Mayor Ras J. Baraka announced today that the 23^rd Annual Newark Arts Festival has begun today, and will continue through Sunday, October 13, at a number of sites across the City.

Themed “Radical Reimaging,” the annual event will showcase the works of more than 500 Newark visual and performing artists and their experiences and views, reflecting the city’s vast creativity, many diasporas, and world cultures.

“Newark’s vibe has long spurred the broad strokes and subtle hues of cultural expression,” said Mayor Baraka. “With art of every sort emanating from our world-class venues, and evidenced on our storefront facades, a walk through any part of Newark reveals an eclectic tableau of human aspiration, imagination, and creativity. This annual Newark Arts Festival celebrates the value Newark puts on art and our homegrown artists as agents for dialogue, unity, and change.”

Radical Reimagining is not new to the City of Newark. The city is the birthplace of the Black Arts Movement, led by Amiri Baraka. For the past 23 years, Newark has attracted 10,000 visitors to the award-winning Newark Arts Festival.

“Cultural representation is Newark’s superpower,” said Newark Arts Executive Director Lauren LeBeaux Craig. “For four days, the Newark Arts Festival showcases Newark for the arts city that it is. This year, Radical Reimagining resonates with artists, residents, workers and visitors alike because it demonstrates that it takes creativity to shape the ideal world and systems that we want, while showing us what community legacy and leadership that inspires looks, sounds, and feels like.”

This year, there are a number of firsts:

·         The Pink Ball will use projection art to create an immersive experience at the Newark Museum of Art, home to Newark Arts Festival’s main exhibition of works by 72 Greater Newark Artists.

·         Newark Arts will launch ArtSpace – a new gallery and now northern entryway to the Newark Arts and Education District. Activated and managed by Newark Arts, this is space is made possible by Russo Development, which has provided this community space at Vermella Broad.

·         A preview showing of the film “Following Harry,” an intimate view of legendary artist and civil rights leader Harry Belafonte during the last 12 years of his life, reflecting on his personal journey in disrupting injustice and inspiring the next generations of activists and entertainers to do the same.

Reimagining Newark Arts takes a fresh perspective on reimagining Newark Arts, Open Spaces, Urban Marketplaces, Legacy and Community. Following are some of the one-of-a-kind Newark Arts Festival Radical Reimagining activations:

Newark Arts Festival 2024: HYCIDE: The Black & White Book Saturday, October 12, at the Newark Museum of Art, marks the highly anticipated HYCIDE book launch and exhibition, marking the magazine’s powerful return with a special edition book spanning over 400 pages exploring race, culture, and societal constructs. Curated by Dr. Yaba Blay and featuring the work of Akintola Hanif, editor-at-large Jamel Shabazz, and more than 100 contributors, this event runs from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.

The launching is part of the Newark Arts Festival’s Reimagining Legacy day. It will delve into topics such as Black power and the impact of Black music, businesses, and art. The evening will culminate in an after party with special guest DJs, celebrating the collaboration between Newark Arts and HYCIDE.

DON'T TOUCH MY HAIR: Step into “Don't Touch My Hair,” a powerful, culturally conscious immersive experience by visionary artist and filmmaker Ayana Morris at the Newark Arts Festival 2024. This thought-provoking mobile installation in Harriet Tubman Square transports visitors into the intimate connection Black women have with their hair, challenging societal norms with a stark visual journey through a tunnel lined with 3D-printed hands and historical reflections. Designed to spark critical conversations about Black beauty, identity, and the micro-aggressions women face, this exhibit from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m. is a bold, unmissable statement on the policing of Black hair and the ongoing fight for equality and respect.

NAF KIDS @ Pennington Court (208-222 South Street, Newark) Celebrate Newark Arts Festival with the whole family at NAF Kids, presented by Arts Ed Newark and partners on Saturday, October 12, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Families can enjoy free art-making activities, vibrant youth performances, and exciting giveaways in a fun, creative atmosphere. This special day of artistic expression and community celebrates the festival’s Reimagining Legacy theme. Activities and performances are open to all ages.

Art activations to include:

·         YMCA on Wheels fun truck

·         Community-led Graffiti and Hip-Hop Projects

·         Drumming demo and circle

·         Jewelry-making

·         Bon Apetit STEAM & snack activity

·         performances featuring youth of Centers of Hope, Teens Step Up, Keys 2 Success, NJ Symphony, and more

The Newark Grounds Walkable Cultural Corridor is a new strategic walkable cultural corridor featuring more than 50 consecutive public artworks and dedicated arts and culture spaces in downtown Newark. This Project for Empty Space initiative derives from a collaboration with the City of Newark Division of Art and Cultural Affairs, the City of Newark Arts and Education District, the City Parks Foundation, Newark Arts, the Four Corners Public Arts Partnership, and the Rutgers University-Newark Design Consortium. The initiative will establish an arts path connecting Newark Pennsylvania Station to Teachers Village and will officially kick off during the Newark Arts Festival with a corridor crawl on Friday, October 11, from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.

For more detail, visit https://newarkartsfestival.com/naf2024events/.

ABOUT NEWARK ARTS:

Newark Arts Council (NAC, aka Newark Arts) is a key anchor institution that drives Newark as a global City of the Arts.  Founded in 1981, for the past 43 years, Newark Arts has elevated Newark’s arts and culture ecosystem for the benefit of all Newarkers. Newark Arts’ overarching strengths are that it is a trusted intermediary, key collaborator, cultural vanguard/catalyst, and marketing machine for the city. By demonstrating Newark as a model of creative placemaking, we fuel Newark’s vibrancy and drive the arts as an economic lever for urban America. Newark Arts is supported by Prudential Financial, the City of Newark, Newark Arts and Education District, TD Bank, Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, Victoria Foundation, Turrell Fund, New Jersey State Council on the Arts, New Jersey Arts and Culture Renewal Fund of the Princeton Area Community Foundation, Festivals United powered by the New Jersey Economic Development Authority, NJPAC, Newark Alliance, GNCVB, Edison Properties, Panasonic, RWJBH Newark Beth Israel Medical Center, Newark City Parks Foundation, Russo Development, and many businesses, institutions, and individuals.

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