First off, I hope this note finds you and those you hold dear healthy and happy.  As we start the new year, I am reminded of all the things for which we can be grateful.  With that perspective, I would like to start my first PAPNM President’s message to you.

• Grateful for the beautiful New Mexico landscape:  I think sometimes the hardest part of painting in New Mexico is deciding where and what to capture on canvas.
• Grateful for the tremendous talent and diversity in the organization:  Quite simply, I am in awe of the talent and accomplishments of this group.  We can all learn so much from each other.
• Grateful for the flexibility of this organization:  Last year had not just a few challanges brought on by the health crisis.  We met them and grew from the experience.
• Grateful for those intrepid painters who have stepped up to be on the Board of Directors this year.  We have large shoes to fill from the last Board. We had our first meeting last week.  What a group!  To reintroduce them to you: 
• • Vice President, Carole Belliveau
  • Treasurer, Ginny Bracht
  • Secretary, Wendy Ahlm
  • Membership Director, Jane Frederick
  • Events Director, Eilizabeth (Beth) Ming Cooper
  • Communications Director, Stephanie West
  • Historian, Anita West
  • Past President, Natasha Isenhour

At the first meeting and accomplished a few important items:  re-look and confirmation of our individual and group roles and responsibilities, setting our direction for the year, creating a preliminary budget and and a review of 2021 planned events.   I am so very pleased with the energy and vibe of this group! I'm confident you will be as well.

Our focus areas for the year:

• Increase membership numbers and participation
• Increase transparency and build enduring relationships with our members
• Increase sales opportunities and resources for our members
• As these goals are admittedly high level, they will give us a framework to work through ideas we have for our organization.  If you have ideas, we would love to hear them and work with you to bring them to life.  Reach out to me or any board member so that we can have a conversation. The list of specific ideas from the board is a pretty long one.  This is what we are working on now.
• • We have three confirmed events for the year. Beth and her team haveus set up well for preferable in person or virtual events as current conditions warrant.  If we have learned anything from the last year, we need to stay flexible.
  • • Jemez Springs - “Hot Springs, Cool Town”. This will be a non juried show led by Wendy Ahlm and Susan Nichols in close coordination with Susan Vigil and the Jemez Fine Art Gallery.  The opening is April 24.
    • Taos - Taos Plein Air - “Painting the Enchanted Circle”. This will be a juried show led by Beth Cooper, Beth May and Dick Wimberly in close coordination with Wilder Nightingale Fine Art Gallery.  The opening is September 25.
    • 13th National Juried Members Exhibition and Show.   This is our premier event for the year.  It will be a juried show led by Carole Belliveau and Beth Cooper in close coordination with Sorrel Sky Fine Art Gallery in Santa Fe. The opening is October 29.
  • The team is researching setting up a PAPNM ‘store’ for branded items such as aprons, tees and the like.  We believe that we will team with an organization like Zazzle to carry the merchandise.  Watch this space!
  • Another activity we are working is better engaging new members.  I think we can all remember when we joined the organization and how it felt to be new.  Carol Belliveau and Jane Frederick are collaborating here.
  • Setting up a virtual coffee hour so that we can share tips and tricks with everyone.  Beth Cooper, Dick Wimberly and others are working to bring this to life. This should be a lot of fun.
  • Hosted paintouts and a repository of places to paint in New Mexico. This initiative will be led by Beth Cooper and most of the board.

So, in an effort to keep this relatively short, suffice to say you have a very energetic board who is focused on you, the members.  We appreciate the accomplishments of the past and plan on building on that to make PAPNM an even better organization.  

I hope to hear from you!

Best Regards,

Phyllis Gunderson, President

Plein Air Painters of New Mexico