The Team
Founder and Instructor
Dana Dallal
Dana, the Founder of Parkdale Pottery, is an accomplished ceramic artist working in both handbuilding and wheel throwing techniques. Her expertise lies in surface design, where she seamlessly incorporates her fashion and textile design background. Her work is characterized by layered florals and botanicals, creating unique and captivating ceramic pieces.
Administrative and Marketing Coordinator
Alassandra Rojo
From a young age, Alassandra has always been captivated by the arts and would frequently find herself dabbling in a diverse array of crafts and hobbies. Pursuing a Bachelor's Degree in Craft and Design, specializing in ceramics at Sheridan College, was a natural choice for her. Crafting mark-making tools is her joy and she often uses handcrafted stamps to create floral compositions and blooming patterns on all her work, producing detailed, embossed surface design. No matter where she goes, Alassandra will always intertwine her love for the arts within her day-to-day life.
Instructor
Mariana Bolaños-Inclan
I am a Mexican sculptor based in Tkaronto. My body of work is based on the stories of where I come from and who I am as a woman and as an immigrant. I use references to pre-hispanic symbols and Mexican popular culture to represent these stories in figurative sculptures. Focusing on art with a social purpose, I work as a facilitator in community programs with children, women and newcomers around Tkaronto and the GTA.
Instructor
Emma Bickers
Emma Bickers seamlessly melds illustrations with substantial earthenware vessels, crafting poignant visual narratives. Initially drawn to illustration, she serendipitously discovered ceramics through an introductory course. Today, a recent graduate in ceramics from Sheridan College's Craft and Design program, Emma thrives as a full-time resident artist at Harbourfront Centre.
Instructor
Valentina Guevara
Valentina moved from Toluca, Mexico over a decade ago, however she still maintains a deep connection to her Mexican roots. She has earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Concordia University (2006) in Montreal, specializing in painting and ceramics. Valentina went on to further develop her skills while working at Mosaika Art & Design. After working for 15 years in Montreal and more than 9 years doing ceramics in public art, Valentina decided to move to Toronto, to work on her passion in a fresh new environment. She is currently working as a pottery instructor and studio technician, for several studios located in Toronto.
Instructor
Darren Cross
Years after graduating from OCAD University and earning a degree in Philosophy at the University of Toronto, Darren rediscovered his passion for the visual arts in the form of pottery. Darren’s earnestness and enthusiasm is evident in the style of his instruction and his desire to help foster a community of potters. As for Darren’s playfulness, he strives to embody an old adage: “maturity consists in having reacquired the seriousness one had as a child, at play”.
Darren currently teaches 2 hour wheel throwing classes and multi-week wheel throwing classes