ACGA BLOG

Present: Mari Emori, April Zilber, Julie Taber, Piper Christine, Jan Schachter (recorder), Chris Johnson, Lee Middleman, Cheryl Costantini, Sean Alcala, Susie Rubenstein, Barbara Prodaniuk, Iver Hennig, Vicki Gunter, Tamara Danoyan, Ren Lee, Emil Yanos,

Absent: Sally Jackson, Scott Jennings

The meeting began at 5:15 p.m.

Welcome (Mari)

Exhibition: Arts of Fire (Vicki)

Applications for “Arts of Fire” in Benicia will open on February 21.  The fee for up to three entries will be $40, and all accepted work will be for sale. ACGA members whose work sells will receive 60% commission; non-members will receive 50%.  Vicki will help artists coordinate carpools for local delivery and pickup.  The Board voted unanimously to approve Vicki’s proposal to waive the exhibition application fee for non-members who join ACGA and pay the membership fee when they apply to Arts of Fire, as a way to encourage membership (16 yes).

Festival Report (April)

To date, 109 artists have reserved 116 booths (7 double booths) at this year’s Clay & Glass Festival.  We have space for 146 booths.  All extra-large and premium booths are spoken for.  April, Ren, and Mari met with our media consultants to discuss this year’s plan, which includes re-doing our festival landing page.  Our contract with the City of Palo Alto is waiting for signatures. Volunteer job assignments continue to be a topic of concern, since artists do not like to leave their booths during the festival.  April can’t change this year’s arrangements but the Board discussed the possibility of having a volunteer coordinator in the future. April will remind Laura at Messenger Events to prioritize artists with booth helpers when assigning volunteer jobs.  April reported that she will look into getting alcohol liability insurance for the festival when she has time.

The Board discussed whether to sell ACGA merchandise like water bottles and T-shirts at the festival. There was concern about the logistics of selling things at the information booths, and questions about whether the public would want the merchandise.  There were also questions about the purpose of these sales and the environmental impact.  Some Board members felt that giving ACGA water bottles away as gifts (to artists selling for the first time) or prizes (to throwdown winners) was more appropriate.  Cheryl will look into the pros and cons of ACGA branding through merchandise, and will report at the next Board meeting.

Software Platforms Report (April)

April presented a comprehensive overview of ACGA’s software platforms and member interactions. She highlighted the complexity of the organization’s digital infrastructure, including multiple platforms for member communication, event applications, and website management. Discussion revolved around the management of platforms and subscriptions, with a focus on reducing costs and streamlining. April expressed concern about the current system, where she is responsible for initiating subscriptions and managing payments, which can be problematic if there are issues with PayPal or credit card expirations. April would like to hand off some of these responsibilities. The Board discussed the possibility of assigning different platforms to different people or having one person, possibly paid, manage all tasks.

Fire Fundraiser Update (April)

Our Southern California Fire Fundraiser has raised over $3,700, which will be given to Julie Taber, who lost her home and studio in the Eaton Fire.  With concerns about the self-dealing clause and the tax implications of the fundraiser, April considered seeking legal advice. However, after discussion the Board decided to promote GoFundMe campaigns of others and encourage donations to organizations like CERF+ instead of setting up our own fundraisers in the future.

Financial Report (Julie)

Total assets as of January 31 are $164,000.  Our largest revenue stream is from festival booth sign-ups. Julie discussed the financial report and highlighted difficult issues with PayPal that she is trying to fix. Piper will replace April on our PayPal account.

Artist Presentation: Discussion on Hosting an Artist Talk/Presentation by

an International Guest Speaker in April and Similar Future Events (Mari)

Adil Writer, a ceramic artist from India who is well known in the international ceramics community, is coming to NCECA in March and will visit the Bay Area afterwards.  ACGA will host a presentation by him at the Palo Alto Art Center on Saturday, April 5, 2-4 p.m.  This free event will be held in the Meeting Room and possibly recorded for future posting.  Cheryl, Ren, and Mari will work on publicizing this event.

The meeting ended at 6:47 p.m.

