Newton Community Pride Selects Artists For 'Sit & Soar’ Exhibit

NEWTON, MA — Newton Community Pride (NCP) has announced the winners of the Sit & Let Your Spirit Soar competition, a public art initiative designed to create community, encourage conversation, and inspire feelings of connection.

Sponsored by Newton Community Pride in partnership with the City of Newton, Sit & Let Your Spirit Soar involves the temporary outdoor installation of pews that have been donated by Newtonville’s Boston Chinese Evangelical Church and transformed into three- dimensional functional art by local and regional artists.

The decorated pews will be strategically located in outdoor public gathering places throughout Newton from June through October 2022. The selected artists will paint the pews on
location on June 4 and 5.

“Newton Community Pride is very excited to bring more public art to our city," said Meryl Kessler, chair of Sit & Let Your Spirit Soar and board member of Newton Community Pride. "We hope that this initiative will raise people’s spirits after the challenges of the last two years."

Here is a full list of winning artists:

• Nina Bellucci
• Lauren Comando
• Scott Debus
• Howie Green
• Michael Grimaldi
• Kate Holloway
• Leah Kolidas
• Margarita Krylova
• Faith Lyons
• Amy Norrod
• Adam Proia
• Tova Speter
• Sarah Tompkins
• Ngoc-Tran Vu
• Sage Widder (a Newton South student)
• Harun Zankel
• Angela Zou (a Newton North student).

Pews will be located at City Hall, the Newton Free Library, Auburndale (near Starbucks), Chestnut Hill Square, Coletti-Magni Park, Farlow Park, Newton Centre Green, Newton Highlands, Newtonville (Trio and the New Art Center), The Street, the Upper Falls Greenway, the Waban Library, and West Newton Square.

“On behalf of the board of directors, we are delighted with the creative submissions chosen. Congratulations to our winners!” Gloria Gavris, chair of Newton Community Pride, said in a statement.

The Village Bank is Sit & Let Your Spirit Soar’s presenting sponsor. The program is also
supported in part by a grant from the Newton Cultural Council, a local council that is supported
by the Massachusetts Cultural Council and the City of Newton.