The Creators
Leila Philip and Garth Evans
Garth Evans
is a British sculptor with an international reputation. His work is included in major public collections, including: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Museum of Modern Art and Brooklyn Museum in New York City, Joseph H. Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Washington, D.C.Tate Gallery and Victoria and Albert Museum, London, and the Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney Australia, among others. Evans is the recipient of a John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship and many other awards. In 2013, his sculpture was surveyed in Garth Evans Sculpture: Beneath the Skin published by Philip Wilson, a major monograph which featured essays by prominent art historians and over two hundred and seventy color images of his work. In addition to an active studio practice, with over one hundred one-person exhibitions in museums and commercial galleries, Evans has a major reputation as an arts educator. He was one of the four members of the faculty, who, at the St. Martin’s School of Art in 1969, designed and oversaw the now legendary “A Course.” Since 1987, he has overseen the Sculpture Program at the New York Studio School of Drawing, Painting & Sculpture in New York City. His home and studio are in Woodstock CT. www.garthevans.com Garth Evan's CV |
Leila Philip
is the author of four books, including The Road Through Miyama, (Random House 1989, Vintage 1991) for which she received the 1990 / PEN Martha Albrand Special Citation for Nonfiction; and the award-winning memoir A Family Place: A Hudson Valley Farm, Three Centuries, Five Wars, One Family (Viking 2001, Vintage 2002, SUNY 2009). Philip has received numerous awards for her writing, including fellowships from the John Simon Guggenheim Foundation, The National Endowment for the Arts and The National Endowment for the Humanities. Her essays have been widely anthologized. Fluent in Japanese, she writes on Japan as well as about art for a variety of venues including Art in America. She is a contributing columnist at The Boston Globe. Her background in poetry goes back to Princeton University, where she majored in Comparative Literature, earning a Fifth year degree in East Asian Studies with a concentration in medieval Japanese poetry. After working for several years as a journalist, she went on to earn an MFA at Columbia University as a Woolrich Fellow in Fiction. Leila Philip is a Professor in the English department at the College of the Holy Cross, Worcester, MA, and she is a Contributing Editor of River Teeth: A Journal of Nonfiction Narrative. www.leilaphilip.com Leila Philip's CV Leila's Oregon Bio |
The Filmmakers
Siobhan Landry
is a video-artist and photographer, with an interest in documentary and horror films. Her work navigates the shifting terrain between the uncanny and the commonplace, the humorous and the harrowing, and is based on personal experiences, documentary interviews, and local history. She has a BA in Art History and American Culture from the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, and an MFA in studio art from the University of Connecticut, Storrs. She was recently a finalist for a Mass Cultural Council Fellowship in Film & Video, and her videos have been shown recently at the SELECT art fair in NYC and the Visual Centre for Contemporary Art in Carlow, Ireland. Siobhan has joined Water Rising to work on the next phase of the collaboration- a video installation. https://siobhanlandry.com/ Find Her Work on Vimeo |
Sam Gaty
is a filmmaker based in Portland, Oregon, currently finishing work on his first feature length documentary, A Natural History of Synthetic Biology. He was born in Ashland, Oregon and grew up outside of Salem. He’s worked in film and commercial production in Portland since 2008. In 2010 he was a co-founder of Field Test Independent Film Corps, a production company focused on cinematic documentaries about modern science. Sam has also been an instructor with NW Documentary since 2001 when he started teaching in the Documentary Explorers Camps and joined the board in 2016. He stepped up as Executive Director in 2017. He has a life long passion for storytelling and the geography of the Pacific North West. iMDB |
The Musicians
Shirish Korde
is the Chair of the Music Department at the College of the Holy Cross, and is celebrated worldwide for “integrating and synthesizing music of diverse cultures into breathtaking works of complex expressive layers” Musical America. His music is influenced by diverse world music traditions ranging from the throat singers of Tuva and the ancient Vedic chants of India, to the shimmering colors of the Balinese Gong Kebyar Gamelan orchestra. His distinctive music is performed throughout the United States and Europe. Korde's music is characterized by influences of diverse world cultures. His compositions range from solo pieces to large scale music theater works including the chamber opera Phoolan Devi-The Bandit Queen, which will receive its New York Premiere in June 2015 at the Ailey Dance Center. During the creation of Water Rising, Korde approached Philip's and Evan's about writing music inspired by the poetry and watercolors. This music has gone on to be performed live, with spoken word, and is part of the video installation project. www.shirishkorde.com |
Jan Müller-Szeraws
is a cellist, Artist in Residence at the College of the Holy Cross, and the Director of Chamber Music and Performance Co-ordinator at Holy Cross. His musical journey has taken him over three continents as a soloist, chamber musician and teacher. He will be recording the works of Shirish Korde for the Water Rising performances and installations. Müller-Szeraws is member of contemporary music ensemble Boston Musica Viva and Trio Tremonti and appears regularly in recital with pianists Ya-Fei Chuang and Adam Golka. He is currently on the faculty at the Phillips Academy Andover. A prize-winner at the Washington International Competition, Müller-Szeraws is a grant recipient of the Saul and Naomi Cohen Foundation, which is generously lending him a cello by David Tecchler. He studied at the Musikhochschule Freiburg, Germany, and at Boston University. His teachers include Andrés Díaz, Christoph Henkel, Arnaldo Fuentes, Javier Santamaría and Christiane Gleisner. www.jan-mueller-szeraws.com |
The Interns

Jillian Gangi (Present)
is a senior political science major at the College of the Holy Cross. She is also participating in the Certificate in Business Fundamental program. This past summer, Jillian interned at Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo law firm in New York City. In the spring of 2019, Jillian studied politics and history at the University of York, England. Jillian grew up in Westchester County, New York. She enjoys sailing and spending her summer on Cape Cod.
is a senior political science major at the College of the Holy Cross. She is also participating in the Certificate in Business Fundamental program. This past summer, Jillian interned at Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo law firm in New York City. In the spring of 2019, Jillian studied politics and history at the University of York, England. Jillian grew up in Westchester County, New York. She enjoys sailing and spending her summer on Cape Cod.