Next meeting: Monday, March 17, 2025 at 5:15 p.m. via Zoom

ACGA All-Member Meeting Minutes – January 25, 2025, In-Person and via Zoom

Board Members Present in Person: Mari Emori, Chris Johnson, Sally Jackson (recorder), Cheryl Costantini, Jan Schachter, Sean Free Alcala, Iver Hennig, April Zilber, Tamara Danoyan, Lee Middleman

Board Members present on Zoom: Ren Lee, Vicki Gunter, Barbara Prodaniuk, Piper Christine, Emil Yanos, Susie Rubenstein, Scott Jennings

Board Members Absent: Julie Taber

Members Present in Person: Britt Jensen (Timekeeper & IT), Jennifer Hennig, Caroline Masters, Ruth Ehrenkrantz, Barbara Sebastian, Jim Iacoponi, Miki Shim-Rutter

Members Present on Zoom: Randie Silverstein, Rebecca Love, Joe Battiato, Gail Splaver, Sarah Lin, Sylvia Chesson, Karen Winograde, Janet Wolf, Jody Lee, Deb Sullivan, Kathy White, Tom Knight, Harald Nordvald, Ann Wagenhals, Trudy Chiddix, Diana Greenleaf, C. Reese, Peggy

Total Attendees: 42 (17 Board Members, 25 non-Board Members)

The meeting began at 10:00 a.m.

Welcome (Mari Emori)

Mari summarized the agenda and introduced Britt Jensen, who ran the meeting.  Members gathered in person at the Palo Alto Art Center and online via Zoom.  Britt explained the meeting guidelines.

SoCal Fire Fundraiser Update (April Zilber)

Our GoFundMe fundraiser for ACGA members affected by the fires in Los Angeles has raised $3300 so far.  Thank you to all who have contributed. April is exploring the best way to distribute the money.

Newly Elected Board of Directors (April Zilber)

Officers elected for 2025 are Mari Emori (president), Chris Johnson (vice-president), Sally Jackson (secretary), and Julie Taber (treasurer).  Board members elected for another two-year term are Mari Emori, Vicki Gunter, Iver Hennig, Barbara Prodaniuk, and Emil Yanos.  We welcome two new board members, who introduced themselves:  Sean Free Alcala is a kiln glass artist based in Modesto, and Piper Christine is a ceramicist working out of the Berkeley Potter’s Guild.  She will be our new Festival Treasurer.

Membership Report (Emil Yanos)

Emil thanked all who have renewed their memberships. Emil continues to work out problems with the payment process. See the membership page on our website, or email Emil if you need help.  At present we have 313 members, 57 of whom are new this year.  We have 12 collaborative members, 3 student members, 2 gold sponsors, and 1 platinum sponsor.  There are 59 members who have not renewed. The Board discussed contacting them to find out why they’ve chosen not to renew, either via a survey or through personal emails from members who know them.

Financial Report (April Zilber, for Julie Taber)

Our year-end assets for 2024 were $130,069.  Revenue for 2024 was $132,071; the Clay & Glass Festival contributed $106,088.  Our expenses for 2024 were $119,052.  The festival accounted for $83,000 of that.  We ended the year with a net income of $13,000.

Studio Visits with ACGA Artists

Three artists gave virtual tours of their studios and art practice:

1. Scott Jennings, ceramic artist, San Francisco
2. Hannah Nicholson and Alana van Altena of Nicholson van Altena Glass, Auburn
3. Cheryl Costantini (with Mikio Matsumoto) of Nichibei Potters, Sebastopol

Exhibition News (Jan Schachter & Vicki Gunter)

Jan summarized our 2024 exhibition in Fresno, and emphasized the need for more venues to host ACGA-organized exhibitions.  She encouraged all members to look for spaces in their areas and to talk in person to gallery owners, program directors of museums and art centers, and so on about hosting.  We have board members who know how to organize exhibitions and would like to hear from anyone with a lead.

Vicki summarized the upcoming exhibition “Arts of Fire” at NY2CA Gallery in Benicia, August 7 – September 21, 2025.  Submissions will be accepted February 21-May 21 on EntryThingy.  The jurors are Lisa Reinertson (clay) and Demetra Theofanous (glass).  Curators are Suzanne Long and Vicky Marchand. Awards will be given.  Vicki has been working to publicize the call for entries via magazines, websites, and other means.  She welcomes further suggestions.

2024 Festival Highlights (Mari Emori)

There were two new programs of note at the 2024 Clay and Glass Festival.  First, the Pottery Throwdown competitions attracted big crowds and great contestants, many of whom were not ACGA members.  Mari emphasized that this activity was not only entertaining but was also a good way to reach more people in the clay community.  The second new program was to invite the resident artists and director of Cobb Mountain Arts and Ecology Project (Loch Lomond, CA) to have a sales booth at the festival. The booth was well-received and we’d like to include up to three of these types of groups in the future.

Festival Report (April Zilber)

April shared comparisons of 2023 and 2024 festival numbers. In 2023, 109 artists reported $478,000 in total sales. In 2024, 124 artists reported $427,000. April suspects that the high number in 2023 was partly a result of people returning to the festival after the pandemic.

