Meet the Instructors

Marla Brady
Monica J. Brown
Anne York Davis
Damien Fosse
Monica Harris
Dorothy Hughes
Peter Klick
Marci Rae McDade
Tim Noworyta
Jamie O'Reilly
Simone Peer, MA, PCC.
Stephanie Spiros
Taj
Eric L. Wood

Marla Brady has over 19 years of experience in the financial services industry. Marla has a deep commitment to building strong client relationships and providing excellent customer service. She has spent numerous years coaching and consulting with people at all socio-economic and professional levels. Her analytical and problem resolution skills enable her to seek the best solutions and recommendations for her clients. Marla has an MBA in Management from Loyola University, Chicago and a BA in Economics from Northwestern University.

Monica J. Brown has been teaching Hatha Yoga since 2002 when she received her certification through the Temple of Kriya Yoga, where she studied under the instruction of Mahaswami Kim Schwartz. She is a Yoga Alliance registered instructor. Her classes focus on alignment and breathe awareness and are perfect for the beginning to intermediate student. Through teaching yoga she intends to help others in striving for balance of mind, body and spirit.

Anne York Davis has a B.F.A from The Art Institute of Chicago in Painting and Drawing. She studied at National College of Art and Design, Dublin, Ireland. Lillstreet. Gallery Faculty Member of 5 years. Drawing and Cartooning. Workshops in various local schools. Areas of Expertise: Portraiture and Life Drawing, Cartooning and Painting/Drawing Instruction

Damien Fosse is a contemporary fiddler trained by ear in the old time tradition, his playing reflects the archival recordings of older fiddlers he listened to and the influences of the living master fiddlers. A graduate of The School of the Art Institute of Chicago in mixed-media and performance art, his images and documentary films reveal a keen and playful slant on the ever-expanding folk music scene.

Monica Harris received her training at Pete Wades’ Stained Glass Studio. Monica is inspired by abstracts, masks and elements of an object that allow the mind’s eye to fill in the missing pieces. Her artistic philosophy is that fine art should be functional, delighting more than the eye. Monica’s works have been showcased at the Hyde Park Art Fair, HEIR Gallery, Woman Made Gallery, DuSable Museum of African American History Arts & Crafts Festival. Monica studied at Roosevelt University, Chicago and The Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago.

Dorothy Hughes for years was primarily involved in creating woven sculpture and teaching at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, the Evanston Art Center, and at the Wolverhampton College of Art and Design in England. Dorothy studied ceramics at Cranbrook Academy of Art, Bloomfield Hills, MI, and at the Univ. of IL at Champaign. At the present time most of her work is in clay but still balanced with fiber and mixed media.

Peter Klick worked for over 30 years as an interior designer all over Europe and N America having his own interior design company since 1984 and widely published in leading newspapers, interior design magazines and design books. Peter has a master of arts in Interior Architecture and Furniture Design from the Staatlichen Akademie Der Bildenden Kuenste Stuttgart, Germany and a Bachelor of Science in Classical Furniture and Fine Wood Working from the Gewerbeschule Basel, Switzerland. Program Coordinator Design Integration Harrington College of Design Chicago

Marci Rae McDade is a Chicago-based fiber artist and independent curator. She holds an MFA in Fiber and Material Studies from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and a BA in Film & Video production from Columbia College of Chicago. Ms. McDade has exhibited her meticulous, hand-embroidered artwork nationally in solo and group exhibitions since 2002. Her commissioned portraits are now in private collections in Chicago and NYC. Her work has been featured at several international art fairs and the quarterly exhibition in print New American Paintings. Her first curatorial project “Perfect: a group exhibition” was presented at the Chicago Cultural Center in 2004. She then organized a successful two-year, independent, national tour for that show which was reviewed in the Chicago Tribune, the Chicago Sun Times and Art Papers magazine.

Tim Noworyta has been practicing yoga for more than 20 years and teaching for 10 at the Chicago Yoga Center and other studios. He combines extensive training in various styles of Hatha yoga, including Anusara, Ashtanga and Iyengar, with a background in dance and performance. Tim writes regularly for Yoga Chicago magazine and has been published in Yoga Journal. His flow style of teaching is characterized by clear instruction, careful attention to alignment and a sense of humor. He has helped students from beginner to intermediate find in yoga a way to become more alert, alive, healthy and happy.

Jamie O'Reillysinger, producer, consultant, arts activist has a B.M. from DePaul University School of Music, and is owner of J. O'Reilly Productions, a cultural arts business. A strong force in the Chicago area arts arena for over 25 years, Jamie is a critically acclaimed vocalist and a highly respected producer. She creates programs for concert halls, live radio and theater, cultural institutions and organizations. She is a teaching artist at artScape, a program for Harold Washington College, and an advisor at the Portfolio Center at Columbia College. Among the dozens of organizations she has created programs for the Chicago Humanities Festival, the Chicago Cultural Center, the Irish American Heritage Center, and Roosevelt and DePaul Universities

Simone Peer, MA, PCC. Certified Evolutionary Coach & Trainer (Coach U & The Evolutionary Institute). Simone is on for the Evolution of ALL Beings, Everywhere, ALLways! Beyond Magnificence, her passions include creating Beyond A Life U Love and her favorite word is YES

Stephanie Spiros has been a certified Pilates Instructor since 2002, she has been teaching full time since then. She has been with Gallery 37 for over 3 years. Stephanie is classically trained in the Pilates method, having received her training from Power Pilates in both New York and Chicago. She continually furthers her work thru continuing education courses and seminars. Stephanie believes people of all ages and fitness levels can benefit from Pilates. Her classes are geared towards students of all levels. Pilates gives you the benefits of a stronger core, improved posture, increased flexibility and an overall feeling of well being and self confidence.

Taj is Professional choreographer, educator, and entertainer. Her dance philosophy is steeped in tradition and innovation, yielding a distinct flair of originality. Taj's seasoned career as a health care practitioner and lecturer has allowed her to study various forms of holistic art and science throughout the globe. A certification in Massage Therapy from the Chicago School of Massage Therapy and a Teaching Certification in Yoga from Moksha of Chicago yields a well rounded understanding of the human body.

Eric L. Wood studied fine arts at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and received his BA in English at Arizona State University with a focus in creative writing. He taught Latin and Ballroom dancing for three years at Chicago Dance, and presently offers private dance lessons throughout the city. He currently teaches drawing and painting for Lillstreet Art Center, a mural painting program for After School Matters, as well as a mural painting class for artScape Chicago. Eric is in the process of creating a visual book composed of his writings and drawings.