Sunset Beach is a marvelous place to visit for sunset
Sunset Beach in Cape May, NJ is one of the most beautiful beaches in American and is ranked 24# on TripAdvisor as one of the breathtaking beaches to visit. The beach site in Lower Township in Cape May and is at the very end of Sunset Boulevard which is a direct run from downtown Cape May.
The beach is amazing as you can see the pleasure boats in the distance coming in and out of the small harbor just north of the beach.
The Sunset Beach is really beautiful in the off season when not a lot of people are there
The Start of the Sunset in December 2022
Looking out into Delaware Bay is quite spectacular with its moving waves and the way it glitters in the sun. In the warmer months, it is just nice to walk along the shore and watch the birds. In the winter months, the breezes get to be too much and a short visit is nicer.
The beginning of the sunset
Any time of the year though, make sure to be here for sunset and that is when the beach works it beautiful natural magic.
The setting of the sun
The sun disappearing in the horizon
The sun disappearing
At sunset you will see an array of colors with the sun setting in the distance. The last time I visited the beach in September, it was a combination of oranges, purples and blues as the sun set. The lower the sun the more brilliant the colors. They become more complex as the sun gets lower.
The final sunset
Sunset Beach
The best part of the view is that it is played out on the large stage. It covers the whole sky and it looks like the sun is going to sleep in the bay. You can almost touch it. Each night when the sun sets its a different color in the rainbow in the sky. The backdrop of the small stone formations and the SS Atlantus Concrete Ship make it more dramatic.
SS Atlantus Concrete Ship
Whenever you are in Cape May, try to finish your dinner early and then watch Mother Nature work her magic by the shoreline. It is an experience that should not be missed. Please try to arrive about an hour before sunset to get a space in the parking lot.
It is the most spectacular site at anytime of the year.
Sunset Beach area:
The SS Atlantus Concrete Ship:
The SS Atlantus Concrete Ship was built and launched in 1918, just after World War I had ended as a trans-Atlantic steamer to return troops from Europe to home. After being decommissioned in 1926, she was purchased along with two other ships to create a ferry dock for ferries from Cape May to Delaware. The plans were later shelved as she ran aground in a storm along Sunset Beach and could not be freed.
Flag Lowering Ceremony:
The Evening Flag Ceremony held every night at sunset between Memorial Day and Labor Day. The lowering of the American flag at sunset is a 40 year old tradition. All of the flags that are flown at the flag ceremony are veteran’s caskets flags that families being with them from their loved one’s funeral. The ceremony includes the Pledge of Allegiance, the ‘Stat-Spangled Banner’ and a recording of Kate Smith’s ‘God Bless America”.
Cape May Diamonds:
While taking a stroll along the beach, look out for Cape May ‘Diamonds’. These are small pieces of quartz crystal found in the sand that are washed from the bay. You can find Cape May diamond jewelry in the gift stores at the beach.
(NJ Leisure Guide)
Sunset Beach
Disclaimer: This information was taken from the NJ Leisure Guide and I give their writer full credit for it. The beach is open all year around but it is the best in the warmer months. Don’t miss this spectacular view at sunset.
I have visited Branch Brook Park many times over the past thirty years and during the Annual Cherry Blossom the park is especially nice. The City of Newark still has the reputation as a rough place and parts of the City I still would not like to walk around in after dark (as are all cities). Branch Book is separated from the rest of the City and sits on the border of Newark sharing the park with the town of Belleville.
The Cherry Blossoms were in peak blooming today
The Cherry Blossom Festival, which takes place every Spring with the coming of the blooming of all of the Cherry Trees which cover the whole length of the park, is always anticipated by people all over the State of New Jersey. They bloomed a little late this year due to the unseasonably cold weather this year. It was snowing up to two weeks earlier so the buds opened later this year. In come cases, the peak of the blossoms came about two weeks late.
