Creative Arts

Professor Chalfant, a sculptor, earned his Master of Fine Arts degree from the University of Notre Dame after receiving his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Herron School of Art at the Indiana-Purdue University at Indianapolis.  He has been teaching Art and Art History at Elmira College since 2003. 

His courses include all levels of sculpture, Freshman Studies, contemporary art history, metal casting, and furniture design.   He is active on campus and is the advisor for Habitat for Humanity and for the Café Society, the art and anthropology club.  He additionally supports the arts by jurying regional art exhibitions and performing pro bono work. 

Professor Chalfant is often commissioned to design and make artwork and exhibits his sculpture and furniture nationally.   His research interests include designing and creating sculpture and furniture, specializing in wood and metal fabrication, as well as casting metal and glass.

Professor de Falussy earned Master of Fine Arts Degree from Wayne State University.  His past teaching credits include Lewis University in Romeoville, Illinois, and George Williams College in Downers Grove, Illinois.

Before coming to Elmira Professor de Falussy was the resident designer and technical director of Beacon St. Playhouse in Chicago, where he won the Joseph Jefferson Citation for his lighting design for the production of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.  While in Chicago he also worked at the Steppenwolf Theatre and the Goodman Theatre.

At Elmira College he teaches scenic, lighting, costume design and film studies.  He has directed EC productions like The Medium and West Side Story; he has translated several Hungarian plays, his native language, to English.  He has worked locally with the Camerata Players, Corning Summer Theatre, the Summer Repertory Company of the Finger Lakes, the Elmira Corning Ballet Company, and Elmira Little Theatre.

Professor Dennis earned his Bachelors of Fine Arts at Tyler School of Art of Temple University in Philadelphia and his Masters of Fine Arts from the University of Texas at Austin in 1993.  A professional artist represented with the prestigious Hasted Kraeutler Gallery in New York City, at Elmira College he teaches all levels of drawing, painting, and digital imaging, including in Term III a unique off-campus course in New York City, offering students the opportunity to live and work in a loft in Brooklyn, visit galleries and museums, and meet professional artists, gallery directors, museum curators, graphic artists and fashion designers. The course as a whole is designed to offer students new and exciting possibilities and opportunities leading towards more informed career choices. He also teaches a course on the history of the Holocaust, with a particular focus on clandestine artwork made inside Nazi concentration camps. Professor Dennis was the recipient of the Faculty of the Year Award in 2001, nominated and voted by the student body; and in 2005 he received the distinguished Josef Stein Award recognized by the administration and faculty for his service to the college.

Professor Dennis’ paintings have been exhibited in numerous private and public collections, including the National Portrait Gallery, the Institute of Contemporary Art in Boston, the Cleveland Museum of Art, and the Memorial Art Gallery in Rochester to name a few. His artwork has been reviewed in the New York Times, the Boston Globe, the Chicago Tribune, the Berkshire Eagle, Art News, and Art Forum to name a few. Professor Dennis' paintings are also represented with Carl Hammer Gallery in Chicago, Gail Gibson Gallery in Seattle, and Klaudia Marr Gallery in Santa Fe. For more images and information on his artwork go to: http:-- www.marcdennis.com

Jan Kather teaches photography, video art, humanities, and women's studies courses at Elmira College, Elmira, NY as well as often teaching photography courses at Cornell. She is the recipient of several artist grants, including The Billboards ~ Just Down the Road project of the Arts of the Southern Finger Lakes (2002), and two NYSCA Decentralization Artists Crossroads Program Grants: an artist's book, Honoring Your Love, Honoring Your Grief, in collaboration with writer Chris Lloyd (2004) and a community art installation titled Aleatoric Video (2007). She is an active member of the experimental artist space, Rural Research Laboratories (Elmira), and the artist cooperative State of the Art Gallery (Ithaca).

A graduate of Stetson University, Professor Kelly earned the MFA in Acting and Directing at Florida Atlantic University, and has received additional professional training in Stage Direction at the Metropolitan Opera Studio in New York City.

His academic career includes service in theatre programs at state universities, private undergraduate institutions, and comprehensive community colleges.   He has served as producer, director, actor, or designer for over 190 professional and collegiate productions, working with such stars as Burt Reynolds, Donald O'Connor, Milton Berle, Lane Davies, and Felicia Finley.

Teaching interests include acting, directing, musical theatre, and dramatic theory.  Service includes leadership positions in Omicron Delta Kappa, the South West Theatre and Film Association, the Association for Theatre in Higher Education, and local Rotary Clubs.

Professor Kelly’s favorite shows are Once on This Island, Equus, Ragtime, and Much Ado About Nothing  Among his favorite performers are Christopher Plummer, Danny Kaye, and Bernadette Peters.  His favorite pastimes include music, hiking, and visiting other cultures.

Dr. Spicer performs on piano and flute both on campus and in the region generally on a regular basis.  His piano recitals regularly include repertoire from the Classical, Romantic and Impressionist eras.  His performances also include use of the multi-track recording capabilities of the Yamaha Clavinova, especially to accompany his flute performances.   

He earned the Ph.D. in Music Theory from the University of North Texas, his research specialty being analysis of chromaticism in the late works of Frederic Chopin. 

Dr. Spicer teaches a wide gamut of courses in music, including courses in music theory, piano and music survey courses.  His survey courses vary from European art music (Music Appreciation) to different American styles (U.S. Music, American Popular Music, Rock and Roll).