OUR
STORY
Founded in 2021, Element Art Center is a community of artists and students working side-by-side in an environment that encourages and inspires creative growth. We believe there is an artist inside of everyone, and we want to help them find their voice. Each of our art educators has experience both in the studio and in the classroom, ensuring you will receive clear and concise instruction that reflects advanced art principles. Studio rentals, residencies and other educational programs are also available. Reach out today to learn more!
Element Art Center was born out of a desire to support local artists by fostering a creative environment and providing a quality level of instruction. We hope to grow our community to include artists and students from all walks of life, and to have a hand in shaping the practice of those new to the art world. We aspire to provide a space for our students, members and residents where individual style and technique can flourish.
Learn. Create. Inspire.
OUR VALUES
THE FUTURE WE SEE
Bringing Artists Together
Element Art Center looks to our future as a well respected and thriving artist studio in Los Angeles. We plan to actualize this goal through commitment to our students and artists. We're dedicated to produce our own art, as well as art for the community. We will always strive to instill innovation and teach form and function to those who come to Element Art Center for a fun, relaxing, and well rounded experience.
OUR STAFF
A Team of Artists and Teachers
Chloe Hess
Owner
Justin Steffler
Owner
Hi, I'm Becca. I teach ceramic, glass, and craft workshops. I love helping folks learn and grow through art, leading fun experiences, and playing with clay all day. I said goodbye to the wfh corporate life to tend to my creativity when I realised that life is too short to keep pushing the things I love to 'later.' When I'm not elbow deep in the mud, I like to write, touch grass, and snuggle with my cat.
Becca Choi
Sarita Mahinay
Sarita Mahinay studied Ceramics and Creative Writing at the Kansas City Art Institute, graduating in 2011, and has been creating and teaching ever since. From 2015 to 2019, she taught elementary art in Shanghai, China, where she continued to deepen her ceramic practice at the Pottery Workshop while exploring museums across the country. She moved to Los Angeles in October 2019, where she currently lives and teaches. Mahinay's work explores a dialogue between pattern and form, spanning both functional and sculptural ceramics. Her practice is rooted in a curiosity about the beauty of everyday objects and their subtle yet powerful presence in shaping how we live. Hobbies and passions in life include caring for her three rabbits and little chihuahua, playing ukulele, and traveling whenever she can."
I have been creative my whole life being classically trained in fine arts for over 10 years & an ArtCenter College of Design Alumni. I practice both stained glass and ceramics in the studio! In my free time I work on pet & human portrait paintings and environment design through digital illustrations. I'm thrilled to be a part of Element Art Center where I'm open to anything that allows me to learn, grow, and have community.
Auzzie Grohs
Outside of teaching classes, Derek helps with everything behind the scenes that makes a class run smoothly, from prepping materials and resetting the classroom to maintaining tools across ceramics, stained glass, and wood shop. He brings seven years of stage management and production experience, work built on the same principle of precise, behind-the-scenes support for someone else's creative moment. Outside the studio he shoots photography and studies Politics and Public Affairs at Denison University. He believes, like Element does, that everyone has an artist inside them.
Derek Aponte
Hi! I'm Nicole, born and raised in Southern California and a studio assistant and teacher here at Element Art Center. I've been working in the pottery world for about a decade. My work is more minimalist and raw, allowing the clay to speak for itself and creating work for daily use like mugs, bowls, vases, etc. More recently, I've also been working with stained glass, painting, and woodwork. If you can't find me at the studio, you can find me at happy hour or at the movies! I can't wait to share my knowledge with my future students!
Nicole Martins-Boyte
With a background in engineering, Jamie specializes in stained glass using digital fabrication tools and design techniques. She enjoys fine detail work. At Element Art Center, Jamie hand-cuts and grinds stained glass pets and other pre-fabricated glass pieces.