The Cherry Blossom Festival at Branch Brook Park goes on for the two weeks of the blooming of the trees
It was well worth it as spread over thirty two acres of land are over 2,000 cherry trees that bud every year at slightly different times due to the different species of plants. You day will start in the park at the Visitor’s Welcome Center located in the eastern section of the park, where you will read about the history of the park and have a chance to check into the activities of the annual Festival or just relax and go to the bathroom. The Visitor’s Center has just been renovated and is a nice starting point to walk around the park during the festival. There is a lot of public parking in this area and your car will be safe with all the people walking around.
The park was awash with colors
Walking among the paths of blossoming Cherry Trees is quite spectacular. It is Mother Nature showing here best with all sorts of hues of light and dark pink. It is something to walk around the trees as the petals in some cases rain down on you. Because the Festival is such a tradition with visitors some even wear their kimono’s or their wedding gowns in the park for pictures.
Walking along the stream that runs through the park
The park is in the process of a decade long renovation after years of neglect. The Branch Brook Park Alliance in partnership with Essex County Department of Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs, is working to restore the park’s historic design and adapt it to today’s lively use. Our park holds claim to many firsts: America’s first county park opened to the public; first to be listed on both the New Jersey and National Registers of Historic Places and the first to surpass Washington DC in the number and variety of cherry trees (Branch Brook Park Alliance).
Cherry Blossom Festival in Branch Brook Park Newark, NY 2010
Completed projects set the stage for the park’s full restoration. The County has refurbished historic bridges, renovated the Cherry Blossom Welcome Center and created the Cherry Tree Memorial Grove to promote the “Susan G. Komen Race for a Cure”. Extensive plantings of cherry trees, soon to number 4,000, complement the park’s 78 other tree varieties. Restoration of historic sites include the Octagon Shelter and park entrance ways (Branch Brook Park Alliance).
The views by the steam were especially beautiful in 2023
In 2022, the warmer weather that has been coming in earlier in the month keeps moving the blooming up a few weeks. The cherry blossoms seem to be flowering in the three main areas I visited, Newark, Brooklyn and Washington DC came out almost two weeks earlier than usual. With all the rains that we have had in the last three weeks have also done a number on the trees. Most lost their petals earlier than their planned festivals so even in DC they had their cherry blossom festival without cherry blossoms. When I came home from that celebration, even Newark was looking bare compared to my quick trip last weekend when you could not even enter the park. I think more people in these COVID days want to communicate with nature more than ever.
People were taking pictures by this spot for their weddings and parties
The Branch Brook Park lawn later in the day
When I visited the park in 2023, the place was mobbed with people. The Cherry Blossoms were at their full peak on April 8th, 2023 and I had never seen them this brilliant before. They were gorgeous and such colors of pink, white deep pink and the brilliant yellows from other flowering trees really complimented one another. Walking along the paths through this part of the park was a delight to the eyes.
The brilliance of the flowering trees
The only problem I saw was the visitors behavior towards the trees. People were climbing on the trees, pulling on the branches and tearing off the cherry blossoms. Either it is all the tourism classes that I am taking at NYU or I just am really noticing how obnoxious people are getting. There was so little respect towards nature. People were disrupting the very thing everyone came to see.
The Cherry Blossom Festival signs lined the park
Still I had a wonderful time and it was nice day to walk around and enjoy Branch Brook Park. It was just disappointing when the skies got cloudy and it got a little cooler. That did not stop people from lining the paths, walking their dogs and just enjoying the day out. I have never seen the park this vibrant before!
There was a nice crowd this afternoon at the park
I was able to sneak out of the park for lunch and go to Pizzatown Pizzeria in Newark for lunch. This old pizzeria has been around since about the 1960’s and has the most amazing cheese pizza. I got for a slice when I am visiting the park. The restaurant is a holdover when this was still an Italian enclave (it is now more Spanish) but still popular with the locals.
Pizzatown Pizzeria & Restaurant at 883 Mount Pleasant Avenue in Newark, NJ
The place is really full of character and the best part is that the pizza is delicious! I always enjoy coming here for lunch or a snack. I had a slice of Sicilian pizza ($3.50) and a Coke and at $4.50 is was a reasonable lunch. This in comparison with the food trucks in the park which are much more expensive. I highly recommend it.
