Shaina Dunn

Shaina Aiyana Dunn was born and raised in the Hudson Valley.  She currently lives with her 15 year old daughter in Nyack, NY.  Shaina began creating artwork as a child and never stopped.  It wasn’t until college that she discovered her love for clay.  She studied at SUNY New Paltz, receiving her BS in Art Education (2004), BFA in Ceramics (2004) and an MA in Studio Art (2010).  Shaina began her art teaching career in Newburgh with leave replacements at both Vails Gate and New Windsor Elementary Schools.  She has been teaching ceramics at Clarkstown High School North in New City, NY for the past 18 years.  Shaina teaches all grades from 9th-12th and truly enjoys it!  In 2020, Shaina completed her NYS Administrative degree and began her role as Art Department Chair in 2021. In this role, she loves working on collaborative community art projects, such as murals and mosaic work. 

I grew up with a sketchbook in my hand and a desire to create. My parents modeled creativity in their respective crafts. My father with his carpentry, and my mother with her beadwork, basket weaving and quilting. I was raised with an appreciation for the handmade and I was exposed to a range of artwork. I’ve had the opportunity to work with a wide range of mediums, but clay became a favorite material of choice over two decades ago. A majority of my clay work is carved or altered after being thrown on the potter’s wheel.  I carve very gestural, fluid, curvy lines that reference water and/or energy.  You’ll notice this both in surface designs and in the forms themselves. The relationship of forms and how objects sit together is appealing to me. This theme is also apparent in my recent drawings and paintings. I have been inspired lately by portraiture and the relationships between individuals. Like my clay, my paintings also have very gestural, fluid, and curvy lines that reference water and/or energy while dealing with representational subject matter. Whether it’s clay or a drawing, print, or paint, I hope the viewer feels a sense of ease and a spiritual connection to the world around them when they interact with my art. We are all connected. We are all one. Life is art and art is life.

Shaina Aiyana Dunn

Awards and Acknowledgements

NYSATA Secondary Art Teacher of the Year/2017

Exhibitions and Craft Fairs

Bridging Chasms, Riverfront Art Gallery, Yonkers, NY 2024

Rockland County Courthouse Exhibit, New City, NY 2024

The Color of Skin, Inside Small Exhibits, Virtual 2024

Arts Council of Rockland WinterFest Art Vendor, West Nyack, NY 2023

Garner Arts Center Member Show, Garnerville, NY 2023

Nyack Street Fair Art Vendor, Nyack, NY 2023

Green Meadow Fall Fair Art Vendor, Chestnut Ridge, NY 2022/2023

Vastu Health Center, Warwick, NY/2011-2020

Ross Gallery, Newburgh, NY/2018

New City Library, New City, NY/2009

MA Thesis Show, SUNY New Paltz, NY/2008

Faculty Art Show, Newburgh Free Academy, Newburgh, NY/2005

Cup Show, Warwick, NY/2005

BFA Thesis Show, SUNY New Paltz, NY/2004

Wood Fired Ceramics Display, SUNY New Paltz, NY/2004

Student Art Gallery, SUNY New Paltz, NY/2003

Teacup and Saucer Exhibition, SUNY New Paltz, NY/2003Unison Arts Center, New Paltz, NY/2002

Other

Arts Council of Rockland Mentorship Program Coordinator2024

Vastu Health Center200hr Yoga Teacher Training/2013

NY

United States