KELLY EMMERT

Miss Kelly is the owner and Creative Director at The Art Garage.  A former high school art teacher, she discovered her passion for teaching in an art camp format in 2008 when she held her first Art Garage camp.  She loves that her camps and classes give children a chance to experiment with all sorts of art media in a very encouraging and positive environment.  Her belief is that every person in the studio should feel successful and have fun!

Kelly holds a degree from the School of Visual Arts at Florida State University and studied education as a graduate student at the University of North Florida.  When Kelly is not in the studio, she is spending time with her family or running with her friends.  She is a happy wife of an Austin firefighter and proud mother of two daughters, 13 and 17.  You are likely to see them all at The Art Garage helping out, too!

A FEW OF HER FAVORITE THINGS INCLUDE…

  • Favorite Place in the World:  The Hakone Open-Air Museum, Japan
  • Favorite Food:  Does coffee count?
  • Favorite Color:  Violet, sometimes aqua
  • Favorite Art Material:  alcohol inks!
  • Favorite Project She’s Working on at the studio: planning 2020 Summer Camp!

Kim Seymour

Miss Kim is a manager at The Art Garage and she does it all. Kim has extensive experience managing in the service industry and knows how to make everyone feel at home and that all our guests have everything they need to create and have a wonderful time. Kim has been studying and creating art since she was four years old, can’t live without The Beatles, is a French toast expert, can sing and dance while teaching, and Halloween is her favorite holiday! Kim also enjoys fostering kittens for Austin Animal Center, borrowing books from the library, and shopping for plants on my days off.

A FEW OF HER FAVORITE THINGS INCLUDE…

  • Favorite Place in the World:  BRUSSELS, BELGIUM. It’s all about those street waffles!
  • Favorite Artist: Andy Warhol + Chris Uphues
  • Favorite Food:  Tacos!
  • Favorite Color:  HOT PINK, but I would paint everything yellow if I could or throw glitter on it
  • Favorite Art Material:  Acrylics and Analog Photography
  • Favorite Thing About Working at The Art Garage: What I love most about TAG are MY ART KIDS! From my storytime preschoolers all the way up to those cheeky middle schoolers.

ALICIA CHIRINO

Miss Alicia loves traveling to new countries by herself and discovering other cultures. On her days off she loves to take her dog on adventures around Austin! THey love trying new food trucks and spending time in the sunshine! Alicia grew up in South Florida and come from a big family of girls and graduated from the University of North Florida. She has loved art my whole life but especially loves to play with clay.

A FEW OF HER FAVORITE THINGS INCLUDE…

  • Favorite Place in the World:  Bali, Indonesia! Beautiful beaches and friendly people make me happy, happy!
  • Favorite Artist: Banksy & Charmaine Olivia
  • Favorite Food:  Sushi!
  • Favorite Color:  The Rainbow! I love so many colors from Chartreuse to Indigo
  • Favorite Art Material:  Clay
  • Favorite Thing About Working at The Art Garage: My FAVORITE thing about working at The Art Garage is being surrounded by the wonderful people I work with everyday! I love how we are always working together and brainstorming new, creative ideas to keep our studio the special place it is! Big hugs from my students are also a plus!

KAIYA EMMERT

Kaiya Emmert is a Bowie grad and currently studies at the University of Texas at Austin. Kaiya has been assisting with camps for 7 years and this will be her second year as a lead instructor. She is a a talented artist who has been raised immersed in art her whole life. Kaiya is often a go to favorite with our campers because of her kind, patient nature and strong sense of empathy.  She is a child whisperer! We are lucky to have her and it will show in the smiles and projects your kids will bring home.

Kaiya is also an in-studio instructor and can handle just about any studio related question you may have.

THESE ARE A FEW OF HER FAVORITE THINGS…

  • Favorite Artist:  Lauren Briere is my favorite right now.
  • Favorite Place in the World:  Kyoto Japan & Clearwater Beach, FL
  • Favorite Drink:  Coffee
  • Favorite Color:  Midnight blue
  • Favorite part of working at The Art Garage: I love working at the art garage because i get to help people feel happy, creative, and successful. Seeing kids and adults discover the joy that everyone can find in art is extremely fulfilling!
  • Favorite Food:  Fish tacos! or maybe stir fry?

ELLA HEAFNER

Ella is a attends High School in Dripping springs and we are so glad to have her at The Art Garage! Some of her hobbies are yoga, adventuring in downtown Austin.  She loves Music and Art and is wonderful with the kids.

THESE ARE A FEW OF HER FAVORITE THINGS…

  • Favorite Artist:  My Little Sister
  • Favorite Place in the World:  Seattle WA (so far)
  • Favorite Drink:  Coffee
  • Favorite Color:  Baby blue
  • Favorite part of working at The Art Garage: My favorite part about the art garage is multifaceted but I like meeting new people and seeing smiles on kids faces. I love watching their creativity flow into something amazing. Lastly I love how welcoming it is, feels like a 2nd home!
  • Favorite Food:  Bagels

JOIE RETTIG

Joie is Miss Kelly’s daughter and this is her fourth year assisting with camps. Joie attends Clint Small Middle school where she is very active in theater and loves to sing. At camp she excels at cheering up kids who may need it. Her confidence is infectious.

Joie also helps in the studio during the year with what ever needs to get done.

THESE ARE A FEW OF HER FAVORITE THINGS…

  • Favorite Artist:  Salvador Dali
  • Favorite Place in the World:  San Francisco Ca
  • Favorite Drink:  Warm Apple Cinnamon Tea
  • Favorite Color:  Dark Purple
  • Favorite part of working at The Art Garage: Seeing people create art that turns out how they hoped it would and seeing how happy it makes them feel.
  • Favorite Food:  Coffee