The Sicilian slice at Pizzatown in Newark, NJ
The inside of the restaurant is so old that is looks retro
I like the painting on the restaurant. It’s classic.
It was a nice lunch and it gave me the energy to continue walking the length of the park further than I had before. Talk about getting some get pictures. As it got later, the crowds thinned out a bit more so there was more room to take some great shots.
It was a wonderful afternoon!
Branch Brook Park in its prime
The History of Branch Brook Park in Newark, NJ:
The Cherry Blossom Display at Essex County Branch Brook Park:
In 1928, Caroline Bamberger Fuld, after seeing the cherry trees in the Nation’s Capital, offered a gift of 2000 trees for Essex County Branch Brook Park. To showcase the park’s newly acquired Extension, the renowned Olmsted Brothers landscape architectural firm created a planting design using dark evergreen trees as a backdrop for the mix of white and pink cherry blossoms from varieties such as Higan, Yoshino and Kwanzan (Branch Brook Alliance).
The entrance to Branch Brook Park in Newark, NJ
After a 2004 inventory showed 1.000 cherry trees remaining, an ongoing initiative to replace and expand the collection was undertaken by Essex County Executive Joseph N. DiVincenzo Jr. and the Branch Brook Alliance. By 2016, the number of cherry trees was expanded to over 5,000. Cherry trees in 27 varieties now adorn all sections of the park, from the Southern Division at Clifton Avenue in Newark to the park’s Extension at Washington Avenue in Belleville (Branch Brook Park Alliance).
The History of Branch Brook Park (Branch Brook Park Alliance):
1862: The land we know now as Branch was then the property of the Newark Aqueduct Board. Much of that land was commandeered in July of 1862, at the outbreak of the Civil War; known as Camp Frelinghuysen, it was used as a training ground for New Jersey volunteers. Between 1862 and 1864, six regiments encamped there before fighting in every important battle from Antietam to Appomatox.
1867: The New Jersey State Legislature authorized a Newark Park Commission, with a mandate to locate grounds for a municipal park. Fredrick Law Olmsted, the famed landscape architect and designer of Central Park in New York, visited Newark and Essex County and recommended a site encompassing what is now Branch Brook Park, Olmsted and his partner, Calvert Vaux, envisioned Branch Brook Park to be a “grand central park” for the City of Newark. They understood that American cities of the 19th Century were growing quickly and changing rapidly. The parks they designed embodied their view that all people, regardless of their position in society, were entitled to fresh air, quiet places and the beauty that only nature can provide.
The colors were amazing in April of 2023
1889: The Newark Common Council donated 60 acres of the Aqueduct Board property surrounding the circular holding reservoir to “park use”. Known as Reservoir Park, the land was left undeveloped. Much of the surrounding neighborhoods were crowded with bleak, unhealthy tenements. To the north lay a dismal march known as Old Blue Jay Swamp.
1895: The Essex County Park Commission was formed to enable the creation of a county-wide park system, the first in the nation. The City of Newark transferred Reservoir Park, which would become the nucleus of Branch Brook Park to the Commission at ta cost of $350,687. The surrounding properties were acquired by the County while donations of land from prominent Newark families extend the park northward. The Ballantine Family donated 32 acres of their property and another 50 acres were given by Z.M. Keene, William A. Righter and the Messrs. Heller. John Bogart and Nathan Barrett were chosen to provide plans and advise on the development of the park. Their design was gardenesque in style, dominated by the geometrically patterned gardens and numerous architectural elements including arbors, viaducts, gazebos and shelters that shaped the park’s Southern Division.
The drive in the entrance of the park
1896: Demolition and grading began following Bogart and Barrett’s plans.
