Zygote Press 2025 Interns
Michaella Difiore
Shop Tech Intern
Born and raised in the Cleveland area, Michaella is a recent graduate of Pratt Institute where she studied Illustration and minored in Book Arts. First introduced to printmaking in high school via linocuts, Michaella has had a passion for it ever since and used her time at Pratt to explore as much of the medium as possible, becoming familiar with relief prints, riso, silkscreen, and lithography, overall becoming enamored with fine art printmaking and the hands-on process heavy quality behind it. Her current work has been heavily influenced by florals and poetry but really can expand to whatever bewitches her in the moment
Scout Bach
Gallery Intern
Scout Bach is an African-American interdisciplinary artist whose work primarily consists of playful portrayals of figures and thrown stoneware bodies. Born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio, particularly hailed from Coventry in Cleveland Heights. They graduated from Cleveland School of the Arts (2022) and Cuyahoga Community College (2024), alongside internships at arts organizations including, the School of the New York Times, Newbridge, The Cleveland Print Room, Terravista Studios, and Zygote Press.
Erin Mchugh
Special Projects Intern
Erin Mchugh is a Cleveland based interdisciplinary artists with a special interest in the intersections of printmaking, drawing, fiber arts and up-cycling. She is expecting to graduate from Cleveland State University in the Spring of 2025 with a Bachelor of Arts degree. Using figural imagery, she addresses the broader themes of femininity and self-perception based on her relationship with herself, others, and societal expectations. She often juxtaposes soft and traditionally feminine elements with more foreboding ones, symbolizing internal emotions through external environments. She incorporates fibers with 2-D work as well, using patchwork and embroidery, reworking clothing into up-cycled fashion.
Joey Leppo
Off-site Event Intern
Joey Leppo is an artist with a passion for creating work using various printmaking methods. A graduate of the Cleveland Institute of Art with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Interior Design, his artwork is mainly inspired by his upbringing as a military child and his heritage as a Japanese American. Joey creates his work through creating highly detailed drawings, then transferring and reproducing those images through various print methods, abstracting editions of an image as a representation of the movement of time. Outside of print, his interests lie in skateboarding, graphic design, and ceramic design
tahm lytle
Off-site Event Intern
tahm is Black and Latine, queer, and a dedicated leftist—these intersecting identities inform their approach as a printmaker, teaching artist, and political educator. They are a teaching artist and an education/community engagement intern at Zygote Press, and the fall semester Maker-in-Residence with Cleveland Heights Public Library. tahm’s mission as an artist-activist is to build a culture of revolution and establish a radical, inclusive, vibrant art scene in Cleveland. They accomplish this by providing politically informed, accessible art workshops, organizing for local, state-wide, and international causes, and creating open-edition political art for distribution rather than collection.
Isabella Robert Llorens
Off-site Event Intern
Isabella Robert Llorens is a Boricua jewelry maker, metalsmith, and printmaker. They moved from Puerto Rico to Cleveland in 2019 to study at Case Western Reserve University, from which they graduated in 2023. Their art expresses themes of self exploration through elements of nature and horror. They also make art that represents the struggle for Puerto Rican liberation and the resiliency of the Puerto Rican culture and identity despite so many decades of colonialism and exploitation.
Gwen Putz
Shop Intern
Gwen Putz is a Printmaking artist from Sagamore Hills, Ohio pursuing a BFA degree in Printmaking from the Cleveland Institute of Art. She will graduate in 2025. Gwen Putz’s work focuses on and explores aspects of memory, archive, and familial and cultural histories. Using the Finnish immigrant women within her family to draw inspiration, she works mainly in the complex processes of printmaking like etching and lithography. Her work has been in several group showings at the Cleveland Institute of Art and she has participated in a large scale woodcut project in conjunction with Big INK Collaborative Prints. This collaborative project was exhibited at Baldwin Wallace University in Berea, Ohio and the West Woods Nature Center in Novelty, Ohio. Gwen Putz also participated in the Creativity Works Internship Program at the Cleveland Institute of Art to produce artworks inspired and aided by the Finnish Heritage Museum in Fairport, Ohio.
Aspen Wood
Shop Intern
Born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio, Aspen is working on attaining their BFA in Animation from the Cleveland Institute of Art. They primarily make digital illustrations and animations, but enjoy experimenting with and learning about all sorts of different mediums. They table at print conventions through their small business (Void Blob Market). They enjoy exploring the city of Cleveland, cozying up and reading a good book, and trying out new recipes.
Maxwell Carrier
Shop Intern
Maxwell is a printmaker from Oberlin, Ohio. He is a senior Studio Art Major with a Minor in Graphic Design at Baldwin Wallace University. He also works in other media including painting, ceramics, and sculpture. Maxwell finds inspiration for his art in everyday objects. He connects everyday objects to his own life but puts his own spin in his creations. His work has been exhibited at: Baldwin Wallace Fawick Art Gallery, Spring 2024 Student Art Show –“ Self Portrait 2024” 2nd place award, Fall 2024 Show “From Woodblock to Inkjet” – six of my works, Artists Archives of the Western Reserve, Cleveland, OH January 30 – March 22, 2025 “Continuing Conversations” - three of my works , Wayne Center for the Arts (WCA), Wooster, OH January 23 – February 22, 2025 “Other People’s Prints” - three of my works
Samantha Nunoo
Shop Intern
Samantha Nunoo is a Cleveland based artist with a background in illustration, specializing in 3D character modeling for games, animation, and interactive experiences. Passionate about bringing art to life, she explores mediums like virtual reality and installations to craft immersive storytelling. Always eager to learn new techniques, Samantha’s work bursts with vibrant design, fueled by her passion for innovation and creativity.
Emma Gatzulis
Shop Intern
Emma Gatzulis is an interdisciplinary printmaker from northeastern Ohio. She is currently a student at Kent State University. She is a studio art major with a concentration in print media and fine art photography, along with a textiles minor.
In her work she uses the physicality of the printmaking process to represent the quality of memory. Her work confronts the profound impact of loss on the tender canvas of childhood by reliving the past through distorted memories.