During these challenging times, art is a beacon on the horizon and a place of hope. Despite limitations, Bethany Arts Community has managed to continue meaningful programs for kids, adults, and professional artists virtually and safely in person.
At Bethany Arts Community:
our workshops, classes and youth arts programs offer experiences in drawing and painting, mosaic, theater and dance.
our residency program for professional artists – currently in session with a reduced number of artists, in a safe, distanced way – offers opportunities to develop new works and engage with peers and the public
our gallery, sculpture park and gardens are open and free for all.
Central to the mission of our organization and to ensure accessibility, Bethany Arts Community lowers barriers to participation through scholarships and a policy that no one will be turned away for lack of funds.
We cannot do this work without you.
Bethany Arts Community has been offered a challenge by ArtsWestchester. For every NEW donation to Bethany Arts Community, ArtsWestchester, with the generous support of the Westchester County Executive and Board of Legislators, will match those contributions 1:1, effectively doubling your gift. If you’ve never given to Bethany before, or if you are able to increase your contribution, now is the moment.
Creativity and bold, creative action are the only path forward to a brighter, more equitable future. Join Bethany Arts Community to make these programs possible. Donate now, and your contribution will ensure our arts education programs will continue into a school year full of doubt and budget cuts.
Donate now and support artists facing unprecedented income and opportunity loss. Donate now and your contributions will be doubled by ArtsWestchester. Now is the moment.
The 2020 Art$W Challenge is now available! Eligible donations will be matched through Dec 31, 2020. Download Donor Certification Form to make sure your donation is matched!
Tax deductible contributions may be made online at bethanyarts.org/support or by check made payable to: Bethany Arts Community.
In addition, the Donor Certification Form must be completed and returned to Bethany by the donor to be eligible for the ArtsW Challenge match. Checks and donor forms can be mailed to Bethany Arts Community, 40 Somerstown Road, Ossining, New York 10562 or scanned and e-mailed to info@bethanyarts.org
As always, thank you for your support of Bethany Arts Community and stay safe, well and connected!
David Lyons, Founder & Board President Abigail Lewis, Executive Director
Greetings and salutations to the Bethany Arts Community! As we are all aware, the world and society is in a transition period. Bethany has been closed and will remain closed to the public through the month of April 2020. We will monitor and re-evaluate the situation through the coming weeks. Hopefully daily life will return to resemble something of what was in the near future. Until then, continuing with one of the founding ideas that “change is constant and always” and should be embraced, we will be offering a variety of opportunities for the entire Community to stay informed and connected.
Please stay tuned for the many necessary and exciting changes that will be coming to Bethany in the future. Please support the arts however you can and whenever you can. I think it’s during stressful times that coming together and working as a community is the cement of our foundation as a society. It is that cement that makes us stronger for the next challenge, the next change that will come. Please stay safe and healthy, look out for one another. As a community, we are strong.
Come on, gather ’round people Wherever you roam And admit that the waters Around you have grown And accept it that soon You’ll be drenched to the bone If your time to you Is worth savin’ Then you better start swimmin’ Or you’ll sink like a stone For the times they are a-changin’
– Bob Dylan
Share your creative space!
1) Take a photo of your creative space while under the COVID-19 watch 2) Tag us at #BACTOGETHER on Instagram
Like and follow us on Instagram to see your creative space featured @bethanyartsorg
We expect to present our first virtual exhibition, (s)mother, curated by Anna Adler starting May 8th with a virtual opening reception. The exhibit will be on display through the month of May.
The 1st annual Artoberfest is coming to Bethany Arts Community on October 5, 2019.
Join us for art, music, crafts, food and family fun! Featuring visual artists, live musicians, food, live and interactive demonstrations, the festival will be a great experience for all ages!
ARToberfest will illuminate arts spanning a variety of styles and mediums and celebrate the unique culture of the Hudson Valley region.
Join Bethany Arts Community for an evening of cocktails, food, performance, exhibit, silent auction and more!
This year we celebrate the many successes of Bethany’s first year of providing meaningful arts programming and creating community through the arts. We celebrate our support for artists who have found Bethany a nurturing and inspiring environment where they can grow and further the creative artistic process. Your support helps advance our mission to continue to create a space and environment where the many forms of art can be learned, produced and flourish.
Save the Date! November 16, 2018 | Time: 7:00 pm – 10:00 pm
BAC is pleased to announce a four week residency, in May, with Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Company, a world-class dance-theater company.
OSSINING, NY: Bethany Arts Community is a new space and environment based at 40 Somerstown Road whose founders hope the many forms of art can be learned, produced and flourish.
“We couldn’t be more thrilled to launch our artist residency program with the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane company,” David Lyons, founding executive director, said in a press release. “From the beginning, we wanted to provide a space that attracts and nurtures this caliber of international talent while also making these artists and their work accessible to our regional community.”
Until June 1, Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Company will be creating a new work and expanding existing work, in residence at BAC. They will use the opportunity to immerse themselves in the creative process, spending valuable time together and with the BAC community through open rehearsals, community dialogues and public events. The nature of a residency outside of the city, even if just a few short train stops away, allows the artists to truly leave mundane activities that can sometimes get in the way of process and focus on engaging in the art form and their colleagues.
