By: Kristyna Barry for NJ.com's Newark Live
The arts in Newark are, quite literally, making a scene. And with signs of a renaissance downtown, Newark would like to be known more for its art scene than its crime scenes.
Newark is home to an array of popular art galleries that aim to provide distinctive events, showcase quality art and paint the town red in the process.
Aljira is the one of the oldest major galleries in Newark, with nearly 25 years under its belt.
Founder Victor Davson described the arts as a way to raise the city's profile, to make it a destination and "lend a kind of new sense of what Newark is about."
The nearly $200 million for the construction of the New Jersey Performing Arts Center is money well spent, Davson said, because "it got the attention of people outside of Newark."
He credits former governor Thomas Kean for his dogged efforts to push the arts downtown as well as progress made by the Newark Museum and the Newark Arts Council.
Now, though, Davson says economic times are challenging and resources are scarce -- so much so that galleries must generate programs and resources to avoid dependence on others.
"You can have a fabulous first year and crash and burn the second," he said, adding that the art world is a balanced system. "Trees give off oxygen; we give off carbon monoxide," Davson said. "All part of the same environment."
Open since 1975, the City Without Walls gallery still thrives today as an alternative venue for contemporary art.
The gallery sponsored a program pairing 15 local high school students with professional artists for a semester of collaborative work.
The program also encouraged kids to apply for college, particularly students who "feel disillusioned attempting to apply for art school," said gallery and education director Evonne Davis.
Davis also works alongside Emma Wilcox, a co-director at Gallery Aferro. The artist-run Aferro has a tradition of showcasing local, national and international work.
"Many artist-run spaces want to advance the career of the artist. We take it seriously that we bring the best possible art to Newark," Wilcox said.
Wilcox, who has family connections in Newark, said her goal is "to meet strangers and turn them into regulars."
She recalled a woman whose car broke down in front of the gallery once, and now, the woman frequents shows at Aferro. "It's always people's choices to come back, and luckily, we see a lot of familiar faces," she said.
Red Saw director Lowell Craig also sees a lot of familiar faces at the gallery's monthly shows and events in the neighborhood near the Newark Museum.
Craig said he's always finding ways to bring people to Newark through the arts.
Red Saw held an exhibit for the work of 12 Montclair State University graduate students to convince them that Newark is great place to do art.
Red Saw also features the work of different artists on the brick walls of the nearby restaurant 27 Mix and a Latin cafe on Central Avenue, Mi Gente.
"I like being able to go into a local bar or restaurant and see work of local artists and galleries," said Andrew Rose, a quality manager at DHL who lives on Staten Island.
"That's how I learned that Newark had new and upcoming galleries -- seeing artwork displayed at Mi Gente," Rose said. He said that the emergence of art in Newark shows that the city is not just a 9-to-5 work world.
The owner of Mi Gente said he hangs the art because he wants to give artists recognition and encouragement.
"A line of people look at the art and say, 'Do you have their card? How can I get in touch with the artist?'" said Manny Beovides. "It keeps everyone excited."
At the Kilkenny Ale House down the street, Red Saw plays B-movies every Sunday, including classics such as "Duel" and "The Last Dragon."
Redsaw's Craig echoed similar sentiments as Aljira's Davson, saying NJPAC has done wonders for the city.
"You're driving on the highway, you see a sign that says the arts center and then it makes people think Newark is an arts city," Craig said. "It's great."
People flocking to the year-old Prudential Center also will have a chance to see signs of the town's art influence.
New Jersey Devils owner Jeff Vanderbeek sought the help of Tracie Speca of Sports and the Arts, based out of Los Angeles, to provide quality art for the arena. The works include massive murals of athletes by commissioned artists.
"Jeff said, 'I want to make it a visual experience for the fans,'" said Speca, who is currently working on commissioning art for the new Yankee Stadium.
Speca said she had union workers coming up to her during the installation wanting to discuss the art.
"Art brings emotion to the people, people who might not get out to a museum on a regular basis," she said.
Speca said she's a huge fan of Rupert Ravens Contemporary, which sold some pieces to the arena.