1898: Dissatisfied with Bogart and Barrett’s work, the Commission hired the Olmsted Brothers firm; John Charles Olmsted and Fredrick Law Olmsted Jr. were Fredrick Law Olmsted Sr’s nephew/stepson and son. While their work continued that naturalistic style of landscape design championed by their father, in Branch Brook Park, they were required to incorporate the elements of Bogart and Barrett’s plan that had already been constructed. This led to the Olmsted firm’s design concept consisting of three divisions: the Southern, from Sussex Avenue to Park Avenue, incorporating the elaborate ‘gardenesque’ elements from Bogart and Barrett’ the middle from Park Avenue to Bloomfield Avenue, which would be a transitional zone, mixing the exotic with the indigenous and as the culmination, the Northern Division, the largest and most naturalistic area of the park.
The views were spectacular in April of 2023
1900: The first Chrysanthemum Show was held in the newly constructed greenhouse in the Northern Division. This annual event brought thousands to the park every fall until 1969.
1903: The United Singing Societies donated the bust of composer Felix Mendelssohn they won in Baltimore, MD at that year’s ‘saengerfest’, the annual, nationwide German singing competition that generated excitement comparable to today’s Super Bowl.
1906: The gran boathouse, designed by the firm of Rossiter and Wright, was added to the southern end of the lake, replacing an earlier structure.
The crowds were large in April 2023
1916: The Essex County Park System build its Administration Building on the parkland that had been set aside to provide a view from Concourse Hill. Designed by New Jersey native Harold Van Buren Magonigle, the exterior has eight different shades of coarse-textured terra brick and expensive terra cotta reliefs especially notable around the main entrance. Under the wide overhang of the tile roof are colorful, allegorical decorations executed by Mrs. Edith Magonigle.
1924: Industrialist and philanthropist Harmon W. Hendricks, owner of a copper rolling mill on the Second River, donated his family home and the adjoining 23 acres to the north of Branch Brook Park. An additional 94 acres were acquired by the county to link Hendricks Field Golf Course and Belleville Park in an unbroken swath of green. This land included what was the first landing site for the U.S. Postal Service where bi-winged airplanes landed on a short field with bales of hay rimming the end of the runway to prevent accidents.
One of the side paths in April 2023
1927: Caroline Bamberger Fuld donates 2,000 Japanese flowering cherry trees to a display in Newark that would rival that in Washington DC. The Olmsted Brothers’ firm laid out the trees naturalistically on the tiered slopes along the narrow valley of the Second River, evoking the way the trees would be seen in Japan and distinguishing Branch Brook Park’s display from all others. Eventually the collection would grow to more than 3,000 trees.
1928: The Morris Canal that ran from Jersey City to the Delaware River and formed the park’s western boundary was abandoned and became the Newark City Subway. Now Newark Light Rail, there are six stops along the park that provide easy access by mass transit.
1940: The Rossiter and Wright boathouse was deemed unsafe and dismantled. A smaller building replaced the grand structure.
1956: More than 3,000 people attended the Fall Chrysanthemum Shoe in the greenhouses.
The crowds along the pathways at Branch Brook Park
1967: Riots broke out in Newark and devastated the community. Many buildings were burned, boarded up and sections of the city were deserted. The National Guard was called in to maintain order and bivouacs in Branch Brook Park, where Civil War volunteers mustered 100 years earlier.
1974: Community members rallied to save their beloved park and the Friends of Branch Brook Park was formed.
1976: The Newark Cherry Blossom Festival was established.
1980: Branch Brook Park was placed on the New Jersey Register of Historic Places.
1981: The Park was placed on the National Register of Historic Places.
1986: The Boathouse was destroyed by fire and replaced by a concrete block structure.
One of my favorite shots of the park in 2023
1999: Branch Brook Park Alliance (BBPA) was formed.
2002: BBPA hired Rhodeside & Harwell (RHI), nationally recognized landscape architects, to produce a Cultural Landscape Report, Treatment and Management Plan, to serve as a blueprint for the park’s restoration.
2003: The lake edge near the boat house in the Southern District was replanted to recreate the original Olmstead plan; this pilot project was designed by RHI and funded by BBPA.
