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Meet Our Art Instructors
ART CENTER INSTRUCTOR BIOS
Miriam Baranov
Visual Artist
Miriam Baranov has lived in multiple countries and U.S. regions, finding early connection through drawing and mathematics when language was a barrier. This shaped her passion for visual storytelling and precision, which continue to define her work.
A fine artist specializing in classical realism with a contemporary twist, Miriam draws deep inspiration from 19th-century classical painting. She is committed to reviving the elegance and rigor of that era—studying the works, writings, and methods of 19th-century masters, and training under mentors who have preserved these techniques. Her work is both a tribute to this tradition and a personal interpretation for the present.
Miriam honed her skills through immersive workshops and mentorships, studying at the Golden Gate Atelier for over a year under Andrew Ameral, focusing on classical drawing and painting.
She is also a passionate educator, teaching portraiture, anatomy, and painting in her Franklinton Arts District studio, while leading workshops and mentorships locally and nationally. Her goal is to expose new generations to the beauty and discipline of classical art while encouraging students to bring their own voice to the tradition.
Her work has earned recognition in national and international competitions, including as a finalist in ModPortrait. Her paintings have been exhibited in galleries and collected by private clients. Through her art and teaching, she champions a revival of classical techniques with a fresh, personal perspective.
Michelle Boerio
Visual Artist
Michelle is a visual artist and educator who loves to make art that makes the world seem a little weirder and a little more beautiful. She grew up in Pickerington, Ohio before earning her BFA in Painting and Drawing at the Ohio State University and her MA in Museum Education at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Primarily, Michelle works in painting but also specializes in collage, printmaking, and bookmaking. Her art has been exhibited in Italy and in the United States including shows with the Ohio Art League and Granville’s Art @ 43023. Currently she lives and works in central Ohio, where she divides her time between making art and teaching at the Columbus Museum of Art, Franklin Park Conservatory, and other Columbus organizations.
John Cameron
Visual Artist
John has enjoyed a life-long fascination with painting, starting as early as elementary school and progressing through high school and early college. Although he has experience with oil and acrylic painting, John’s medium of choice as an adult is transparent watercolor. It was not until he retired some years ago, however, that He finally found the time to truly focus on watercolor painting. Since retirement, he has been able to take ongoing painting lessons from a variety of well-respected, local artists, plus numerous day long workshops from a wide variety of accomplished watercolor painters, and weeklong courses with nationally recognized watercolorists.
John is a Westerville native, and is involved in the local art scene as Past-President of the Community Artists of Westerville (and current Art in Public Places chair), past Vice-President of the Central Ohio Watercolor Society (a juried art group), Associate Member of the Ohio Watercolor Society, and Past President of the Arts Council of Westerville. At present, John teaches watercolor painting classes for beginning, intermediate and advanced watercolor painters at the Westerville Community & Recreation Center, Westminster Thurber Retirement Community, and the Bryn Du Art Center in Granville.
John’s paintings have been seen locally in several venues, including Central Ohio Watercolor Society exhibitions (juried shows), the Community Artists of Westerville, Franklin Park Conservatory, plus solo shows at the Westerville Public Library, Inniswood Metro Gardens, Sunbear Gallery, Java Central Coffee House and Gallery in Westerville, City of Westerville Community Center and Quest Business Center.
Bryan Ghiloni
Photographer
Bryan attended the Savannah College of Art and Design where he attained dual degrees in Photography and Graphic Design, achieving honors in each. He spent 3 years in New York City making art and working internships with renowned photographers, Joyce Tennesson and Arnold Newman. Since 2005, he has run photography studios in both Georgia and Ohio. While in Georgia, he also ran an award winning art space called Gallery RFD where he acted as co-director, art instructor and concert promoter.
As an artist, Bryan works in a variety of media in addition to photography and has shown in over 100 art exhibitions. Currently Bryan is an instructor at The Central Ohio Technical College where he teaches Photography, Video and Design. He is also a professional photographer with a studio in downtown Newark.
Sarah Gray
Visual Artist
Sarah Gray is a local, self-taught artist who aims to transform the ordinary into the eccentric, and to find the beauty and excitement in every artistic medium. “I love art for its delicacy and strength; the willingness of a canvas to be transformed to celebrate the human mind, and treasure our imaginations, is an alluring thing.” Sarah graduated from The Ohio State University with a bachelor’s degree in Anthropology. In her spare time she enjoys pursuing her artistic passions with her company, Earth Goddess, volunteering with local organizations, and traveling abroad. One of Sarah’s favorite quotes is: “Our task, regarding creativity, is to help children climb their own mountains, as high as possible.”-LORIS MALAGUZZI
Paul Hamilton
Visual Artist
Paul Hamilton is a graduate from the Columbus College of Arts and Design. Paul is the former Creative Director and instructor for the Granville Studio of Visual Arts, and his resume includes a long list of gallery and museum shows for his painting, sculpture and installation media. He is represented by Hammond Harkins Gallery in Columbus,Ohio. A few of these locations include the Franklin Park Conservatory, the Decorative Arts Center, as well as three exhibitions with David Findlay Galleries in New York. Paul’s work is also in private collections throughout the United States, Venezuela, Mexico, and Great Britain.
