Need your opinions on SAI!

[Jeff Mottle]

Do you mean like having advertising on the organizations' websites to generate revenue instead of membership money financing the site and other initiatives? A few groups have tried sponsorships, though I don't get the impression its been all that successful so far. The NYSR funds our Portfolio publications through participant fees above membership costs. That has worked well over the decades we've been doing it (a new book every four years or so).

 

Perhaps I'm thinking too much in the box. Did you have something else in mind?

 

While sponsorships at events could be a small part of that, I was more thinking just the general mindset. When you think in the mindset of a company and one that has to generate revenue to survive, I think the type of ideas and the interpretation of ideas are thought about differently. Of course given that it is an organization there is a line to be drawn, but just the experience relayed about how an organization accepts money is one small example of this. A company would never put a barrier in place like that to accept money. Another example might be the vetting process of the SAI. Perhaps there are tiers of memberships. One allows anyone, the other is more stringent and have fees and quality criteria that reflect that. Perhaps the higher level of membership has other perks as well not available to a general member. Again thinking as a business, rather than an organization, these types of ideas come into play. If you want to grow, you need money, which means you need to accept more people's money.

 

Allowing a larger membership base will also allow you to solicit feedback from more members. Maybe they are not at the elite level yet, but I'd hazard a guess that there are still some good ideas out there and/or people willing to invest thier time to help build an organization. Case in point. I doubt my work, although I'm no longer in production, would be accepted at the SAI, but you know that I'm all about promoting the industry and would be willing to help etc.

 

Slightly off topic of the response, but given the experience I've had with getting entries for the competitions, I think having a quality standard to meet can be a double edged sword. There are a lot of VERY talented people who will now never apply, simply becuase they THINK their word does not stand up.

 

There could be a lot more examples along this line too. my 2 cents.

[jkletzien]

Sponsors, (aka advertisers) are gonna give money to an organization for three (sometimes four) reasons.

 

1. the membership is loaded, (so just a couple clients make it worthwhile.)

2. the membership is geographically close (so they visit)

3. the membership all uses the same kind of stuff (so they buy yours)

4. Enthusiasm in the cause - which especially for a professional organization runs out.

 

The ASAI, SAI, AAAI, JARA, KAPA, etc...all suffer for this as their membership is poor/frugal, geographically spread out, and uses everything from charcoal to Maya. They are all difficult sells. NYSR has it better as they at least have geography going for them.

 

The end around on this is making sure architects visit your site, and buy your stuff (since their job is to spend a lot of other people's money ) and have advertisements that appeal to them.

 

However, given these facts of life, I believe an international organization is gonna be tough. As it has all these same problems raising money from the outside, and it compounds the problem as the participants/members gain no real benefit as far as clientele, as most architects still practice in their own country, or regionally at the very least.

 

Several people have commented on the idea of individual versus group memberships in these organizations. As the President of NYSR (The New York Society of Renderers), it's something that I face as well. And it's interesting because it gets to the crux of the matter.

 

I believe it is the crux, and in watching ASAI over the years I think that the age where people just belong to clubs for the sake of it is on the demise - as Jeff pointed out previously the social and educational needs are generally being met by the internet and sites like this. Any professional association these days need to be commercially helpful otherwise the volunteer spirit, good will, and desire to participate wanes.

 

I understand your reservations about larger shops, but at the same time your first post expressed a desire to have the society mirror the profession, and this is perhaps the biggest difference in the field than where it was twenty years ago. Let's face it, a good gouache illustration looks about the same as a good computer rendering so what is really changing is the means of production. If you don't allow larger shops to register under their business names than you are defining yourself as a club of individuals, and mirroring the profession going forward is gonna be an uphill climb. You lose members of larger houses because the society can't benefit them commercially (unless potential clients know their names), you lose credibility because you don't have some of the finest digital illustration represented under names they may recognize.

 

Not trying to beat a dead horse, but it is an issue for all the societies that formed around the cult of individual artists, and it is an area of change as almost all digital art is a team effort (if you buy any 3rd party models for instance).

[Ernest Burden III]

watching ASAI over the years I think that the age where people just belong to clubs for the sake of it is on the demise

 

Which is why I'm not in the ASAI anymore. The most promising thing the group has done in a decade is have you as president, but that's only for a year. With all there is to do, what's one person to get done in a year and still run their own business? (Its not a job with a salary, and done well, quite the opposite).

 

I don't begrudge the ASAI their academic, parliamentary ways, or the SAI for their 'you're only good when we say you're good' ways, either. Its just not for me. With NYSR we focus mostly on promoting the careers of our members, be they painter or digital, individual or corporate studio. Its all good, and I'm glad there are so many people working to better our industry. I would hate to see anyone be discouraged by anything we're saying here. This discussion is very helpful.