SCAD Alumni Atelier ambassadors
Summer 2026
Emma Balder
B.F.A., painting, 2012
Emma Balder is a visual artist working at the intersection of painting and fibers to produce uncanny installations and textiles. For the SCAD Alumni Atelier, Balder envisions a floor-length jacket constructed from her quilted paintings and brought to life by graphite, thread, silk organza, boning, metal buttons, and a voluminous quilted form. Central to the work is the performative aspect: during early stages of creation, she drapes and molds the material on her body, incorporating herself as both shield and structure. @balderthanyou
Ashley Romasko
B.F.A., fashion, 2018
Ashley Romasko is a Brooklyn-based fashion designer and the founder of The Collection Inc., a bespoke bridal atelier and creative studio dedicated to reimagining the art of heirloom and couture design For the SCAD Alumni Atelier, she presents a curated collection of artisanal veils, each meticulously crafted from repurposed European wedding artifacts and vintage bridal textiles, through the perspective of contemporary feminine autonomy. @thecollection_inc
Marcelo Suro
B.F.A., industrial design, 2022
Through a process-driven practice, Marcelo Suro works at the intersection of craft and concept, creating objects shaped by method, rooted in material, and grounded in meaning. For the SCAD Alumni Atelier, Suro further develops pre-cast bronze components through patination, refining both hot and cold techniques to build a controlled vocabulary of chroma and surface qualities combined with community-made, blown-glass elements. @marcelosuro
Tianxing Xu
M.F.A., painting, 2023
Tianxing Xu (b. 1996, Shanghai, China) is a visual artist formally trained in oil painting. The inspiration for his current body of work originates from studies of regret and associated memories: early notions of unfulfilled promises or moments of panic rendered into scenes resembling abandoned or fragmented amusement parks. For the SCAD Alumni Atelier, Xu anticipates an upcoming exhibition with a series of new paintings that continue to translate complex emotions into tangible artistic output. @tianxingxu.art
Courtney Watts
B.F.A., fibers, 2026
Exploring the depths of healing through luxury craft techniques, Courtney Watts transforms familiar objects into richly crafted worlds. Working across hand and machine embroidery, beading, and installation, her practice often results in immersive environments that function as extensions of her object-based works. For the SCAD Alumni Atelier, Watts presents La Specola, a multisensory exploration of adornment featuring jewelry, a crystal cave installation, and a process display that highlights embroidery and embellishment inspired by the eponymous crystal observatory in Florence, Italy. @courtneygwatts
Caison Wang
M.F.A., sculpture, 2020
Caison Wang is a painter, sculptor, and comic artist whose practice merges oil painting, 3D modeling, and immersive visual narratives such as globalization, cultural hierarchy, and Asian identity. For the SCAD Alumni Atelier, Wang proposes four or five large-scale paintings that form a cohesive series inspired by Savannah’s landscapes, historical sites, and cultural history. Building on her practice of merging digital and traditional processes, Wang will research the city’s environment through observation, digital modeling, and image scanning, translating these materials into layered visual compositions. @caisonwang
Timmy Chou
M.F.A., interior design, 2000
Timmy Chou is an interior designer, entrepreneur, and design leader based in Taiwan, serving as regional president of Taiwan for the Asia Designer Communication Platform and founder of Akuma Group. With a multidisciplinary background spanning industrial and interior design, his work bridges creative innovation, hospitality, and spatial experience. For the SCAD Alumni Atelier, Chou is developing adaptive workspaces known as FLUX. More than furniture, these modular units function as flexible infrastructures that allow users to shape their immediate environment. FLUX reframes the office as an adaptable system that evolves with how we work. @timmychou | www.akumagroup.com
Sammantha Johnson
M.A., luxury and fashion management, 2018
Founder of adornment and keepsake brand Auburn & Ivory, Sammantha Johnson is an artist deeply shaped by a lifelong connection to Baptist church choirs. Her work is rooted in lived experience, with faith, family, and fellowship as the foundation of her creative voice. For the SCAD Alumni Atelier, Johnson expands on her Stained Glass Sanctuary silk scarf series. Inspired by the quiet reverence and warmth of the sanctuary, these scarves translate the visual and emotional language of stained glass into a contemporary keepsake, symbolizing hope, refuge, and shared presence beyond the church walls. @auburnivoryatl
Michelle Wild
M.A., painting, 2024
Michelle Wild is a fine artist and educator whose work spans oil painting and installation, exploring themes of faith, loss, hope, and the natural world. Known for her use of bold color, dramatic contrasts, and spiritual luminosity, she creates “prayer paintings.” For the SCAD Alumni Atelier, Wild debuts three mixed-media paintings that invite viewers to reflect on transformation and healing. Inspired by imagery from the natural world — bird nests and flowers reflected in mirrors — the works will examine the space between past and future. @michwildpaints