Accomplished artist and curator Robert Sparrow Jones has taken the helm as Director of the Moravian University Payne Gallery, 346 Main St., Bethlehem.

The former HUB-Robeson Galleries Director at The Pennsylvania State University has begun bringing his vision and artistic expertise to Moravian’s flagship art space where he oversees the gallery’s schedule of exhibitions, permanent collections and public educational programming that serves the university and the Lehigh Valley.

“I’m very excited about this new position,” says Jones. As an educator, he enjoys mentoring and connecting students to contemporary art and is looking forward to the Payne Gallery becoming a hub interconnected with the thriving local arts community surrounding it. “It just seems a really great place to be,” says Jones.

With the Moravian Church Settlements–Bethlehem’s recent designation as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Jones will be working with the Institute for Moravian History and World Heritage to promote international understanding of Moravian culture and World Heritage collaboration.

Earlier in his career, Jones was a painting assistant to renowned glass artist Dale Chihuly in Seattle, Washington. This experience influences his understanding of large-scale studio practice, creative iteration and artistic collaboration.

Raised in Jermyn, Lackawanna County, Jones received a Master of Fine Arts from the Maryland Institute College of Art in 2005 and a Bachelor of Fine Arts in painting from Kutztown University of Pennsylvania in 1992.

“I worked with James Carroll with the New Arts Program and he was great,” says Jones about his experiences as a student at Kutztown. “James Carroll gave me my first solo exhibition.”

“I had the opportunity to study with Grace Hartigan at the Maryland Institute College of Art and I just jumped at the opportunity,” says Jones of his decision to further his education with a mentor, the late abstract expressionist painter.

In addition to his visual arts background, Jones was a regular contributor to the Michigan Quarterly Review where his fiction writing appeared.

After the death of Payne Gallery Director David Leidich in Summer 2024, Moravian University Associate Provost and Dean for the College of Arts and Sciences Lesley Brown was interim director until Jones was hired in mid-August.

“His passion for storytelling through visual art, combined with his experience in higher education galleries, makes him the ideal leader to elevate Payne Gallery as a cultural hub for our students, faculty and community,” says Brown of Jones.

Payne Gallery reopened with “Meet the Director,” an exhibition of Jones’ artwork that concluded Oct. 8.

“Bill Needs: A Visual Journey Through the History of the Moravian Church,” is Oct. 23 - Dec. 18, with an opening reception and artist talk, 6 p.m. - 8 p.m. Nov. 11.

Payne Gallery, Moravian University, 346 Main St., Bethlehem. Gallery hours: noon - 4 p.m. Tuesday - Sunday. Closed Monday. https://www.moravian.edu/art/payne-gallery