Trustees

Rocky Neck Art Colony Board of Trustees

Jeff Calder, Treasurer

Jeff has a bachelor of science degree in accounting and an MBA from Babson College. He recently retired after a long career managing the commercial banking relationships of a handful of Fortune 500 companies for JPMorgan Chase Bank.

He previously volunteered as Chair of the Finance and Advisory Committee in Wenham, where he and his wife live when they are not enjoying their summer cottage at Conomo Point in Essex.

Though never a resident himself, Rocky Neck was home for Jeff’s mother in the mid-1970s and the birthplace of his maternal grandmother in the late-1890s.

Amy Sudarsky, Artistic Director

Over the past several decades, Amy focused on college-level art education and her own studio practices. She retired from Boston University and Lesley University with the advent of COVID in 2020, but was quickly scooped up to run self-portrait art classes via Zoom to help Rocky Neck through the pandemic.

She remains committed to teaching and relishes the opportunity to help nurture and expand the workshops at Rocky Neck. She lives in Manchester by a lovely pond.

Martha Sutyak, Secretary

Martha is an interior designer and brand creator as well as co-owner of Smartly Staged, a real estate staging company.

Long a volunteer in the arts and community ventures, Martha is thrilled to be on the RNAC board member, serving as Secretary. She is also on the Building & Facilities Committee.

She lives with her husband John in Beverly Cove. She enjoys cooking, gardening and making all sorts of things.

Pat Alto

With a degree in marketing from Boston College, Pat has over 40 years’ experience as creative director in corporate America as well as her own business, Consider it Done! Creative Marketing
Solutions.

Her passion for the arts is evident in her board positions on Cape Ann Plein Air (CAPA), Rockport Art Association and the Parish Center for the Arts in Westford, MA. Once Pat acted on her passion for painting through workshops and classes at Worcester Art Museum, deCordova Museum and Montserrat College, to name a few, she received several awards for her work in acrylic and oils.

Pat is thrilled to be a part of Rocky Neck Art Colony Board of Trustees. Pat and her husband, Glenn, grew up on the North Shore and currently reside in Rockport.

Paula Borsetti

In June of 2020, Paula decided to shift gears from teaching art full time to being a full-time studio artist. Paula is thrilled to be able to use her love of teaching and her skills as an educator to help with workshops at RNAC.

She is inspired by nature, the coast of New England and the lakes of Maine.

Paula lives in Beverly with her husband Joe and their English Springer Spaniel Sunny and enjoys spending time with her two grandsons. She is an active member of many local art associations, and you can find her work at The Salted Cod Arthouse, in local exhibits and at Gallery TAG in SOWA.

Dan Duffy, Ed.D.

A retired community college administrator and longtime Cape Ann ambassador, Dan and his wife, Helene, have been innkeepers at the Beech Tree B&B in Rockport for fifteen years, welcoming travelers from around the world and sharing the region’s rich history, geography, and artistic treasures.

He leads walking tours of the Rocky Neck Historic Art Trail, supports RNAC community outreach, and serves as a docent at the Cape Ann Museum, fostering connections among Cape Ann’s art organizations.

Dan has independently published two memoirs, Brother, Brother and In Search of Brother Rich, honoring his older brother, who has been missing since 1970 following the Vietnam War.

Peter Fariel

A 33-year resident of Cape Ann, Pete has always found Rocky Neck and its artist community to be one of the top joys of living in the area.

Although he spent his career as a securities lawyer both in private practice and with asset management firms based in Boston, he’s had a lifelong interest in the arts (Pete minored in Studio Art and Art History at William and Mary!).

He looks forward to bringing his experience as a lawyer to the board in furtherance of the Rocky Neck Art Colony’s mission.

Stephen Gondert

Originally from Ohio, Stephen has an undergraduate degree from Miami University in English Literature and a Master’s from Boston University in Mass Communications. Much of his career focused on helping companies deploy and manage Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems.

During his 15 years at Fidelity, Stephen was responsible for defining business cases to secure funding for various technology initiatives. He can apply this experience to help The Rocky Neck Art Colony pursue grants to ensure the future of the organization.

Stephen works in fused glass and has produced a range of works that feature shapes created with a specialized band saw designed to cut glass. He and his wife Andrea moved to Beverly in October, 2019. He is an active kayaker on Essex Bay and a mountain biker on the trails in Gloucester.

Melvin Higgins

Mel received a master’s degree in Environmental Management (MEM) from Duke University and retired in 2023 after a career as an environmental consultant, where he led the wetlands and environmental permitting division of a 750-person engineering firm. He also served as a forester and environmental education specialist in West Africa with the U.S. Peace Corps and, a lifetime ago, built violins, violas, and cellos.

Mel enjoys drawing the human form and can be found on Mondays with the life drawing group at the Gloucester Cultural Center, working in charcoal and colored pencil, and is gradually learning to paint with oils.

Stephanie Mason, Artist Member

After graduating with a BFA from the Rhode Island School of Design, Stephanie pursued a long professional career as a textile designer in NYC and Boston. Moving to Gloucester, she became intrigued with the Japanese folk art of painting and rubbing fish to document its size, also known as “Gyotaku.”

For the last several years, she has been acquiring fish from local fishermen and experimenting with different printing techniques. Throughout this journey, she has documented many species that are now under strict fishing regulations. When not making her own art and running galleries, Stephanie manages the Salted Cod Gallery at 53 Rocky Neck Avenue as part of The Rocky Neck Art Colony.

Brian Murphy

Brian Murphy, builder of birdhouses and highly accomplished artist, is also a graphic designer extraordinaire. He acts as a creative source for project work ranging from web ads, print, environmental advertising and all aspects of graphic design for small to mid-sized companies.

Brian is a graduate of Rhode Island School of Design, BFA Illustration, Graphic Design, Sculpture. In his other life, he has volunteered for a number of charities. He lives in Beverly.

Robert “Bob” Murphy

In May 2022 after 35 years, Bob retired as an MAI-designated commercial real estate appraiser, expert witness, and principal of Robert D. Murphy Associates, Inc. His work involved extensive analysis of site conditions, building components and utilities, zoning requirements, permitting processes, market analysis, and feasibility studies all of which will hopefully be useful for RNAC.

As a studio artist, his mediums include charcoal and pencil, watercolor, acrylic, and pastels. Bob has studied with Michele Kenna, Robin Thornhill and the inimitable Amy Sudarsky. A graduate of Amherst College, Bob is a member of Actors’ Equity Association, the Screen Actors Guild, and the Dramatists Guild and has performed on New England stages for over 30 years. He was named a Mass Cultural Council Fellow in Dramatic Writing in 2015.

Bob and his wife Pat live in Beverly where they raised two children and are blessed with three grandchildren.

Elizabeth Carey, CEO/Director

Working closely with the Executive Committee, Elizabeth brings considerable marketing and Gloucester experience to Rocky Neck.

As the Executive Director of Discover Gloucester from 2016 to 2022, Elizabeth promoted tourism and escalated awareness of Gloucester. Previously, she held various publishing, sales and marketing positions in Boston. She is happy to live on Cape Ann now, and looks forward to harnessing her considerable marketing expertise (and energy) for the benefit of Rocky Neck.