Minutes of October 6 General Meeting:

Minutes of the AWEH membership meeting of Oct 6, 2008 at Guild Hall

Those present visited over wine and cheese before the meeting was called to order by Jackie Black, acting in Richard MacDonald's absence.

Katy Gurley read the minutes of the last meeting, July 24.

Libby Hummer gave the treasurer's report: total income ytd: $1350.00
total expenses ytd:    962.65
current balance:       387.65

There was again a discussion of the best time for membership meetings: would Sunday morning be preferable?  That conflicts with church and  is less acceptable to younger members.
Members who commute are inconvenienced by Monday meetings.  Sunday at 5 is a high
traffic time, especially in the summer.  Consensus is difficult.  The November meeting is
presently scheduled for Monday, Nov 3, 5:00, at Guild Hall.  Everyone is encouraged to
consider the options and express  a preference.  Perhaps we should "test" the various choices
in the months ahead and see how attendance is affected.

The vote on member-submitted logos was postponed so that Michael Knigin's submission could be included.  

Ralph Carpentier raised the issue of repeated solicitation  by charitable organizations for local
artists to donate their work.  Not only are the Hamptons such a preferred venue for benefits, but art auctions offer an easy and well attended fundraising vehicle.  The result is a constant drain on the inventory of professional artists without any compensation. The artist cannot even deduct the value of the work from his income,  since current tax law only allows a deduction for the amount of  the materials' cost.  Ralph says the present attitude shows no respect for the artist.  It denies his professional status and diminishes both his effort and his ability.
Ralph proposes a new "system:"  charitable organizations should act as a "dealer" in providing
the community with important works of art.  Each artist should receive 50% of the sale price
his work brings.  Every artist who wishes to do so is free to donate the balance, or any portion of it, to the organization by check, giving the artist the tax deduction to which he/she is entitled. 

Ralph suggests that AWE consider supporting a campaign within the artist community to adopt
this proposal.  A united effort would have a significant impact and charities would reconsider
their  behavior.

Discussion followed.  Everyone expressed satisfaction with the results of such a system, but
several obstacles were expressed.   Many artists now view these events as opportunities for
wider recognition and are eager to contribute their work.  Accordingly, there are really more
"pieces" available than "slots" offered.  Being included among the donors has become a mark of prestiege.  That makes it unlikely that organizations would have to share the sale price with the artist, espeially if the most successful artists could not be persuaded to insist on the change.  The added burden of paperwork for the organization is another deterrent.  Although Ralph feels that other "businesses" in the Hamptons are not asked to "give" their product,  in fact wine and food merchants do donate to these benefits.  On the other hand, their contributions may represent a much smaller percentage of their business income, and they are entitled to the full tax deduction.

It was agreed that Ralph's proposal would be posted on our website and that members would
discuss the concept with other artists to see whether specific action, such as a letter to chartiable organizations, would meet with widespread support.

The topic of  town grants was raised.  Although AWE does not intend to incur expenses of any
significance, we do need modest revenues.  Income to date has been needed for website expenses and Guild Hall rental.  The Town of East Hampton is facing severe budget problems and has already drastically reduced the amount available to organizations in next year's budget. 

We very much need a volunteer to act as webmaster and maintain the site now that it's established. 

The possibility of meeting in members' homes or finding a free public venue was discussed since meetings at Guild Hall cost $50.

Scott Artman pointed out that FEDERAL GRANTS TO THE ARTS are numerous and easily identified through the internet.  He said the "opening date" for individual applications
by artists for grants  in 2009 is January 31. Scott will share the essential information and process with members at a general meeting,  perhaps even next month, so be sure to stay tuned for the date!

Respectfully submitted,
Libby Hummer
 

Seek More Writers to Read in August and September

The writers of AWEH featured local writers Tom Clavin, Jo Carney, Kara Westerman, Bill Conklin, Rosita Benson, and Barry McCallion, who read from their work under the shade trees next to the Springs General Store on Friday, July 11, 2008.  We had a good turnout and we think an hour allowed for all the readings was just right to hold peoples’ attention.

We want to do this again, possibly in August, and for sure in September, so if you have something elegant to read—poetry, a short, short story or excerpt from a book, please let us know.  Please choose something that you can read in five to seven minutes or so.  We’d prefer it if you submitted a manuscript ahead of time so we know what you’re planning to read.

In the future, the writers would also like to have panel discussions, single-author readings and, perhaps, a social gathering so writers can meet and mingle.  If you have other ideas, let Katy or Libby (phone numbers below) know.

At our general membership meeting Sunday, July 27, 2008, arts attorney Carol Steinberg spoke about the Orphan Works Act, which would allow the unscrupulous to use your work as theirs without your being able to collect full damages.  It will water down the copyright protections for work you may have already registered. And if your work hasn’t been registered, go to http://www.copyright.gov/help/ for information on how to register.

Meanwhile, for further information about this deadly Act, which is before the House and the Senate, please read the minutes from the meeting; they can be found on the home page.

In other news, several writers met in June to discuss Vox Hamptons Magazine’s slow payment of its writers. In some cases, including mine, they simply have not paid at all. And to get a check, authors have had to practically beg the editors to make sure the publisher pays them. The group agreed that the best way to fight this kind of behavior is to stop working for them.  It’s a shame because Vox Hamptons pays—if and when they finally send a check—really well compared with the local papers and other local magazines.  If anyone has had trouble with Vox Hamptons, please let us know.

The writers of AWEH really want to be on top of issues like this.  Protecting writers’ rights is at the heart of what AWEH wants to do in general. Please bring any concerns you have about writers’ rights to our attention.

To submit a manuscript for our series of readings, and for more information about anything having to do the writers and the AWEH, contact Katy at 267-3309 or Libby at 907-4361.

--Katy Gurley