Bill T Jones/Arnie Zane Company is beginning a new work, currently titled The Deep Blue Sea, which they will continue to work on at BAC. Drawing inspiration from Melville’s evocative description of Pip, the young black “cabin boy”, floating alone in the sea, The Deep Blue Sea explores the relationship of solidarity as it pertains to, or contrasts to group identity. The work will begin with a solo figure that will be performed by Mr. Jones or a company member, evolving over time into an ensemble of ten (the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Company), that further expands into a community of one hundred people. The Deep Blue Sea will be a meditation on the nature of community building in a confusing era.
Additional programming for the community will be offered during the residency, including being able to observe the entire Company in action during their month-long residency at Bethany and even participate in a developing new work.
There are many exciting activities happening at BAC, including an afterschool program which is currently in progress, a second large sculpture to be installed in the garden, readings from Westchester Collaborative Theatre, a summer camp from Theatre O called The Camp of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and many upcoming residencies to be announced in the near future, BAC officials promised.
Bill T. Jones/ Arnie Zane Company at Bethany Arts Community
Upcoming Events:
May 12, 19, 26 1p – 4p FREE Bill T. Jones / Arnie Zane Company Community Dance Project: Join the creative process with the BTJ/AZ Company and volunteer to participate in the company’s latest work, The Deep Blue Sea. Participants will be asked to move, think and create with the nine members of the company with Bill T Jones and Associate Artist Director Janet Wong. Sign up for any of these dates here. www.bethanyarts.org/calendar/btjcommunitydance
May 19 7p – 10p Fundraiser with Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Company Performance: The evening’s festivities will include music, a selection of gourmet foods and beverages, and the latest art exhibition in the galleries – an exploration of motion and movement called (Not) Staying Still. The highlight of the evening will be a performance by the world famous Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Company accompanied by some commentary from Bill himself. www.bethanyarts.org/calendar/fundraiser
May 24 7p – 9p Meet the makers: Bill T. Jones and Janet Wong: An intimate setting for an evening of conversation with choreographer, dancer, writer Bill T. Jones, the founder and artistic director of the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Company and their Associate Artistic Director Janet Wong. Hear from the two of the biggest creative forces in contemporary dance and culture. www.bethanyarts.org/calendar/btjartisttalk
May 30 7p – 9p Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Company Performance: At the conclusion of the dance company’s residency at Bethany, a rare opportunity in Westchester to see a performance by the world-renowned Bill T Jones/Arnie Zane Company. www.bethanyarts.org/calendar/btjperformance
May 31 7p – 9p An Evening of Works in Process Studio Showing: Many of the talented dancers within the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Company, who have spent time at BAC in residence are also working on their own independent projects. Here’s another rare opportunity to see a diverse group of dance professionals sharing the pieces in various stages of development–a sampling of the different works and hear from the creative talents behind them. https://bethanyarts.org/calendar/worksinprocess/
PHOTO: Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Company dancers at work./ via BAC
First published by Michael P. McKinney via LOHUDon May 9, 2018
OSSINING – The Bethany Arts Community has launched its first season with an eclectic mix of performances, exhibitions and classes aimed at showing that art, in its various forms, can be created, appreciated and enjoyed by everyone.
For the remainder of the month, the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Company, a presence on New York City and global stages, will be at the center’s Somerstown Road campus.
For a dance project it’s working on, the company will have members of the public who show up Saturday afternoons participate in the project — they don’t need dance experience. There is also a free master class on Saturday mornings where experienced dancers ages 16 to 22 can work with the company.
The center has been up and running since January. The 25-acre property, formerly used by missionaries for the Maryknoll Fathers and Brothers, was acquired in 2015.
“From the beginning, we wanted to provide a space that attracts and nurtures this caliber of international talent, while also making these artists and their work accessible to our regional community,” said David Lyons, founder and executive director.
On a recent afternoon, as the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Company was using one space, 11 girls from an Ossining elementary school were in another space learning flamenco.
“I’m willing to put in 30 years of time, energy and money to have those flamenco dancers who are down there today change the world tomorrow,” Lyons said of the group.
Meanwhile, another area was set up for children participating in the Scribble Art summer program, and in yet another, an exhibition of works from various artists was being prepared for an opening.
The vision for Bethany Arts is a place where people can come to see the world through different perspectives and perceptions and learn “how to pass on the word of art,” said Lyons, who grew up in Croton-on-Hudson and has lived in Dobbs Ferry and Sleepy Hollow.
Plans are to eventually offer studio spaces for artists, given that such space can be difficult to find and expensive in Westchester, said Zak Shusterman, the attorney for Bethany Arts.
IF YOU GO
WHAT: Bethany Arts Community. WHERE: 40 Somerstown Road, Ossining. COST: Varies. For example, Cumbia for Kids and Spanish Art of Flamenco for Kids is $40 for eight weeks. Scholarships are available. There is no charge for the Saturday afternoon sessions with the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Company, and no charge for the Saturday morning master classes. An exhibition of various visual artists, this Saturday starting at 6:30 p.m., is also free to the public.
