The Board of Directors of SF Camerawork have announced that Hal Fischer, a national arts leader and independent consultant, has been named to serve as Interim Director of SF Camerawork, while the Board engages in a nationwide executive search.
Founded in 1974, SF Camerawork is the Bay Area’s only non-profit dedicated completely to the photographic arts. As Interim Director, Fischer fills the position of former Executive Director Sharon Tanenbaum, who resigned from her role on July 12, 2010, after successfully leading organization for the past five years.
“As the incoming Interim Director,” notes Board President Mike Schmitt, “Hal Fischer’s depth of experience, long history with SF Camerawork, and his leadership in the nonprofit arena will serve the organization well during this transition period.” Working in the nonprofit arts sector since 1984, Fischer’s career over the past 25 years has encompassed a variety of short-term exhibition, fundraising and audience development assignments, as well as longstanding, multi-faceted relationships with such notable organizations as the Timken Museum of Art, San Diego, the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, and the national museums of Mongolia.
In addition to his role as Interim Executive director at SF Camerawork, Fischer, who is principal of Hal Fischer Associates, recently co-organized with San Francisco’s FOR-SITE Foundation, Presidio Habitats, the first site-based art exhibition conceived for a national park. The recipient of fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts in both art criticism and photography, Hal’s art criticism has appeared in such journals as Artforum and Artweek, and his photographs have been shown in museums and galleries throughout the United States.
“We are fortunate to have an individual as aligned with and deeply invested in SF Camerawork as Hal Fischer to be able to take on the Interim Director role,” said Schmitt. “From fundraising and project development to project management and exhibition curatorial skills, as well as a long-term history with SF Camerawork as one of the organization’s founders, Fischer is the ideal interim director.”
