Sharon Fantl has worked in the nonprofit arts sector for over 20 years. She earned a master’s degree in arts administration from Boston University and worked for the Huntington Theater Company, the Somerville Arts Council, and the Redfern Arts Center at Keene State College, where she served for 14 years, first as events manager and then assistant director. She is a member of the Vermont Arts Council’s board and has served on the board of New England Presenters and as board president of Sandglass Theater.

In June 2021, Sharon (pronounced “sha-RONE”) joined the Brattleboro Museum & Art Center as our Development Manager.

Photo: Ezra Distler

BMAC: How has your background prepared you for your new role at BMAC?

Sharon Fantl: My work has given me a great overview of how nonprofit organizations operate and what they need, the various components and roles involved, and how to support artistic projects. My experience includes hands-on programming, project development, and engagement with artists, communities, and community partners.

I see myself as a generalist. I tend to look at the big picture for insight into how a collaboration might unfold, what form that partnership or relationship needs to take, and what our main goal is.

At the Redfern, I was responsible for most of our grant writing, and I learned how to align our programs and proposals with the funder’s mission. My board involvement has offered me an understanding of how to connect a nonprofit’s core work to the communities it serves.

BMAC: What led you to arts administration as a career?

Fantl: I grew up in Riverdale, New York, and was exposed at an early age to museums, ballet, art classes. I was involved in various after-school programs. My grandmother was a potter and played the cello, and my grandfather played viola. My grandparents played in community orchestras and chamber groups. There was always someone playing the piano or offering a poem or song at their social gatherings and parties. We went to Tanglewood and Marlboro Music Festival together in the summers. Although we participated in various cultural offerings, my sense was that art was not just something you go somewhere to experience. Art needs to be embedded in one’s community. It needs to be part of everyday life.

I attended the University of Vermont, studying religion, philosophy, and Italian. I was a poster child for the liberal arts! During college I interned with Burlington City Arts, and following college I became an Americorps Vista volunteer with Very Special Arts of Vermont (now known as Inclusive Arts Vermont). When I learned about arts administration as a field, it clicked for me. It tapped into my background and my belief that art is a necessary part of life.

I’ve dabbled as a maker of art, but I see my strength as being a support system for other artists and for institutions to be able to fulfill their missions.

BMAC: How would you describe your new role as BMAC’s Development Manager?

Fantl: This is a brand new position. My role is relationship-focused, which is what I love about it. My work involves leveraging the Museum’s efforts in partnership development, exhibition planning, and community collaborations. I tell the story of why helping the Museum to thrive makes a difference in our community.

I work with BMAC’s membership and donor base. I work with the development committee of our Board of Trustees to develop fundraising goals and involve people in BMAC’s funding work. Recently I played a large role in coordinating our Fall Gala & Benefit Auction.

I started in the beginning of June, so the job still feels very fresh, the scope still coming into focus. There are cycles in fundraising, and fall feels very different from summer. I’m learning as I go, as I become familiar with the culture and particular cycles of the Museum and as I get to know our key players and partners. In the summer, I was focused on meeting people and making a slower entry into the organization, but now that it is fall, with our Gala having just happened and our annual appeal on the horizon, I’m diving into the work and it is more hands-on.

BMAC: What excites you about BMAC’s mission and makes you want to support it, and to help others to support it?

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I believe that art needs to be tangible—integrated into our everyday experience, our homes and schools and communities. Art is a means of expression, a way of forming meaning and finding solace. This all comes together for me in our mission at the Museum. What we do here is inspiring and frequently impactful, in small and large ways, for the artists we work with, community organizations we partner with, and youth we support through our education programs.

In the short time I’ve worked at BMAC, I’ve witnessed this directly and have heard it reflected back to me through multiple voices. We open eyes, hearts, and minds through our education programs, empower diverse voices through our exhibitions, and help create a sense of community and social connection.

With our education programs, we invite youth to have new experiences and to create. Some of them have never been to a museum before, and our goal is for them to see BMAC as their museum to explore, own, and see themselves reflected in. We sponsor buses for school groups and have a number of school visits planned this fall. We create space and opportunity for youth to see their work come to life through GLASSTASTIC. Kirsten Martsi, BMAC’s new Manager of Education & Community Engagement Programs, has done amazing work in her short time here so far in developing partnerships with schools and community organizations.

In her new role as BMAC’s Director of Exhibitions, Sarah Freeman is building on decades of strong groundwork in creating platforms for new, diverse voices, including underrepresented or overlooked artists and curators. Because BMAC is a non-collecting museum, we can be responsive to the moment and to community needs. This has been a key area of focus for BMAC since its founding nearly 50 years ago and will continue to be in the future.

BMAC is a cultural anchor in Brattleboro—a gathering place where people come together for social and creative connection. In Covid times, we moved a lot of programs online, and we continue to offer online, hybrid, and in-person events. We are a resource for multiple audiences and communities. People appreciate the range of programs we offer, and they’re glad that we’re a platform for engagement.

BMAC: What’s coming up next in your work with the Museum?

Fantl: This is a major period of growth for BMAC. In addition to a continual stream of new exhibits and programs, we have an expansion project and capital campaign underway, and we are doing the important work that all organizations need to commit to in order to better serve their communities: a focus on diversity, equity, inclusion, and access for all. It all feels important and worthwhile. Everyone here is excited about BMAC’s future.