The artists share the work they completed the year following their residency with a reception on February 5.
BETHLEHEM, PA – We invite you to come to Communications Hall Gallery to see work made by Mike Lorenz, Sasha Phyars-Burgess and Anne Sipos, our 2024 East 40 Artists-in-Residence. This exhibition includes work made in the year following the conclusion of their residency.
Since 2021, The East 40 artist-in-residency program is dedicated to offering visual artists, writers, performers, designers, and other creative individuals time and space to investigate and pursue their own practices while integrating the community and providing a collaborative learning environment.
The East 40 residency program has 2-3 slots available each summer depending on available funds and resources. One slot is reserved for NCC faculty or staff, and one is reserved for a visual artist. One person can satisfy both requirements. The other slot(s) are open to all areas of the humanities.
Artists will be able to spend 2-6 weeks on site, utilizing the tranquil space and natural materials to support their creative process. As a part of the residency requirements, artists host a community facing event to educate to public on their craft and provide hands on opportunities for participants to learn a new skill or craft.
All residencies will result in a culminating project to be finished up to a year following the completion of the residency. The culminating project for the visual arts residency will consist of an exhibition in Communications Hall Gallery on the NCC campus.
Sasha Phyars-Burgess is a photographer, artist and educator who has traveled in and out of the area, working long term photo documentary projects that investigate histories of the African Diaspora. She is documenting East 40’s participants (NCC students, residents of Bethlehem), the stewards of the land (students, workers, animals, plants, etc.), and the general ecosystem of NCC at large, as photographic commentary on Bethlehem/Lehigh Valley/Lenape Territory, at this current moment in history.
Mike Lorenz is a highly regarded and recognized guitarist, educator, producer, and composer. He has led groups in performances of his original compositions and arrangements, and has been spending his residency engaging with nature at the East 40 and transcribing sounds from around the grounds to use in new compositions.
Anne Sipos tells us that she sees herself as a facilitator of expression, of sharing, supporting, and creating in community. She formerly taught creative writing at the high school level and now works at NCC. Anne is working on an innovative, interactive rock poetry garden on the East 40 grounds.
To learn more about the artist residency at the East 40 click here: https://www.ncceast40.org/art-experiences
Communications Hall Gallery
Northampton Community College
3835 Green Pond Road
Bethlehem PA 18020
Open every day 9 a.m. – 9 p.m.
About Northampton Community College
With an enduring commitment to the regional communities it serves and a focus on student success, Northampton Community College is an educational institution of extraordinary distinction, earning accolades at the state and national levels for innovative programs, outstanding faculty, and impressive student achievements. It counts among its successful alumni a four-time Pulitzer Prize winner and an Academy Award winning director, as well as a host of CEOs, presidents, and leaders of business and industry. Today, Northampton Community College has locations in Bethlehem, Southside Bethlehem, and Monroe County, serving 30,000 students annually from 53 counties, 42 countries, and 25 states. For more information or to apply, please visit northampton.edu. Follow NCC on LinkedIn, Instagram @NorthamptonCommCollege, TikTok @NorthamptonCC, and Facebook.
