We’re counting down the days to the Periscope Pitch + Artist Entrepreneur Showcase happening September 3rd at OZ Arts Nashville!
We first met the talented artist entrepreneurs of the Class of 2025 back in March when they began the Arts & Business Council’s Periscope: Artist Entrepreneur Training program. After making their way through this intensive of professional development training, peer collaboration, and mentorship, they are ready to showcase their work, unveil their creative business plans, and share how the community can support their entrepreneurial dreams!
Come celebrate the hard work of these talented creative business owners and be the first to see what’s next for Nashville’s creative community. Registration is free but required, and seats are limited.
Amanda McCadams
Culinary Arts
Amanda McCadams (she/her) is the founder of Panache Candy Incorporated, a handcrafted confectionery brand known for its unique flavors, artistic designs, and commitment to sustainability. Born and raised in Tennessee, she calls Nashville home but considers the world her backyard. With undergrad degrees in photography and Spanish, plus a master’s in photography, she has spent her life exploring creativity in all its forms.
Never one to back down from a challenge, Amanda has climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro, SCUBA dived in premier reefs, ridden horseback to see Mexico’s monarch migration, and watched the mist rise over Machu Picchu—all with a camera in hand. After years of adventure and artistic exploration, launching a candy company became her next challenge—one that lets her transform inspiration from art, culture, and nature into something deliciously tangible.
With a focus on artistry, sustainability, and quality, Panache Candy uses only high-quality ingredients, free from artificial colorings and additives, and eco-friendly packaging—proving indulgence can be both beautiful and responsible.
The Artists of the Periscope Class of 2025 are:
Amanda Woods*
Visual Art, Painting
Amanda Woods (she/her) is an abstract artist inspired by the movement of nature, both in shape and action. Working with acrylics, pastels, and charcoal, Amanda creates organic shapes that represent movement, aiming to foster a connection between the artwork and the audience. After a nearly 20-year career in marketing and graphic design, including serving as the Director of Marketing for an event company, Amanda recently transitioned into full-time art.
Her passion for art was rediscovered during the pandemic when balancing virtual school for four young children and a full-time job, she found solace in painting, often retreating to a small closet under the stairs. Today, Amanda paints, quite messily, in her garage where amidst the delightful chaos of pets and family bustling through, she has found her artistic sanctuary. Amanda holds a Journalism and Fine Arts degree, having initially attended college on a ballet scholarship. The arts have been a constant thread throughout Amanda’s life, deeply influencing both their artistic expression and personal journey.
Anna Wise*
Visual Art, Painting
Anna Wise (she/her) was born in Birmingham, AL and has lived in Nashville, TN since 2011. She is a self taught artist whose ethereal, nostalgic paintings explore themes of hope, freedom, and purpose through landscapes overlaid onto portraiture using mixed media and oil paint.
She has participated in solo and group exhibitions including Lorenzo Swinton Gallery (Clarksville, TN), Rockwall Gallery (Nashville, TN), Red 225 Gallery (Nashville, TN), and Kennedy Douglas Center (Florence, AL). She participated in Superfine Art Fair in April 2023 and April 2024, and The Other Art Fair in May 2024/2025, and was The Graduate Hotels’ artist in residence in 2024.
Blaine Steiner
Visual Art, Glass
Anne Buckle (she/her) is a musician, teaching artist, and songwriter originally from Peachtree City, GA. A graduate of Harvard University and The University of Tennessee, her first few years out of college were spent working for the U.S. Department of State in Washington, DC, at the U.S. Embassy in Paris, France, and in Tennessee higher education policy. In 2015, she made the decision to pursue a career in music full-time and has since shared the stage with the late Charlie Daniels, toured with Augustana opening for The Chicks, written songs recorded by other artists including American Idol’s David Archuleta, and released her own original songs amassing over 4 million streams across platforms. As a teaching artist, she works with individuals and organizations to help them unleash their creativity through music. This summer, Anne released her full-length record WILDWOOD on vinyl and debut children’s book based on an original song called Firefly. This fall, she will formally launch her songwriting experience for corporate teams.
Brian Myers
Film/Television
Brian Myers (he/him) is a socially engaged documentary filmmaker and media educator with a MFA in Social Documentation from UC Santa Cruz. His concerns span social inequities that develop in politically underrepresented communities.
