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Teachers and Staff


Lauren Merrill (Owner/Director/Teacher)

Lauren spent her childhood in Long Island, New York, and she was fortunate to have parents who exposed her to both art and skiing at a young age. Lauren loved to do anything creative and this became her passion growing up. When it came time to select a college and a major, her family was incredibly supportive of her love of art and everyone brainstormed ideas that would allow her to pursue art as a career. There were many conversations around the dinner table that sparked the idea of opening an arts center someday! 

Lauren attended University of Michigan’s School of Art and Design and she explored as many art mediums as she could fit into four years. After college, Lauren accepted a K-12 Art Teacher position at Vail Mountain School and moved to beautiful Vail, Colorado which quickly became home. Her love of teaching, connections with families throughout the valley, and role on the board of Eagle Valley Artists Alliance sparked the idea to open Alpine Arts Center for the community. Lauren is thrilled to realize her lifelong dream and explore this journey as Alpine Arts Center’s owner and founder. Lauren’s Portfolio


Russell Frederickson

Russell is from the Great Lakes State – Michigan, growing up he enjoyed time on the water in the summer and always explored lots of northern MI winter adventures. Russell has always had a passion for multiple creative mediums… Drawing, calligraphy, photography, video production, graphic design, writing & storytelling. All those creative passions lead him to focus his studies on Television Production & Graphic Design at Ferris State University. Russell brings several years of experience in various areas of creativity within telecommunications, multimedia production, design, marketing, network television, internet, large corporate & small businesses to the Alpine Arts Center. Beautiful Edwards Colorado is Russell’s settling point and he is enjoying all CO seasons to the extreme! Russell is looking forward to sharing his creative passions and growing the Alpine Arts Center community.


Aileen Mainhart

Born in Dallas, TX – Aileen’s family moved to Colorado early on and she has spent the majority of her life growing up in the valley. Her passion for art sparked at a very young age! With lots of creative diligence over the years, Aileen has become experienced in a wide variety of art mediums – oil & acrylic paint, charcoal, pastel, watercolor, embroidery, mixed media and digital. Aileen’s hobbies are spending time in the great CO outdoors listening to music, making clothes and playing her Nintendo Switch 🙂


Jessica Pinto

Originally from Venezuela, Jessica started her artistic journey from the early days when she was just 4 years old winning contests at her local library for drawing and coloring. When she was 6 years old she started dancing folklore, classic ballet and flamenco, being this last one her biggest passion.  Jessica moved to Barcelona at age 19, where she attended Art School and started exploring different mediums, being oils her biggest passion. She dedicated 8 years painting a vast arrange of styles from abstracts to realistic portraits, along with dancing flamenco performing at different tablaos in Spain. 

Jessica then made her way to Denver, Colorado where she focused more towards painting and showcased her work in galleries such as Space Gallery, Carmen Wiedenhoeft, Colorado Gallery of the Arts and Gallery North.  The Amazonian flora, caribbean beaches, salsa dancing, the spanish guitar and flamenco colorful dresses are elements of Jessica’s inspiration to her art, bringing a vibrant and uplifting style to her paintings.  Jessica moved about a year ago to the Vail Valley and is very excited to share her expressive art and culture through dance and painting. 


Jake Jones

Jake was born and raised in Sioux City, a town in northwest Iowa known for their honey and pop corn. As interesting as that is, Jake spent most of his adolescence either drawing or hanging out with his adrenaline seeking friends. The irregular and untamable Iowa weather provided Jake with plenty of time inside to draw and create. When the weather was bearable, Jake and his friends would find time to go wake boarding, rock climbing, or just go to the biggest hill they could find and try to skate down it. Senior year came along and Jake realized the only path he could see himself on for the rest of his life was becoming an artist. Jake went through the design program at Iowa State University where he met Taylor, who introduced him to Camp Hantesa where he first began teaching art to children. Jake also led many hiking and high ropes courses at the camp which strengthened his love for the outdoors. Jake had the opportunity to study abroad in Italy, spending the semester painting where many master painters have studied before him. After he finished school with a double major in Integrated Studio Arts and Advertising, he continued to travel around the U.S. until he decided that Colorado was the obvious place to live. When Jake isn’t creating artwork, you can find him out longboarding with his Australian Shepherd, Indie. Jake’s Portfolio

