In 2023, when you look in the mirror, what do you see? Are you sanguine? Or is the fatigue from recent happenstance heavy on your face? Are the marks of exhaustion evident? Has tragedy dug its claws into your cheeks? What’s reflected in your eyes? In the era of the endlessly retouched digital photograph, the […]
Tris McCall
Tris McCall has written about art, architecture, performance, politics, and public culture for many publications, including the Newark Star-Ledger, the Bergen Record, Jersey Beat, the Jersey City Reporter, the Jersey Journal, the Jersey City Independent, and New Jersey dot com. He also writes about things that have no relevance to New Jersey. Not today, though.
Posted inVisual Arts
Artist Ben Fine Grapples with History, Family, and Portraiture
Olivia Neel’s eyes are famously expressive. The young Olivia stares from the frames of several paintings by her grandmother Alice Neel, one of the great humanizing portraitists of the twentieth century. In “Olivia With the Rubber Plant,” a remarkable 1977 painting, the subject slings herself across a purple chair, dangles one bare foot over an […]
Posted inUncategorized
For Jersey City Fridays, the Human Figure Comes Roaring Back
During the height of the lockdown period, it was sometimes hard to find a human being on the Jersey City streets. There weren’t too many in works of art, either. Many of the impressive shows held in the wake of the pandemic portrayed radically depopulated places: empty corners, abandoned buildings, rock clubs minus the rockers, modern […]
Posted inVisual Arts
MANA and City Collaborate on Wednesday’s Day of Fashion
Jersey City is an informal place. We don’t need to get dressed up to roll into our best restaurants. Most of our big events feel — and look — casual. Civic leaders often appear in public in jeans. Is this the right place for a festival dedicated to fashion? MANA Contemporary is betting that it […]
Posted inPerforming Arts
Rogue Waves September: The Live Music Scene in Jersey City
For live music fans, August is a time of scarcity. September, on the other hand, is all about options. All month long, you’ll have your pick of interesting shows. I’ve put our star next to seven of them, but I could have discussed many others, too: veteran bachata singer Felix D’Oleo at The Factory on Saturday […]
Posted inFood
The Vegetarian Option: Cellar 335
The path to Cellar 335 (335 Newark Ave.) is lined with red flags. For starters, it’s a tiki bar. To be fair, they call themselves a tiki cocktail lounge, and the back room takes up most of the real estate inside, but the distinctive kitsch-Asian and Far East vibe of the place will be apparent to […]
Posted inVisual Arts
“Polygon” Dazzles at Commuter Gallery
Clarence Rich and Mustart go together like beats and rhymes. Mustart supplies the gorgeous melting shapes in sherbet-colored aerosol; Rich answers with hard-edged, hallway-like designs inspired by the crystals of a chemically complex metal. A Mustart piece is often populated by gonzo characters pulled from popular media and marinated in bright paint; Clarence Rich brings […]
Posted inVisual Arts
“Vivid Visions” Comes to 150 Bay Street in Powerhouse Arts District
You’d be forgiven for thinking that the artists with works on display at “Vivid Visions” will also be showing at this year’s Art Fair 14C. The 14C logo is right there on all the official communications about the show. Curator Kristine Go is the Exhibitions Director for the Fair (she’s also one of the founders […]
Posted inVisual Arts
With “777,” Deep Space Gallery Deals Another Winning Hand
As every crapshooter knows, sevens are not always fortuitous. Stepping up and throwing one is usually profitable. But when you’re deep into the game and you’ve got bets all over the table, a seven can wipe you out. Dice gamers quickly learn to respect and fear the seven: the weirdest and most capricious of the […]
Posted inPerforming Arts
Rogue Waves August: Jersey City’s Live Music Scene
Nobody likes to tour in August. It’s hot in the bus, school’s out, and families are on vacation. Fourth of July is long over, and the novelty of outdoor festivals has wilted in the heatwaves. Big shows can wait until the calendar turns. August is often a programming dead zone for large venues and performing arts centers attached to […]