Strong Women Arts Exhibition: A Celebratory Feast of Talent

In honor of Women’s History Month, the Newark School of the Arts (NSA) hosts its second annual visual arts exhibition “Strong Women,” which features several dozen women artists from New Jersey and the surrounding regions. The 100 or so artistic works feature a range of mediums including oil, acrylic, watercolor, pastel, pencil, charcoal, photography, silkscreen, giclee (digital scans), woodcuts, sculpture, and mixed media. A multicultural exhibition covering much of the wall space of the school’s main level, the exhibit offers a cornucopia of diverse imagery and themes rooted in self-identity, family, home and hearth, nature, and spiritual transcendence.

The returning curators of the Second Annual Strong Women Exhibition are Armisey Smith and Jade Ariella Lien. Armisey Smith is a painter and graphic designer who received her BFA in Illustration from Parsons School of Design and her MPS in Arts and Cultural Management from Pratt Institute. Jade Ariella Lien is an independent curator, designer, and arts educator and works as a Programs Assistant for the Newark Arts Council.

The video focuses on a sampling of the works you find on display:

#1 - Well Red, a photographic print by Tamara Flemming

#2 - An untitled charcoal by Stephanie Natiello

#3 - Mischievous, a woodcut by Marissa Woodrow

#4 - The Nurturer by Adia Gibbs

#5 – Mankala-African Stone Game, a photographic print by Maggie Brown

#6 – Mommy and Grandma, an acrylic on board by Abby Levine

#7 – Ancestry Quilt, a monoprint by Marsha Pickett

#8 – Our Heritage-Our Sausages, a collage by Jacqui Rocker

#9 – Cognition, a pastel by Stephanie Natiello

#10 – Faith and Hope, an oil painting by Yu-Ching Huang

#11 – Light Warrior Chemical, a choromogenic photographic print by Patricia Zapata

#12 – An untitled photograph by Auserine Dereskeviciute

#13 – Bold Go, a mix-media work by Marissa Woodrow

#14 – close up of Goddess Embrace: Facing Forward, a black & white print by Patricia Zapata

#15 – Self Portrait, watercolor on board by Dani SK

#16 – Henna Hands, a monoprint by Marsha Pickett

According to NSA’s website, since 1968, “the school has offered instruction for everyone with an interest in the arts regardless of age, talent and financial resources. NSA is a family and community oriented school that has served 38,000 individuals since its inception, and provides education for 500 students each week.”

Art goers looking for a celebratory feast to commemorate Women’s History Month should certainly check out the Second Annual “Strong Women” Exhibition, which runs through April 21. A percentage of the proceeds from the sale of art in the exhibit will support the school’s ongoing community and regional arts programming. The Newark Schools of the Arts is located at 89 Lincoln Park, Newark, NJ. For more information about this free exhibit and the school’s arts programming, you can call 973-642-0133 or visit their website at www.newarkschoolofthearts.org.