500 Main Street, Metuchen, NJ 08840 www.metuchenartscouncil.com
CONTACT: Grace Shackney, graceshackney@gmail.com, 732-549-3294
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
A UNIQUE OUTDOOR GALLERY TO OPEN
ON THE MIDDLESEX COUNTY GREENWAY IN METUCHEN
Art meets environment in a unique, outdoor gallery that is set to open along the Middlesex Greenway in Metuchen on Saturday, November 5th.
The Metuchen Arts Council received a grant from Middlesex County to create a walkable outdoor gallery with an environmental theme. This gallery is the second installment of one of the Arts Council’s existing arts programs called ArtCycle, where artists are encouraged to make art with recycled material.
For this installment, the Arts Council provided old, discarded, metal traffic signs to thirteen commissioned artists to be recycled into works of art, both 2D as well as 3D, that raise awareness of the importance of local land preservation for recreation. The commissioned artists include: Ayelet Ben-Zvi, Joseph Castronova, Margaret Cohen, Elizabeth Colantuoni, Melisa Gerecci, David LaMorte, Alice Lemire, Frank Lemire, Lauren Rabinowitz, Madeline Tolins, Magda Sarnas, Anisha Thind, and Julia Win.
In addition, signs were given to the art departments in each of the Borough’s schools to encourage the students to contribute to the project.
The Middlesex County Greenway cuts through the center of the Borough of Metuchen on its way through Edison and Woodbridge. It has grown into a well-used recreational corridor. The Metuchen Arts Council saw an opportunity to develop a walking outdoor gallery to draw interest in the Greenway and promote its benefits to the environment through the universal language of art. The artworks have been installed on poles along the Metuchen entrances to the Greenway on Middlesex Avenue, Rose Street, Memorial Parkway and Amboy Avenue.
The theme of the art work is “Nature as a healer.” Charu Bakshi the project’s curator said, “We have all learned to greatly appreciate the outdoors during the pandemic. The selected works of art are linked by themes that inspire an appreciation for the preservation of local, natural spaces for the enjoyment of all, and how such preservation contributes to the physical, mental, and environmental health of our own community and those beyond our borders.”
The public is invited to an opening celebration of the Greenway ArtCycle Gallery scheduled for Saturday, November 5th at 1:00 p.m. at the trailhead on Middlesex Avenue (next to Whole Foods) in Metuchen. Refreshments and walking tours of the Greenway and information about the art will be offered at that time. In case of inclement weather, the celebration will be moved to Saturday, November 6th.
For more information about the ArtCycle Greenway Gallery project go to: www.metuchenartscouncil.com.
Grant funding for this project has been provided by the Middlesex County Board of County Commissioners through a grant award from the Middlesex County Cultural and Arts Trust Fund.
The Metuchen Arts Council is a commission of the Borough of Metuchen. Our mission is to enhance the life of our citizenry by advocating, providing and promoting culturally enriching programs and events that foster an appreciation for the arts in the life of our community.
