Rena Karanouh is a graphic designer, illustrator, and educator whose work bridges visual storytelling, cultural memory, and place. For over 25 years, Rena has taught drawing, illustration, and printmaking, alongside her practice that includes book design, cultural collaborations, and international exhibitions. Her recent projects center on oral histories, printmaking, and the visual archive as tools for storytelling.

Rena has taught with KSOA with overwhelmingly positive feedback from students that keep people coming back to learn throughout her classes. Come find your potential alongside a lifetime artist and treasured teacher.

Rena Karanouh
She/Her
Drawing | Collage | Printmaking

Nancy Steele
She/Her
Oils | Acrylics | Plein Air​

Nancy Steele is an enthusiastic educator who teaches the foundations of observational painting and drawing practices, both indoors and outdoors. Nancy graduated from NSCAD and Queen's University, and continues to study master classes worldwide. Nancy seeks to explore, understand, and capture those moments when pauses in our awareness meet spaces in our environments. Nancy earned Best in Show at SquareFoot 2021 and 2025 at the Tett Centre in Kingston. 

Nancy has taught with KSOA for years and is a an exemplary artist, teacher, and community leader. With a dedicated following of students, you are sure to learn valuable skills in a wonderful, supportive environment.

Valerie Kniazeva
She/Her
Art History | Painting|Children's Programming

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Valerie Kniazeva is a York Region-born artist currently completing her final year in
the Bachelor of Education program at Queen’s University. Working with many mediums
throughout her life, she has found a calling to the depths of oil paints with the diverse tool of the
palette knife. Working on various projects and being inspired by the world around her, she
doesn’t hold back with art and is open to exploring and communicating with audiences through a
variety of colours, mediums, and expressive strokes.

Working at KSOA since her second year of undergrad, Valerie has been a Teaching Artist for
almost three years, using her national and international teaching experiences to help create a
comfortable and positive atmosphere in the studio. Working with all ages, she is motivated to
ensure that every student feels like the true artist they are, learning to lean into their unique
style, helping them learn how to use the arts for self-expression.

Marta Scythes
She/Her
Watercolours

Marta Scythes is a medical illustrator-researcher-educator. She teaches at the Haliburton School of Art & Design and Southampton Art School. Her illustration work has been published by Simon & Schuster, Camden House, Harper Collins, U of T Medical Society and McClelland & Stewart (UP NORTH nature series). She has designed and produced scientific animations on Type 1 Diabetes for The Hospital for Sick Children. Marta is currently collaborating with Queen's University, researching novel strategies for stroke rehabilitation at Providence Care Hospital in Kingston. ​

Sheila Simm
She/Her
Calligraphy Instructor

Sheila Simm is a passionate calligraphy artist, educator, and visual arts facilitator who guides learners in discovering the beauty, rhythm, and mindfulness of handwritten art. Her classes combine foundational techniques with the joy of creative expression, helping participants write beautifully, connect with their own artistic voice, and experience calligraphy as a soothing, meditative practice.

Harvey Tolentino-Doniego
He/They
Acrylic Painting - Printmaking

Harvey Tolentino-Doniego is a Queer Filipino Multidisciplinary Emerging Artist Educator, and Creative based in Kingston, Ontario. With a strong passion for community engagement and artistic expression, Harvey has made meaningful contributions to Kingston’s art scene. They have worked as an Emerging Artist Educator with the Kingston School of Art and as a Guest Artist Educator for the Agnes Etherington Art Centre’s summer programs and Creation Station.

They worked as a Program and Events assistant with the Tett Centre for Creativity and Learning. Harvey has also recently programmed community art shows and events with Artery/Trellis HIV/AIDS Community care centre. They also work as a Gallery Ambassador for Cultivate Art Commons. Harvey loves to create workshops and events that are inclusive, empowering and connect the community to Nature.

Angela Smith-Pollard
She/Her
Acrylic Painting

Angela Smith-Pollard works as a full-time artist in her studio in the enchanting town of Roblin, Ontario, Canada. She keeps close to her rural roots and lives near the Land O’Lakes in the Addington Highlands which are part of the Great Canadian Shield. She retired from her position as an Early Childhood Educator and Educational Assistant for the Hastings Prince Edward District School Board after 28 years where she often developed and implemented art curriculum, murals and school fundraisers for teachers and students.

Her many years of travel and art study with Mastrius has allowed for a deep dive to develop her artistic voice and create her body of work. As she emerges humbly along her way, Angela has been juried into the Colours of the Heart by the GNAAA at the Window Gallery, Kingston, ON. Winning 2nd place in her very first show in 2022. She was also juried into the Coming Home gallery exhibition at the L&A Museum, Napanee, ON in 2024. Angela has been a member of the Greater Napanee Area Arts Association since 2022 and is involved in many local shows, events and displays

See her website and other work here on her website!

Melissa Gates
She/Her
Therapeutic Arts

Melissa Gates is a Therapeutic Arts Practitioner and artist. 
She's always been a creative person, dabbling in a lot of artistic hobbies. She's used her own creative work to help herself through stressful life situations (trust her - there's been a lot of those). Aside from creating products and artwork, She greatly enjoys being outdoors (camping, hiking, beach trips) and taking her kids on lots of adventures. 

She holds a certificate in Therapeutic Arts Practitioner Certificate (CIIAT - Canadian International Institute of Art Therapy) and applies that to her course, Artistic Unwind.

To learn more, you can visit her website here.

Carleigh Candice Mignonne Milburn
​​She/Her 
Gouache | Upcycled Textiles | Sculpture | Mixed Digital Art-Media

​As both an artist and educator, my journey is characterized by a profound commitment to the intersection of artistic expression and Indigenous art-education. Holding certifications in Intermediate & Senior Divisions of Visual Arts and First Nations, Métis, and Inuit Studies, my qualifications, endorsed by the Ontario College of Teachers, attest to my dedication to culture and creativity.

Currently, I am completing my doctoral degree at Queen’s University, exploring the transformative potential of artificial intelligence and Indigenous artwork as a potent medium for storytelling. Specifically, I am investigating the dynamic interplay between digital design and the creation of impactful narratives within both public and digital spaces.

More Teaching Artists of KSOA!

Susana Beitman - Mexican Art
Margaret Bignell - Printmaking Open Studio
Nicholas Crombach - sculpture, life drawing
Paul Whittingham - graphic design & artist workshops