Our proposed budget for 2025 is $101,500 in income and $87,750 in expenses, for a net profit of $13,750.  Messenger Events has made a new booth map with options for smaller and larger booths as well as premium corner booths.  Response to these options from festival registrants has been very good.  Some artists have had trouble paying for their booth online; April recommends that you save your application before you proceed to payment.  She is still exploring the option of having beer and wine sales at the festival. There is some cost involved, but it might be worthwhile to try once.

Festival Volunteer Discussion (Cheryl Costantini)

Participating artists have always been required to volunteer for 2 hours before or during the festival.  Volunteering helps build community and saves money, but many artists don’t like to leave their booths (and likely miss some sales) for two hours while customers are present. Cheryl suggested raising the booth fee and using the additional income to pay more people to do jobs formerly done by volunteers.  She added that anyone who wants to volunteer would pay less (for example, $350 for a booth if you don’t volunteer, and $300 if you do).  We’ll discuss this further and work out the details, but overall response seemed positive.

Jury Report (Chris Johnson)

Applications for festival eligibility are now being accepted for the Spring jurying in March.  The deadline to apply is February 28 and accepted artists will be eligible for booths at the 2025 festival in July.  Guidelines for applicants are on ACGA’s website. Chris is also available to find mentors for applicants who would like guidance.  Let him know if you would like to be a mentor or a juror.  He’s looking for ceramicists for the Spring jury.  The jurying process involves at least two group meetings approximately one week apart in March.

The meeting ended at 11:30 a.m.  Those who gathered in person enjoyed a potluck lunch after the meeting.  The ACGA sincerely appreciates the Palo Alto Art Center staff for generously hosting us and assisting with technology to run a hybrid meeting!

ACGA BOARD MEETING Minutes — JANUARY 20, 2025 via Zoom

 Present: Mari Emori, Sally Jackson (recorder), April Zilber, Vicki Gunter, Lee Middleman, Julie Taber, Ren Lee, Sean Free Alcala, Susie Rubenstein, Iver Hennig, Piper Christine, Jan Schachter, Emil Yanos, Barbara Prodaniuk, Tamara Danoyan, Scott Jennings, Cheryl Costantini  Absent: Chris Johnson  Guest: Jacob Miller

The meeting began at 5:15 pm.

Welcome (Mari)

The first order of business was to elect officers for 2025.  Those present voted unanimously (Yes:16) to accept the following slate:

President: Mari Emori

Vice-president: Chris Johnson

Secretary: Sally Jackson

Julie Taber was elected Treasurer (Yes:16, Abstain:1)

Piper Christine was approved as the new Festival Treasurer (Yes:16)

Guest member Jacob Miller introduced himself. He is a Bay Area ceramicist working at Higher Fire, Foothill College, and CSMA.

Membership Report (Emil)

Emil is working on hiccups with the renewal process, mostly related to payment using credit cards.  313 members have renewed so far, 57 of which are new members. Non-renewing members total 59.  The board briefly discussed other membership platforms.

All-Member Meeting (Mari)

The All-Member Meeting on January 25 will be a hybrid meeting using Zoom for those who cannot come in person to the Palo Alto Art Center.  ACGA member Britt Jensen will run the meeting.  Mari will organize the agenda.  Sally and Tamara will cover hospitality with coffee, etc.  Three ACGA artists will give virtual studio tours.  Mari has prepared a member survey asking for feedback about the organization, and hopes to report the results.

Festival Update (April)

Currently there are 78 artists registered for the 2025 Clay & Glass Festival, more than we usually have by this date.  The booth map has been redrawn to accommodate some smaller and larger booth sizes as well as highlighting premium corner booths.  A glitch with PayPal which prevented some registrants from paying has been fixed.  The possibility of selling beer and wine at the festival is still being investigated. The cost to ACGA will likely be around $2000.  If sales are robust, we’ll recoup some of that from the vendors.  Julie and Susie are examining the festival’s volunteer jobs.  The Board discussed possible options for artists who do not want to leave their booths to volunteer during the festival.

Residency Program Participation in the ACGA Clay & Glass Festival (Mari)

Mari presented the Festival Committee’s recently drafted proposal for Residency Programs (like Cobb Mountain Arts and Ecology Project) to participate in the festival. Discussion focused on how restrictive or inclusive our policy should be.  After a few edits, the board voted unanimously in favor of the proposal (Yes:17).

Financial Report (Julie)

At the end of December, 2024, our assets totalled $130,069.  More will be coming in soon for booth registrations.  We budgeted a total net income for 2024 at $1700, but in fact ended the year ahead by $13,000.

SoCal Fire Fundraiser (April)

We have collected money through a GoFundMe fundraiser for ACGA members who have lost homes and/or studios in the Los Angeles fires.  April will consult with a nonprofit lawyer to find out how to give the money through the proper channels.

The meeting adjourned at 6:45 pm.

Next meeting: 5:15 pm, Monday, February 17