Artists in residence engage the public through programs like workshops, lectures, and walks that are related to their KSAT projects.
Nestor Gil, associate professor of art at Lafayette College, organized and led LaJiraGira, a community picnic in August 2023 that featured a walk along the trail, fun with a piñata, live music, and food provided by a local restaurant. He also took photos of participants’ blankets during the picnic in order to make prints from them and place them temporarily at strategic locations on the trail. Read Gil’s statement about LaJiraGira in Spanish or English.
In 2022, Heidi Wiren Barlett directed a performance event (see above) in conjunction with her Upriver series of five sculptures and rocks on the trail. The work was an active collaboration with local artists, scholars, geologists, musicians, and engineers. Stories were told in a procession down the trail, with each aspect reflecting the mythologies of “The Place at the Forks.” In addition, several Sound Bath Experiences with guided meditation took place.
Brandon Ballengée’s installation Love Motel for Insects: Anax Junius Variation was the centerpiece of his 2019 residency. Inspired by this exhibit, KSAT Inc. partnered with the Lehigh Valley Engaged Humanities Consortium to host the Bushkill Bug Symposium. The event consisted of presentations on stream ecology and sustainability, river rock investigations/creature collections, fly fishing and seining demonstrations, and a Bug & Burger BBQ. Related events included a glow-in-the-dark activity on bugs led by Nurture Nature Center and a screening of A Bug’s Life on the trail. Ballengée’s work was temporarily relocated to Paxinosa Elementary School in Easton’s West Ward, where it served as the focal point of continuing community conversations around these topics.
Oklahoma sculptor Rachel Hayes was the resident artist in 2018-19, working with KSAT Inc., the owners of Mercantile Home, and Easton’s Department of Public Works to install her Site Lines, which consisted of 19 pieces and over 1,000 yards of construction mesh and nylon flag fabric. The installation inhabited the KSAT for about a year, and when the work was removed, the fabric was repurposed into bags for residents of local shelters.