His work includes: FAR FROM KAWTHOOLEI (2020), a refugee collaborative documentary exhibited at the San Diego Asian Film Festival & the PBS App. LAND & FREEDOM: TALKING FOOD SYSTEMS (2014), an interactive documentary, story map, and walking tour focused on disparities in health. SPEAK CITY HEIGHTS (2011-2018), digital stories of community concerns broadcast on KPBS. MORRISTOWN VOICES (2023), action research & media arts project with youth from immigrant communities.
A recipient of the ITVS Humanities Documentary Development Fellowship (2022-2023), his proposed feature documentary DON’T CROSS OUR PICKET LINE explores labor history in the southern United States at the intersections of class, race, and gender and pivots toward contemporary issues of organized labor.
Clif Koufman
Film/Television, Music
Clif Koufman (he/him) is a Nashville-based musician, educator, and filmmaker whose work centers on rhythm, storytelling, and artistic exploration. With a background in both drum set and hand percussion, he has traveled to West Africa three times to study traditional music—most recently to film master drummer Bolokada Condé for an upcoming educational series.
Clif’s creative work spans music, film, and visual art. He produced a recording session in New Orleans with Jeff Coffin, Johnny Vidacovich, Bill Summers, and Ra Kalam Bob Moses, and has recorded with Danny Gottlieb, Jeff Coffin, and Ra Kalam Bob Moses. As a filmmaker, he has interviewed Pat Metheny, Paul Shaffer, and John Medeski, and is currently directing Living Music, a feature documentary about the legendary Ra Kalam Bob Moses.
Through his platform, Sound & Rhythm Studio, Clif teaches, performs, and produces media—sharing rhythm as a tool for creativity, connection, and transformation. His work has engaged thousands across schools, senior centers, and corporate settings—bringing the power of rhythm to teams, classrooms, and communities alike.
This work is part of a larger vision: to preserve the wisdom of master artists, foster deep collaboration, and inspire people to live more rhythmically—together.
Cresa Lenox
Literary Arts, Multi-Disciplinary
Cresa Lenox (she/they) is a writer and artist with an almost compulsive need to bring beauty into the world around her through various mediums. Born and raised in the heart of Music City, her community instilled in her a deep appreciation for the art of creative expression. Above all, she credits her grandaddy with recognizing the artist in her at a young age and ensuring she had the foundations to thrive in her talents. After detouring through more traditional career paths over the years, Cresa found that art was always her lifeline through it all. From selling custom-made jewelry pieces to exploring the human condition through performance or the written word, creation continues to be her driving force.
Dee Hammonds
Drama/Theatre/
Performance Art, Music
DaJuana “Dee” Hammonds (she/her), a proud alumna of Fisk University (B.S.) and David Lipscomb University (M.Ed), is an arts educator, leader, and advocate. She is currently the Dean of Fine Arts at Warner Arts Magnet Elementary School. Most recently, Dee became an Emmy Award winner for her work on the MNPS District Song and Documentary, Every Student Known: The Creation of An Anthem. She was selected, for the second time, by the Country Music Association Foundation as a Music Teacher of Excellence.
She also received recognition by First Night Honors Awards as Best Actress in a Play. Dee is also the founder and director of Acting Up, a non-profit children’s musical theater program. DaJuana credits her drive for music and theater to her Elementary music teachers who gave her first solo, and arts teachers from Chattanooga High School Center for Creative Arts, where she landed her first lead roles and graduated valedictorian. Her two most memorable musical performances after high school are performing live background vocals for Grammy Award winner Natalie Cole and recording background vocals on the number one hit song, Believe, from the Grammy Award winning Brooks and Dunn’s platinum album, Hillybilly Deluxe. Some of her favorite stage performances include the recently performed Next to Normal as Doctor Fine and Doctor Madden, Fan Me With A Brick in the leading role of Catherine, Caroline or Change in the role of Dottie, Crowns in the role of Velma, and Ragtime as Sarah’s Friend, singing “Til We Reach That Day.” The most amazing part of her life is sharing it with the man of her dreams, Chad Hammonds. Together they have seven beautiful children, Leslie (16), Chloe (15), Carter (11), Ellington-Renee (9), and Grant (8), Dawson Rose (6), and Taye (29).
