Alison Zapata

Alison Zapata is both a visual artist & arts educator with over 26 years of experience in the classroom and community collaborations. She specializes in vibrant, colorful murals, & mixed-media collage. She is a Nationally Credentialed artist for Young Audiences: Arts for Learning with a focus on Culturally Responsive education, Social Emotional Learning, and Trauma Informed Education. Alison’s artistry has been featured on videos for Disney/Pixar, Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood, & the Arts Education Collaborative. She was awarded a BA in Fine Art/Art Education at Carlow University. She has led professional development with the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, Pittsburgh Center for the Arts and Media, and Citiparks. She received training with Penn State, Lincoln Center’s Aesthetic Education, & Wolf Trap Institute. She is the artist-in-residence for the Artists-in-Communities program through the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts and Pittsburgh Center for the Arts & Media. She is the resident artist for SOY: Supporting Our Youth program with the Latino Community Center. She was awarded an artist residency to study Mexican Folk Art in the summer of 2022 in Oaxaca, Mexico, as well as participation in the Fulbright-Hays Group Project Abroad Art and Society: Brazil/U.S. Educational Partnership. She is a proud member of the #notwhitecollective, a women artist’s collective with focus on social justice as we relate, connect, & belong to the Global Majority.

Photo by Pittsburgh Metropolitan Area Hispanic Chamber of Commerce