local art centers for teens and adults interested in learning folk art style painting techniques and the meditative method of mandala making.

WEEK 2 – MAY 29TH

Danielle Cartier (of DC Gallery & Studio)

Danielle Cartier is best known for her mural projects and large-scale, mixed media paintings made from reconstructed materials, recombined ephemera and layered printmaking and painting processes. Her large-scale, mixed media paintings have been viewed in various solo and group exhibitions across the United States. Danielle has experience teaching studio art courses, various 2D design, color theory and painting courses at Rowan University and Stockton University. Currently, Cartier teaches adult-level studio art courses at Fleisher Art Memorial in Philadelphia, and Perkins Center for the Arts in Collingswood, New Jersey. Since 2017, Danielle has painted and installed over fifty grant-funded, public art murals throughout four counties in South Jersey. She continues to make large-scale, mixed media paintings and is working on multiple new public artworks and murals in Southern New Jersey for 2025. Most recently, she opened her own independent art gallery, DC Gallery & Studio, within the Glasstown Arts District of Millville, New Jersey. Located at 508 N. High Street in Millville, New Jersey, DC Gallery & Studio serves as female, artist-owned gallery, maker retail space and studio featuring contemporary art in a wide variety of media by emerging and established local artists!

Bernard DelaCruz

Bernard DelaCruz is a NJ/Phi based artist known for his bold, graffiti-inspired style and energetic visual storytelling. His work blends street art aesthetics with themes of music, culture, and community, often incorporating rhythmic patterns, expressive lettering, and vibrant color. Whether creating murals, live paintings, or custom pieces, Bernard brings a raw, authentic voice to every project, aiming to connect with audiences and transform spaces through art.

Sandy Hanna

Erika Matyok is a Professional Artist and Art teacher. Her creative work is primarily inspired by nature and incorporates use of symmetry and relaxation techniques. Matyok exhibits and sells her art in the Philadelphia area and her murals can be viewed around the city and its surrounding suburbs. In addition to keeping an active painting studio, Matyok teaches Art full time to children at a private elementary school and offers workshops at local art centers for teens and adults interested in learning folk art style painting techniques and the meditative method of mandala making.

WEEK 3 – JUNE 5TH

Chanelle Renée

New Jersey artist, Chanelle René, is a contemporary painter and mural artist. Her jewel-tone, expressive paintings explore identity through the lens of culture, pure self-essence, and (re)claiming spaces. Evoking emotion through engaging narratives, Chanelle’s acclaimed ‘Grant Street Beach’ series celebrates Cape May’s historic Black beach. Works start with intuitive abstract underpaintings layered with acrylic, spray paint and metal leaf finishing pieces with her figurative and still life subjects in oil. Self-taught, Chanelle picked up painting in her 40s transitioning from a 20-year career in communications to full-time artist.

Cassidy Colgan (Casscabell)

Casscabell is a muralist and sign painter known for her colorful, playful approach to storytelling through space. Her work is rooted in bringing color and culture into the everyday, transforming environments into vibrant, immersive experiences that invite connection, conversation, and joy.

Gary Lindley

My name is Gary Lindley. I received a bachelor’s of fine art from the San Francisco Art Institute. My work is usually a semi abstract or abstract color field that is meant to evoke an emotional response. I am particularly interested in faces and the shapes that make them up.

WEEK 4 – JUNE 12TH

Iris Richardson

Iris Richardson is a German-American artist based in Mullica Hill, New Jersey. She specializes in painting and photography, creating both macro and expressive works inspired by her love of nature, animals, and social causes. When she is not in her studio, she teaches and encourages students at Rowan University.

Helen Clymer

Helen is a self-taught illustrative painter from southern New Jersey with over 45 years of freelance experience. Her unique style incorporates natural elements into a limited series of textural wood framed art. These pieces often focus on surfing & wetlands themes as well as the animals that thrive within those coastal habitats. Her second love is to paint whimsical illustrations inspired by the pen & ink images found in the infamous underground comics from her teenage years.

Her studio is at the Riverfront Renaissance Center of the Arts (RRCA) building in Millville NJ. and is open by chance or appointment. She was the RRCA’s first studio artist and has hosted numerous exhibits, student classes, workshops and children’s art camps since 2001. Helen’s “Tiny Booth Tour” of new travel paintings can be followed on her Instagram.

Chelsea Clemens

Chelsea Clemens is a South Jersey artist who enjoys about crafting accessible, story-driven experiences that engage & inspire diverse audiences.

WEEK 5 – JUNE 19TH

Tara Baugher

Tara Baugher

I am production manager that also does graphic design, vinyl installation and sign making at Acerbo’s Wraps & Graphics in Medford. As a wife and mother of two young women, a rescue dog named Jack, and a wire-haired weenie MaryAnn, I keep pretty busy. In my spare time I like to be outside in nature, fishing, hiking, or maintaining my 72 gallon tank of tropical fish and live plants. I also love music and have recently gotten back into playing my guitar and painting.

Valerie Pantalone

Valerie Pantalone

Valerie Pantalone is a painter who focuses on colorful landscapes, working in acrylic and watercolors. Born in Philadelphia, she grew up in southern New Jersey. She studied printmaking/book arts at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia but left the program in her senior year due to illness. She went on to Rowan University College of Art and Design for art education, but found that teaching art wasn’t in her heart. Ultimately, she earned a bachelor’s degree in art. At Rowan University, she discovered her love for painting, nature, and color, which developed into her art practice.

Loren Dann

I am a multifaceted fine artist and painter who explores mixed media and oil techniques, dedicated to unraveling complex questions and pursuing nuanced answers. My artistic practice seeks to inspire intersectionality and unity among artists and women, aiming to create a space where creative expression joins with social commentary. Through my work, I endeavor to educate myself and to educate others about those whose identities and experiences are marginalized or distorted by prevailing societal aesthetics and expectations.

WEEK 6 – JUNE 26TH

Lori Raggio

Lawrene Raggio is a community-based artist and high school art educator who uses storytelling, experimentation, and discovery as pathways to strengthen perceptual skills and deepen learners’ understanding of their world. She is an advocate for equitable, transformative learning experiences, with a focus on integrating creativity, critical thinking, and community engagement. Lawrene strongly believes that learning should be transformative, centered around culturally responsive and place-based practices that guide authentic learning in a rich cultural dialogue connecting students to the surrounding community. She actively engages in community-based art projects and creative placemaking initiatives, such as the Philadelphia Mural Arts Printmaking by the People, a community art project that celebrates 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. Lawrene recently completed a doctoral degree in Organizational Leadership, Learning, and Innovation.

Debbie Lynch

I am a retired art teacher. I work in acrylic, watercolor and ink. My subjects are found in nature, flowers, trees, the ocean, insects, and animals. I am very passionate about being able to express what I see through the lens of my own eyes. I’ve recently had several shows, the Cherry Hill Library, Michaels and Evesham, and the Moorestown Library.

Gabrielle Mboya

Gabrielle Mboya is a self-taught illustrator from South Jersey who mainly works with colored pencils. Although she currently pursues illustration as a hobby, she aspires to turn it into a career in the future. For Gabrielle, art has always been a source of encouragement and comfort. As such, she prefers a softer, cartoony art style. Round shapes and curved lines just come naturally and cute things make life more enjoyable. The subject that brings her the most joy is people, with animals often appearing as an accent. She uses them as a means of self expression and communicating the themes and values that are important to her, one being the importance of celebrating women’s lived experiences. As she continues to think about and explore these important ideas further, Gabrielle hopes to engage with others who challenge her current perspective and use illustration to facilitate meaningful conversation.