Meet Our Board:
Lois Russell, President: Lois Russell has been making baskets since the 1980s. Her work has evolved from traditional basketry to sculptural pieces during that time. Most of her work now is done with waxed linen threads and is usually twined although she also works with knotting and coiling. Currently her work is at Mobilia Gallery in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and the George Marshall Store Gallery in Maine. She teaches at DeCordova Sculpture Park and Museum in Lincoln, Massachusetts, where she is also an overseer. Her work has been included in exhibits throughout the country and has appeared in several publications.
In addition she has worked as a journalist and served on the boards of education and health services organizations.
Lois was one of the founders of the Lexington Basketmakers Guild and curated an international show for the Northeast Basketmakers Guild in Manchester, New Hampshire. Her website is
www.loisrussell.com.
Email:
l.russell@nationalbasketry.org
Matt Tommey, Vice President: Matt Tommey has been a basketmaker since the early 1990's. A self-taught artist, Matt's baskets are a whimsical collaboration of traditional Appalachian forms and natural materials including his primary medium - kudzu. His interpretation of rib baskets and other traditional shapes offer a heartfelt nod to his roots in Appalachian basketry while offering a contemporary expression that is all his own.
An Asheville, North Carolina resident, Matt's work is regularly featured both regionally and nationally through exhibits, shows and publications. Matt is a member of the Blue Ridge Basketmakers Guild and in 2010 was listed on the Smithsonian American Art Museum's Renwick Gallery listing of "American Artists Under 40". Matt is honored to serve as a basketry instructor with the John C. Campbell Folk School and as a founding member of the River Oaks Art Center & Creative Community in the River Arts District of Asheville, North Carolina. More information is available at
http://www.matttommey.com. Email:
m.tommey@nationalbasketry.org
Michael Davis, Past President: Studio Artist, Past President NBO. Currently running day to day operation of the organization. Has taught and exhibited extensively throughout the United States, Europe, and Japan for the past thirty years. Published in numerous art/craft journals and periodicals as well as books. Included in museum permanent collections including the Smithsonian's Renwick Gallery in Washington, DC, Museum of Art and Design in New York City, the Wustum Museum in Racine Wisconsin among others. Email: m.davis@nationalbasketry.org
Donya Stockton, Treasurer: Bio Coming Soon
Jo Stealey, Secretary: Jo Stealey, Ph.D. is a professor at the University of Missouri-Columbia where she is head of the fiber program. Jo is known for her work in contemporary fiber and basketry. She lectures, teaches and exhibits extensively nationally and internationally and her work has been featured in a variety of art journals and publications. She was recently awarded the Middlebush Chair at MU for her creative and curatorial activities. Email: j.stealey@nationalbasketry.org
Wyona Lynch-McWhite: Wyona Lynch-McWhite served as Executive Director of Fuller Craft Museum in Brockton MA until November 2011. Fuller Craft Museum (founded 1969 and renamed in 2004) is New England’s only museum of contemporary craft, is dedicated to the objects, ideas, and insight that inspire both patrons and artists to explore life through the art of contemporary craft.
Prior to joining Fuller Craft in 2008 as Deputy Director, Lynch-McWhite served as Director and Chief Curator of the Eleanor D. Wilson Museum, the art museum of Hollins University in Roanoke Virginia. A graduate of Florida A&M University in Tallahassee, she eared her M.F.A. from Columbia College in Chicago, completing a thesis entitled: “Defining Culture: African American Identity and Photography”. While in Chicago, Ms. Lynch-McWhite began her museum career at The Museum of Contemporary Photography and then joined the staff of the Art Institute of Chicago.
She currently serves as a board member on the American Association of Museums Museum Management Committee and has previously served on the College Art Association Museum Committee and was a Director at Large on the South Eastern Museums Conference governing council. In addition to her work with national, regional, and local museum organizations, she has served as Chair of the Roanoke City Arts Commission, and as national grant reviewer for the National Endowment for the Arts and the Institute of Museum and Library Services.
Lynch-McWhite was a 2006 participant in the Getty Center’s Museum Leadership Institute and was completing an MBA prior to relocating to New England. She is married to Christopher McWhite and they have two children, Jasmin (16) and Jonathan (12).
Pamela Saint Pierre: Bio Coming Soon
Committees:
We have organized ourselves into committees, each chaired by a board member. These committees will oversee the work of the organization:
Membership: Jo Ann Kelly Catsos - JoAnn Kelly Catsos is a traditional black ash splint basketmaker and instructor from south-western Massachusetts. She exhibits, lectures and teaches workshops nationally, and her work is in numerous books and magazines. JoAnn is a recipient of the Certificate of Excellence in Basketmaking: Level 1 from the Handweavers Guild of America. Email: j.catsos@nationalbasketry.org
Finance: Donya Stockton
Nominating: Lois Russell
Marketing and Communication: Matt Tommey
History and Archives: Susi Nuss - Susi has been a basketmaker and basket collector since the 1970's. She creates traditional New England baskets using Black Ash woodsplint and other native natural materials. She has been the sole author and editor of BasketMakers.com, an independent niche informational site about basketry on the web since 2001. Before that she was the About.com Guide to Basketry starting in 1998. She is one of the original five founding members of Northeast Basketmakers Guild, having served as President 2002-2004. Her work has appeared in numerous publications and has been exhibited throughout the US and in Canada. She is presently located in northeast Pennsylvania where she continues to teach traditional basketry. Email: s.nuss@nationalbasketry.org
Education: Jo Stealey
Conference and Exhibition Planning: Jo Stealey
Additional Board Details:
Helene Meyer remains on the Board and will serve on several committees. In addition, Michael Davis has been named the Executive Director of Special Projects. Randy Waak will be the Administrative Manager.
Helene Meyer: Helene Meyer, Ph.D. is co-founder of the National Basketry Organization. Her background in Organization Design and Development was instrumental in the initial structure of the NBO. She has returned to the Board to help in reorganizing the NBO to meet the challenges of its second decade. In addition to her academic and consulting credentials, Helene brings to the NBO the perspective of a traditional basket maker. Her work has been exhibited at the Goode Gallery, the Red Cup Gallery, the Washington Island Art and Nature Center, and has been recognized in shows in Connecticut and Wisconsin. She is a recipient of the Wisconsin Regional Artist's Award. Helene teaches traditional basketry techniques in her studio on Washington Island, Wisconsin. Email: h.meyer@nationalbasketry.org