Christian Harris
Photographer
Christian Harris is a local photographer who has over the last 5 years taught courses in Central and Southern Alaska to locals and tourists on how to properly read and analyze space weather data so they can determine when the Aurora Borealis will be out for themselves, with a high level of success for those that took the course. He has done presentations across several states (Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin), as well as speaking on the topic internationally as of October. Having a passion for the aurora, and astronomy in general, led to his interest in attempting to photograph the night sky. Starting with a smartphone camera back in 2015, he moved up to digital photography steadily increasing his abilities. Recently he lived in the Colorado Rockies, and it was during this time he experimented the most with the subject.
Megan Henderson
Visual Artist
Megan is a fiber and multi-media artist living in Granville, Ohio. Using wool, she creates a variety of work from soft sculptures and vessels to lighting, and fine art wall hangings. Megan's art reflects her lifelong love of nature, folklore, myth and storytelling as well as an appreciation for the tactile nature of her medium. Her work has been on display at such places as The Works, The Dayton Visual Arts Center, Bryn Du Art Show, and The Ohio State Fair Fine Arts Exhibition where she was recently honored to receive an Excellence Award from the Ohio Arts Council.
With its rich, multi-cultural history, Megan is endlessly inspired by the versatility of wet-felling & loves sharing this ancient skill with her community along with needle felting and other fiber related artforms. Over the years, she has taught both children & adults at the Newark Cultural Arts Center and Whatever Works Art Space. Currently, you can find her teaching with the Licking County Parks District and here at Bryn Du.
Meredith Martin
Visual Artist
Meredith Martin has been a full-time practicing artist for the last 30 years, and has owned and operated her gallery, Sunbear Studios and Gallery, for the last 20 years where she showcased the works of over 40 Ohio artists. She has traveled throughout the country, has shown work in most major cities of the U.S. including Atlanta, St. Louis, Pittsburgh, and Phoenix, and has shown throughout Ohio. Meredith has an undergraduate degree from Otterbein University in Art Education, and earned a Master of Arts from The Ohio State University, specializing in Adult Education. She became interested in the American West while teaching and traveling in New Mexico as a young artist and has continued to paint the present and historical subjects of this part of the country. She is also committed to the representation of wildlife, and enjoys doing commissioned portraiture.
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Meredith closed her gallery in 2022 to focus on her own work and continues to exhibit her paintings and conduct studio work at the The Front Porch Guild, an artist’s collective located in Granville, OH. You can meet Meredith any Thursday at FPG and can visit the gallery on Friday and Saturday also.
Spencer Pearson
Visual Artist
As a child growing up on a small berry farm outside of Kennesaw, Georgia, Spencer spent his summer mornings picking blackberries and afternoons exploring the woods and creeks around his childhood home. His imagination was able to run wild as he disappeared into the woods all day. This was where Spencer’s creative foundation was formed. As a child, his aunt, who was also a professional artist, taught him to oil paint. As his love for painting grew, he turned to plein air painting (painting outdoors). It naturally blended his love for the outdoors and his passion for painting the American landscape. Spencer now operates a gallery, The Front Porch Guild in Granville, Ohio, with fellow artists, Meredith Martin and Eric Mize.
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Spencer left a successful career in healthcare behind to follow his passion for painting and has never looked back. Though Spencer took art classes in college he does not have a formal degree in the field, though he would not say he is self-taught. Instead, he chose to sharpen his skills through studying with nationally acclaimed artists, sometimes traveling across country to do it. This has allowed him to gather a vast and diverse knowledge of techniques, styles, and skills which he then shares with his students.
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Spencer enjoys teaching painters of all ages and skill levels. He believes that the experience of painting is as important as the final product, which makes for truly enjoyable classes. Spencer paints in a variety of mediums and holds classes in both studio settings and the great outdoors.
Danielle Williams
Calligraphist
Hi I’m Danielle, the face behind Danielle Janeen Calligraphy. I’m a midwestern girl, born and raised in Ohio. I’ve always loved writing! As a kid, I’d sit at my dad's desk and write for hours, not doodling just writing. I dabbled in calligraphy a little bit in my teens and picked it up again in 2021 and never looked back. It’s oh soooo very relaxing and therapeutic and I just adore writing pretty things. When I’m not writing, you can find me shopping, traveling and spending time with my huge extended family. I’m looking forward to sharing my love of writing with you!