Haniyfa Muhammad Branka
Visual Art
Haniyfa Muhammad Branka (she/her) is a mixed-media artist and published writer. She founded HMB ArtHouse, a mobile arts and crafts studio, and Trust Yourself, a nonprofit organization focused on violence prevention and trauma-informed education. Through her latest creative initiative, Created2Gether, she brings collaborative artmaking into corporate, nonprofit, and wellness spaces to foster connection, communication, and cultural transformation. Haniyfa has been immersed in art from an early age, continuing as a teen artist participating in various art programs and attending magnet high schools. She studied art in college while earning a B.S. in Psychology and Human Services, and continues her creative work from her home studio.
Her art uses eco-friendly techniques to explore human experience, inclusivity, and environmental sustainability. As a long-time teaching artist, she shares sustainable practices with others through workshops, afterschool programs, and local nonprofits like Turnip Green Creative Reuse. In 2025, Haniyfa was named a Buchanan Arts Emerging Artist Fellow. Her work delves into the complexities of life, offering viewers a space to reflect, connect, and discover pieces of their own stories within. Haniyfa and her husband, Matt, have made Tennessee their home since 2021. Her work and impact have been featured in various media outlets.
Jen Vogus*
Visual Art, Photography
Jen Vogus is a Nashville-based photographer, educator, and disability parent-advocate. Rooted in her personal experience with her son’s rare genetic disorder that limits his speech, Jen discovered that photography is a powerful communication tool- bridging the gap between her son and the wider world. As founder and executive director of AbleVoices, she harnesses the power of photography to amplify the voices of youth and adults with disabilities as a means for self-expression, creativity, social connection, and work-based learning, all while fostering more inclusive communities.
Since 2019, she has grown AbleVoices, from a grassroots initiative to a recognized nonprofit partner in Middle Tennessee, empowering participants to share their perspective. Jen is honored and excited to be selected for the Arts and Business Council of Greater Nashville’s Periscope Pitch to share the AbleVoices’ mission and plans for scaling the 501(c)(3) organization to further unite artistry with advocacy, education, and meaningful social impact.
Jim Willis
Visual Art, Painting
Dr. James Willis (he/him) is a philosopher; a psychologist; a shaman; a counselor; a mentor, and a teacher who has designed experiential education programs and taught developmental subject matters to students in high schools, community colleges, and universities in Indiana and Tennessee for over 40 years.
During his participation in the experiential intensive Gestalt Organization and Systems Development Program at the Gestalt Institute of Cleveland (1985-87), Jim had an “artistic awakening.” With no formal training in art, he suddenly began painting what he describes as intrapsychic landscapes, which he uses to grow himself, support student development, and improve the functioning of groups.
Jim credits Art & Soul, Nashville for his finally coming to understand himself as a maker of “process artistry.” By self-organizing oneself to higher states of awareness, one can transcend one’s conditioned self and access abilities that flow from mystery and wonder.
Joshua Jackson*
Drama/Theatre/
Performance Art, Dance, Film/Television
Joshua Jackson (he/him) is a disciple of Christ and a performing artist. Born in Antioch, Tennessee, he graduated from Middle Tennessee State University with a bachelor’s in theater performance and Regent University with an MFA in film and television with a producing focus. Currently, he is the program director for the Healing Arts Project Inc. in Donelson, Tennessee. With over 10 years of ministry experience, Joshua is also the discipleship director for the nonprofit From Your Father, serving children in single-parent homes. Joshua now seeks to merge the arts and Christian discipleship into one service, which is called Moved. Moved motivates and equips others to live out what Jesus taught using art and technology. Joshua is married to his beautiful wife, Deja Jackson; they have one amazing daughter named Eden.
Joshua Lewis
Visual Art
When your eyes are locked in on the artwork of Joshua Lewis (he/him), you will discover his full array of materials and techniques used in the process of creating the works. Joshua sees art primarily through the creative process, the focus and inspiration of creating is the fuel behind his works. He believes art begins with ideas, materials, and the creation process instead of the final brush strokes or elements that are applied. He allows the materials to cultivate their own story by giving the materials new life, purposes, and usage. Joshua says that art is a form of therapy from his painful illness called Sickle Cell Anemia, which is the main source of inspiration in his work. He began using creative arts and woodworking as an outlet and medium to express his struggles, pain, and life by creating wood sculptures, mix media collages, copper repoussé, and screen prints.
