I arrived at the Art Omi campus somewhat suddenly as I rounded a gentle curve on County Route 22 in the Hudson Valley town of Ghent, N.Y. A simple rectangular sign is understated but conveys a contemporary artistic vision that is hard to miss. I spent a wonderful hour learning about Art Omi’s mission and programming from its Co-Executive Director Jeremy Adams.
KATY SPARKS
Tell me how it works to be a co-executive director with Ruth Adams (no relation).
JEREMY ADAMS
Having two of us working together helps spread the burden of the job, allowing us to wear less hats—when it’s just one person in the role a lot of resources are spent just keeping the wheels turning. More importantly, it provides us each with a sounding board and gives us more opportunities to engage in strategic planning with two perspectives that help us go into more depth on how to take the organization forward.
SPARKS
What brought you to Art Omi?
ADAMS
I grew up in England but came to New York City a long time ago to pursue my work as a fine art painter since at that time everything in my field was happening in New York. So, I went to grad school as a way of meeting people and becoming a part of a community. Over the years, I started to work in art galleries and learned that I really liked working with and for other artists. I later made a conscious move into the nonprofit sector in the early 2000s. I originally came to Art Omi as a development director, and then the co-executive director model was created a few years later.
SPARKS
Could you describe your artists residency program?
ADAMS
We have five distinct residency programs here: Visual Arts, Architecture, Dance, Music, and Writing. Each group comes as a distinct cohort, and we serve about 100 artists each year. All residencies are free to attend, and once you’re here, you’re provided a small honorarium, three meals a day, a private bedroom, your own workspace, and access to communal spaces.
SPARKS
Sounds amazing—can I come?!
ADAMS
Sure, anyone can apply.
SPARKS
Do the different disciplines interact?
ADAMS
We haven’t done that. We keep it discipline specific, which allows us to bring in professionals from each field for a deeper engagement. For example, for the visual artists we bring in critics, curators, and gallerists as well as other professional artists to provide professional advice during their stay here.
SPARKS
How can the public engage with Art Omi?
ADAMS
People come from all over to experience our Sculpture and Architecture Park. We created a visible entrance with a visitor center so people could easily find us. We focus on artists in the early, nascent stages of their careers as opposed to more established artists. Art Omi wants to be engaged in the current contemporary conversation around what’s happening in art today. At the same time, we want to be a welcoming and comfortable place for everyone. And we have an educational program as well. We have weekend classes for kindergarten through 8th grade and host a big summer camp as well for about 75 kids. We also partner with public schools on a program called Arts Integration in Schools where we work with teachers—and not just art teachers but in math, science, ELA and social studies—in all the six public schools in Columbia County.
SPARKS
So, please share some stats: How many acres, how many installations?
ADAMS
We have 120 acres with between 63 and 65 pieces here at any given time. We move approximately three to four installations each year. Art Omi is unique because it is both a sculpture and architecture park. The architectural pieces tend to be the more interactive ones where visitors can walk in, walk on, and engage with the work. We wanted to provide a “flight of fancy” opportunity for architects where there was no client they needed to consider.
SPARKS
And what is your relationship with BerkShares?
ADAMS
It was brought to our attention about four years ago, and we are happy to take BerkShares as a way of engaging with our community, and we’re very proud to be a part of the program. Visitors can spend BerkShares in our Café, which is open six days a week (closed on Tuesdays), and for other merchandise as well.
SPARKS
Anything else you’d like to share with our readers?
ADAMS
At Art Omi we believe in art as a part of the larger society—as a valuable part and that the arts should be open and accessible to as wide an audience as possible.
