Exhibits
Earth Song Refrain: BIPOC Artists On the Climate and Environment
Exhibit Dates: November 1, 2023 to January 12, 2024
2nd Floor Tech Room
This exhibition presents the perspectives of visual artists and poets of color on the climate crisis and environmental challenges threatening the Earth’s health. Inspired by Michael Jackson’s environmental anthem “Earth Song,” this group exhibition reflects a tradition of Black and Brown artists using art to address issues related to mankind’s behavior and relationship to the planet, including the threatened beauty of a healthy planet, and the consequences of global warming, environmental racism, and climate change. In centering the narratives, perspectives, and experiences of people of color, this exhibition seeks to inspire conversations and considerations about the disproportionate impact of the climate crisis on communities of color around the world.
“Earth Song Refrain” is both a call to action and a celebration of the resilience and creativity of those voices that inspire others to appreciate and work towards a healthier planet and safe, secure communities.
Art Against Racism (AAR) is a 501(c)(3) organization whose mission is to use the arts to combat racism and encourage others to work towards an antiracist society. The organization provides opportunities for creatives, cultural institutions, and activists to engage the public through live and virtual exhibitions, programs and activities designed to educate and to inspire compassionate citizenship for social change. AAR is supported by the New Jersey Cultural Renewal fund.
The opening reception will take place on November 6, 2023.
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To purchase artwork for sale contact Art Against Racism via email at founder@artagainstracism.org.
Through the Storm: Finding Home
Exhibit Dates: October 23 to December 31, 2023
2nd Floor Reading Room
The art and poetry in this exhibit have been created by homeless individuals in HomeFront’s ArtSpace therapeutic program.
As parents of young children who found HomeFront in Mercer County, New Jersey during the darkest time of our lives, we present “Through the Storm: Finding Home” hoping it will help engage and educate. We invite visitors to feel some of what families experience in the bruising chaos of homelessness and to recognize the efforts necessary to build a new future of dignity, safety and independence for ourselves and our children.
Step into the tornado of homelessness and read HomeFront clients’ own words evoking homelessness that hang from pieces of coarse cloth. Precursors of impending homelessness – eviction notices, want ads, and hospital bills are some of the upheavals that cause people to become homeless. As chaos dissipates, you make your way through soft but uncomfortable ‘red tape’ conveying the slow and sometimes difficult navigation through bureaucratic systems that both help and hinder the person attempting to escape homelessness. Applications for jobs, loans, and low-income housing are written on the tape. If you persevere, you emerge into clarity, with comfort and rest in sight.
We hope this exhibit dispels the assumption that the homeless and those trying to claw their way out of poverty are incompetent and somehow ‘less than’ others. After experiencing our exhibit, we encourage you to engage compassionately with your neighbors in need and to proactively work towards the American ideal of “liberty and justice for all.”
All artwork and poetry on display has been created by homeless artists. If you would like to support our artists,
their artwork is for sale by contacting ArtSpace
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Connect via Email: artspace@homefrontnj.org
Website: https://www.homefront-artspace.com/
Princeton-Blairstown Center: Historical Outdoor Education Center Working with Marginalized Youth
Exhibit Dates: October 26 to December 21, 2023
Princeton Public Library – Princeton Room
This exhibit was created to celebrate the 115th anniversary of the Princeton-Blairstown Center (PBC) and depicts its evolution and rich history of community service and youth development. It traces the journey from the small Princeton Summer Camp founded in 1908 and initially run by Princeton undergraduates for the benefit of disadvantaged inner-city kids, to its present status as an independent nonprofit youth development organization offering a wide range of outdoor education programs. The history of PBC is not just the history of transformation of this organization, but it is the history of evolution of racial justice and racial integration on college campuses and in youth programs. This exhibit highlights the role and contributions of Frank Broderick, Student Director, Princeton University Class of 1943, and a chairman of The Daily Princetonian, whose sheer determination mobilized those who advocated for racial integration on the Princeton Campus. His courageous efforts lead the way for the Princeton Summer Camp (PBC’s predecessor) to be the first camp in the United States to integrate in 1946, and for the eventual integration of Princeton University.
Dr. Robert J. Rivers, Jr., Princeton University Class of 1953, was one of the first African American campers at PBC in 1946. He went on to become a successful vascular surgeon and his incredible life and legacy is highlighted in this exhibit. The exhibit also shines a spotlight on the achievements of visionaries like John Danielson, PBC’s first executive director, who led the Center’s evolution from a summer camp to a year-round organization with adventure-based programs, serving urban youth and their families. He also led the green initiatives that resulted in the creation of wind, solar, and water-powered energy sources on PBC’s programming site – Blairstown Campus. Presently, Princeton-Blairstown Center has a deep commitment to sustainability and strives to live and model energy consciousness and resource conservation with the goal of inspiring its program participants to take this philosophy back to their homes, schools, agencies, and communities.
Today, Princeton-Blairstown Center (PBC) serves young people, primarily from historically marginalized communities, by nurturing their social-emotional skills through experiential, environmental, and adventure-based programming. If you would like to learn more about this event, please click here.
Presented with support from the National Endowment for the Humanities: Any views, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed in this programming do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.