Valerie (Val) Gross

Val spent her childhood in Belgium with a very crafty mom. She moved to the Vail Valley (after an 8 year stop in the South East of France) to become a ski and fitness instructor. She teaches various mediums during summer camps, but her favorite is to reuse materials and repurpose them to create art. Currently, she’s also hooked on watercolor! Val loves skiing, cooking, nature, photography and her sweet family (2 daughters, plus her handsome and handy husband). Valerie’s Portfolio


Debbie Bolon-Feeney

Debbie has lived and worked in the Vail Valley for 30+ years. She received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Ohio University with a major in painting, however, realized in her final quarter that her passion was really ceramics. From graduation on, she pursued ceramics beginning with work in a small pottery studio on the upper west side of Manhattan. Eventually, she began teaching pottery classes, entering her work in art shows around the city and finally became one of the founding members and owners of the 78th Street Pottery Coop in New York City.

In 1976 she attended a summer workshop at the SummerVail Art Workshops, where she studied ceramics and fell in love with Colorado. She accepted a position with the SummerVail Art Workshops as ceramics assistant, and moved to Vail. Debbie says, “It was an inspiring summer and I continued to work for the Workshop for several summers, in addition to teaching pottery classes at Colorado Mountain College’s two facilities in Vail and Eagle.” She produced a line of dinner ware in her East Vail pottery studio, and her pottery was sold in galleries in Vail, Minturn, and Glenwood Springs, as well as numerous art shows and festivals throughout Colorado, including Vail Arts Festivals where she won Best of Show several years running. In addition to her ceramics career, Debbie taught Art at Red Sandstone Elementary School for many years. Debbie’s Portfolio


Emily Kent

When Emily first picked up a camera years ago it opened her eyes in a way that encouraged her to slow down and see the daily surroundings in a new light, and she began self teaching. Emily believes that we cultivate empathy and new approaches to our ingrained modes of thought when we stay open to viewing our environments from different angles, in various lights, and from others’ perspectives as well. As a member of Nature First, a global alliance for responsible nature photography, a lot of Emily’s work focuses on our natural surroundings as she is passionate about the care and preservation of our outdoor spaces and wild places. She enjoys working with nature networks and organizations doing good things for the community and for the environment. Emily Kent loves being able to capture unique moments with those you love in the artistry of our natural surroundings. 

Emily grew up in the state of Minnesota and worked for both undergraduate and graduate degrees, in Psychology and Education. After college, Emily and her husband, along with two daughters moved around the country during the family’s 16 years in the U.S. Air Force. The Kents transitioned to the mountains of Colorado in summer of 2019 and are overjoyed to call this beautiful place home.  Emily’s Portfolio


Blake Kirkham

Blake was born in Napa Valley, California and moved to Homestead, Colorado in first grade. Blake is a sophomore at Vail Christian High School and enjoys many forms of art. His favorite mediums are ink sketching, oil paints and watercolor. Blake has a passion for big mountain skiing & competition, and loves outdoor activities such as fly fishing, tennis, and golf. 


Olivia Hughes

Born in Denver, Olivia’s family moved to the Vail Valley in her middle school years. While attending many art camps at the Alpine Arts Center, she developed a love for acrylics, watercolor and charcoal. Olivia’s interests include art, skiing, surfing, and volleyball. 


Want to Stay Connected?

280 Main Street. Unit C-101 • Riverwalk • Edwards, CO 81632 • Phone: 970-926-2732 

Alpine Arts Center