"Going to Rupert Ravens is definitely an adventure," she said. "You're walking in and thrust into
different senses. It's going to make you feel, which art should," Speca said. "No way you can go in there and not have an opinion."
Rupert Ravens is the largest commercial fine arts gallery under one roof in North America, with 33,000 square feet on Market Street, according to Ravens. He says the work he displays is on par with the offerings Chelsea and SoHo.
"I want to show Newark has a tremendous amount of space and culture. I don't want to change the culture, I want to add to it." Ravens said.
"We have kids who come off the street who would never walk into a gallery. They walk into the gallery and say, "I can do this? My ideas are valuable?'"
Ravens said his goal is for artists to say they live, work, show and sell in New Jersey.
"I want to do for the visual arts what NJPAC has done for the performing arts," he said. "We're an international city, the crossroads for the state with highways and trains, and it's time for NJ to realize the powerhouse New Jersey is," Ravens said.
For Robin Taylor, a 26-year-old film director living in the city, the opening of NJPAC was astounding because "it was my foray into anything cultural in Newark."
"Kids here ultimately see any level of success through sports and hip-hop, and the arts are a good way to expose them regularly to something of value," Taylor said.
The Prudential Center was built with the expectation that new businesses would come to the area and stay open later -- creating a safe, enjoyable, 24/7 downtown.
Though it has several bars and restaurants, downtown Newark lacks leisure spaces, social hangouts and dance clubs. Parks aren't welcoming, coffee shops don't stay open late and finding late-night culture outside of your yogurt cup can seem challenging.
The city's newest gallery, Jajo, has designs to be more of a hip hangout than merely a place to stare at art.
Jajo is teaching comic illustration courses every week, hosting yoga every Wednesday night and throwing parties whenever it gets a chance.
"I feel like it's New Year's Eve, this blowout party with art, deejays and dancing," said co-founder Rebecca Jampol at the opening of Jajo in September. "And I think that's how you should feel about an art gallery, something you can't wait to go to."
Kevin Darmanie, a 35-year-old resident artist at Aferro, teaches the comics course at Jajo. Darmanie, who moved to Newark from Trinidad, said being an artist in the city is challenging because of its history. "Good for someone who wants to help it blow up," he said.
Cities such as Jersey City and Hoboken outnumber Newark in galleries, but Darmanie says quality here surpasses quantity elsewhere.
"Newark is an odd city," he continues.
Grim news reports of the city's crime and other problems fail to distinguish the downtown as a safer area, he said.
"The reputation does negatively impact the arts scene," Darmanie said, adding that he heard someone say, "I'm not going to jump into my Mercedes and try to park in Newark."
And to this, Stefan Pryor, deputy mayor for economic development, would say those people are missing out. "Newark is a happening place," he said, citing dramatic improvements in public safety in the past two years.
"The new arena has hosted well over a million visitors and over 100 events, nearly without incident and entirely with good reviews," Pryor said.
"The arts scene is building, infusing energy and life into our city, expanding upon building blocks of NJPAC and the Newark Museum," Pryor said. "And smaller galleries have done a phenomenal job of establishing more vibrancy downtown."
Jill Wickenheisser, a senior at Rutgers-Newark majoring in art history, appreciates being a student here because it challenges her to see what she can get from the city. She has written about events at the Paul Robeson Gallery on campus and has had photographs published in the Newark Metro.
Wickenheisser said her professors encourage students not to be afraid of the city but to embrace it, by assigning projects outside of campus.
"If you go around the city, you see what has potential and what's stopping it," Wickenheisser said.
"When you see big chains on doors it's a message that we don't want to open our doors to one another," she said.
At the Seed Gallery, which opened a year ago, founder Gizem Bacaz said art is the seed of any community.
"I think that in the past if you studied any other community going through rebuilding, such as Boston or Philadelphia, for a lot of these cities, the first step has been art," Bacaz said.
"When you put a lot of creative minds together, it creates a buzz that resonates around the city," she added. "When you put art in a dark city, it brings light."