2004: A tree inventory was conducted by BBPA as part of the Cultural Landscape Report and revealed that less than 1,000 cherry trees remained from the original gift of 2,000 trees and subsequent plantings.
2005: Responding to community interest, the first farmers’ market took place, along with other activities to help reactivate the park.
2006: BBPA, together with the Essex County, the North Ward Center and the Newark Boys and Girls Clubs developed the Middle Division ball fields, now home to 7,500 ballplayers annually.
A grant from the Essex County Recreation and Open Space Trust Fund enabled the first planting of what would total more than 3,000 new cherry trees over the next four years.
2007: The Ball fields in the Extension were redesigned and upgraded while the surrounding landscape is restored. The Cherry Tree Demonstration Project showed what a fully restored collection should look like with extensive companion plantings and appropriate hardscaping.
2008: The Octagon Shelter was reconstructed. The Waterway Rehabilitation Feasibility Study was completed, setting forth a path for the restoration of one of the park’s most salient features.
2009: Prudential Global Volunteer Day drew more than 300 participants from diverse sectors of the community. A Maintenance Plan for the park was completed and implementation begun at six volunteer days.
2010: Design work was completed for project that will transform western lake edge in the Southern Division. The rehabilitation of the Octagon Field House in the Middle Division was completed.
The Cherry Blossom Festival in Branch Brook Park, Newark, NJ 2010
(The History of Branch Brook Park in Newark, NJ by the Branch Brook Park Alliance)
Disclaimer: This information was taken from the Branch Brook Park Alliance and I give them full credit for their work. Don’t miss the Cherry Blossom Festival each Spring April/May depending on the weather.
The Greater Newark Conservatory has been credited for much of the improvement in the City of Newark.
Having three farms, it has given new life to empty lots, given school children a chance to experience urban farming and given suburbanites a taste of country life in the city all while improving the lives of its residents. Having attended the recent “Beds & Breakfast” gardening program put on every year, I can see the outreach that the Conservatory is trying to have on people outside the city.
The Beds & Breakfast Seminar is an annual event that covers things like sustainable farming, trips for growing and pruning plants and trees and cooking classes. In the era of COVID, we had the 2021 “Beds & Breakfast” virtually this year and it was really nice because we could attend the meetings via Zoom. It was very engaging and you could ask questions online.
In the warmer months, it is nice to walk along the gardens and admire all the fruits, vegetables and plants being grown here. They have other events as well like Summer Cocktail parties and Pot Lucks.
The gardens and the new Demo building
Another event I recently attending was the Conservatory’s October Fest, which was a small festival where the gardens on Prince Street were open to the public and local vendors were selling their wares at tables surrounding the main walk way of the garden. The Conservatory was also running their Youth Farm Stand as well with fresh vegetables from their ‘farm’. In 2021, they had a smaller event with vendor booths and music. It was funny to see so many people with masks in the cool weather.
Try to support the Youth Farm Stand at the Greater Newark Conservatory
In the future, there will be Pumpkin Patches by the farm and a small event for Halloween.
The History and Purpose of The Greater Newark Conservatory:
The Greater Newark Conservatory (GNC) is a non-profit organization headquartered in Newark, NJ with the state goal of promoting ‘environmental stewardship to improve the quality of life in New Jersey’s urban communities’. It offers programs for youth education, community greening and gardening, nutritional health, job training and prisoner re-entry (Wiki).
Founded in 1987, the Greater Newark’s Conservatory’s mission is to promote environmental stewardship to improve the quality of life in New Jersey’s urban communities. The 3.7 million Prudential Outdoor Learning Center, named in honor of a $750,000 grant from the Prudential Foundation, was completed in 2004 and has hosted more than 16,000 at risk inner city children for environmental education field trips since that time (Vince Baglivo, Star-Ledger 2010).
The Conservatory grounds
The first step toward making the new Center a reality was the purchase of the historic former synagogue/church building at 32-34 Prince Street in downtown Newark. Acquired by the City of Newark, the property included the building and the land that it occupies (Vince Baglivo, Star-Ledger 2010).
