Tell us a little bit about you and your background.

Hi there! My name is Marika and I’m a digital and studio art teacher at One River Millburn. I’ve been an artist my whole life, and as a teenager, I realized I also wanted to be a teacher. It was always important to me to be able to share the knowledge and joy I myself took from the art making process. This led me to study art, with a specialty in photography, while studying at Fordham University, and later, to pursue my M.F.A. in Fine Arts at Pratt Institute. In my own photographic practice I shoot a lot of landscape, street, and documentary-style photography, and relish exploring both digital and historic/alternative photographic processes, such as large format film, risograph prints, cyanotypes, and tintypes. I’ve been teaching digital photography to adults, teenagers, and children for nearly ten years, the last five of which include my time at One River. Erin Champion and Viviana Maciel were also gracious enough to grant me the opportunity to teach some studio art classes after the pandemic, and this has profoundly enriched my teaching experience and ability. I consider myself extremely lucky to be supported by such a gifted team of educators, and I’m always looking to my peers at One River to improve my own teaching practice.

What attracted you to work at One River School?

For several years before starting at One River I had been teaching digital photography primarily to adults in Manhattan. I was excited by the prospect of working more closely with teenagers at One River, and to do so right in my own local community.

How would you describe what it is like to teach here?

Teaching at One River Millburn has been a truly life-changing experience for me. I have and continue to learn so much from our wonderful team of educators, but what really makes the One River experience so special are the deep, long-term relationships and the sense of community we are able to foster with our students. So often I see students who are excited to arrive and reluctant to leave…several have told me that they feel One River is like a second home to them. I’m so proud to have watched several of my teen students grow into mature, amazing artists. Many times I’ve found myself wishing I’d had a place like this to be a part of when I was a teenager!

What has been your favorite project to teach and why?

One of my favorite projects to teach was for Teens Photo Shuffle, titled “People, Places, and Things”–or, as the students affectionately dubbed it, “The Nouns Project.” Not only was this project based on the documentary-style photography of Alec Soth (a style I myself embrace in my own artistic practice), but it also afforded my students a chance to really capture their own interests, friends, and experiences. It’s not often that I can convince my students to do “homework,” but this time, each of them seemed to not only want to shoot photographs on their own time, but they were proud to showcase their personal lives through their own lenses. It was a rewarding experience to see them refine their photographic skills, but to also feel comfortable with sharing their personal stories with one another and with me. It really encapsulated the One River experience–we are not just teaching skills, but also fostering students’ personal visions and boosting their confidence.

Is there a special One River moment that stands out for you?

There have been a myriad of special moments throughout my years at One River, but I cannot deny that the most impactful aspect of teaching here has been the ability to foster long-term relationships with my students. In some cases my role feels more like that of a mentor rather than just a teacher. While I’ve had so many outstanding students over the years, I am particularly proud of my Teens Photo Shuffle student, Nick Ware (who was also previously showcased in Engage!). Nick was my most loyal student; he started at One River the very same day as I did, and he continued with TPS right through the spring of his senior year of high school. I’d like to think Nick learned a lot from our class, but I was always impressed by how dedicated he was to learning even more about photography (and other art forms) outside of class. (Boy was it thrilling when he started to ask me about shooting film…!) This type of relationship has been a unique aspect of teaching at One River, one that I have not had the privilege of experiencing at any of my other jobs. Another particularly memorable moment came just last spring, when our Teens Photo Shuffle class was working on a project called “Portraits, Three Ways.” I myself have always struggled with portraiture, and I know that many of my students have as well. To put my students at ease I shared this with them and they all seemed relieved and chimed in that they felt the same way. Nonetheless, I told them, we would do our very best at challenging ourselves to practice this genre of photography–a very important and popular one, at that. While we all experienced some moments of discomfort, everyone participated and engaged with the subject, pushed through the challenges, and in the end, everyone produced some fantastic images, and had fun doing so, to boot.

What do you enjoy outside of One River?

Outside of photography, my hobbies include hiking (42/46 Adirondack 46ers…!), snowboarding/splitboarding, skateboarding (badly), collecting comic books, listening to music (live or on vinyl), cuddling with my cats, and living life to its fullest!