BETHLEHEM, Pa.- It’s hard to top a 100th birthday, especially when the celebration was as bold, colorful and creative as the show Lehigh University Art Galleries (LUAG) put on to mark that milestone for itself.
LUAG isn’t trying to do that. But, building on the success of its exhibition, Here and Now: 100 Years of LUAG, it does want to keep the good times rolling. “We really thought, we just can’t pass up the opportunity to do this again in the future,” said William Crow, LUAG’s director.
Enter the triennial.
More on that soon. First, let’s get up to speed on that centennial.
While Lehigh University can trace its roots in Bethlehem all the way back to 1865, 1926 is recognized as the official birth of LUAG; that’s when the school hosted its first documented art exhibition.
Today LUAG manages seven gallery spaces spread out among Lehigh’s three campuses. At any given time, there are typically 600-700 works of art on view, including dozens of outdoor sculptures.
Amy Unger
The main gallery is inside the Zoellner Arts Center on the Asa Packer Campus at 420 East Packer Ave. in Bethlehem.
Last year, LUAG began preparing to celebrate its 100th birthday by issuing a call for local artists to submit their work as part of the Here and Now exhibit. “We had over 800 entries,” said Crow, “and had the very difficult task of narrowing it to 100.”
13 of the submissions that made the cut are now part of LUAG’s permanent collection, and, even though Here and Now wrapped its run last month, the strong response prompted LUAG to add something permanent to its institutional calendar as well.
PEACOCK, 2023. Acrylic on canvas. Danny Finocchio, Easton; one of the works acquired by LUAG after Here and Now.
Photo from LUAG
That bring us back to the triennial. The official name is Here and Now: The Lehigh Valley Triennial.
Every three years, LUAG will again issue an open call for local artists to submit their work to be part of a special juried exhibition. The end result most likely won’t be on the same scale as Here and Now, Crow said- after all, a 100th birthday is a one-time thing- but he envisions it as being a large-scale exhibit.
In between triennial shows, LUAG plans to offer professional development workshops and collaborative events for creators in the region to keep those artistic appetites whetted. “One thing that we really were delighted to see this past year was artists having the opportunity to connect with one another and to really use the art galleries at Lehigh as a platform to deepen their own artistic practice and to learn different professional skills that elevate them in their profession, and so we really don’t want to lose that momentum,” Crow said.
The Cycle, 2024. Mixed media, paint, wood, found objects, paper, clay. Jessica Shannon, Bethlehem. One of the works acquired by LUAG after Here and Now.
Photo from LUAG
The inaugural triennial is set for 2029, LUAG said, with the call for entries going out in 2028.