LYNN
FISHER
Lynn
Fisher is a talented potter with a passion for teaching. After
graduating in Fine Arts, U.C.T, she taught at graduate and
undergraduate levels in London, England, Greece and Canada and ran
her own studio in each of these countries.
Lynn
Fisher currently heads the Ceramic Department at the Koffler School
of Visual Art and runs an active production pottery. She teaches
at the Gardiner Museum of Ceramic Art, the Toronto District School Board,
the Metropolitan Separate School Board and works through the Artists in
Education Program of the Ontario Arts Council.
Lynn has turned her work into an endeavour that encompasses not only the
aesthetics of her art but also art history and education. She has
had an enormous impact on hundreds of students, from kindergarten level
to octogenarians, giving them the gift of creativity. "I believe that
everyone has the ability to create," she noted in her 1998 artist's
statement.
"Through teaching I have discovered that it is most
often the lack of knowledge or lack of familiarity with the medium and
the learner's belief that they cannot create, that together conspire to
hold them back."
Lynn's work is very varied, arising from the many cultures in which she
has lived and worked.
It has been adapted in expression and style over time, according to personal
growth and materials available.
Lynn aims to convey to the user/viewer a sense of beauty and harmony, the simple
riches of life, now so often lost, forgotten or overlooked.
In her studio
she creates fountains, murals, dinner services, light fittings and sculptures,
and will take on commissions for highly unique pieces that may include symbols
and icons depicting the life and history of families.
Lynn's central achievement as an educator is her use of ceramic art to reach
disenfranchised children, new immigrants, students struggling with English as
a second language, and others to create opportunities for these children to assert
themselves, to redefine the way they see themselves, the way others see them,
and the way they related to the group. Her art workshops present an opportunity
for self-exploration, growth and self assertion.
Commenting on the impact her art and teaching has on children, Lynn writes: "As an art educator I am constantly amazed at the amount of learning that happens during and around these workshops. The pride and amazement of students at their own accomplishments are substantial. The programs are enriching and exciting and students make good use of them to express their understanding of the subject, the medium and their world."
The work of her students, is testimony to her creative and pedagogic talents. Her passion for teaching ensures the exploration, creative involvement and learning aspects of her students' experiences. She endeavours to make them, and us, newly aware of a world of creativity, and beauty, knitting her students together in an environment without social barriers.