Re-opening of NEXUS NJ,

Arts Guild New Jersey announces the re-opening of NEXUS NJ, a juried exhibition of New Jersey artists. The exhibition was closed following its initial opening on October 23, due to lack of heat in the Arts Guild building. The building’s furnace was damaged by the flooding that occurred during Hurricane Irene. The heat has now been restored and regular gallery hours will resume. The Nexus NJ art show re-opens on Saturday, January 7, and continues through January 27, 2012 at Arts Guild New Jersey, 1670 Irving Street in Rahway, NJ. There will be a closing reception on Sunday, January 29, 1-4 p.m.

Rocío Aranda-Alvarado, Associate Curator of Special Projects at El Museo Del Barrio, was this year's esteemed guest judge. From nearly 300 entries submitted by 96 artists, Dr. Aranda-Alvarado selected 47 artworks in a wide variety of styles, media and sizes, in two and three dimensions. The 25 selected artists include: Jennifer Lynn Bates (Livingston), Olga Mercedes Bautista (Keyport), Patricia Bender (Somerset), Seanna Noonan Book (Chatham), Jacques Bredy (Newark), Ron Brown (South Orange), Monica Camin (Fair Haven), Fred Cole (Highland Park), Pam Cooper (Upper Saddle River), Jane Dell (Maplewood), Tracie Fracasso (Hoboken), Darlene Foster (Plainfield), Janice Gossman (Garwood), Mort Herman (Cliffwood Beach), Lauren Lehman (Montclair), Jessica Lenard (Springfield), Abby Levine (Union City), Laura Levy (Maplewood), Miranda Maher (Camden), Leonard Merlo (South Plainfield), Victoria Plummer (Millburn), Sumukha Ravishankar (Short Hills), Robert Richardson (Madision), Lisa Sanders (Montclair), and Florence Wint (Maplewood).

During the opening reception, Dr. Aranda-Alvarado's selections for best-in-show and two honorable mentions were announced. Jane Dell of Maplewood, NJ won best-in-show for, "Fat Girl's Dream," painted with watercolor inks, collage, and fabric on Mylar. Lisa Sanders of Montclair, NJ received an honorable mention, for her wool felt and wool stuffing sculpture "So Proud So Sure." Seanna Noonan Book of Chatham, NJ also received an honorable mention, for her large-scale mixed media print piece "The Tango."  

The exhibition and closing reception are free, open to the public, and wheelchair accessible. The gallery is open during the exhibition on Saturdays and Sundays, 1:00-4:00 PM, and Monday-Thursday during office hours, 9:00 AM-4:00 PM.

About Arts Guild New Jersey

Arts Guild New Jersey is a non-profit center for the arts located in the downtown Arts District of Rahway.  Each year, the Guild presents a series of fine art exhibitions and an art education program that includes studio art classes for adults, teens and children, an on-going series of intensive one-day workshops for adults, and a series of summer art workshops for teens and children. Arts Guild New Jersey is easily accessible from the Garden State Parkway, NJ Turnpike, Routes 1 & 9, Saint Georges Avenue (Route 27/35), and by train, via NJ Transit Northeast Corridor and Jersey Shore Lines. The exhibit program at Arts Guild New Jersey is made possible, in part, by funds from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Department of State, a Partner Agency of the National Endowment for the Arts, and by a grant from the Horizon Foundation for New Jersey, which promotes health, well-being and quality of life in New Jersey’s communities, including the arts. Sponsors of this program are RSI Bank, Rahway, NJ, and ConocoPhillips.