Lehigh Valley Arts Podcast

This week, Ben talks with Christa Neu about finding connection through photography, Christa's career, and how the world of photography has morphed and changed over time.

Christa Neu is a photographer and photo editor for Lehigh University. She serves on the board of Healing Through the Arts, a non-profit organization that provides information and resources to encourage and support healing to individuals, caregivers and their families.

 Prior to Lehigh, she was Photo Director and Editor at Organic Gardening, Rodale Publishing’s flagship brand, and a photo editor at TV Guide. She holds her MA in Illustration Photography from Syracuse University, Newhouse School of Public Communications, and her BA in History from Alfred University. To keep up with Christa, follow her on Instagram @cneu, her artwork page @cneu_artjournal, her website christaneu.com. To see some of her work with Lehigh, keep an eye out on Lehigh's Instagram @lehighu.

This episode's opportunity is for Lehigh University's What Matters Most. Over the past year, over 100 Lehigh students, faculty, and staff, as well as community members in Bethlehem were asked what matters most to them.  A broad range of topics were discussed, from protecting our environment to fighting racism to our individual and collective well-being. The contributors were asked to discuss these issues, and then to select works of art from Lehigh’s collection that help us think more deeply about them. Rather than being illustrations of specific issues, or even the central topic of concern to the artist, these selections are meant to expand, explore, and connect our ideas about what matters most. Lehigh University Art Galleries invites you to visit the exhibition in five of our campus galleries, as well as along the South Bethlehem Greenway. Be sure to attend our free programs and events. For more information, visit the Lehigh University Art Galleries website at https://luag.lehigh.edu/exhibitions/what-matters-most or follow them on Instagram at @luartgalleries. 

This week, Ben and Elise interview Doug Boehm LIVE from Studio 248A at the Banana Factory. The conversation focus on Doug's career as an artist, how he developed his style, the meaning behind the colors and subjects he creates in his work, and so much more! Doug also provided the bass loops we used at the beginning and end of the episode!

Doug Boehm is a painter and illustrator whose personal work has been shown in galleries throughout the United States and collected in the US, UK, Australia, and Taiwan. His illustration work has graced the pages of national publications and tour posters. Doug lives in Pennsylvania with his wife and three children. You can view Doug's works and online storefront by visiting https://dougboehm.com. You can follow him on Instagram @dougboehmart.

The opportunity of the week is for Doug's Solo Show, Mt. Duality, at Arch Enemy Arts which is located at 109 Arch Street, Philadelphia, PA 19106. The show opened on November 4th and will be on display all month. 

SPOOKY & EXPLICIT CONTENT LIES WITHIN THIS EPISODE: LISTEN IF YOU DARE!!!

In this special episode, we talk with Kiki Keyser from Mission Spooky about all things death and dying! More specifically, we talk about the history of art in gravestones & graveyards! In our conversation, we talked about gravesites around the world, in the state of Pennsylvania, and even in our local Lehigh Valley scene.

At the beginning of the episode, we talk about our experience at the Midnight Gallery's Halloween Pop Up Show, Elise's guest episode on the Mission Spooky Podcast, and the story of an art piece that was birthed out of Ben's obsession with 7-Eleven.

Kiki's educational background is in archaeology with a concentration in Classical Studies (Egyptian, Roman, Greek, Mexican in that order), and an anthropologist with a focus on physical anthropology. She received a National Science Foundation grant for the study of the taphonomy of grave sites for an extinct indigenous tribe of modern-day Kentucky. She's also the proud mom of a wonderful 6-year-old boy.

Kiki is also a host on the wonderful show Mission Spooky, a historical and folklore-based look at haunted locations in the North East concentrating on Pennsylvania. They have a few nerdy segments which are TTRPG based and their Soil Sessions segments which focus on growing plants in their zone as well as the folklore and history around them. You can follow Mission Spooky on Instagram, Facebook, or TikTok by searching @missionspooky.

The Midnight Gallery's Halloween Pop-Up Show is running through November 11th and features spooky art from several artists. For more information, check out their Instagram or website. 

This week, Bruce Ward sits down to talk about his documentaries, photographs, and time as a worker at Bethlehem Steel with Andria Zaia, the Curator of Collections at the National Museum of Industrial History.

This episode was created alongside the National Museum of Industrial History as a way to uplift the prominence of Bethlehem Steel on the history and culture of the Lehigh Valley.

