Aug 5, 2017
BATAVIA — Jodi Fisher, GO-Art!’s new programming director, is about to be engrossed in the wealth of artistic output of Genesee and Orleans counties.
Fisher is taking over the cultural organization’s annual decentralized grants program, overseen last year by GO-Art! director Gregory Hallock, as part of a portfolio that also includes developing more children’s program at GO-Art!’s Batavia gallery.
Fisher, a native of Brockport, holds a master’s degree in geology. Since moving to Batavia 10 years ago, she and her husband Andrew have had their hands full as parents of two boys.
“I’ve been a stay-at-home mom, but I wanted to get back and give back,” Fisher said as her son Wyatt, 3, played upstairs. “I want to enrich the community through the arts.”
Having young children has given her a widened perspective on how the arts are appreciated. They take in every element of a mural, walk around a park sculpture and give simple opinions.
“(Their reaction) are so fresh, so different from what we’d think,” Fisher said.
Hallock agreed. He could stare at a piece for an hour, but his daughter Cattaleya makes snap judgements that make more sense than most art criticism.
In her new role — she started Tuesday — Fisher intends to promote the importance of getting art in front of, and in the hands of kids.
“It’s important to give them the sense of expression, to give them early exposure to what that means to them through dance, singing, painting,” she said.
Go Art! runs creative arts camps in the spring and summer, but Hallock said Fisher will work to bring more field trips to the gallery at Seymour Place for tours of new exhibits and creative programs.
“We want to foster their creative sides,” he said.
This year’s “dec grants” workshops have brought increased interest from individual artists after they saw David Burke’s grant-supported mural project at the Byron-Bergen Public Library. Villages, libraries, community groups and musical programs have all come back for more 2018 projects.
“They have ideas, but now we have a month to hone them down,” Hallock said.
Fisher is excited to get a deeper sense of what Genesee and Orleans bring to the arts, but she’s ready.
“I’m a ‘big picture’ type of person who (becomes) more detail-oriented,” Fisher said. “I want to see their vision for the end product and help them work through the details.”
