Chrysler Museum of Art

Lusher is the Public Programs and Community Partnerships Manager at the Chrysler Museum of Art in Norfolk, Virginia. In that role, he helps leverage the institution’s resources to cultivate community partnerships and develop inspiring programming. Implementing and supporting over 190 programs each year, he curates responsive cultural experiences that de-centers the institution and centers community voices. His partnerships with diverse regional, national, and international individuals, organizations, and institutions (including civic leaders, scholars, artists, and philanthropists) help ensure the museum remains relevant and accessible to all.

In this work, he has created two significant initiatives: Art + Democracy and Art + Wellness. The Art + Democracy initiative investigates how the museum can foster democratic values and practices both within the community and in the museum's operations. Central to the initiative is a partnership with Old Dominion University for the Art + Democracy Fellowship. Programming includes Civic Salons, an installation of Declare: A Civic Gospel in partnership with Arion Press and Monticello, and a blog series that explores the Museum collection through a democratic lens. Reflecting these civic-based efforts, Lusher is a Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello Civic Imagination Scholar — one of forty cultural leaders from around the country selected for their commitment to cultivating civic imagination.

His Art + Wellness initiative explores the intersection of art and wellness practices through innovative programming and strategic partnerships. Institutional programming has been reimagined to respond to community wellness needs, including yoga, meditation, and Tai Chi classes in the galleries. His program, Silver Social Club, was designed to support the social and creative needs of older adults and has been recognized internationally, becoming a model for similar programs at other institutions. Alongside the Benjamin Goldberg Foundation, they created a series of Art + Wellness labels that offered museum visitors accessible reflective questions to guide individual wellness practices. That partnership has led to an exciting pilot program with Sentara Health, measuring the impact of social prescription and the arts.

Lusher maintains active collaborations with Old Dominion University, Eastern Virginia Medical School, and Norfolk State University, regularly teaching classes for art education, medical, art therapy, and public administration students. Additionally, he oversees the annual summer internship program and facilitates year-round job shadowing opportunities for secondary and higher education students to learn about museum careers.

In addition to developing exhibition-related programming, Lusher has enjoyed the privilege of leading and supporting several exhibition projects, including: 

  • Co-Curator of Loving Memory: The Life and Legacy of Irene and Annie — 2028 exhibition about nineteenth-century educators Irene Leache and Annie Wood.

  • Co-Curator of Community Garden — 2027 exhibition incorporating crowd-sourced community curation with artwork featuring gardens (in connection with the 2027 Norfolk Home and Garden Tour). 

  • Co-Curator of Declare — 2026 installation featuring Arion Press’s Declare: A Civic Gospel and Sonya Clark’s Octoroon in honor of America 250.

  • Exhibition Manager for Shrines of Democracy: People and Power in America — 2026 intern exhibition investigating American democracy through works by Jean-Antoine Houdon, Bruce Davidson, and Tseng Kwong Chi.

  • Exhibition Manager for Forging Paths: Grounded by Memory — 2025 intern exhibition investigating how experiences and memories shape an individual’s path with artwork by Zoe Buckman, Mary Cassatt, and Rowena Federico Finn.

  • Supporting the 2027 Chrysler European Galleries reinstallation through the development of gallery interactives and educational engagements.

Arts for Learning

Lusher was previously the Artist and Programming Manager with Arts for Learning Virginia in Norfolk, Virginia. In this role, he initiated and managed an expansive affiliation with Wolf Trap Institute for Early Learning through the Arts, leading to the creation of Coastal Virginia Wolf Trap. These efforts to expand arts integration in early childhood education throughout Hampton Roads were recognized by Virginia’s Governor and First Lady. In this position, Lusher also developed and implemented school and community arts programming, with high-quality, relevant curriculum for Pre-K through Grade 12 in-school and after-school settings. To facilitate those educational programs, he managed and expanded a roster of 80+ professional teaching artists and developed a professional development framework to promote systemic quality through routine training and evaluation. 

Educator

An educator at heart, Lusher has served in instructional roles at Christopher Newport University (Newport News, VA), Musikgymnasium Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (Berlin, Germany), Old Donation School (Virginia Beach, Virginia), and York County Public Schools (Virginia). He served on the Virginia Beach City Public Schools Curriculum Redevelopment Committee, leading the revision of the district-wide secondary music curriculum. As an educator, he co-created a new musical theater course and curriculum, was published in The Choral Journal, and was nominated for Teacher of the Year and City Music Teacher of the Year, but was most proud to be praised by students for “letting them be themselves.”

Presentations

Lusher is a frequent presenter, sharing his research and experience with communities of learners across the world. Recent presentations include at the University of Leiden’s Museum Lab, MuseumNext Programming Summit, the National Arts in Education conference, the Southeastern Conference of Public Administration, the Virginia Art Educators Association conference, the Virginia Association of Museums annual meeting, the Virginia Commission for the Arts artist roster, and an Early Childhood Education Symposium held at Norfolk State University.

Community

Lusher remains active in the community, serving on the following: Virginia Commission for the Arts as a grant advisor, WHRO’s Next Gen Collective, Wetland Watch’s The Tides that Bind committee (chair), the Virginia Stage Company’s Young Professionals group, Norfolk Rotary, and previously as a commissioner with the Norfolk Bicycle, Pedestrian, and Active Transportation Commission.

Musician

Lusher maintains a professional music career, performing with the Virginia Chorale and as a staff singer at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church and Ohef Sholom Temple. He has performed with the New York Philharmonic, Berlin Philharmonic, Philadelphia Orchestra, West-East Divan Orchestra, Williamsburg Opera, and at the Spoleto Festival, Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, and the Kimmel Center in Philadelphia. In 2016, he won the Virginia statewide National Association of Teachers of Singing competition. As a conductor, he has conducted RIAS Kammerchor, Brandenburgisches Orchester, Coro Universitario de Mendoza, and the John F. Kennedy School of Berlin. In addition to regular concert programming, he has led and prepared music for many special programs, including with the German National Parliament, the United States Embassy in Berlin, and the Polish Embassy in Berlin.