Intern Archive
Olivia Sahovey (2018-2019)
recently graduated from the College of the Holy Cross (2019), as an English major, Art Studio minor with a concentration in Creative Writing. She is currently the Assistant Editor at Water Rising. Olivia is responsible for managing Water Rising's social media along with contributing to the Water Rising website. She has just begun a career as a Communications Assistant at Mothers' Milk Bank Northeast. https://oliviasahovey.wordpress.com "Working at Water Rising has been one of the best experiences in my life. I was able to further my creative and analytical skills. Working with Professor Philip has been amazing. She tailored tasks to my strengths and abilities, and I couldn't have asked for a better mentor. I hope to work with her in the future! The skills I have attained while working at Water Rising enabled me to get an amazing job. I couldn't have asked for a better internship." |
William Peterson (2017-2018)
T.H. Ponders graduated from the College of the Holy Cross in 2017 with a degree in math and music. During their time at Holy Cross, their passions for art and writing found a new home in Leila Philip's ekphrasis class, which ultimately led them to create Accession, an art and history podcast that brings art to life with story and sound. Each episode takes a piece of art and carefully crafts a narrative to help the listener feel a deeper connection with the piece. In addition to podcasting, Ponders is also a Blues Dance instructor, composer, DJ, journalist, and middle school technology teacher. https://www.accession.fm "Working on the Water Rising project really informed who I have become as a writer and a creator. The project was uncompromising in it's vision of promoting sustainability and ecological change, and I learned from it a resolution of ethics that I don't think always goes hand in hand with creation. Working with Leila and Garth was an honor, a joy, and I am a changed person for what they have taught me, through their words and their actions." |
Courtney McColgan (2018)
recently graduated from the College of the Holy Cross (2019) as an English major with a concentration in Gender, Sexuality and Women’s studies. Last summer she was a marketing intern for The New England Team and has previously interned for Cone Communications in the past. Courtney was born and raised in Dorchester, Massachusetts. She spends much of her free time creating her own outdoor adventures in and around Boston. “I had an awesome experience working with Professor Philip on Water Rising. She pushed me to look at minute details and pushed me to slow down my writing. Small moments can be pages worth of writing rather than a mere sentence. In my work with Prof Philip, I’ve gained a new perspective of the world that caused me to develop skills in analyzing the abstract and obscure. I’ve also grown tremendously as a writer due to challenging myself with guidance from Prof Philip.” |

Casey Carty (2015-2016 & 2017-2018)
graduated Holy Cross (2018), as a Political Science major in the Pre-Business Program. We wish her well and know she is on to great things! But not before spending some time with her family at Harvey's Lake In Pennsylvania. Casey was a Water Rising intern from 2015 through 2018, with a break to spend a year abroad in Scotland.
graduated Holy Cross (2018), as a Political Science major in the Pre-Business Program. We wish her well and know she is on to great things! But not before spending some time with her family at Harvey's Lake In Pennsylvania. Casey was a Water Rising intern from 2015 through 2018, with a break to spend a year abroad in Scotland.
Maureen Kade (2016-2017)
is a member of the Class of 2019 from the College of the Holy Cross. She graduated with a major in Global Health in the Business Program. She is now starting a career at EF Education First as a Tour Consultant in Boston, Massachusetts. Maureen was born and raised on Long Island, New York but spends her free time in the Adirondack National State Park in the Lake George area. During her time at college, Maureen worked as an intern at Water Rising where she had the opportunity to develop her writing skills while exploring marketing and sales techniques. Water Rising taught her how to think critically and strategize sales tactics in unique ways to spread education of the project. Maureen composed newsletters and edited Water Rising’s website. "As an intern at Water Rising, I had the opportunity to have hands-on experience with an incredible organization. I loved knowing that the work I contributed helped spread awareness of Water Rising’s mission to fundraise for environmental stewardship." |
Jackie Smith (2014-2015)
graduated from the College of the Holy Cross in 2015. Since graduating, Jackie has honed her communication and creative-thinking skills she developed while working at Water Rising. She began working in sales for a large tech company. After a year, Jackie shifted from the enterprise world to the start-up culture. As any start-up employee, Jackie has been involved in many projects including product development, marketing, sales, business management, and her main focus is customer experience. "Where do I start? Working with Professor Philip was one of the first experiences where I blended my creative skills, writing skills, and entrepreneurial spirit together for one project. When working with Professor Philip and her husband Garth, I was able to see first-hand the writing and creative processes for both an artist and a writer. Professor Philip gave me great autonomy to figure out how to help launch a book. I appreciated all the trust she took in me, while also offering guidance whenever I needed it. |