Hard to believe!

I just finished my 5th week as the new Director of Development and Marketing at the Krasl Art Center in beautiful St. Joseph, Michigan. It is a dream come true to be here--a dream because I am an artist, holding a BFA in printmaking from Indiana University in South Bend, IN, and I love marketing and development--but also because I spent much of my free time in St. Joseph (I live in Niles, MI). Before coming to the Krasl, I was the communications specialist at the Nanovic Institute for European Studies at the University of Notre Dame, and was responsible for the marketing of all programs and events, as well as branding. I also worked in development, and when I left, we had just doubled our endowment. So, now, I hope to do the same for the Krasl, a fabulous organization with more than 1,000 members, many of whom are incredibly active, serving in heavy duty roles that have exhausted me just watching them. We just finished a wonderful event called the Hollymarket, where more than 100 artists brought their original work to sell, and while people shopped, they were able to purchase a bowl of homemade soup for lunch. A very colorful, noisy, exciting affair--and boy did it smell like heaven in the kitchen!

This blog is our way of not only getting out the word about exactly what we do here at the Krasl Art Center, but also sharing some of the daily excitement that is generated by all this activity centered around not only seeing visual arts, but doing art, sharing art, and teaching art.

I am happy to be here, and happy to share this all with you.