For the opportunity of the week, we invite you to join us for an exploration of all things STEEL! Highlights include the Steelworkers Reunion Party, pop-up exhibits, hands-on youth activities, documentary and archival video screenings, live demonstrations, guided tours and more. Musical performances by Kendal Conrad and Starting Tomorrow and food from Heaven On A Bun Food Truck and a very special Foodways of Steel tasting.

Steel Weekend will be held from 10am-5pm on October 15 & 16. This event will be held at the National Museum of Industrial History, which is located at 602 East Second Street, Bethlehem, 18015. For more information about the event, please visit https://www.nmih.org/event/steel-weekend-steelworkers-reunion/.

This event is presented in partnership with Steelworkers’ Archives, Baltimore Museum of Industry, Banana Factory, Bethlehem Area Public Library, Lehigh University Art Galleries, Bethlehem Area School District. South Bethlehem Historical Society, Lehigh Valley Public Media.

Funding generously provided by Northampton County Department of Community and Economic Development Hotel Tax Grant Program, Lehigh County Quality of Life Grant Program, Hank & Joanne Barnette, OneGroup, PA Steel Alliance, American Institute of Steel Construction, MMZ Foundation, St. John Windish Church, Azar Supermarket, Weis Markets, Giant Markets.

This week, Elise is joined by Eliana Vélez, a mixed-media collage artist who focuses heavily on self portraiture in her works.

Born and raised in rural Eastern PA, with a Jewish mother and a Puerto Rican Father Eliana was inspired to create art that could encapsulate her specific experiences with adversity and trauma throughout her life. As a survivor of sexual abuse, and a person with a learning disability, she tries to create self-portraits that can allow people to understand her perspective, whilst also working through her traumas emotionally. Her work is both a representational self-portrait of her face, but also an emotional self-portrait created by the vintage collage materials, and found objects from her own life. These paintings are almost like diary entries and scrapbook pages, making comments about capitalism, and institutionalized prejudice in the United States. In her experience, when you are a minority every facet of your life is inherently political, and she works to convey this message within her work.

You can find Eliana on Instagram at @elianavelez_art.

This episode's opportunity of the week is for Eliana's solo show at The Gallery at Steel Pixel Studios. The exhibition's opening reception will be on September 21st from 6:30-8pm. It will be at 701 N New St. Bethlehem, PA 18018. The exhibition will be on display from September 14th through the beginning of November.

This week, we feature a fun conversation between Matt Molchany & Josh Berk about local music, the importance of participating in the local music scene, and why accessible recording studios are important to the community!

Josh Berk is the Executive Director of the Bethlehem Area Public Library as well as an author and musician in the Lehigh Valley. Josh comes from a family of librarians and has deep roots in the Lehigh Valley. In addition to being a librarian, Josh is also an author. His first book for young adults, The Dark Days of Hamburger Halpin, was set in a high school in PA coal country and was placed on several “best of” lists. His first book for younger readers, Strike Three You’re Dead, allowed him to write about his passion for baseball. It was a finalist for the prestigious Edgar Awards presented by the Mystery Writers of America. In addition to writing, Josh is also a musician and plays Bass in the band Fictional Name! When he’s not working, writing, or playing bass, he’s fanboying on instagram over the new face of the Lehigh Valley Punk Rock Scene, Chloe the Chug. You can find Josh Berk on instagram at @jberkjj, the Bethlehem Area Public Library at @pabapl, Cloe the Chug at @cloethechug, and Fictional Name at @fictional_name!

Alongside Josh on this episode is Mall Molchany, the seasoned sound engineer who started Tape Swap Radio owns Shards Recording Studio in Southside Bethlehem. Matt is also a member of the bands VoirVoir & Wipes. You can find Matt on instagram at @shards_recording_studio, tape swap radio at @tapeswapradio, and VoirVoir at @voirvoirband!

This week, Elise talks with Devyn Briggs & Katie Hovencamp about their work in the community and how it ties to their personal art practices.

