Board of Directors
David Bradley - President
David Bradley
President
David has been a full time professor of Art at Paradise Valley Community College since 2004; Department Head of Ceramics responsible for instructional design, course development, schedule development, supervision of adjunct faculty in ceramics. He earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Painting from La. Tech University; Master of Fine Arts in Ceramics from University of North Texas. He is the recipient of many national and local awards in recognition for his teaching including the National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development recognition 2017 & 2018. He has served on the board of several arts organizations including Arizona Clay Association (president) eye lounge (president) and is currently the Director of Community Outreach and Veterans Arts Programs at Arizona Artists Guild (since 2013). He has been the recipient of many grants and fellowships including Fullbright-Hayes Faculty Development Grant, Arizona Commission of the Arts, City of Phoenix and National Endowment for the Arts. Along with Dr. Caron Sada he received a Horizon Grant from Maricopa Community Colleges for a collaboration between psychology and Art. Bradley is a member in good standing in the National Council on Education in Ceramic Arts, College Art Association.
Tess Mosko Scherer - Executive Director
Tess Mosko Scherer,
Executive Director
Tess Mosko Scherer has had a diverse career in the arts spanning more than 40 years: gallerist, professional artist, life coach specializing in working with artists, and leadership in non-profit arts organizations. Additionally, she is the Director of Facilitation and Curriculum for the World Academy for the Future of Women, serves on the advisory board, and facilitates programs on leadership in China and Bangladesh. While in China, she facilitated art programs in over 20 rural villages. Since 2020, she has served as the Executive Director of the Arizona Art Alliance, mentoring the leadership of Arizona arts organizations, hosting exhibitions for their membership, and workshops for professional development.
As a coach she has developed several workshops for artists including Selling from the H.E.A.R.T, Digital Media Labs, and Giving Voice to Your Art. She has mentored artists working in a diversity of mediums and at various stages of their careers.
Mosko Scherer is a grant recipient from the City of Phoenix, the Arizona Commission on the Arts and is the recipient of a research grant from the National Endowment for the Arts to study the impact of a leisure arts program on veterans’ cognition, mood, and sociability. In addition to veterans, Mosko Scherer has worked with varied segments of the community who have experienced trauma. Among the groups are Survivors of Suicide, young women who have been sexually abused and trafficked, native American elders and non-English speaking adult refugees. These diverse groups have differing experiences yet have had positive outcomes participating in group leisure-arts activities. She is the co-author of “Open Me Up!” a book of art prompts.
Her work is represented by Van Gogh’s Ear Gallery, Prescott, and has won several awards in juried shows in Arizona. Mosko Scherer was named one of the ‘100 Creatives You Need to Know’ by the Phoenix New Times in 2016.
Mosko Scherer lives in Phoenix with her artist husband. They both maintain studios on their urban farm oasis surrounded by their feathered, finned and furry family.
Joan McGue - Treasurer
Joan McGue
Treasurer
Joan McGue is an estate planning attorney in Phoenix, Arizona. She blogs, writes poetry and short stories She also paints, does triathlons and astronomy observing.
Her artwork has been in Arizona Artists Guild Winter and Associates Exhibitions; Glendale Arts Council Exhibitions; Arizona Art Alliance Exhibitions; Sonoran Small Works Exhibits; State Fair Exhibitions; West Valley Art Museum exhibits; Shemer Art Center exhibitions and Art Intersection.
Organizations: Juried board member of Arizona Artists Guild; Juried member of Arizona Art Alliance; Volunteer and member of Desert Botanical Garden; One Multisport member; Volunteer for Phoenix Art Museum and Disabled Veteran Legal Clinics; Member of Saguaro Astronomy Club.
She has been treasurer of Arizona Artists Guild since 2017.
Lisa Wayman - Secretary
Lisa Wayman
Secretary
Dr. Lisa Wayman, RN, PhD, is the Chief of Nursing Education, Special Procedures and Clinical Outcomes at the Phoenix VA Health Care System (PVAHCS). Dr. Wayman completed her PhD in nursing at the University of Arizona in 2013. Her dissertation was entitled “Art as a Healing Modality in Chronic Illness.” Dr. Wayman completed a VHA funded postdoctoral fellowship at PVAHCS where she completed two research studies, one on art preference and the other on program feasibility. She has presented three times at the ACCME credentialed Creativity and Madness Conferences and authored a chapter in ‘Creativity & Madness: Psychological Studies of Art and Artists Vol 2′. Dr. Wayman works with the AAG Community Outreach program and has volunteered with the Veterans Arts program since 2014.
Kristel Nielsen - Director
Kristel Nielsen
Director
Kristel Nielsen is the founder/Executive Director of Your Art Your Story (YAYS). She holds a master’s degree in Legal Studies from Arizona State University and has over 20 years experience in nonprofit and government roles, including the Westside Women’s Health Center, the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation and the Arizona Office of the Auditor General.
After losing three family members to suicide, Kristel founded YAYS to support other loss survivors through art and community. Since 2018, YAYS has partnered with the Arizona Artists Guild and local artists to provide over 400 free art experiences to survivors of suicide. One of Kristel’s passions is promoting self care to support recovery from trauma. Kristel is a lifelong learner and she is currently studying to become a nurse.
Rigby Mosko Scherer Bradley - Mascot
Rigby joined the Arizona Art Alliance family in March 2025. She enjoys participating in workshops, classes, and events. Be sure to look for her at AzAA functions. She loves belly rubs and treats.
Lifetime Honorary Board Member
