I was super blessed to be able to attend Newark Art’s Open Doors Festival this past weekend. Newark Happening invited me to attend the Murals and Martinis bus tour ummm art and booze, hell yes!! Below are just a few of the pictures I was able to capture.

After the event we were also able to get a sneak peak of the Grammy Museum that is opening in the Prudential Center on Friday, October 20th. Unfortunately I cannot share any of those pictures with you until the official open date. However, I can say that it is most definitely worth the visit.

As far as my review of the art tour…

1. The staff and volunteers were amazingly friendly. Actually, everyone that attended was a big believer in the development in Newark. A lot of enthusiasm all around.
2. Martinis were delicious. I would have liked a refill at some point. The only better way to appreciate art is to appreciate it buzzed.
3. The tour guides were very knowledgeable of all the art. BUT, it would have been nice to meet some of the artists and get some of their perspective about the art they created.
4. The pamphlet they handed out was pretty uninformative in some cases. It should have followed a format for every mural. Artist, location, commissioned by, and a brief description.
5. We only stopped at 4 or 5 murals. It was hard to catch some pictures as the bus sped by. A better planned out itinerary would have really helped.

 

All that being said, I had a wonderful time. Its amazing to witness the development of this city that I’ve grown to love so much. A huge thank you to Newark Happening, again, for letting me participate, and @NewarkArts for putting it all together. For some more pics visit Nichelle (@thesylishgrind), fashion blogger and media specialist from @NewarkHappening

Clearly  super excited about my Newark Swag Bag.

Newark Arts Partnered with Jerry’s Vodka to bring us martini road sodas.

“A Brief History of the Ironbound” — a collaborative project with partnerhsip from NJ groundswell, Newark City Without Walls, and the George Ulanet Company.

One of the artists standing in front of the Newark School of the Arts mural that pays homage to its founders. The 4.5 story work of art was done on parachute cloth and then transported and adhered to the side of the school.

This mural was commissioned by The Coalition when the Dali Lama visited Newark in 2011. It was painted by local children.

The sidewalk around the construction of a small amphitheater that is being built a bit further up from the Veterans Courthouse. 

Neighborhood initiative project.

The Newark Happening team that attended Murals and Martinis.