The Artists of Salon X
Jessi Olarsch (she/her)
2024 Visual Artist-in-Residence
“Painter of purple people”
Jessi Olarsch is a figurative painter based in NYC. In her work, memory, image, and desire combine in a purple dreamscape that tells an unfolding story of queerness. Her paintings consider the shifting boundaries of public and private life, the raw tenderness of queer friendship, and the complicated joy of coming into your own.
Antonyio Artis (he/him)
2024 Performance Artist-in-Residence
“I create work that marries the nerd and the black experience within me!”
Antonyio Artis is an NYC based actor, singer, writer, and producer who graduated with his BFA in Acting from Brooklyn College. Since graduating, his work includes: “New Jack City: Live!” (National Tour), national ad work for “SiriusXM”, and, dearest to his heart, self-producing play to short film adaptations and his solo show (presenting at The Village)! At 16, he wrote and performed an original song on the “Hamilton” stage for the Broadway musical’s “Eduham” Program in 2016!
Tessa Bagby (she/they)
2024 Performance Artist-in-Residence
“Assembler of living collages”
Tessa Bagby is a Bay Area-born, Brooklyn-based director, dramaturg, and nurturer of original live performance. Proscenium-averse in practice, Tessa collaborates with candor, rigor, and care to develop and present new plays in community. Their work asks questions about the relationships between the spiritual and the corporal, desire, personal responsibility, environment, transformation, embodied queerness and unbalanced power.
Franco Giacomarra (he/him)
2023 Performance Artist-in-Residence
“Finding your place in between two worlds”
Franco Giacomarra is a New York City-based writer, composer, and performer who makes original works for the stage, page and screen. From an early age, Franco always knew that my path in life would be to cultivate my passion for music and writing in order to tell impactful original stories. Franco hails from the Philadelphia area, and maintains a borderline unhealthy preoccupation with all the requisite sports teams and cultural ephemera (Go Birds). He moved to New York to receive his B.A. from Fordham University Lincoln Center in Theatre and Music, and subsequently became radicalized about the importance of an asset-based approach to making one’s own work.
Franco’s obsession with collaboration has led to an eclectic body of original projects in media ranging from theater, to original music, short films, comics, and a touch of cultural criticism - all as either a writer, actor, composer, technician or some combination thereof. Franco identifies as a pop culture omnivore who draws from sources far and wide, often resulting in unique and idiosyncratic combinations of forms, genres, subject matter etc. He is most often drawn to writing about identity, and characters that feel ill-at-ease in different aspects of their being - whether it’s shapeshifting aliens acclimating to Earth, or a bicultural kid like him trying to roll his R’s just so.
Franco is currently an artist-in-residence with The Village, A Fenix 360 Artist to Watch, and a member of the Barrow Group and the Freeman Studio. His work has recently been presented with The Green Room 42, Alchemical Studios, The Latine Musical Theater Lab, The Crypt at Columbia, and more. Franco is proudly first generation Sicilian and Puerto Rican.!
Film Roll - Cason Doyle (he/him) & Gracie Fojtik (she/her)
“We Roll Dice to Make Films!”
Cason Doyle and Gracie Fojtik are both multi-hyphen artists across multiple platforms, who have found their most recent creative home in filmmaking. With Fojtik’s work as an actor, writer, director and producer and Doyle's as a cinematographer, photographer, stuntman, and director, the duo synthesized their strengths and created _Film.Roll_. A micro short production project, their films are shaped by fate. Cason and Gracie cast Dungeons and Dragons dice to decide the Subject, Style, Shot# and ‘Sorcery’ of each film. The Films are released on social media, where their first 15 projects have earned almost 100K views across platforms. _Film.Roll_ is a laboratory – a space to practice, learn and play in the art of filmmaking. Run entirely by volunteers, each film is produced with little to no budget, and is under 3 minutes. All of these works are housed under their production company Foyle Films. Their professionally scrappy films aim to foster community, challenge creativity and satisfy everyone with a sense of accomplishment through a finished product.
Josh Fulton (he/him)
“creating sh*t that would make the lil' queer black boy in me LIVE”
Josh Fulton is a 2018 graduate of the Fordham Theater program and primarily an actor & screenwriter based in NYC, but has always had a connection to music. He started the group TBD with his homie Jamie a little over a year ago. They've been making what they're calling "indie jazz", inspired by the likes of everything between Tune-Yards and SZA. Jamie brings an other-worldly keyboard-based indie production style to Josh's smooth & sexy, brown liquor-esque jazzy melodies.
Yiseul LeMieux (any)
“Think you would like to try something different?”
