Instructor Spotlights

Helena Leary

Helena Leary-Heinz

Helena Leary has been with us for 8 years and has a BFA in ceramics. Helena is most drawn to clay and it’s tactile meditative and functional qualities and has been working with it for 50 years. There was never a time in her life when Helena didn’t love arts, even as a toddler her interest in crayons and playdoh strongly outweighed interests in anything else. Helena enjoys creating functional ceramics, inspired by the Mingei movement, beautiful yet humble.  

Laura Burlis

Laura Burlis

Laura Burlis has taught here at LAAC for 4 years, Laura has a BFA from MCAD and her favorite medium is polymer clay due to the magic and fun of the process. Laura has loved art since childhood and her work primarily consists of creating nature, landscapes, owls, and fantasy scenes.  

Jake

Jake Zeiher

Jake Zeiher has been working here at LAAC for 4 years and possesses a Bachelor of arts from Beloit college in studio art and theater, as well as a Master of arts from Minnesota State University Mankato. Jake likes to work with ceramics due to how dimensional it is, he got his start in ceramics by taking a wood fire pottery class back in 1994 and has loved it since!  

dan

Dan Petrov

Dan Petrov joined us 10 years ago and obtained his education at University of Novi Sad, Degree in Liberal Arts, and four years of comprehensive Atelier Art School, Minneapolis. Dans main medium is oil painting which he has been practicing for 35 years. At 16 years old Dan got his first instruction in oil painting in Northern Italy. Dan creates narrative and figure portraits that explore different aspects of the human condition. Drawing references from literature, philosophy, music and more.  

Alyssa

Alyssa Whetstone

Alyssa Whetstone has been working with us at LAAC since 2024 and possesses a BA in Visual Arts Education from Bethel University. Alyssa most often works in watercolor and pen and been has for 5 years, but secretly loves gouache! Ever since she was a kid Alyssa has enjoyed drawing and once she realized it could become her career, she did! Alyssas work is often about exploring landscapes and still lives, like the way light dances through trees or a stack of books is full of personality. 

Hannah Collins

Hannah Collins

Hannah Collins is newly instructing this Fall, she is self taught and uses painting as a creative outlet in junction with her corporate career. Hannah primarily works with Gouache for its versatility and portability and has for 5 years. As long as she can remember Hannah has been drawn to art as it is a universal form of communication that expresses emotions and experiences in a ways words cant. Hannah’s paintings are in a modern impressionist style using light and shadow to capture how different moments feel. 

Lukas

Lukas Carlson

Lukas Carlson is a painter and illustrator with a BFA in Illustration from UW–Eau Claire and an MFA in Painting and Drawing from MCAD. Working mainly in oil paint and pastels, his process begins loosely, allowing abstract marks to guide where figures emerge. His work explores transformation, melancholy and the quiet dramas of stillness, drawing inspiration from artists like Denis Sarazhin and Egon Schiele.

Eric

Eric Holey

Eric Holey has worked here since 2024, he primarily works in clay and loves being able to control the direction shape and size of the piece. After early exposure to fine arts at MIA Eric has been drawn to form and color, then at Luther college he found his voice in ceramics. Eric’s work is all about function, form and line which he has been practicing for 17 years.  

Ann Poulson Headshot

Ann Poulson

Ann Poulson has been creating textile art since 2012 and has been teaching at the Lakeville Arts Center for one year. Largely self-taught, she has studied fiber arts through classes at the Textile Center and other venues. Her work often depicts nature, drawing inspiration from her own photographs, and she enjoys experimenting with techniques such as painting, appliqué, and stitching. Ann’s favorite medium is textiles, which she values for their tactile qualities and the creative possibilities they offer in color, texture, and design. To view her work, visit annpoulson.com.

Stacey Jagt

Stacey Jagt

Stacey Jagt has worked with us since March 2025, she double majored in math and statistics, was a math teacher before delving into the art world, with her favorite medium being ceramics which she has been working with for 4 years. Stacey has always loved art and started working with ceramics at the LAAC and fell in love with it. In her work Stacey focuses on making things that appeal to her eye through glazing and curves.  

Claudia Lund Headshot

Claudia Lund 

Claudia Lund has been an instructor at LAAC the past 4 years. Her interest in the arts has beenlife-long as a musician; working as a performer and voice teacher in her primary career. Theinterest in pottery began 10 years ago as a way to add art and whimsy to her gardens. Herprojects include “stacks” of various heights and color, sculptured characters, mask faces anddecorative downspout covers. One of her favorite figures is a Great Horned Owl hanging on anexterior wall; designed to deter rabbits from grazing on her flowers. She was flattered when theChickadees were dive-bombing it!