A Letter from Gabriel J. Rosenberg, M.D. President, Inuit Art Society

December 4, 2008

Dear Friends and Fellow Members of the Inuit Art Society:

I do hope that each of you and your family had a wonderful Thanksgiving filled with much love, friendship and, of course, good food.

After my first year as President of our Inuit Art Society, I am taking stock of how we all have done during the past twelve months. Evaluating the seven goals that I had hoped to meet this year (set out in my letter of March 4, 2008), I believe that we came close to meeting four of them.

Increased Membership

I believe that our Board, in many different ways, has reached out to individuals who have expressed an interest in the IAS. Many have returned to active membership. In fact, we are now in friendly competition with the Arctic Art Museum Society in Vancouver, under the able leadership of Lorne Balshine, as the largest organization of Inuit art collectors in North America. We are nearing 100 active members.
Increased Attendance

A second goal was to increase attendance at society events (primarily the annual meeting) of both non-members and members. At the recently concluded reception of the “Our Land: Contemporary Art from the Arctic” held at the Eiteljorg Museum on November 14th, over 300 people attended.
Expand/Improve the IAS Website

Thanks to the efforts of our Communications Committee, and especially Board Member-At- Large Susan Beck, our new website, www.inuitartsociety.org, went live on October 1, 2008. The website is beautiful, outstanding and is full of timely information. Please refer to it frequently for up-to-date information, announcements and other exciting additions.
Expand the Educational Aspect of IAS Meetings

My feedback from the Eiteljorg Museum meeting was very positive. We had two great speakers (Lorne Balshine and John Huston) along with two native throat singers, a native drum dancer/artist, and an Inuit film.

My other three goals, still unmet this past year, will be on the agenda for the coming year:

To expand and better define our “Swap Meet” (a.k.a. “Marketplace) that I would like to include in our formal meetings.
To develop a “Welcome Letter” to be sent to all new members. On a similar note, to improve communications throughout the year to current members.
To try and have, if possible, two IAS meetings (or events) yearly, such as in the spring and fall.

I am pleased to announce that the IAS was officially registered as a 501c3 charitable organization on August 8, 2008. All donations are now tax deductible.

An Advisory Board to the IAS is to be formed and will be chaired by Eliot Waldman. The Board will be comprised of artist members, commercial/gallery members and sponsorship members. Further duties of this Board will be determined by the IAS Board over the course of 2009.

The IAS website will be updated early in January to include information and pictures from our recently concluded annual meeting at the Eiteljorg in Indianapolis during mid-November. Other pertinent news will be included. Please be sure to check it out.

Save the date

Please put the following dates on your calendar: October 16, 17 and 18, 2009.

The fall meeting of the IAS will be held at the Dennos Museum Center, Traverse City, MI. One of the highlights of this meeting will be the 50th year celebration of the Cape Dorset Prints. This West Baffin Eskimo Co-operative was formed and incorporated in 1959. The West Baffin studios are internationally renowned for their excellence and innovation in Inuit graphic art. Based on my discussion with Terry Tarnow of the Dennos, I am sure this major celebration and entire weekend will be a blast for one and all. Please plan on joining us there. Details will be posted on the IAS website.

Fran and I would like to wish each of you and your family a happy and wonderful holiday season. Also, may the year of 2009 bring to each of you and yours much good health and happiness.

Sincerely,
Gabriel J. Rosenberg's signature
Gabriel J. Rosenberg, M.D.
President
Inuit Art Society