The Trustees of The Visual Arts Center of New Jersey cordially invite you to a special opening of our fall exhibitions, on Wednesday, November 6, from 7–9 PM. Our newly renovated galleries will open with exhibitions focusing on people impacted by mass incarceration and a special one-night storytelling event where speakers will share their stories, allowing a glimpse into the lives of those impacted by the criminal legal system.

A daylight hours preview is also available from 4–5 PM. No refreshments will be served at the daylight hours preview.

The evening's schedule:

4–5 PM - Daylight Hours Preview

7–8 PM - Storytelling Event 

8–9 PM - Exhibition Opening Continues

Something to Hold On To:
Art and the Carceral System

Main Gallery
This exhibition sheds light on the vision, ingenuity, and hard-earned creativity of individuals, family members, and collaborators impacted by the United States carceral system. Many of the works in this exhibition give visual form to the experience of being incarcerated—the stark conditions, isolation, dehumanization, and loss of agency, while others are strident statements about societal and racial injustices All artists featured in this exhibition have ties to New Jersey, including Antionette Stephen, Cheryl Chen, Chris Wilson, the Contraband Scholars under the guidance of JD McGuire, Davi Russo, Gilberto Rivera, Jared Owens, and Todd (Hyung-Rae) Tarselli. 

Ojore Lutalo: When Justice is Not Served

Mitzi and Warren Eisenberg Gallery
The Mitzi and Warren Eisenberg Gallery features a collection of collages created by New Jersey-based artist Ojore Lutalo over the past 30 years. Lutalo was sentenced to prison for 28 years, 22 of which were spent in solitary confinement, and his original pieces were created to document the psychological hardships and physical abuses he endured while in prison. His more recent work, created after his 2009 release, details his experiences with racial profiling, wrongful detainment, and the impact of the Coronavirus pandemic in prisons and jails.

Reentry, Reestablished, Renewed

Marité & Joe Robinson Strolling Gallery I 
This exhibition showcases work developed through a photography workshop led by Erik James Montgomery, in collaboration with NeighborCorps Re-Entry in Highland Park, New Jersey, a social service organization providing support services for recently released individuals from Middlesex County Jail. Ten system-impacted individuals used cameras and photography equipment to produce film and digital images and explore visual storytelling. Each participant worked with Montgomery to compose a self-portrait at a personally relevant site that they identify with in their life journey as a returning citizen.

Perceptions Reimagined:
Art from the Women at Edna Mahan

Second Floor Community Gallery
The second-floor community gallery will feature this exhibition of work created by incarcerated artists at Edna Mahan Correctional Facility (EMCF) who are students in Raritan Valley Community College Professor Cara London’s art class. The students created these artworks during class and on their own, and the resulting artworks were previously displayed at the EMCF Art Show this past spring. These artists are participants in the New Jersey Scholarship and Transformative Education in Prisons program (NJ-STEP), a voluntary program that enables incarcerated people to earn college credits. The artists featured in the exhibition are: Abdul-Kha’leef Cason, Briann Lindsey, Trystal Lozada, Ashley Romero, and Denise Staples.