Educational Programs:
The Conservatory provides programs on youth education and nutritional health and cooking. In the Demonstration Kitchen program, participants are provided instruction on cooking with recipes having high nutritional value. The Newark Youth Leadership Program (NYLP) provides training to high school students in Newark through a year-round program on horticulture. The program also includes a summer internship program where high school students are assigned to various department in the Conservatory in order to gain experience with career-related skills. The summer interns also receive training on finance, public speaking and nutrition (Wiki).
Urban Farming:
One Conservatory initiative is to bolster and support urban farms in the City of Newark. The urban farms were created with the purpose of offering low-cost and healthy foods in Newark. Participants also have the option of growing their food in one of 360 private plots. In 2011, the urban farms administered by the Conservatory generated 5,000 pounds of produce. The produce is sold in local farmers’ markets. Crops raised include arugula, beets and corn. Other related programs include raising chickens and maintaining a honey apiary (Wiki).
The gardens and grounds
Job Training:
The Conservatory is community partner for the City of Newark’s prisoner re-entry programs where job training is provided to ex-offenders through its ‘Clean and Green’ program. They include vacant lots in Newark, labor in maintaining urban farms and offering instruction to school groups on the basics of farming (Wiki).
Urban Environmental Center:
The Conservatory conducts its activities primarily at the Judith L. Shipley Urban Environmental Center, the Prudential Outdoor Learning Center and at its main education building. Many educational programs take place there as well. The center was named after Judith and Walter Shipley, who were major donors of the Conservatory. The Prudential Outdoor Learning Center is 1.5 acre site located on Prince Street in Newark and contains a series of outdoor exhibits and thematic gardens (Wiki).
Programming:
Four program areas: environmental education, community greening and gardening, advocacy for environmental justice and job training, are the focus of activities involving everyone from students to seniors (Vince Baglivo Star-Ledger 2010).
Community Greening:
The Community Greening Program addresses Newark’s deficit of quality preserved open space by enhancing existing community parks, creating new pocket parks, establishing greenways and improving neighborhoods with street trees, street side planted flower barrels and community gardens. The program works with Newark residents to transform neighborhoods with curbside flower barrels and lush community gardens on former vacant lots. These urban farms increase accessibility to food sources for urban residents by providing high quality, locally grown healthy food using natural pest control methods (Vince Baglivo Star-Ledger 2010).
Disclaimer: I want to credit writer Vince Baglivo from the Star-Ledger “Greater Newark Conservatory: City’s best kept Secret” 2010 and Wikipedia (current) as well as the Greater Newark Conservatory for information on the site. Please call the above number for more information on upcoming programs.
I have been a member of the Newark Museum for 29 years and have enjoyed the experience. There is a lot of things to do at all times of the year.
During the Summer months, I enjoy “Jazz in the Garden” where local and international Jazz musicians perform in the beauty of the back garden of the museum under the trees. These almost hour and a half performances can be enjoyed on sunny, clear days in the gardens and in the auditorium on a rainy afternoon. It is something I look forward to every summer.
Jazz in the Garden at the Newark Museum
I heard Vanessa Rubin perform at the last ‘Jazz in the Garden’. She is amazing.
The New entrance opened where the original once was:
The new entrance to the Newark Museum
The video celebration of the new entrance reopening
During December of 2019 I attended a holiday afternoon tea at the Ballantine House, the historic home attached to the museum. The Ballantine’s were one of the oldest families in Newark, NJ and were once major brewers in the city. They were considered High Society in Newark and the home, and its renovation reflect that.
A new tradition was started this year with a Holiday Afternoon Tea and tour of the mansion. The caterer did a nice job with the food and their was plenty of it. We had finger sandwiches, various scones and pastries and different varieties of teas.
The Ballantine House set for Christmas lunch
After the tea, we had a tour of the house and a talk about how the Ballantine’s and their crowd celebrated the holidays. They would be an open house for the neighbors during the holidays and then on Christmas day were church services in the morning and then a lunch afterwards with the family.
