Celebrating Bethlehem's Southside Culture
*Cover artwork is by Sammy Wendland. The students at Lehigh Valley Charter High School for the Arts (Charter Arts) are pursuing something beyond a traditional education. They are pursuing the integration of their artistic development with all of the comprehensive education that we require of high school students. As they take risks and explore the…
*Featured photo: “Darth Vase #1”– Deborah Slahta (ceramic and raku fired vase) Each year, the Banana Factory features an exhibit to celebrate the ongoing work of their resident artists. In the 2020 digital exhibition, installations include mystic glass panels of starry orbs, flowing acrylic petunia petals that blend with their background, and lonely rocking chairs,…
As many of us remain in quarantine, Southsider returns to the Banana Factory for a deeper dive into the beauty of one of their digital exhibits.
By the end of Barack Obama’s term as the President of the United States, former chief official White House photographer Pete Souza had captured those eight years in a collection of two million photos. Three hundred of these photos make up his best-selling photography book, Obama: An Intimate Portrait, and it was that visual narrative…
I never expected to be finishing my last year at Lehigh from my house in New Hampshire, which is just over three hundred miles away from Bethlehem. And yet, here we are. I’ve spent the better part of the last twenty one years of my life in my hometown. Its sights, smells, and sounds are…
It’s easy to forget that women actually comprise the majority of the United States population. And no, you didn’t hear me incorrectly—there are more women than men in this country. Based on this simple fact, you’d think that we’d see more women in highly visible places like Congress or Fortune 500 companies or prestigious academia….
My first spring in Bethlehem has been delightful: the flowering trees alone have made this one of the most beautiful springs I’ve ever experienced. After the Southside Arts & Music Festival, I’m even more excited for what summer in Bethlehem has to offer. Thanks to ArtsQuest, spring in Bethlehem signals not only the start of…
Seldom do we think of the little things in our daily lives. Sounds in particular, such as offhand remarks, unusual questions, overheard exclamations, and lingering phrases, bounce off the ear without a second thought. However, artist Martha Rich appears hyperconscious of these moments. Rich is a Philadelphia-based artist whose art primarily involves drawing, painting, and…
Printmaker Keith Garubba is one of the Banana Factory’s newest resident artists. Garubba currently teaches at the Baum School of Art, in the Allentown School District, and at Lehigh Carbon Community College. In addition, Garubba works for Durham Press as a printer. The Bethlehem artist completed his undergraduate degree at Keystone College and received a…
There’s no doubt that art has a sort of transformational quality—an ability to transport us to places we fondly miss and those we’ve always hoped to visit—and Linda Dubin Garfield’s art is certainly no exception. On view right now at ArtsQuest, her Japan series takes us to the other side of the world, capturing the…