BASECAMP to SUMMIT - Podcast Channel

Artist Statement:  "Negative Making" is a central theme of my work. I would define negative making as a reactive, ambient, and/or counterintuitive process. I use this methodology in my multimedia art practice, with a special focus in ceramics. Clay is not only a material, but a way of thinking. It is the lens with which I see the world. This way of thinking applies to both inside and outside the s...

  Linda Vonderschmidt-LaStella is a full-time ceramic artist and founder of Earthsongs Ceramic Studio in Metuchen, NJ, working in clay since 1993. Her sculptural tiles and murals — rooted in nature and spirituality — are installed in galleries, hospitals, and museums throughout the region, and in 2025 she was named a Fellow by the New Jersey State Council on the Arts. She's also a driving force in...

In this episode, Robert sits down with Metuchen photographer Mark Harris — a familiar face in the local arts community and a collaborator through the Metuchen Arts Council, Junebug Art Festival, and Friends of Metuchen Arts. Mark specializes in fine art photography of the human form, dance movement, and portraiture, and has spent years documenting the life of the Edison-Metuchen area. They talk ab...

I am an artist and a certified art educator from New Jersey. I have shown my artwork both locally and internationally.  My work is a mix of painting, sculpture and performance inspired by pop art and conspiracy thought. I use my work to analyze the world and maintain a sense of humor in increasingly dark times. I hope to look at our social and political climate to analyze, synthesize, and question...

VICTORIA NIKITINA CHALA Founder, Art-Based Life Coach & Creative Wellness Practitioner  Rising Heart Coaching LLC in Metuchen, NJ "All my life art has been my companion: a magic carpet whisking me away on childhood adventures, a guide toward inner wisdom, a conversation starter when I cannot find the words, a bridge between hearts when making new friends, a light and an oxygen tank in dark and...

Welcome to my 1st Basecamp to Summit podcast, where I talk to local NJ Art artist Joseph Castronova, a mixed media artist based in Metuchen, about his creative journey.  Joseph Castronova is an artist and educator. He was Artist in Residence for 2023 at the First Presbyterian Church of Metuchen; faculty at The Institute for Contemporary Art in Bedminster, NJ and former Director of duCret School of...