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A rendering of An Untamed Place installation by Martha Posner
The Art of Urban Environments Festival kicks off 11 a.m. Saturday, May 7, with a performance by New York City’s Asphalt Orchestra followed by an opening ceremony at 12th and Northampton streets in the West Ward.
Sponsored by Lafayette and the city of Easton with major support from the National Endowment for the Arts, the six-month festival features multimedia outdoor sculptures by local and national artists as well as music and theater performances on Saturdays throughout the summer and early fall.
The 10 featured art installations were selected from more than 70 submissions during the competition phase of the festival. They range from The Love Motel for Insects, which uses ultra-violet lights to attract bugs, to a giant nest made from bits of cloth, to the suspension of broken umbrellas above the Bushkill Creek.
Three of the 10 sculptures have been installed with the rest expected to be up by the end of the month.
“The festival is a celebration of art, music, and the environment and will give people opportunities to interact with art and think about its use in urban and natural settings,” says Ellis Finger, director of the Williams Center for the Arts and festival director. “It’s also another example of how the arts engages communities and can transform an everyday site into a beautifully and thought-provoking place that awakens the senses.”
The art installations will be on display until October and are scattered throughout the city and Lafayette’s new arts campus on North Third Street. Visitors can view the works by taking a self-guided driving tour or hopping on a trolley operated by the Chansonnette Fringe Fest, which is collaborating with the AUEF on a series of performances and youth workshops scheduled for every Saturday through Aug. 20 on 12th Street between Northampton and Spring Garden streets.
Proceeds from the Fringe Fest benefit the Chansonnette Theater, a local group that after 63 years is still producing musicals for the enjoyment of the community. It recently expanded its repertoire to include mystery dinner theaters, cabarets, and children’s shows and serves as an outlet for local talent by encouraging young people to explore the arts.
After the Asphalt Orchestra performs its radical brand of street music, Lafayette President Daniel Weiss, Easton Mayor Sal Panto, and Eveyln Gulick, a founding member of Chansonnette, will launch the festivals at 11:30 a.m. followed by a noon performance of the Joe Mack Band. Also on tap are children’s art activities, fine arts and crafts, and the sale of food and beverages.
Prior to the opening of the AUEF and Fringe Fest, the Asphalt Orchestra will herald the opening of the Easton Farmers Market at Center Square at 9:30 a.m. It will perform again at 1:30 p.m. on the Lafayette campus to open All College Day.