Newark Creates A Vibrant Art City

In yesterday’s blogpost, I mentioned that Mayor Baraka was scheduled to make an announcement of Newark’s Cultural Plan known as Newark Creates under the Arts and Economic Prosperity 5 (AEP5) in City Hall. And he did to a packed room.

Continuing with the introduction of Newark Arts staff, please allow me to introduce to you Susan Schear, Deputy Director.

Schear explained to me as a Deputy Director she “wears many hats” but this post will be about Newark Creates. Many meetings were held throughout Newark, where the staff listened and collected community input on what they want for their city. She says, “we focused tremendously on the neighborhoods” as every neighborhood in Newark has different wants and needs. These conversations engaged the community to “design neighborhood community conversations to gather insight on access (needs, barriers, goals, visions) to arts and culture for stakeholder groups.”

 

 

 

 

Sharing Is Caring: Do You Have a My Newark Story?

We all have stories to tell, but sometimes we do not have an audience and/or a forum to tell them. If you have a connection to Newark, My Newark Story is an opportunity to share your memories of this city that celebrated it’s 350^th anniversary of it’s naming in 2016. You could have lived here for many years and moved away, or still live here. Or attended one of the many historic schools such as West Side High School or had friends and relatives who were students at the now-closed  State Street School. Or worked for companies like Bamberger’s that are no longer in business or maybe they are as Prudential, T.M. Ward Coffee Co. and Washington Florist.

After liking the My Newark Story Facebook page, I was eager to learn about this initiative, as I have always been intrigued about people’s lives and their histories and herstories told and seen from shared personal perspectives as they are often left out of books. Or their photographs contains unknown names and dates, but the scenes in the background vaguely look familiar or not at all.

I sent a message requesting an interview not only to satisfy my curiosity, but also because I believe sharing is caring and for those who like me who are interested in topics such as this will also learn along with me. I received an immediate and enthusiastic reply from Karl Schwartz. He is an Education/Outreach Librarian at the Newark Public Library.

Before sitting down for the formal interview, he gave me a behind the scenes tour of The Charles F. Cummings New Jersey Information Center also known New Jersey Room. It is here where the archives in the forms of books, photographs, postcards, newspapers, manuscripts, maps, vital records, letters from Civil War Soldiers and much more are kept that tells the history of New Jersey, Essex County, and of course Newark. The staff of this department is extremely knowledgeable, friendly and helpful. I asked them if they knew anything about the apartment building I lived in since my previous attempts to research this mystery turned up nothing. Within a few minutes, I learned it was once named Stadium Court Apartments and had to be built sometime after 1935 according to the maps staff researched. If there is any thing you are seeking, give them a call at (973) 733-7775 or email njreference@npl.org.and they will have it ready for you when you visit. The only cost for this service is for any printouts or photocopies you request.

The Interview

What is My Newark Story?

“My Newark Story is a grant funded family literacy initiative from the Newark Public Library and the Carnegie Corporation. The initiative is based around sharing the local history of Newark with people across the city with an emphasis on immigrant and migrant culture.” It will launch on Wednesday, April 19^th at the Weequahic Library  The next two events are scheduled for May 10th at the North End Branch and on May 24th at the Springfield Branch from 4:00-7:00 p.m. Schwartz assures readers, that “every branch library will eventually have a Community History Day.

When did it begin?

“The program has been in the planning stages for a long time, but we first became “My Newark Story” in February (2017).”

Why?

Schwartz says, “I think the program began because there was a desire to make our historic images and documents more widely available to people in Newark.” He adds, “the library also has a role in contributing to public literacy programs and we found that local history was a great lens for doing so.”

Who Is Making This Happen?

It takes a team to make the dream work. Schwartz told me, “There are many of us at the Newark Public Library who are working on the many different parts of this initiative, as well as people in the community who are volunteering their time to help us.”  Schwartz noted,  “the project would not exist without library staff, Heidi Kramer who is overseeing the grant and Nadine Sergejeff is the project manager.” (They) are (all) passionate about the local history of Newark.”

However, they need help in creating a digital community archive that will be available to the public online. They are asking for your stories, especially photos that they can add to their growing historical digitized collection. At Community History Day events, one can bring their photos that will be scanned and returned to the owner instantly.

What else is there to expect at the Community History Day events?

