Meet the Students!

Hollie Anderson

Hollie Anderson is an artist currently residing in Salt Lake City, Utah. She received a B.S. in human development from Brigham Young University in 2010. In her art practice, Anderson explores the mind-body connection through touch-based, haptic mark-making. Anderson worked for several years as an art teacher for an after-school art program, where she helped create lesson plans and curriculum that encouraged process-oriented art making for students ages 5-18. Anderson hopes to use personal lessons learned from her private art practice, experiences as an art teacher, and knowledge gained as she furthers her education at Syracuse to help bring creativity, healing, and wellness to those she serves as a future art therapist.

Elisabeth Baird

Elisabeth Baird is a conceptual artist and educator from Garden Grove, California. She graduated from Brigham Young University in 2020 with a B.A. in studio arts and an art K-12 teaching license. She has spent many years working abroad as well as in wilderness therapy teaching art and basic wilderness survival skills to struggling adolescents and adults. Her experience with these individuals and wilderness places greatly influences the work she engages in as an artist and educator. Baird sees her work as a process to investigate what types of scenarios lead people to connection with each other and their environment. She is thankful to have the opportunity to study art therapy at Syracuse University to expand her education and be able to better serve her community. 

NaNa Dong

NaNa Dong earned her B.F.A. in digital media from Kendall College of Art and Design in Michigan and currently lives in Watertown, New York. She has worked as an animator and graphic designer for 10 years, focusing on children’s book illustrations, commercial animations, and interactive media. Experiencing the power of art to communicate emotions inspired her to pursue a career in art therapy. Her goal is to combine her animation skills with therapeutic practices to help individuals express and heal through creativity. 

Alison Fox

Alison Fox is an artist and educator born in New York City. She holds an M.F.A. in painting from Hunter College and is working toward her master’s degree in art therapy at Syracuse University. She has taught art for over 20 years to students of different ages, backgrounds, and abilities.

Fox began her teaching career as an arts educator at the Church Street School for music and art, a not-for-profit community school in lower Manhattan. After moving to Hudson, New York, in 2013, she took on a faculty role teaching art to young adults at the Triform Camphill Community. As the pandemic started, Fox transitioned to working more formally in a mental health setting, taking on a therapeutic staff role at the Austen Riggs Center in Stockbridge, Massachusetts. There she brought meaningful ways for clients to engage with creativity and mindfulness.

Bennie Guzman

Bennie Guzman Jr. is a visual artist and poet born and raised in San Antonio, Texas. He began his formal education in the visual arts at Colgate University, where he concentrated in studio arts and received a B.A. in art and art history. Since then, he has developed an artistic style that takes inspiration from Latinx and Hispanic cultures, hip-hop feminism, street art, and poetry. He now resides in Syracuse and works as the programming coordinator for La Casita Cultural Center. In 2022 he was a recipient of the 2022 Creatives Rebuild New York Artist Employment Program and joined the Pan African Community of Central New York (PACCNY) to create programs that emphasize the mental wellbeing of community members through the arts and cultural practices.

Grace Johnson

Grace Johnson is a visual artist and first-generation college student from Sealy, Texas. She began her journey at Blinn Junior College before transferring and received a B.A. in psychology and art from the University of Texas at San Antonio. After graduating high school in 2020, she took up painting during lockdown, which led to her discovery of art therapy and pursuit of the profession. Prior to moving to Syracuse, she gained experience in conducting research, leadership, and spreading awareness of art therapy in Texas. In April of 2024, she created and hosted her first exhibition, “For the Love of Art (Therapy),” alongside art therapist Sara Peters, bringing together students and professors across campus and citizens of San Antonio to learn about art therapy. Johnson is thankful to be a part of the creative arts therapy program and looks forward to continuing her education and pursuit of research. She hopes to return to Texas to aid its communities and the further expansion of the profession within the state.

Casper Vural

Casper Vural is a lifelong Syracuse resident. They received a bachelor’s degree from SUNY New Paltz in psychology, along with a double minor in deaf studies and studio art. They are an avid art maker in many mediums, collage and photography being among their favorites. Vural has had several family members in the Syracuse University School of Art. Their grandmother, Barbara, a Syracuse University alumna, was an incredible artist and a driving force to pursue art. They’re so excited to be a part of the art therapy program! 

Doryn Wallach

Doryn Wallach is an artist and designer in the New York City area. She holds a degree in interior design from the Fashion Institute of Technology and a B.A. in human services and sociology from Simmons University.

For a decade, she successfully managed her own fine jewelry brand, Doryn Wallach Jewelry, which garnered recognition from prestigious publications, such as Harper’s Bazaar, Women’s Wear Daily, and Vanity Fair. In addition, she received the 2019 Design Excellence Award in Fine Jewelry from the Accessories Council.

Driven by a profound commitment to women’s mental health, Wallach created and hosted the podcast “It’s Not A Crisis,” which centered on women’s issues during early midlife. She is currently an Arts Ambassador volunteer with Arts Westchester and has volunteered her time at The Motherhood Center of New York, Look Good, Feel Better, and Planned Parenthood. Wallach is a proud member of the International Association for Premenstrual Disorders, Postpartum Support International, as well as an associate member of The North American Menopause Society and the American Art Therapy Association.