Iconic Moments
from the Newark Arts Festival
A Look Back
As Newark Arts Festival 2025 approaches, we’re honoring the unforgettable experiences that have helped define our legacy. From genre-defying exhibitions to powerful community collaborations, these are the moments that moved us— and moved the culture forward.
Celebrating Iconic Newark Arts Festival Moments
Through the Years
2011
“64/169: A Resolution, An Exhibition” Celebrates the African Diaspora
This exhibition commemorated United Nations Resolution 64/169, which declared 2011 the International Year for People of African Descent. Highlights included stunning quilts by Siddi women artists from India’s Goa region, beautifully bridging African heritage and Indian craft traditions.
Courtesy of Henry Drewal.
2017
Open Doors Kids Debuts: Arts for the Next Generation
The 2017 Festival marked the debut of Open Doors Kids, Newark Arts’ first program dedicated to engaging young creatives. Produced in partnership with Newark Arts Education Roundtable (now Arts Ed Newark), it offered hands-on workshops and kid-friendly installations—planting the seeds for Newark’s next generation of artists and arts lovers. Events included:
- Button Making & Bead Art at the Newark Public Library
- Creative Play Activity at the Newark Museum of Arts
- Bottle Sand Art at GlassRoots
- Kid-friendly Music and Craft with Paul Robeson Galleries at Express Newark
- Postcard Printing at Newark Print Shop
- Kids Jazz with WBGO at Symphony Hall
Photo courtesy of the Newark Print Shop.
2017
“I Found God in Myself”: A Tribute to For Colored Girls
Hosted at City Without Walls gallery, this powerful group show curated by Souleo paid homage to Ntozake Shange’s For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow is Enuf. The opening was packed wall-to-wall—and Shange herself was in attendance. The show became a defining moment of reverence, legacy, and community power.
Photo courtesy of Kenny Miles for WBGO.
2017
“3 the Art Way”: A Newark Family Legacy
The Onque family—Yvonne, Samad, and Suliman—made history with the first 3 The Art Way exhibition, a celebration of Newark’s multigenerational creative power. Their joint exhibition told a story of love, legacy, and artistic excellence rooted in the city they call home.
Photo courtesy of 3 the Art Way.
2018
Newark Arts Festival Is Born
Formerly known as Open Doors—a nod to its origins as a studio tour—the event was reintroduced in 2018 as the Newark Arts Festival. The new name reflected its evolution in scale, ambition, and impact, marking a bold new chapter for what had become a citywide celebration and a major cultural institution in the region.
2018
Genesis Tramaine Artwork Wraps Newark Bus
In 2018, Newark Arts Festival took to the streets with a public art activation featuring Brooklyn artist Genesis Tramaine. Her bold, expressive portraits wrapped a city bus, turning public transportation into a moving meditation on Black identity and spirituality.
Photo courtesy of Brick City Varsity.
2018
“My Vagina Got Me F#ck’d Up”: The Exhibition That Shocked and Empowered
A powerful highlight of NAF2018, this groundbreaking visual arts exhibition by Fem’n’3d fearlessly explored themes of gender, trauma, and reclamation. Raw, emotional, and unapologetic, it sparked urgent conversations and exemplified radical artistic expression. EGOT winner Whoopi Goldberg purchased two installation pieces by one of the exhibition’s featured artists, Bailey Li.
Photo courtesy of Brick City Varsity.
2018
Newark Arts x Project for Empty Space Book Launch
Newark Arts partnered with Project for Empty Space to publish a groundbreaking book celebrating women and non-binary artists of color. The publication lives on through a dynamic digital archive that remains a vital creative resource.
Take a closer look here: newarkartsjournal.org
Photo by Stafford Woods.
2019
“Hear Her Roar: An Evening of Performance Art”
A fierce and moving celebration of feminine power, Hear Her Roar produced by Daryl Stewart Productions spotlighted women artists in the performing arts. The evening featured performance offerings honoring the works of artists like Nikki Giovanni, Toni Morrison, Ntozake Shange and Maya Angelou centerstage at Newark Symphony Hall.
2019
A Call to Peace: Public Monuments Reimagined in Military Park
Presented in the heart of Newark at Military Park, A Call to Peace was a public art and history exhibition co-curated by New Arts Justice and Monument Lab around a central question: What is a timely monument for Newark? Featuring works by Jamel Shabazz, Chakaia Booker, Manuel Acevedo, and more, the exhibition challenged the meaning of monuments and gave voice to local and global visions of peace and justice.
A Call To Peace, a new arts exhibition focused on Military Park. Photo by Mark J. Bonamo.
2020
Virtual Newark Arts Festival During the COVID-19 Pandemic
The pandemic didn’t pause the arts, it pushed us to innovate. In partnership with The Newark Museum of Art, NAF2020 delivered a fully virtual experience featuring digital galleries, online artist talks, and interactive installations accessible worldwide. A standout of the festival was a digital replica of the Museum itself, showcasing works by 20 Newark-based artists. One of those featured artists, Mashell Black, had their work acquired by the Museum the following year!
Video courtesy of The Honk-Tweet, directed by Wolfgang Gil.
2021
Creative Resilience: From Pet Store to Powerhouse, A Pop-Up for the Ages
An abandoned former pet store became a vibrant hub for creativity in one of the most talked-about pop-up exhibitions in recent NAF history. Spanning 80,000 square feet in the historic Hahne’s Building, the raw space was transformed into a dynamic, community-powered showcase featuring dozens of artists. It served as a group exhibition, photography retrospective, performance venue, NAF Headquarters, and even featured a special pop-up exhibition inspired by Newark icon Dionne Warwick.
Pop Up Exhibit at The Hahnes & Co Building – Newark Arts Festival 2021. Photos by Charles David Photography.
2021
Dionne Warwick: Queen of Twitter Art Exhibition
One of the most talked-about and beloved exhibits in NAF history, Dionne Warwick: Queen of Twitter, curated by Souleo, celebrated Newark’s own music legend and social media icon. Packed with playful tweets, bold visuals, and deep respect, the show captured Warwick’s cultural legacy and hilarious online presence through the lens of visual art. It was extended by popular demand—and quickly became a fan favorite.
Close up of Beau McCall’s collage for “Dionne Warwick: Queen of Twitter” exhibit. Photo courtesy of Souleo.
2023
Strings & Stanzas: Celebrating 50 Years of Hip Hop
Presented by Audible and staged at The Newark Museum of Art, Strings & Stanzas paid powerful tribute to hip hop’s roots. This one-night-only performance brought together Grammy and Emmy Award-winning musicians from the NJ Symphony Orchestra, the Harlem Chamber Players, and Newark School of the Arts in an unforgettable fusion with iconic hip hop pioneers. The program explored the five elements of hip hop: Rah Digga represented the emcee, Crazy Legs of the Rock Steady Crew embodied breakdancing, DJ Rhino held down the turntables, and Cent brought graffiti art to life. Together, they honored 50 years of hip hop’s profound influence on music, culture, and social resistance.
2024
The Pink Ball Transforms the Newark Museum of Art
Part immersive installation, part ballroom, part celebration— As the opening event for NAF2024: Radical Reimagining, The Pink Ball reimagined The Newark Museum of Art with immersive projections and lighting, dynamic performances by local talent, and a spirit of creativity as guests were welcomed to experience the museum in a way they had never seen it before.
Photo by KB Visualz Studio.
What’s Your Iconic Newark Arts Festival Moment?
As we approach NAF2025, we honor the past and look toward a future filled with even more bold, beautiful, and boundary-breaking moments. Join us this year and be part of the story.