Katharine “KW” Poole*
Drama/Theatre/
Performance Art, Literary Arts, Music
Born on Martha’s Vineyard, daughter of a fishmonger/businessman and a writer/director, KW Poole (she/her) was immersed in the arts at a very young age. Writing poetry and songs for as long as she can remember, her creative writing talents developed and expanded while attending Boston University’s acclaimed Theatre Studies program where she began creating and producing original works. KW went on to earn a master’s degree of Education and direct theatre and music students. Inspired to share her enthusiasm for “the process” of performance-based arts, KW collaborated with her students to write, perform and produce original award-winning plays, culminating with a musical production (The Secret of the Seven Sisters) at Fringe Festival 2010, Edinburgh Scotland.
KW moved to Nashville to pursue her writing, co-writing songs, contributing journalistic pieces to publications (including Nashville Lifestyles, The Nashville Music Guide, Musikman International) and publishing two books (Six Nights in Deming and Jack’s Christmas Garden).
Lexa Herron
Residential Design
Lexa Herron (she/her) is a Residential Designer based in Nashville, Tennessee. She is a customer-focused, service-oriented Design Professional with over 6 years of experience in residential design and over 10 years of experience in management consulting. She designed for both Pottery Barn and Restoration Hardware (RH) and while at both developed a varied and loyal client base. In October of 2023, Lexa resigned from RH to devote time to achieving a Certification in Residential Design from the Rhode Island School of Design (Spring 2026 or 2027) and to form an independent design firm.
Lyn Stevens
Visual Art, Photography
Lyn Stevens (she/her) is a self-taught photographer who combines her love of photography with her passion for music. She approaches her work as a documentarian, grounded in the belief that she is preserving future history in the present-day moment.
A three-time Nashville Independent Music Award winner for her visual art on the Nashville music scene, Lyn is also known for photographing Nashville itself. Through visual storytelling, she captures the city’s quiet corners, shifting landscapes, and cultural heartbeat through her lens. In 2025, she served as a judge for the Middle Tennessee Scholastic Art Exhibition and was selected for the Periscope Artist Entrepreneur Training Program through the Arts & Business Council of Greater Nashville.
Her photography has been featured in Billboard Magazine, the Nashville Music Guide, and on the live telecast of the CMA Awards. She has exhibited at GEODIS Park, the Frist Art Museum, Metro Parks’ Central South Art Exhibition (Honorable Mention, 2024), the Regional Juried Photography Exhibition at River Gallery in Clarksville (Honorable Mention, 2025), the Williamson County Public Library, Five Points Post Office in Franklin, and at NOOK, a modern boutique in Mount Juliet, TN.
Her fine art prints are available at local art markets in and around Nashville, as well as at NOOK in Mount Juliet.
Nicole Wilson
Public Art/Creative Placemaking, Visual Art
Nicole Wilson (she/her), a 25 year old artist, founded Selocin Streets in her hometown Nashville, Tennessee. With communication & collaboration, Selocin Streets promotes art & education to reunite communities in Nashville.
Nicole creates jewelry & sculpture from upcycled materials sourced from neighborhood clean ups. Wearing her creations, she noticed how people appreciated her artistic expression & prompted discussion of environmental concerns. She is joining the art scene with a purpose bigger than herself.
Each piece of jewelry & art represents a second chance, capable of lasting a lifetime. By supporting community through cleanups, classes, & pop ups she implements how protecting the environment together is imperative. With passion, she believes we can create a beautiful world together everyday.
Rebecca Stone*
Visual Art, Photography
Rebecca Stone (she/her) is a visual artist and mindful photography educator who blends creative expression with the grounding power of nature. Her work captures quiet, reflective moments that invite pause, presence, and a deeper connection to the world around us.
Her journey into mindful photography began during a time of personal change, when solo hours on a lake in a kayak with her camera brought both comfort and clarity. What started as photographing birds became a quiet ritual of watching the light change, listening to stillness, and learning to be fully present with what was in front of her.
With a BFA in photography and a Master’s in Teaching, Rebecca now leads mindful photography workshops designed to nurture creative presence in everyday life. She guides others in rediscovering the world through a more mindful lens and helping them create images that inspire, soothe, and restore.
