French Thompson, President
French Designer Jewelry
French, Owner of French Designer Jeweler on Main Street in Downtown Scottsdale, has a BFA in Metalsmithing from Colorado State University. He is a past President of Contemporary Forum with the Phoenix Art Museum. A member of Society of North American Goldsmiths for over 30 years, French has a background in both bronze foundries and studio jewelry. While maintaining his own studio jewelry work, he has been representing some of the top fine jewelry artists in the world for 19 years. Receiving awards for his representation in the jewelry field from such diverse groups as Fashion Group International, Contemporary Design Group and the Design Center at JCK. Originality, Integrity, and Craftsmanship are key components to his representation of jewelry design. Experience the difference originality brings. He has served on the SGA Board since 2015.
Lynn Gustafson, Vice-President
Lynn Gustafson started her artistic journey in glass 20 years ago and fell in love with the medium. She started her career in stained glass creating windows and Tiffany lamps. The last 17 years have been spent working exclusively in fused glass making functional pieces as well as cast sculptural pieces and wall art. Lynn has been a member of On The Edge Gallery for 6 years, for the last 5 years she has been on the Board of Directors as the Treasurer, and the last two years she has served as the Vice-President of the Board.
Mark Pabst, Treasurer
The Signature Gallery
Jinger Richardson, Secretary
The Legacy Gallery
Brad and Jinger Richardson opened Legacy Gallery in Scottsdale in 1988. Legacy Gallery is aptly named as Jinger’s parents opened Troy’s Cowboy Art Gallery in 1968, the first gallery on Main Street in Scottsdale.
Legacy Gallery represents over 100 nationally known artists, and specializes in paintings and sculpture ranging from western, figurative, wildlife, still-life, and landscape genres.
Cyndy Carstens, Board Member
Carstens Fine Art Studio and Gallery
Cyndy opened Carstens Fine Art Studio & Gallery in May of 2011 in an effort to guarantee daily studio time and to share her work with patrons, collectors and visitors. Studying fine art, psychology and business at 4 universities and numerous art schools has gifted her with a wide range of skills and viewpoints. She has owned 4 other art-related small businesses and served on a number of art organization and charitable boards since initiating her professional art career in 1983. Her favorite quote to date was written by fine art painter Edward Hopper – “If I could say it in words, there would be no reason to paint.” These words pretty much sum up her demeanor, passion, and her artistic philosophies.
Jennifer Gill, Board Member
Scottsdale Public Art
Jennifer Gill is a Public Art Manager with Scottsdale Public Art, a branch of Scottsdale Arts (formerly known as Scottsdale Cultural Council); a nonprofit that creates diverse, inspired arts experiences and educational and outreach opportunities for the community. With a background in artmaking and art gallery management, Jennifer began working for Scottsdale Public Art in 2015. She worked in a variety of fields within the public art program, including marketing, social media, public relations, and permanent public art project management. Currently, Jennifer is the public art manager for the annual, interactive public art event, Canal Convergence | Water + Art + Light, and the light-based public art initiative Local Light.