Bob Fluhr helps the blind see the world anew

Setting their sights on beauty for 50 years in Mt. Airy

by SCOTT ALLOWAY

When Bob Fluhr starts talking about the Vision Thru Art program at the Allens Lane Art Center in West Mt. Airy, there is a mixture of pride and determination in his voice.

"When it comes to the art, there's no fooling around," Fluhr declared. The sculpting program may be serious, but "we laugh at some things that outsiders would look funny at. That keeps the class lively and fun."

Laura Goodman created Vision Thru Art more than 50 years ago as a program for blind and visually-impaired people who want to sculpt. When Goodman retired 14 years ago, Fluhr was there to help it continue as a program that is both formal and fun.

Fluhr, who will be honored with his wife, Annette, with the 2004 Lifetime Achievement in the Arts Award at the annual Community Arts Festival at Allens Lane on June 4, explained, "It's a real family. The best part is to have beginners who come in knowing nothing. In the case of one student, there was a woman who asked, 'Can you help my father? He's blind. I'm not staying.' She leaves him there, and he starts crabbing. In one month he got into it. 'You hated it,' we said to him. 'Why'd you change your mind?' 'It's the pretty women in class,' he said. He was really carrying on."

(According to Audrey Bookspan, last year's Lifetime Achievement in the Arts Award, "The Fluhrs have a very high appreciation for art, but they also live their lives appreciating all of humanity. They are a loving couple who have made a very positive impact on many people through their involvement with Allens lane.")

Students come to the program from a variety of backgrounds. Some are economically well off, while others are on limited incomes.  All are blind or visually impaired.

"Our class is comprised of trauma victims and victims of diseases," Bob explained. "Some have dogs, and some read Braille. One lady has been coming for about 10 years. Twenty-five years ago she went in for a minor operation and woke up the next morning blind. One guy was shot in the head. One lady was hit on her head by a brick that destroyed part of her brain.  One lady went through the windshield of her car."

The class is the highlight of the students' week, he continued. "It is, if you ask any of them, what they talk about all the time. It's fun to watch them work and talk. We have a very good time. It's a very serious group that has fun."

In a presentation Fluhr gives to community groups throughout the region, he explains what it means to be a part of that family: "We are a group of students and volunteers from a variety of socio-economic, religious and ethnic backgrounds that promotes tolerance, understanding and respect for differences in an informal, creative environment."

The class has field trips to studios, museums and shows. The preferred sites are those where the students can touch the art. They try to get out a couple times a year because Fluhr sees trips as an important part of the program.

"We stress showing an exhibit, selling their work and visiting places. We go to galleries where they can touch things," he said. "That's a big part of the program. It's a very social, informal class."

The students exhibit and sell their work. Some he calls "absolute geniuses. If you see their work, you wouldn't believe it."

Of course, there are novices in the program as well. The intent of Vision Thru Art is to help all aspiring sculptors — from beginners to experts — reach their own goals in their art. Fluhr holds the students to standards just as rigorous as if they were sighted, expecting them to take a professional attitude toward their work.

"They all exhibit, competing with sighted as well as disabled artists," Fluhr explained. "We push that sort of stuff because it builds self-esteem. Their exhibits are an important part of the program." The problem is that in order to exhibit, the artists need slides of their work. Fluhr said professionals charge up to $400 an hour for work, so he's "always scrounging, looking to get amateurs to volunteer to do the photographs. It's the need of pro quality slides as donations that's one of our greatest challenges."

Vision Thru Art recruits students, but there is limited space in the program. The optimal class size is 13. "We have 13 right now," Fluhr noted. "I tell people, 'As soon as someone dies, you're next on the list.'"

The whole program is volunteer-based and they "scrounge a lot for materials. We do the whole thing on not-a-lot-of money. . . When I give lectures, I usually don't charge because I don't want to cut out places with no money. I ask for a donation for the center because they're hurting for money. So it's donations to the center that keep the program going."

Fluhr has a long history with ALAC. He has been on the board "for 40, 45 years. This program has changed my whole life. I enjoy it terrifically. It's an integral part of what I do. I've been an artist all my life ­ painter, potter. My main mission is what I do with this program."

A Brooklyn native, Fluhr attended the New York City public school system before joining the Navy in World War II, then earned an MFA in Ceramics Industrial Design at Alfred University. For 30 years he taught art and ceramics in the Philadelphia School District.

In addition, he has spent more than 26 years on the board of the National Exhibit by Blind Artists and 15 years as the director and principal curator of the Allens Lane Art Center Gallery. His other activities have included stints as the Art Director of the Recreational Camp for Mentally Retarded Adults and participation in an art faculty exchange with a school in Great Britain and a school in Mexico. Fluhr has also conducted programs at colleges and art centers, and he has exhibited at many schools, galleries and museums.

Fluhr would be glad to talk to anyone about donations or volunteering for Vision Thru Art, especially photographers for slides or a restaurateur willing to sponsor the annual volunteers' luncheon in June. He can be reached at 215-849-4319.