MEET THE STAFF

Jump to teaching artists

KEEPING IT WEIRD SINCE 1997. ♥

KEEPING IT WEIRD SINCE 1997. ♥

A person with shoulder-length dark hair poses in fron of a pink spiral staircase. They are wearing hoop earings, a grey turtleneck and embroidered shirt.

Vanessa Sanchez

Director of Yollocalli AND Education at the NMMA

DA BOSS! She’s been at Yollo since forever (2001, to be exact!) as she climbed the ladder from intern to director x2. Seriously, she does the job of 2 people (⊙ _ ⊙ )! When she’s not busy doing important director stuff she's probably listening to Radiohead or watching Gilmore Girls. Ask her about her furry bbs, Peloton, or her super sweet ride. Want to woo her? Boujie coffee, sparkly stickers, and fancy pens all day.

Fun Fact: She was once a judge in an Italian Beef competition and she’s ready to serve again. Serious giardiniera only- mild need not apply.

A person with short fuchsia hair poses in front of a brick wall. They are wearing a pinstripe button-up shirt and a colorful pair of glasses.

LaLa Bolander

Associate Director of Community Arts Education

One of our newest team members! A true creative, LaLa loves to paint, write, carve aluminum, and dance to Chicago House music. If his life were a song, it’d be a long, hypnotic mashup of deep house and cumbia sonidera. Proudly from Pilsen but voted most likely to be chilling at Lake Michigan on any given day of the week.

Fun Fact: He has multiple genders, and a pair of glasses to match each one.

Jenni Gonzalez

Program Coordinator

Like a winged butterfly, Jenni transformed from student, to intern, to Program Coordinator at Yollocalli. Fueled by coffee, you might find Jenni applying for reality tv, meticulously replying to emails at Yollo, or manifesting her future woman-made island off the coast of Belize. She might not remember what she ate for breakfast, but she always remembers who hasn’t done their Yollo survey.

Fun Fact: Since adopting a (pregnant) cat from Malinalli Garden, she is now the proud mother of 5 cats! Help! Please send cat food!

A person with a trimmed beard poses in front of a pink spiral staircase. They are wearing a rolled-up black beanie and a green button-up shirt.

Ferny
Ruiz

Program Coordinator

The bearded baddie!  Ferny is our resident master photographer (he SNAPPED on these website photos, amiright?). Not only does he run around documenting all our programs, but he also helps coordinate classes, installs art, publishes books, and is the in-office DJ.  You’ve probably seen Ferny walking around Pilsen, with his lil no-eyed chihuahua and a tote bag full of records.

Fun fact: He watched all 618 episodes of The Simpsons during the pandemic.

Selva Zafiro
Luna

Community Arts Coordinator

From teaching visual art across Chicago to Community Arts Coordinator, Selva wants to bring everyone and their momma (yes, literally) to hold and share space, skills, stories and resources at Yollo’s new fire station homebase. They can be found biking through the southwest side, chilling at a local park or the lakefront, at the Marimacha Monarca Press studios or thrifting for yet more earth-toned clothing to add to their overflowing closet.  

Fun fact: Selva has used most of their 9 lives, and now lives mas tranquilamente.

A person with orange glasses and long strawberry blonde hair poses in front of a brick wall. They are smiling and have their head perched on their hands. They are wearing multiple necklaces and rings.

Whitney
Ross

Creative Programs Wizard

Whitney, the Adobe Guru, has worked at Yollo since 2010. She is affectionately known as “mom” among Yollocalli students, especially those in the Youth Council. She creates the coolest flyers for our Instagram feed, leads body-weight squats every hour in the office, and makes dreams come true with the awesome parties she throws with the Yollocalli Youth council. She’s pretty cool.

Fun fact: Despite her complete lack of musical talent, she keeps a list of possible band names in her notebook.

Gaby Rodriguez

Education Office Coordinator

Gaby has been keeping NMMA in check for 13 years, starting as a receptionist and now reigning as Education Office Coordinator (basically the office MVP). She loves being part of the amazing programs that connect with the community, but outside of work you’ll find her collecting Disney mugs, binge-watching reality TV that's so bad it’s good, and listening to Christmas music (no matter the month).