Ballantine House set for the neighborhood open house
Another nice event is the Members Mornings of specialty tours of the galleries on a Sunday morning and a light breakfast afterwards. These are really nice, and you get a more in-depth view of the galleries with the docents. This is where I highly recommend membership.
On my most recent trip to the museum, I attended the opening of the new ‘Norman Bluhm Metamorphosis’ exhibition on February 11th, 2020.
Artist Norman Bluhm
Norman Bluhm: Metamorphosis celebrates six decades of painting by post-war American artist Norman Bluhm (1920-1999), who combined action painting with a lavish sense of color and formal experimentation on a grand scale.
Paintings and works on paper dating from 1947 to 1998 are on view in the Museum’s Special Exhibition Gallery and the Traphagen promenade galleries surrounding the Charles W. Engelhard Court (Newark Museum publication press release).
These large works showcase the artist’s work over a fifty year period.
Norman Bluhm’s work is quite dramatic
In 2022, I went on the first Members Morning that we had in almost two years. We toured the “Carlos Villa: Worlds in Collusion” exhibition featuring the works by American San Franciso born artist of Philippine decent Carlos Villa.
Artist Carlos Villa in the exhibition “Worlds in Collison”
Video on the Exhibition “Carlos Villa: Worlds in Collison”
What made this exhibition interesting was the feather work that he used in his art. He was trying to capture the ethnic history of identity not just of the Asian but the Pan-Pacific cultures of Hawaii. He used robes and other costumes to show the dynamic of the background of these cultures. Not just that but what describes Americans who are not of white decadency and where their role plays in society. The impression I got from his work and from the tour was feeling like an outsider in the country he was born in.
One of the feathered cloches that are in the exhibition
I also visited the interactive exhibition “Endangered”, showing video screenings of nature on the walls of the Natural Science Galleries. The exhibition highlights how human behavior is affection the natural environment and what we can do to stop it.
In the Summer of 2022, we had a member’s tour of one of the ongoing exhibitions at the museum and the docent described the works of local Brooklyn based artist Saya Woolfalk.
The “Empathic Universe with Saya Woolfalk” at the Newark Museum
The “Endangered” exhibition
I joined the membership one morning to tour the exhibition on artist Saya Woolfalk who is based out of Brooklyn. Her current exhibition “Tumbling into Landscape” is being featured on a long-term exhibition. The works are a communication with nature and our relationship with nature and with one another. When you walk through it you are so relaxed between the music and the lighting. The artist ‘uses science fiction and fantasy to reimagine the world in multiple dimensions’ (Newark Museum).
The videos in the Saya Woolfalk exhibition
Her look at nature is very interesting. She looks at our relationship with the natural world and to each other and where we belong. Here works have a calming effect on the visitor and our interaction with the art.
‘The Four Virtues’ (Justice, Prudence, Temperance and Fortitude)
She even did a study of the Hudson River School and how her art worked into that perspective of nature. She included between six paintings from the School of Art with a self-portrait of herself.
It was interesting how she used her own self to compare to the stylized view of nature taken on by these past artists.
Newark Museum History and Highlights:
Your journey starts here:
Welcome to the Newark Museum. Our unique approach to exhibiting our extraordinary art and science collections provides unforgettable experiences for people of all ages. It is a place where people of different generations, cultures and communications encounter a robust science collection and world-class act including the arts of Africa, ancient arts, arts of Asia, decorative arts and American art.
Take an inspirational journey through our many galleries. Marvel at shooting stars in our popular planetarium. Travel to another era in the Victorian Ballantine House, a National Historic Landmark. Pause at a Tibetan Buddhist altar consecrated by His Holiness, the 14th Dalai Lama. Stroll through our beautiful sculpture garden, visit our Museum Shops and enjoy delicious light fare or snacks at our Cafe (will be reopening soon).
Come visit us. You’ll wonder why you waited.
The Newark Museum exhibits world-class art and science in a unique way. Visitors feel enriched by what they had planned to see and excited about the unexpected discoveries that they made along the way.