Yiseul LeMieux is a multidisciplinary artist originally from South Korea and currently based in NYC. She relocated to the United States in 2008 to pursue her passion for music, earning both bachelor’s and master’s degrees in music performance at Louisiana State University and the New School. Her artistic expression transcends conventional boundaries, incorporating elements of text, sound, imagery, and motion to foster collaborative and engaging experiences.
Caroline Potter Shriver (she/her)
“Creating to connect”
Caroline Potter Shriver is an actor, writer, and producer, based in Brooklyn. She graduated magna cum laude from the Alvin Ailey School /Fordham University BFA program where she double majored in Dance and Latin American studies. She has taught, choreographed, and performed with international arts education non-profits, including JUNTOS Collective and Americorps’ ArtistYear. After dancing her heart out from age twelve to twenty two, she found herself with a story to tell and in need of a medium. She stumbled upon the art of the one-woman-show and knew wanted to spend the rest of her days making theater and acting. In 2021, she collaborated with a team of artists to build The Village: a collective of artists and patrons that celebrate the creative process. The Village grew as an incubator for Caroline’s first solo-work, The Stella Show, which was workshopped at The Village’s Salon events and ultimately produced by The Village as a full-length one-woman-show in October 2023 in residency at IRT Theatre (NYC). Caroline has directed for theater, (Public Private Prayer at Ursinus Fringe Festival), acted on film, Capsules (Directed by Luke Momo), and collaborated on countless projects with the incredible artists of The Village. In addition to her work as an actor and an Artistic Director, Caroline loves writing stories and picking the brains of her amazingly creative friends, busting a move on the dance floor, and roller skating through the streets of BK.
Catalina Toro (she/her)
“I like to transform feelings into form, isn’t that amazing? Alchemy.”
Catalina Toro's artistic expression resonates with confidence and emotional depth. Born and raised in Colombia, Catalina has lived in New York City since 1998. Self-taught, yet deeply influenced by mentorship and assisting top NYC artists like Vik Muniz and James Hyde, she immersed in the NYC art scene merging figurative and abstract elements with mythic symbolism. Her work embodies a fusion of art theory, history, and personal narrative, capturing the essence of a scene, reflecting her heritage and a rich cultural milieu of contemporary New York. She presently works as a live performing artist.
Joanna Whicker (she/her)
“I love things that make me feel alive, ex. open spaces, buffalo sauce, hugs.”
Joanna Whicker is a warm-hearted storyteller who wears many hats as a Film and Theatre Artist. Whether acting, writing, directing, or producing, she pours her humor, depth, and sense of play into every project. Her journey includes roles in TV: ‘Chicago PD’ (NBC), ‘FBI: Most Wanted’ (CBS). In Film, she’s been featured in: ‘It's All Happening,’ ‘The Resemblance,’ ‘Pillar,’ and ‘A Savage Nature,’ among others. Roles in Theatre include: ‘Interior’ by Nick Payne (59E59 Theatre), ‘Kill Hamlet’ by Nako Ama Adodoadji (Columbia @ Signature Theatre), and ‘Lost Paradise’ (Ekilibre Dance Company). Joanna is a graduate of Shenandoah Conservatory. She studied at the Moscow Art Theatre School and The National Theater Institute, housed at The Eugene O’Neill Theater Center. Joanna is represented by Buchwald.
Woodah (he/him)
"Created to Create"
Meet Woodah, aka WoodahThreeTimes, an artist with 13 years of experience in the Hip-Hop/Alternative space. Hailing from Winston-Salem, North Carolina, and now thriving in Brooklyn, New York, Woodah's music bends genres to offer a unique and captivating sound. With pressing issues affecting the Black community, and the way these issues intersect with society at the forefront of his mind, through music, Woodah aims to personify a commitment to self-improvement and the ability to adapt to life's challenges.
Jamie Wygle (he/him)
“never been accused of killing the vibe”
Jamie Wygle is an actor, musician, and writer born in New York, from parents that were both actors. He grew up in theaters and plays even as he moved from the city to Idaho and then back to study at Fordham. Now he's exploring live music, composing, and film. When he can choose, he likes work that explores city life, grief, and angst, with humor, love, and chaos. This project was born from a close friendship and a love for making art. He is very grateful to the Salon and his artistic community and he looks forward to expanding it.
Our Team
Caroline Potter Shriver, Co-Founder & Artistic Director
Marc David Wright, Co-Founder & Artistic Director
Dana Seach, Managing Director
Elizabeth Kline, LA Producer
David Kahawaii, LA Producer
Riva Dhamala, Creative Consultant & UX Designer
Annabel Hope, Creative Consultant
James Kenna, Creative Consultant
Special Thanks
Ideal Glass Studios
ARTHOUSE.NYC
Shania Benjamin
Jerusha Cavazos
Michelle Cohn
Santo Jacobsson
Claudia Logi
Sophia Metcalf