Fun fact: She’s obsessed with chilaquiles and firmly believes they should be considered their own food group.

Diana
Aranda

Facilities Coordinator

Diana was with the museum for almost 4 years when Yollo stole her! Now she basically runs the fire station. When she’s not making the building shine (literally sparkling!), she’s dancing, playing sports, and catching up with our resident haunt, Ghostavo, because even ghosts can’t kill her vibe.

Fun fact: She will eat a medium pizza (half pepperoni, half sausage) all by herself! (Also, she shares a birthday with Adan).

A person with a trimmed beard and gauged ears stands in front of a wall with blue and white graffiti lettering. They arewearing a black button-up shirt that features a mushroom and bug print.

Adan
Carmona

Assistant TO THE Facilities Coordinator

Adan’s been with the museum for about a year, but Yollo officially snatched him up this January to join forces with Diana, and we’re not giving him back. When he’s not working, he’s probably at the gym, a concert, or on a mission to find his next favorite restaurant. If you want to unlock his final form, talk to him about horror movies, anime, or music.

Fun fact: He loves fun facts (in movies)! For example, the human head weighs 8 pounds. (He also shares a birthday with Diana).

TEACHING ARTISTS

A person wearing a black hoodie and a baseball hat looks down from a lift. They are holding a can of spray paint, and behind them is a monarch butterfly mural painted on a brick wall. The angle makes it seem like the person on the lift has antennas.

Mario Mena

A person with long strait hair poses in front of a mural. They are wearing a dark jacket and gold earings.

Street Art Studio

Mario is a Mexican-American artist from Gage Park. His work is inspired by the underground alternative music scene and his personal migratory journey from Mexico.

Liz ‘BEL’ Reyes

Graffiti

Bel is an award-winning artist with 25+ years of experience in Chicago and beyond. Her work can be found anywhere from schools, to CTA Trains, even an entire building on 26th Street! She also hosts an annual graffiti event called SPLASH that showcases female writers!

A person with a beard, glasses, and a baseball hat poses in front of a white wall. This photo of them is sylized and slighly blurry. They are wearing a sweatshirt that reads, "brown & proud."

Alfonso Monroy

Photo

Fonz is Chicago native who has a passion for photography, vintage cars, DIY, and driving. Lots and lots of driving.

A person with medium-length hair smiles behind a table of their artwork. There are various art-prints, stickers, and pins on the table in front of them.

Maria Garcia

A person with dark curly hair and bangs smiles for a selfie. They are perching a ceramic vase on their head.

Yollo Lab

Maria is a multi-disciplinary artist, who specializes in digital illustration, vending, and marketing. She is also a potato.

“Frenchy” Villagrana

Ceramics

Frenchy has a BFA from The School of the Art Institute of Chicago with an emphasis in ceramics. She loves wheel throwing and sculpting- ask her about ceramic shoes :)

A person with locks and a baseball hat faces partially away. They are wearing wired headphone and use a comuter to navigate music software. The table in front of them is covered in turntables andsound mixers. They are performing a DJ set.

Dai Minenger

DJ-ing

Dai is a not only a DJ, he’s also a musician, playwright, and author! His work centers marginalized voices through sound, story, and performance.

A person with a beard and tinted glasses sits cross-legged in front of a record store. They are wearing a black graffic tee and green and purple sneakers.

Charly Garcia

Radio

Charly is a DJ, audiovisual artist, record label owner, and cultural organizer. He is known for his work in independent radio, his extensive music knowledge, and for always having the right cable in his bag.

A person with shoulder-length hair and glasses leans over audio equipment. They are wearing a red and black flannel shirt, and a black graphic tee.

Brian Cruz

A person with a beard poses wearing a straw hat and tinted glasses. They are smiling and are using their hands to throw up peace signs. They are in a park at sunset.

Radio

Brian started with Yollo as a student in 2014, and became a radio instructor in 2023. He loves metal music, cats, and will respond to the name Brain.

Jonathan Bucio

Radio

Also known as BUCIO!, Jonathan is a recording engineer, musician, teacher, book lover, father to 4 kids (!!!) and Radio Arte alumni.

JOIN THE MADNESS! ♥

JOIN THE MADNESS! ♥

APPLY NOW!