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Meet The NAIA Executive Directorand Board Members
NAIA Executive Director
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Sally J. Bright
Board Chair January 2007 - December 2009
Fiber - MichiganThe first time the NAIA was mentioned to me was absolutely thrilling and exciting! Finally, I thought, an organization not for employee dependent “art” and craft, which already exists, but an organization for the artists and craftsmen that actually design AND make the work, thereby creating specific authorship of it. That will always be my focus.
I’ve always believed that if you belong to an organization run by volunteers, especially one that is of great benefit to its members like the NAIA has been, you should do something to help keep it alive and thriving. Now that it is my turn to do so for the next 3 years, I plan to continue finding out what we, the members want, and do all I can to further our organization’s goals. Can you help? Organizations like ours always need people to help on assorted projects and committees.
I love our on-line forum, it is a marvelous place to share information and find answers to questions about the art/fine craft show universe, often very quickly.
Beginning in 1985, I now do about 10 – 12 shows per year, exhibiting my basketry/sculpture. And I also do the free artist directory website, artshowartists.com
You can reach me by or by classic mail at: Box 817, Fenton, MI 48430 I would love to hear your best idea for us, the NAIA, to continue improving this art/fine craft show world.
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Teresa Saborsky
NAIA Board Vice-Chair January 2008 - December 2008
Sculpture - Kentucky
I’m a stone sculptor and a “newbie”, starting art shows 5 years ago. From the beginning I loved art shows. To meet my customers and potential customers was exciting to me, but the best discovery at shows was the family of artists. It was at my second show that I heard about NAIA and joined.
Now you may realize that when I say I started 5 years ago that this was at about the time that our business began to make a change. I never experienced the art show “boom” and, starting at the time I did, trying to build a customer base has been a challenge. I’ve utilized the NAIA in many aspects while learning the business, markets, how to keep costs low, etc.
I’ve always thought that as a member of any organization, I had a responsibility to give back to it in any way I could. I began my volunteer work in resurrecting the newsletter. In doing that, I began learning the “voices” in the art show world and all they have to offer. I also began learning of all the hard work and long hours devoted by some amazing people to provide a collective voice for artists. A tremendous amount of work has been done by this organization and I feel extremely fortunate to be one of the voices for artists to make sure we have a fair and honest marketplace for our work.
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Holly Olinger
NAIA Treasurer
Mixed Media
Charlottesville, VirginiaI left the wold of non-profit management with no regrets. Life comes full circle and now I am tremendously excited about joining the Board of NAIA. I have a special interest in seeing the organization take full advantage of the marketing, networking, and advocacy opportunities that are available through agressive internet usage. I hope my tenure will be remembered as a time of great technological progress for the organization.
My journey as an artist was very business oriented initially. Having previously run a small business, I was very concerned with issues regarding the accounting and marketing end of things. This led me straight into the wholesale marketplace. The intensity of competition at wholesale really helped me to hone my skills in product design, workplace efficiency and customer relations. Although I have made the decision to now focus on my independent work and the artfair scene as a source of income, I still believe many of the basic communication skills I learned from wholesale are of great benefit at art shows. Staying alert and working to sell yourself and your creations must be the number one focus at a show. I love setting up my camp in various cities and beautiful parks, but more importantly, I love the thrill of knowing the "look" when someone comes into my booth and they are intently focused on something I hav e created. There is no better feeling as you close that sale. I hope my passion for this business will be a benefit to all NAIA members.
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Richard Lobenthal
NAIA Secretary
Consultant - MichiganRichard Lobenthal will be NAIA’s first member of the Board of Directors who is not a working artist (although he is an amateur photographer). Richard first came to NAIA as a consultant aiding us in finding a proactive way to dispel misinformation, and get the word out about NAIA. Out of that discussion came the Independent Artist, NAIA’s newspaper. Richard introduces himself with this personal statement:
I retired from a lifetime career of being a civil rights agency director, dealing with civil rights, and civil liberties, to become a full-time consultant in the same field for another 7 years, adding organizational development and staff training to my repertoire. Following that, I joined boards addressing the same thing! (I am very focused!) In between and throughout, I took photographs and dabbled in showing and selling them, which I still do, although I work in film and digital will be the death of me. I bring years of experience with volunteer organizations, organizational development, strategic planning, fund-raising, and the like to NAIA and look forward to offering whatever skills I have which could be useful.
(I am compelled to add a little more of Richard’s resume below. -- Michael Kopald)
He directed the Michigan Office of the Anti-Defamation League; later, in addition, supervised other offices and was one of the 14 people who ran the national organization. Prior to joining the management team, he was the President of the Professional Staff Organization - a bona fide Landrum-Griffin labor union, and learned about union management and collective bargaining. As a consultant, one of his clients was the Michigan ACLU, which hired him as their Director.
Lastly, another client was the Ecumenical Institute for Jewish-Christian Understanding, which also hired him as their Director. (Other clients included many school districts and medium and small businesses.)
His past is further cluttered with numerous other items like teaching Sociology at Wayne State University, organizing the Michigan Public Interest Group (PIRGIM), representing the U.S. in a UN organization, consulting in Bulgaria (on democracy) and Germany (on social problems when the wall came down), being Michigan Public Radio's civil rights commentator, substantial experience with print-media, etc.
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