Shaparak Malek-Morvai*
Culinary Art, Music
Born in Montpellier, France, and raised in Nashville since the age of five, Shaparak Malek-Morvai (she/her) is a Nashvillian with a passion for music and food. An MTSU alumna, with a bachelor’s degree and an MBA and recently graduated with her Doctorate in Education from Western Kentucky University. Her career has spanned the music and food industries, leading her to create LHYME, a feature blog connecting nostalgia with food and music that shares the stories of musicians worldwide and recipes inspired by their tastes.
She created LHYME by blending the words “lime” and “rhyme,” symbolizing the fusion of food and music. The name also honors her Persian heritage, as dried limes are a staple in Persian cuisine, while “rhyme” reflects her connection to music. She is also dedicated to education and works professionally in adult learning and training. She lives in Kingston Springs, Tennessee, with her husband, son, and their beloved guinea pigs.
Susie Campion
Visual Art, Painting
Susie Campion (b. Lansing, Michigan, USA) is a contemporary painter and graphic designer based in Nashville, Tennessee. She works primarily in watercolor on paper and canvas, often incorporating ink, stains, and textures. Campion is best known for her botanical watercolors and landscapes, gouache streetscapes, and patterned compositions that reflect a strong sense of form, hierarchy, and design.
Her work focuses on the natural and built environment, exploring the quiet beauty found in both vibrant and fading life forms. Campion is characterized by her process of foraging and arranging plant materials into compositions that are photographed and translated into layered, textured paintings. Her notable series—Floor Arrangement, Botanical Interpretations, and Beauty of Aging in Shadowbox—explore themes of impermanence, memory, and the visual structure present in both nature and design.
Susie Campion has exhibited at LeQuire Gallery, Gallerie Tangerine, Customs House Museum, Arrowmont Gallery, and the Harding Art Show, Centennial Art Gallery all in Tennessee. Her work is held in private collections across the United States.
Todd Herzberg
Visual Art, Printmaking
Todd Herzberg (he/him) received his BFA from Central Michigan University in 2012, his MFA from the University of Kentucky in 2018, founded Decoy Press in 2022 and is also the Director of Marketing at Tennessee Craft. Previously he was the Assistant Drawing Professor and Foundations Coordinator at Murray State University. He works predominantly in the processes of drawing, relief printing, lithography and animation which create complex stories with absurdist overtones.
His work has been displayed in the U.S. and abroad including: Hatch Show Prints in Nashville, TN, Münchner Künstlerhaus in Munich Germany, Site: Brooklyn in Brooklyn NY, Artist Image Resource in Pittsburgh PA, Hilo Gallery at the University of Hawaii, University Gallery at Inner Mongolia University in China, Firehouse Gallery in Baton Rouge LA, and the Metrospace Gallery in East Lansing MI.
Valerie Michelle Wilhite Ramírez*
Silversmith, Jewelry Design
Valerie M. Wilhite Ramírez (she/her) is a Colombian-American metalsmith and founder of Montealegre Atelier, a jewelry studio devoted to handcrafted work and ethical sourcing. Formerly a scholar of the Medieval Mediterranean, she taught in the U.S., Paris, Barcelona, and the Caribbean before moving to Colombia in 2018 to train in high jewelry and traditional techniques like filigrana momposina. Valerie often uses emeralds she sources from a miner and his son who facets them. Using stones and precious metals she creates pieces that convey strength and power with a nod to pre-modern aesthetics. Now in Tennessee, she creates each piece by hand using ancient methods—sand casting, wax carving, and fabrication. Montealegre means “happy hill,” honoring both her Andean and Appalachian roots.
:ShenShen210:
Visual Art, Painting
Shen, also known as :ShenShen210:, is a pioneer graffiti artist & trailblazer in airbrush and mixed media, her bold, soulful work has been featured at the Olympics, in museums, and in luxury collections worldwide. She was named Best New Exhibitor at Art Basel Miami’s Red Dot Fair.
Now based in Nashville with her family, Shen is known for her engaging live painting performances—bringing stories to life onstage in minutes. Her signature style fuses urban grit with divine beauty, awakening hearts through vibrant color, spiritual depth, and a mission to reflect light and love through her work.
*Indicates that an artist will be pitching their creative business live on stage during the event.
Periscope Presenting Sponsor:
