'She is a visionary, a go-getter, an artist, gracious.' Meet the Alliance for the Arts' new director

Lydia Black was growing restless and looking for something new to do. What that was, she didn’t know yet (and still doesn’t).

“I suffer from wanderlust,” says Black, who stepped down last week after 13 years as executive director for the Alliance for the Arts in Fort Myers. “I just decided, after more than a decade— things need to get shaken up occasionally, you know?

“I love what I do, but I need to change a little bit. What do I want to do for the next decade? What brings me joy?”

Roughly 2,200 miles north in Boise, Idaho, Molly Deckart was feeling the same way. She’d run a horror film festival and the Boise Film Foundation for years, but she wasn’t sure if that’s what she wanted to do for the rest of her life.

Then COVID-19 hit Boise and put everything on pause, and Deckart used that time to evaluate things.

“The pandemic gave me the opportunity to reflect on my own journey,” she says.

That journey eventually led her to Fort Myers, where Deckart became the Alliance’s new executive director this week. The Alliance announced the news Wednesday.

“I just kind of fell in love with the Alliance,” Deckart says. “I loved the space. I loved what was happening.

“You could tell it was a healthy, vibrant, loved space, and really has a strong connection to the community. And that’s really what I love.”

Previously: Alliance for the Arts executive director steps down

Deckart, 41, inherits an arts organization that’s grown bigger and stronger since Black became director. Its budget went from $300,000 to $1.2 million. Membership shot from about 300 people to more than 1,250.

The arts hub — at the intersection of Colonial and McGregor boulevards in Fort Myers — hosts concerts, plays, festivals, art classes, exhibits and more. The10-acre campus features a new outdoor stage for socially distanced concerts and plays, and an ArtsPark with pedestrian walkways, native plants and a 22-foot-tall aluminum sculpture called the “Caloosahatchee Water Wall.”

Then there’s the cooperation and collaboration Black encouraged among local arts groups, including two major studies of the economic impact of nonprofit arts groups in Lee County ($140 million in 2015, according to the last study).

Did you know?: Alliance transforms with $1.2M Water Wall and ArtsPark project

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That's what the Alliance is all about, Black says. 

“It’s sparking joy in people at any age, at any time, and bringing the community together to recognize the importance of the arts,” she says. “And I’m proud of that. We’ve helped elevate that conversation.

“And we still have a lot more to do. I’ve been proud just to be a part of it, just to be part of a bunch of creative people trying to make this slice of Southwest Florida a little better.”

Black’s last day as executive director was Jan. 29. Then Deckart officially took over Monday.

Before coming to Fort Myers, Deckart served as executive director for both the Boise Film Foundation and the Idaho Horror Film Festival, one of the largest film festivals in that state.

Last year, she was named one of Idaho Business Review’s 2020 Women of the Year.

“She is a visionary, a go-getter, an artist, gracious,” said Idaho State senator Cherie Buckner-Webb in an article announcing the news. “And you don’t hear that very often anymore. She can mobilize people and make things happen.”

The Alliance’s leaders were equally impressed by Deckart, Black says.

“We had over 200 candidates for the position,” Black says, “and Molly has been right in the front for the whole time. (It was) her energy, her positivity, the nonprofit administration aspect, a little early childhood education.

“I think she’s got the whole picture, and I think she can continue the push to bring the community together through the arts.”

Deckart moved to Fort Myers from Boise with her husband and three kids (ages 9, 11 and 15). It’s not her first time in Southwest Florida: She has relatives in Miami. And as a child, she used to visit her late grandparents in Naples every year.

Deckart says she looks forward to getting to know the local craft beer scene, taking in some readings and continuing to practice yoga and listen to podcasts.

But she probably won’t be doing much painting, she admits. Despite having a bachelor’s degree in fine arts from Boise State University, she stopped making art after the birth of her son and two older daughters.

“I haven’t picked up a paintbrush in 11 years,” she says. “I am, honestly, a better connector of artists than I am an artist.”

Besides, she’ll likely stay busy with her new job — a job that Black admits could be all-consuming.

“I spend more time here than I do, sometimes, at home,” Black says. “It’s my family.”

Deckart is still figuring out her plans for the Alliance’s future, which will likely include more activities for teenagers.

“This is an older town, demographic-wise,” she says. “I have younger children, but I want to see a robust arts community that has lots of things for them to experience.

“So I’m kind of taking the mom’s side. What do they love that they’re currently not seeing?”

That being said, she admits there’s not a whole lot of work to be done at the Alliance.

“It’s a healthy organization, so it’s not like there are major holes,” she says. “Lydia has set a high bar.”

More:Fort Myers, Naples arts scene faces uncertain future in COVID-19 world

As for Black, she’s still trying to figure out her next move. She announced in December that she’d be leaving the Alliance, but stayed on to help find a replacement and ease the transition.

Black, 43, says she spent her last week at the Alliance hugging and saying tearful goodbyes to its employees, artists, donors and patrons.

“It’s a bittersweet moment,” she says. “I’ve broken out into a million tears this week, unexpectedly and all sorts of weird times.”

As for her future, she's still figuring that out. She’ll likely work with her husband at the family business, Winged Foot Title. And she’ll start thinking about what they want to do with their life together.

Will they stay in Fort Myers? Move somewhere else? Black doesn’t know for sure.

Whatever she does, she says, she feels good leaving the Alliance in Deckart’s capable hands.

“It’s time to let go, and it’s time to let someone else dig in,” Black says. “It’s just the right thing for me and the right thing for the organization.

“I’m excited. I’m excited to let go. And I’m excited to see where Molly takes it.”

Connect with this reporter: Email crunnells@gannett.com or connect on social media at Charles Runnells (Facebook), @charlesrunnells (Twitter) and @crunnells1 (Instagram).