● Who’s leading my classes?
Meet the Instructors
Our team is a close-knit crew of artists and educators who bring both expertise and heart to The Pearl—shaping programs, guiding creativity, and making each session unforgettable.
Anna Ovsyannikova
Ceramics and Sculpting-
Anna is a sculptor and ceramic artist with ten years of experience in fine art and teaching. Originally from France, she began her artistic career through a city art and culture center, where she also led workshops and masterclasses in her original ceramic techniques. Since moving to Houston in 2021, she has continued developing her work through the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, and exhibits with the Glassell School of Art. Anna believes in lifelong learning and teaches both children and adults, combining classical foundations with openness to new ideas and creative exploration.
Brooke Silva
Art Start-
Brooke Silva is a native Houstonian, artist, and mother of two creative boys. Inspired early on by Houston’s vibrant art scene, she developed a love for mixed-media art using paper and fiber. In college, she discovered her passion for art history and earned a B.A. in Art History from Texas State University. Brooke worked for five years as the Volunteer Coordinator at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, where she gained a deep appreciation for art education programs for children. She now teaches the Art Start program at the Pearl Fincher Museum of Fine Arts, introducing preschoolers to art through hands-on creativity and storytelling. She recently launched the Little Art Historians program for ages 3–5, combining art history, children’s literature, and imaginative projects—often complete with costumes for a fully immersive experience.
Caroline Z. Marcos
Watercolor & Mixed Media
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Caroline Marcos was born in Alexandria, Egypt, as a Copt (Christian Egyptian) with mixed Greek and Lebanese descent. Marcos has a B.A. in Studio Art and Psychology from the University of California at Santa Cruz and an M.A. in Marriage and Family Therapy/Art Therapy Psychology from Norte Dame de Namur University. At UC Santa Cruz, Marcos studied under Frank Galuszka, Tim Craighead, and Don Fritz, who worked in painting and mixed media using mica, acrylic gel transfers, and beeswax.
Marcos has exhibited nationally in juried shows at the Art Car Museum in Houston, The Jung Center, Houston, Las Laguna Gallery, Laguna Beach, CA, The Greater Denton Arts Council, and Art House Gallery, in Atlanta, Georgia. Her work is in private collections in Houston, Los Angeles, and the SF Bay Area. Her contributions to the community include providing workshops and supporting local non-profits, such as the Avenue CDC.
Before starting a family she was an art therapist at Houston's First Baptist in the Juliana Poor Memorial counseling center as an LPC-Intern. She is currently a joyous mom of two and an active exhibiting Houston-based mixed media artist, working in water media; acrylic, collage, and at times encaustic. Marcos makes "soul-scapes", surreal landscapes that express her mind, heart, and spirit as well as her response to nature. She occasionally gives back to the community by teaching art therapy workshops at the Pearl Fincher Museum of Fine Arts in Spring Texas, and the Jung Center in Houston.
Loraine Tomon
Fused Glass-
Loraine has been working in stained glass for 30 years and fused glass for 16 years. She has her own studio with 5 kilns of varying sizes, and all the equipment necessary to cut, grind, etch, and polish glass. It is her passion and she enjoys passing along her skills to other people.
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Jessica Simon is a multidisciplinary artist and creative dabbler exploring printmaking, LEGO block printing, watercolor, acrylic painting and photography. In 2020, she discovered block printing and quickly became fascinated by the process of carving, designing, and creating prints that reflected her personality and interests. What began as a personal creative outlet grew into a broader artistic practice, inspiring her to experiment with new mediums, materials, and ways of seeing the world. Her work draws inspiration from the natural beauty of the Texas landscape, Japanese culture, and the details found in everyday surroundings. Through her art, Jess combines curiosity, personal interests, and cultural influences to create pieces that feel both meaningful and uniquely her own. She continues to challenge herself creatively, finding joy in experimentation and discovering new ways to turn inspiration into art.
Jessica Simon
PrintmakingGail Plunkett
Multi Media-
As a visual artist and writer, Gail Plunkett extracts art from her own emotional and psychological landscape. Acquiring formal training took a back seat to studying on her own the trait of creativity itself, which resides within the inner world of each of us. She left her native Texas to explore elsewhere for 20 years. She resided for a time in California, Australia, Chicago, and Taiwan, and visited many points around the U.S., Canada, Turkey and Israel, encountering a plethora of varied world views, languages, religions, philosophies, grandeurs of the physical world, and individual human expressions. Ten years in, she began a 30-year administrative career. After she retired and could take the long view of the years behind her, she began making art. She is often surprised to find her truth, shaped and stored over the years, residing now in her inner landscape, revealed unconsciously in her work.
