Sanctuary of Joy at First Church of Newark – Exhibition – Gallery Hours

Homage & Joy in the Sanctuary explores joy as a revolutionary force, one that sustains, uplifts, and transforms. Curated by Newark’s First Family of Art, Yvonne Onque, Samad Onque, and Suliman Onque. The exhibition unfolds within Newark’s historic First Church, a spiritual and civic landmark since 1666.

Once the city’s original meeting house, the church now welcomes a new congregation: artists and audiences united by the creative power of Joy. The exhibition also honors those who have gone before us in the Arts, visionaries whose legacies continue to inspire and remember community members who have passed on, whose spirits remain woven into Newark’s cultural fabric.

A landmark collaboration between Newark Arts Festival and the First Church of Newark, the exhibition bridges centuries of history with the city’s creative future. With an additional special presentation by producers of The Olympic Newark 8, the program reaffirms joy as more than emotion, it is a golden state of being, a shared energy that binds us across generations, inviting reflection, remembrance, and reimagination.

Exhibition Dates
October 10 – December 2

Featuring 3 The Art Way
PARTICIPATING ARTISTS
Yvonne Onque, Samad Onque, Suliman Onque, Rudy Martin, Jerry Gant, Janice Anderson, Carol Cleveland, Cynthia Vaughn, Cathleen McCoy Bristol, Denise Toney, Gina Valasques-Rivas, Nadirah Elizabeth Wheeler, Tiffany Salas, Kiymora “Kay the Kreator” Smith, Gary Campbell, Eric Pena-Tobias, Nuria Dixon, Fatima Bey, Josie Dakers-Brathwaite

Thank you to our sponsors
Prudential, NJEDA, NJSCA, Discover Jersey Arts, City of Newark, Arts & Ed District, FUN, Flagstar Bank.

This event is a collaboration with our partners
First Church of Newark and 3 The Art Way.