Yasamin Holland

Teaching art is an absolute joy. Along with students, I love to explore the idea that art can be anything, and that art is everywhere. There is no one way when it comes to creativity. The pattern, texture, color and history present at Chewonki are all waiting to inspire an art project. 

I began my teaching career almost by accident, and in doing so discovered a natural capacity for encouraging and supporting young people in the process of self-discovery.  I have taught high school studio art and fashion design, arts integration as an elementary classroom teacher, and elementary art education. Place has been, and continues to be, at the core of my personal and professional experience, having lived in New York, Virginia, California, Barcelona, Arizona, and Colorado before moving to Maine in the summer of 2018, after purchasing an 1850’s farmhouse, sight unseen. In addition to my role as an art teacher at Maine Coast Semester, I am the director of the Bowdoin Summer Art Camp. Fun fact, I was recently certified as a personal stylist, something my inner child is extremely happy about. 

My creative path has incorporated printmaking, collage, bookmaking, film making, fashion design, styling, and an ongoing deep appreciation for tape. My interests include electronic music, vegan cuisine, wearing fun outfits to do chores in the house and garden, exploring, and most of all I love a road trip with my husband, Tim, and our young children, Winston and Daisy. What I love most about being an artist is the lens through which I experience the world.