About Wopila Artist Guild
About Wopila Artist Guild, a Philanthropic Artist Collective
Wopila Artist Guild was organized in 2010 with a simple, yet powerful mission: help sustain traditional art forms by providing support and funds for Native American youth art education. Wopila is a Lakota word which means “thank you.”
Wopila was founded by painter James Ayers and sculptor Craig Bergsgaard. The new group plans to host fine art shows and donate part of the proceeds to benefit selected programs.
Frequently Asked Questions about Wopila Artist Guild
Why the focus on supporting art education for Native American youth? Is either Wopila founding member Native American?
No, neither founder is Native American.
Both James Ayers and Craig Bergsgaard have ancestry typical of most Americans—their combined heritage spans all corners of the globe.
Ayers was adopted by a Greek-American family in Boston and has African American, German, and Welsh roots. Bergsgaard’s family originally came to the United States from Scandinavia; all eight of his great-grandparents are from Norway.
For these artists, the focus is not on their forbears as much as it is on helping preserve and nourish an artistic legacy that both men admire.
“The indigenous cultures of North America developed a unity of life, nature, and art which continues to inspire me to this day,” says Ayers. “If there is something I can do that will help Native American art survive and thrive, I want to be a part of that.”
Bergsgaard agrees. “We know that the expansion of the American West came at a tremendous cost to many people,” the sculptor says, “but we can help support the next generation of artists instead of simply being bystanders as traditional art forms dwindle away.”
Does the Wopila Guild accept new members?
Yes. Artists with a similar desire to help support art education for Native American youth are encouraged to contact us.
Is Wopila a 501(c3) non-profit organization?
No. Our recipient programs are 501(c3) organizations.
We are an informal artist group that seeks to help out by donating part of the proceeds of an annual show to help benefit a specific group.
We choose this route to avoid spending endless hours dealing with administration and management and instead choose to spend our time in the studio where we can create work that will do the most good.
That being said, we insist on complete transparency. We believe that the work that we sell to benefit the groups has inherent value to the buyer, plus, we will share with them the dollar amount of their purchase that went to the recipient.
For example, for our 2011 show to benefit the Toadlena Young Weavers Project, a non-profit fund administered by the notable Wheelwright Museum in Santa Fe, we are donating 20% of the sale price of all the pieces sold.
Do you take suggestions of groups that would be appropriate for educational support?
Please email us with particulars. We will be happy to consider recipients for future benefit shows.
How do I find out more about Wopila?
We encourage you to sign up for our email newsletter. We will keep you informed of our shows, our works, and how you can participate.
For more information on the show, the artists, or the Wopila Artist Guild, please contact us. We look forward to hearing from you.