Welcome to Cotuit Center for the Arts

Canadian-American artist Jackie Reeves uses mixed media to bring together figurative and abstract elements in her art. She was raised in Montreal by architect parents and studied design art at Concordia University. Her artistic career began as a professional mural painter for corporate, private and public spaces. Concurrently, Reeves co founded the Plymouth Community Art Center. In 2010 she earned her MFA in painting at Massachusetts College of Art and Design at the Fine Art Work Center in Provincetown. She has since exhibited in solo and group shows in Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Washington DC and North Carolina. She has been profiled in numerous publications including WHITEHOT Magazine, the Boston Globe, Art New England and Artscope Magazine.

Reeves is an active member of the Cape Cod community offering mentorship through her art classes, public art and work with youth in creating murals that tackle issues of inclusion, diversity and acceptance.

Jackie works out of the Old Schoolhouse Studios in Barnstable Village and lives with her husband and three daughters in Sandwich, Massachusetts.

Nicole is a certified meditation instructor, sound practitioner, reiki master, and author of A Life Suspended: A Mother and Son’s Story of Autism, Extinction Bursts, and Living a Resilient Life. You can find her work at nhdwrites.com, or for current offerings follow her on Facebook and/or Instagram.

Jessie Nickerson’s love of art began at age 4, when she decided to embellish her family’s walls with crayon “murals” and has been a life-long pursuit ever since. She received her BFA from the Massachusetts College of Art and went on to Parsons School of Design to earn her MFA. She has studied at the Museum School in Boston and at the Reitweld Academy in Amsterdam. Her illustrations and surreal images are inspired by fairy tales, elements of nature, and daydreams. She exhibits her work throughout the Cape, the South Coast and the Greater Boston area.  She resides on Cape Cod where the sea continues to provide her with inspiration.

Melanie Gillis is an artist and art teacher. She earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Graphic Design from Boston University and a Master of Arts in Teaching Visual Art from Bridgewater State University. She enjoys teaching a variety of mediums that include drawing, painting, printmaking, mixed media, and clay. She has taught at The Danforth Art Museum at Framingham State University and currently teaches in public school and at the Cape Cod Museum of Art. Melanie loves to teach students of all ages and to encourage them to explore, take chances and develop their creative voice. When Melanie is not teaching art she is engaged in making artworks in a variety of mediums; photography, printmaking, clay, and fiber art.

Sam Holmstock, a founding member of the band Entrain, has taught Afro-Caribbean drumming for 35 years. For the last eight, he has taught on the Cape at Cotuit Center for the Arts, Cape Cod Community College, and at the Brewster Treatment Center, a residential program for incarcerated teen boys.

Melanie Gillis is an artist and art teacher. She earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Graphic Design from Boston University and a Master of Arts in Teaching Visual Art from Bridgewater State University. She enjoys teaching a variety of mediums that include drawing, painting, printmaking, mixed media, and clay. She has taught at The Danforth Art Museum at Framingham State University and currently teaches in public school and at the Cape Cod Museum of Art. Melanie loves to teach students of all ages and to encourage them to explore, take chances and develop their creative voice. When Melanie is not teaching art she is engaged in making artworks in a variety of mediums; photography, printmaking, clay, and fiber art.