“We will be playing Newark Jeopardy, sharing some of our historic photos from our archive, making Newark themed crafts, and more. Each event will be slightly different and reflect the community groups, history, and culture of the different neighborhoods. For example, the Weequahic Alumni Association will have a table of artifacts from the neighborhood at our Weequahic event. There will be a salsa dancer and we are making cherry blossoms at our North End event (to reflect the large Latino population and popular cherry blossoms at Branch Brook Park which are both in The North Ward.)

Schwartz added, “There will certainly be other programs throughout the duration of our initiative. We will be conducting classroom visits, hosting events at our (other) seven branch libraries, and working with other community groups to help spread our programs…Lastly, we are creating traveling exhibitions about African American and Hispanic culture.”

Lastly, I asked Schwartz what he wants the followers of Newark CentricCity and beyond to know about this program and he had this to say: “Newark has an incredible history going back to its founding in 1666 and even further when you include Native American history. We have always been a city of immigrants from around the world and migrants from the southern United States. The media’s portrayal of Newark has not always been kind, but I think there are so many positive things that have happened in this city and that is what My Newark Story wants to share!”

Since we live in a time, where almost anything of interest can be accessed on the web, I recommend the curious to visit and bookmark the webpage http://npl.org/mynewarkstory/ and Facebook users follow www.facebook.com/mynewark for timely updates.

For more information about the Newark Public Library, visit their webpage, www.npl.org.

Newark CentricCity is about profiling the people and things behind-the-scenes that make Newark shine and the discoveries along the way to dispel the myths of what most people think of when they hear about Newark. I report and photograph what the news does not show you about this place. We can be found on Facebook, Instagram: @BrickCityEmigree, and Word Press. If you have an idea, you can also email, NewarkCentricCity@gmail.com 

Newark History For Sale: One Man’s Treasures Can Now Be Your Treasures

 

M. Gosser, Curator of Art and Artifacts of Newark is located on the first floor of Index Art Center located at 233 Washington Street, Newark.  It will be holding it’s opening on April 1st from 12-5pm with an Opening Reception for Newark Artist, Anker West from 6-8pm. Open Thursdays-Saturdays 11am-6pm.

Do you, like M. Gosser have a love of and for history, specifically Newark history that you not only can read and hear about, or view in pictures or videos, but to hold in your hands, display, and even own? Beginning on April 1st, everyone will have the opportunity with the grand opening of Art and Artifacts of Newark. Gosser is the curator of this pop up store/pop up gallery which is a unique curatorial residency with Index Art Gallery. It is housed on the first floor of the gallery of an old storefront that was a former beauty salon turned furniture store that could easily be the stage for a video for Frankie Avalon’s song Beauty School Dropout.

“Think of it as a museum, only no item is off limits.” said Gosser. Even the bike he rode in and around Newark is up for sale. He has amassed quite an eclectic collection of Newark Centric art, pictures, photos, sculptures, records, books, clothing, furniture, and fixtures from historic buildings that were demolished like the Queen of Angels church and an old firehouse now long gone in Newark’s little-known about Chinatown. Whatever is not on site are in storage at various locations, but he is in the process of digitizing the entire collection for perspective buyers to look through.

Ring-O

A Snapshot of his book collection

Gosser came to the city 25 years ago, when he enrolled in NJIT to study architecture.  He is now the curator of the school’s Center of Architecture and Design (COAD) Gallery. Gosser fondly recalled how “he fell in love with Newark, stayed and never left.” After hearing his extensive knowledge about the city’s past and looking around at the mostly one of kind items in his store, that love is very apparent.

With Newark experiencing a boon in development or as he said “seeing a turn it is creating a demand for Newark-centric items.” When he learns a historic structure is being slated for demolition and ” being destroyed for no good reason,” he is often given access to retrieve and save relics of the city’s past.  Or sometimes he finds them on his own when he is out exploring the city he loves, like so many of us. He also finds treasures at estate sales and thrift stores.

A Wine Press Found at an Ironbound Estate Sale

Soda Crate with Newark imprint

Conveyor Chair from Pabst Brewery

Salvaged from a demolished Firehouse

Not Just A Store

In addition to being a pop-up store, Gosser explained that Art and Artifacts of Newark will also serve as a gallery and feature artwork done by Newark based artists and outside artists whose subject matter is Newark in exhibits that will change every 2-3 months. The first artist to be featured will be Newark based Artist Anker West. There will be an opening reception for West in the evening of the opening from 6-8pm.

I do hope you get an opportunity to visit, view and consider purchasing these one of a kind or limited Art and Artifacts of Newark regularly to help keep pieces of the nation’s third oldest city alive.