Hermitage Launches New Series

June 21, 2022 – Sarasota

The Hermitage Artist Retreat is pleased to announce the launch of a new series of programs presented in partnership with Sarasota Art Museum. As part of their residency, nationally renowned artists are invited to the Hermitage’s historic beachfront campus and offer free community programs to enthusiastic arts audiences throughout Sarasota County and the greater Gulf Coast region. As the Hermitage continues to expand its programs and events, this new partnership with Sarasota’s contemporary art museum offers another centrally located outdoor venue and a mission-aligned institution to introduce some of the artists who come to discover Sarasota through their Hermitage Fellowships. The Hermitage will continue to present free community programs with The John & Mable Ringling Museum of Art, Marie Selby Botanical Gardens, Art Center Sarasota, and other leading arts, cultural, and educational institutions throughout the region.

Over the past two seasons, the Hermitage has dramatically increased its programmatic offerings and introduced world-class artists to dozens of venues throughout the region with over 100 live, outdoor community programs.

“We are excited to be partnering with Sarasota Art Museum as we introduce new works-in-process from nationally and internationally renowned visual and performing artists to the members of our community,” said Hermitage Artistic Director and CEO Andy Sandberg. “We have some further initiatives in the works with SAM, and we look forward to sharing more news about this in the coming months!”

“The Hermitage brings some truly extraordinary talents to Sarasota, and we look forward to hosting these brilliant artists for programs at Sarasota Art Museum,” adds Sarasota Art Museum’s Executive Director Virginia Shearer. “Our two organizations share a global perspective as we aspire to introduce our community to leading contemporary artists from around the world.”

The first Hermitage artist program in this collaboration with Sarasota Art Museum is scheduled for Friday, July 22, 2022 at 6:30pm, live and outdoors in the museum’s Klein Plaza. “Citizen Arts: Music, Theater, and Dance” features an interdisciplinary discussion on art in public spaces. The conversation will feature Brazilian-born composer Marcos Balter, theater-maker Sam Max, and dance educator Amanda Cantrell Roche. Future programs with Sarasota Art Museum will be announced at a later date. See below for complete program details and artist bios.

Hermitage programs like these are free and open to the public with a $5/person registration fee. Most Hermitage programs are presented at outdoor venues throughout Sarasota County as part of the Hermitage’s partnerships with local organizations. Due to capacity limitations and social distancing, registration is required at HermitageArtistRetreat.org.

The Hermitage hosts artists on its Gulf Coast Manasota Key campus for multi-week residencies, where diverse and accomplished artists from around the world and across multiple disciplines create and develop new works of theater, music, visual art, literature, dance, and more. As part of their residencies, Hermitage Fellows participate in free community programs, offering audiences in the region a unique opportunity to engage with some of the world’s leading artists and to get an authentic “sneak peek” into extraordinary projects and artistic minds before their works go on to major theaters, galleries, concert halls, and museums around the world. These free and innovative programs include performances, lectures, readings, interactive experiences, open studios, school programs, teacher workshops, and more, serving thousands in our community each year. The Hermitage is the only major arts organization in Florida’s Gulf Coast region exclusively committed to supporting the development and creation of new work across all artistic disciplines.

For more information about the Hermitage or upcoming programs, visit HermitageArtistRetreat.org.

The newly and previously announced program descriptions are as follows:

• PREVIOUSLY ANNOUNCED: “2022 Hermitage STARs,” Friday July 15 at 2pm, presented in partnership with Boys and Girls Clubs of Sarasota and DeSoto Counties. Five of Florida’s best and brightest arts educators are coming to the Hermitage Artist Retreat to focus on their own creative practice. Hailing from across the state, their artistic disciplines range as widely as their geographic homes with three focused on different fields of visual art including ceramics, collage, and painting, a musician and band leader, and for the first-time-ever, a dance instructor. These five artists will collaborate to present a hands-on ‘arts buffet’ with a sampling from each of their artistic practices on offer for the Sarasota community. Due to capacity limitations and safety protocols, registration is required at HermitageArtistRetreat.org. ($5/person registration fee). Hermitage Great Lawn, 6660 Manasota Key Road, Englewood, Florida 34223.
  
  
• NEW: “Citizen Arts: Music, Theater, and Dance,” Friday, July 22 at 6:30pm, presented in partnership with Sarasota Art Museum. Art exists not only in the purpose built-spaces of theaters, museums, and concert halls, but also throughout our lives. In this interdisciplinary program, we hear from three accomplished artists in three different mediums sharing insight and discussing how their work interacts with the public. Brazilian-born composer Marcos Balter’s compositions have been described by The New York Times as “utterly lovely” in addition to having a focus on the hyper-dramatization of the performed work; theater-maker Sam Max’s work center’s the queer experience in poetic spaces; and dancer/teaching artist Amanda Cantrell Roche combines her skill in dance with a history in journalism and a passion for social justice. Registration is required at HermitageArtistRetreat.org ($5/person registration fee). Sarasota Art Museum, 1001 South Tamiami Trail, Sarasota, Florida 34236.