Talented Visual Art

The Talented Visual Arts Program strives to develop the student’s natural artistic abilities through the study and application of a variety of drawing, painting, and three dimensional art materials and techniques.  While encouraging their own unique personal styles and expression in making their artworks, students are introduced to professional artistic practices, art history, theory, and criticism.

Talented Visual Art Faculty

Anne Boudreau is a native of New Orleans. She earned her B.F.A. in photography from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, and her M.F.A. in painting and sculpture from the University of South Carolina. Prior to her graduate studies, she served as the executive director of the Baton Rouge Gallery Center for Contemporary Art. After her graduate studies she was awarded a South Carolina artist fellowship for her sculptural endeavors. While in South Carolina she was instrumental in organizing many raw space installation events. Since the mid-1990s, she continues to maintain active art making, exhibiting and teaching careers.

Ralph Bourque grew up near Avery Island, Louisiana. He received his B.F.A. from the University of Southwestern Louisiana in 1995, and his M.F.A. from Pratt Institute in New York in 1998. He also attended Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture. Mr. Bourque worked in the fashion design industry in New York City where he also received artist support grants from the Elizabeth Foundation and the Joan Mitchell Foundation. His teaching career has spanned over ten years and includes the instruction of students from K-12 and at the university level. Mr. Bourque is an award winning teacher who has been affiliated with the Lafayette Parish School System since 2005. In 2016, Mr. Bourque, along with co-worker Katie Slattery (talent theatre), founded the band TopSoil.

Erin Broussard is a life-long artist who received her B.F.A. with a concentration in painting from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette in 2007.  The foundation of her teaching philosophy is the importance of educating students on the use of visual art as a language to express ideas, feelings and stories while promoting individuality, ingenuity, and awareness of professional applications of the arts. Aside from being a teaching artist for over 10 years, Erin engages in creativity as a lifestyle including illustration, graphic design, portraiture, and theatrical set painting and costume design. She is a proud native of South Louisiana, a place that provides limitless inspiration for her work.

Troy Dugas received his B.F.A. from the University of Louisiana in Lafayette 1in 1994 and his M.F.A. from the Pratt Institute in New York in 1997. He has exhibited nationally and has received numerous accolades including Second Place in the Ogden Museum of Southern Art’s juried exhibition, Louisiana Contemporary (2016); a Pollock-Krasner Grant (2009-10); and a fellowship from the Louisiana Division of the Arts (2007-08). He has been featured in several publications including the juried publication New American Paintings; the New Orleans Art Review; and David Rubin’s book Psychedelic: Optical and Visionary Art since the 1960s. In 2012, Dugas was featured in the Oxford American Magazine article “The New Superstars of Southern Art.” His work is in numerous collections including the New Orleans Museum of Art and the Ogden Museum of Southern Art in New Orleans, LA; the Meadows Museum of Art, Shreveport, LA; the Paul and Lulu Hilliard University Art Museum, Lafayette, LA; and the Frederick R. Weisman Art Foundation in Los Angeles, CA.

Brian Guidry received his BFA from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. He received his MFA in Painting from Pratt Institute, Brooklyn, New York. His work has been exhibited nationally and internationally. Selected exhibitions include; The Bronx Museum in New York; Gana Art Space, Seoul, Korea; the Odgen Museum of Southern Art in New Orleans; The Contemporary Art Center in New Orleans and the New Orleans Museum of Art. His work has been featured and discussed in Time Out Chicago, ArtForum, The Times-Picayune, Gambit Weekly, Pelican Bomb, The New York Times, and New American Paintings. His work is in the collections of the New Orleans Museum of Art; The Odgen Museum of Southern Art, New Orleans, LA.; National College of Arts--Lahore, Pakistan; New York Public Library, New York, NY; Pratt Institute Library, Brooklyn, NY; and Paul & Lulu Hilliard University Art Museum, Lafayette, LA.

Marla Kristicevich received her BFA in 2005 from the University of Louisiana with a concentration in metalworking and sculpture. She is the co-creator of (c)ollaborate 78, a visual and performing arts collective showcasing mixed media performance art and site-specific installations. In 2010, Ms. Kristicevich attended Ecosa Institute in Arizona, where she studied ecological and regenerative design. Ms. Kristicevich incorporates this type of “designing with nature in mind” as part of her teaching philosophy and within her own artwork as well. She is an award winning art teacher, receiving the New American Hero Award in 2017 for her work with arts and education integration. She brings 10+ years of experience teaching in and around Lafayette Parish.

Randall LaBry earned his B.A. in painting from the University of Southwestern Louisiana in 1971, and his M.F.A. in Filmmaking at New York University in 1976. His drawings and paintings have been exhibited in Louisiana and France and his artwork and photographs have been published in in the U. S., Québec, and France. He has served as production designer and art director on feature films and has directed or served in various crew positions on several short films and documentaries.

Emee Morgan is a multimedia artist from Vermilion Parish. She received a BFA in studio art with a concentration in expanded media from Alfred University in 2011. After college she returned to Lafayette and served on the board of Creative Action where she helped organize the Imagine Downtown Lafayette design competition. She also taught art at Helping Hearts Academy for one year before leaving to pursuing her masters degree. She received an MA in Arts Management from George Mason University in 2015. Ms. Morgan joined the Talent Art program in 2016.

Stephanie Patton received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Painting from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette in 1993 and a Master of Fine Arts degree in Photography from The School of the Art Institute of Chicago in 1996.  She is a multi-media artist and has studied various types of vocal and comedic performance in New York through The New School, Upright Citizens Brigade and Gotham Writers Workshop. Stephanie has shown her work nationally and internationally including shows at the Bronx Museum of the Arts, Elizabeth Houston Gallery and Voltz Clarke Gallery in New York; the Ogden Museum of Southern Art, Louisiana ArtWorks, the Contemporary Art Center and Arthur Roger Gallery in New Orleans, LA; and Galerie Patricia Dorfmann in Paris, France. She is represented by Arthur Roger Gallery in New Orleans and Voltz Clarke Gallery in New York City. She is also a founding member of The Front, an artist’s collective, in New Orleans, LA. Stephanie’s work has been in publications such as The New York Times, ARTFORUM, New American Paintings and the New Art Examiner and is in several collections including the New Orleans Museum of Art, the Frederick R. Weisman Foundation, Los Angeles, CA and the Paul and Lulu Hilliard University Art Museum, Lafayette, LA. She has received several grants including a Career Advancement Grant from the Louisiana Division of the Arts in 2009 and 2012. Stephanie is currently the producer and host (as the character Renella Rose Champagne) of Lost in Love on KRVS 88.7FM.

Kelli Foret Richard is a graduate of the College of Business from Louisiana State University. She is a self-taught visual artist with a background in Small Business, Human Resources, and Organizational Culture. Always a passion for the wildly creative, Ms. Richard began pursuing writing, art, and illustration as a career in 2011 after publishing her first Book, The Acadiana Art Trail. Since that time her work has been featured in several area books and publications, and most recently a national brand. While Ms. Richard’s work is primarily pen and ink focused, she also incorporates acrylic, water color and gouache into pieces as they call for color. Underlying themes found in her work are usually quirky, silly and unusual subjects. In addition, Ms. Richard has taught in Lafayette’s public school system as a Teaching Artist for the PACE (Primary Academic Creative Experiences) Program.