Story provided by OSU Museum of Art
A team of unsung heroes at the wastewater treatment plant is highlighted in a new exhibition and lecture series at the OSU Museum of Art. One such hero depicted in the exhibition, The State We’re In Water: Constructing a Sense of Place in the Hydrosphere is Lou Ann Fisher, the Compliance Coordinator for the City of Stillwater Department of Water Utilities.
Fisher will share her expertise about water during the OSU Museum of Art’s water virtual lecture series “Voices from the Hydrosphere.” Lou Ann Fisher is the third installment of the series and will give a talk titled “Wastewater and the Human Component” on November 5th at 12 pm.
“Logging in for this lecture series allows our community a chance to hear from and speak to those who are making waves regarding water conservation in Oklahoma.” said museum curator, Christina Elliott. “There is a lot to unpack in this exhibition. Associated events like this lecture series open up opportunities not only for learning but for conversation.”
The State We’re In Water is a multimedia exhibition featuring research-based art installations that survey the human relationship to water regionally and globally. As the artist team began researching and interviewing leading water specialists in Oklahoma, Fisher captured their hearts with her spunk and passion for wastewater treatment.
Lou Ann Fisher shared her stories and personal connections with water in a film produced by artist Robin Lasser for the exhibition. In the film Theatre of Reclamation, Fisher enlivens the processes of wastewater treatment, explaining complex operations through an arrangement of fun and catchy songs. These passages in the film help viewers interact with water utilities through a new, engaging perspective and Fisher’s passion is delightfully contagious.
The long list of achievements Fisher has developed in her career certainly speaks of her lifelong commitment to bettering the planet and specifically water through sewage treatment. After working 10 years for the City of Lawton, she served in Iraq and Kuwait during Operation Iraqi Freedom with Kellogg, Brown and Root (KBR) Halliburton in water and wastewater treatment, environmental compliance, HAZMAT, emergency response and safety. At the City of Stillwater, she has served as the Environmental Programs Manager, Superintendent of the Water Treatment Plant and in her current role as Compliance Coordinator.
Clean water is essential to life and Fisher dedicated her career to improving water quality and educating others about wastewater treatment is her mission.
“Clean water is a gift,” said Fisher. “Polluted water is a death trap. If everyone could be mindful of the planet’s water supply and give back to it what it so freely gives us, the world would be a better place.”
To register for “Voices from the Hydrosphere”, please visit the museum’s website at www.museum.okstate.edu. For more information, please call Christina at 405-744-2785 or email [email protected].
About the OSU Museum of Art
For more information about the OSU Museum of Art, visit museum.okstate.edu or call 405-744-2780. The museum is located at 720 S. Husband St. in downtown Stillwater. NEW Hours: 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesdays – Saturdays with guided tours by request. Groups are limited to 10 at a time to allow for social distancing. Masks are required. Admission is free, thanks to generous support from the OSU Museum of Art Advocates.