Katie Hovencamp received her BFA from Arizona State University in 2009 and her MFA from the Pennsylvania State University in 2014. Hovencamp has exhibited her work in numerous exhibitions within the United States, Europe, and Asia. Her work has been reviewed in Sculpture Magazine, Chicago Reader, and several online and print publications. She was the recipient of the Outstanding Student Achievement Award for Contemporary Sculpture in 2014 and the University Graduate Fellowship at the Pennsylvania State University in 2012. Hovencamp has participated in residency programs at Vermont Studio Center, Serde Interdisciplinary artist group in Latvia, and the Tyrone Guthrie Centre in Ireland. In 2016, she was awarded an artist residency with International Sculpture Center at Mana Contemporary in Jersey City, NJ. She has taught at various institutions such as the Edna Vihel Center for the Arts, Totts Gap Art Institute, Pennsylvania State University, Harrisburg Area Community College, Keystone College, and Northampton Community College.

Devyn Briggs grew up in Bethlehem, PA and studied at the Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore, MD. She studied drawing, painting, sculpture, fiber arts, and ceramics and earned a BFA with a major in Ceramics in 2013. She then earned a masters degree in the Business of Art and Design, studying creative entrepreneurship before opening a studio at the Banana Factory in Bethlehem, PA. In addition to making art, Devyn is an educator and arts activist dedicated to fostering equity and inclusion within the Lehigh Valley arts community. She has worked in numerous areas of the arts world including fine art collection management, creative start-ups, community and public art, and non-profit management. She currently works at Northampton Community College as a Career Readiness Specialist, empowering students to start successful careers, and as an adjunct instructor in the art department. She previously served on CACLV’s Color Outside the Lines Quality of Life Committee and as an advisory board member of the Guild of Creative Citizens, a non-profit dedicated to arts equity in the Lehigh Valley. She is an active member of the Juneteenth Lehigh Valley Steering Committee and African American Business Leaders Council Events Committee.

You can follow Katie on Instagram @katiehovencamp or visit her website at www.katiehovencamp.com.

You can Follow Devyn on Instagram @devynlenor or by visiting her website at www.devynlenorbriggs.com.

This week, Kendal Conrad, singer/songwriter, and Kate Hughes, Director of Fig Lehigh Valley, talk about Kendal's music, inspiration, story, and so much more!

You can follow Kendal Conrad on Instagram at @kendalconrad and follow her food page at @kendalsbites. Make sure to check out her new song, I Don't Need You Now, at https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/kendalconrad/i-dont-need-you-now.

You can follow Kate Hughes on Instagram at @ih8kate and Fig Lehigh Valley @figlehighvalley. Visit Fig Lehigh Valley's Website by visiting https://linkin.bio/figlehighvalley.

This week, we talk with Rachel Peri.  Rachel Peri is a lifestyle and portrait photographer as well as jewelry maker who operates out of the Lehigh Valley. In addition to being an artist, she is the current acting president of ACE, also known as the Arts Community of Easton. ACE was founded in 1999 and incorporated in April 2000 by artists, business owners, art institution representatives, and art lovers, seeking an organization for arts education programs, exhibitions, workshops, information dispersal, and networking. Given its proximity to large cities, Easton has been a magnet for artists who are looking for a place to work and live. Since the 1980’s, many artists have joined with long time artists in making Easton their home. ACE’s mission is to encourage and promote all the arts; foster an appreciation of the arts; and enrich the quality of life by offering arts involvement, education, and community programming to the Easton area.

For our opportunity of the week, we wanted to share some information about how you can get involved with ACE - The Artists Community of Easton!

Monthly meetings are held by ACE as an opportunity for members to learn about the organization, upcoming events, and the work being done by the committees. There’s also an open forum for all members to share their thoughts and announce their own exhibitions that are done outside of ACE. Frequently, guest speakers are invited to discuss various topics of interest to the arts community.

Artists of all mediums are welcome, as is anyone who would like to support the arts.  ACE Monthly Meetings are open to the public.  You do not need to be an ACE member to attend. ACE is a membership-driven organization, and there are numerous ways to contribute to and benefit from participation. As an ACE member, you will receive multiple opportunities to exhibit artwork, receive discounts, and more. Become an active ACE member and help lift and encourage our community through the power of the arts. ACE offers individual, family, and student memberships that offer benefits such as participation in meetings and events, marketing and networking resources, special exhibition opportunities and announcements, and more!

You can find Rachel on Instagram as @rochperi and @rachelperiphoto.

You can find ACE on Instagram as @ace.artscommunityofeaston or visit their website at www.eastonart.org.