Centennial Event
Student-Led Program: Sound of Identity: Music, Emotion, and Style in Black Art
March 5, 2026 5:00PM to 6:00PM
LUAG Lower Gallery
This spring, LUAG presents Sound of Identity, an interactive gallery program exploring the relationship between visual art and music in the work of Black artists. Focusing on Jack Whitten’s abstract painting and Lauren Halsey’s contemporary carved relief, the program examines how rhythm, improvisation, texture, typography, and everyday cultural references translate across artistic forms.
Participants will engage in guided close-looking, facilitated discussion, and curated listening moments featuring jazz and funk, drawing connections between sound and image. Through these works, the program considers how Black artists express identity, emotion, and cultural experience and invites reflection on questions of artistic freedom, representation, and expectation.
By experiencing art through multiple senses, attendees will explore how visual composition can carry the energy of improvisation, groove, and personal style, and how creative expression can amplify voices and histories often overlooked.
Free and open to all.
If you require assistance filling out this form, prefer to share your registration information via email or phone, or have questions, concerns, or any accessibility needs, please email Elise at ejs421@lehigh.edu or call 610-758-6882.
Huy Nguyen is a senior at Lehigh University, majoring in Marketing and working as a Museum Educator at Lehigh University Art Galleries. He loves connecting people with art, whether through conversation, storytelling, or helping visitors see something familiar in a new way. Outside the gallery, Huy is passionate about music, photography, and exploring how culture, design, and emotion intersect in everyday life.
Image: Jack Whitten. Untitled, 1968. Oil on canvas. Gift of A. Haigh Cundey. LUP 96 1000.
Offered in partnership with the Black Student Union at Lehigh University. The Black Student Union (BSU) is a student-led organization dedicated to celebrating Black culture, amplifying Black voices, and fostering community, leadership, and advocacy on campus. Through engaging programs and meaningful dialogue, BSU creates spaces that empower and uplift the Black student experience.