The new entrance of the museum
American Art:
With more than 12,000 paintings, sculptures, works on paper and multimedia art, the American art collection at the Newark Museum, many on view in the Picturing America galleries, is one of the finest in the country. Surveying four centuries, the Museum’s American holdings range from the Colonial to the Contemporary and are particularly strong in works from the 19th and early 20th centuries.
Ancient Art:
The Museum’s art of the ancient Mediterranean cultures, Egypt, the Near East, Greece and Rome, includes a remarkable array of classical antiques, as well as an Egyptian collection featuring the coffin lid of Henet-Mer. The Eugene Schaefer Collection of ancient glass offers a visual history of the evolution of glass technology in Egypt, Greece, Rome and the Islamic worlds and dates from 1500 B.C. to 1400 A.D.
Arts of Africa:
With works ranging from Moroccan textiles in South African beadwork to contemporary fine art, the Museum’s African art collection is as diverse as the continent itself. The collection is among the most comprehensive in the United States with more than 4,000 art works dating from the 17th century to the present day. Its holdings are also distinguished for their breadth of artistic representation, including masks and figural statuary, dress and adornment, photography and paintings.
Arts of Native North America:
The Native North American art collection spans the continental United States, as well as Alaska and Canada. Most of the works date from the 19th to the late 20th centuries. The collection represents the diversity and richness of indigenous arts with a range of object types including tools, household items, personal effects, clothing, ritual and ceremonial objects, paintings and drawings.
Arts of Asia:
The most extraordinary historical collection of Tibetan art in the Western Hemisphere is on permanent view. Additional galleries dedicated to the arts of Japan, Korea, China as well as South and Southeast Asia feature superior examples of sculptures, paintings, ceramics and decorative arts from the past 2,000 years.
Decorative Arts:
Furniture, silver, ceramics, glass, jewelry, costumes and textiles comprise the vast Decorative Arts holdings, which range from the 16th century to the present. A wide variety of American and European household furnishings create an international context for New Jersey-made and owned objects displayed in rotating gallery installations.
Ballantine House:
Built in 1885 for Jeanette and John Holme Ballantine of the celebrated Newark beer-brewing family, this brick and limestone mansion was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1985. Wander through history in House & Home, a suite of eight Victorian period rooms and accompanying thematic galleries depicting how people have decorated their homes in America, from the 1650’s to the present day.
The Ballantine House
Science:
You will also find New Jersey’s first planetarium here and an 83,000-specimen natural Science Collection, which is the basis of the exhibit Dynamic Earth: Revealing Nature’s Secrets, located in the Victoria Hall of Science. This engaging exhibit features interactive and multimedia displays that make the natural sciences come alive and help adults and children better understand the natural world.
Newark Fire Museum:
Housed in the circa 1860 Ward Carriage House in the Alice Ransom Dreyfuss Memorial Garden, the newly refurbished Newark Fire Museum tells the story of the challenges faced by firefighters in the 19th century and includes historic fire apparatus and equipment. An exciting new exhibit adds a potentially life-saving element to our mission with a high-tech interactive Fire Safety Center designed to teach fire safety and prevention to children and families.
1784 Old Stone School House:
The oldest standing school building in Newark, this one-room school hosted generations of students between 1784 and the early 20th century. Recently restored, its detailed bring the past to life: the foundation built with sandstone from a local Newark quarry, the floorboards sawed by hand from trees cut from a local forest and the old cast iron stove used to heat the school with wood provided by the students.
Planetarium:
The Alice and Leonard Dreyfuss Planetarium provides an immersive, out-of-this-world experience through which adults and children can learn about astronomy, planetary science and space travel. Featured is a state-of-the-art, full dome digital video system, a 5.1 surround-sound system and a Zeiss ZKP3B star projector.
Disclaimer: This information was taken directly from the Newark Museum pamphlet. The museum is the pride and joy of the State of New Jersey. It has great programming and wonderful events. Please call or email the museum for more details.
Visiting a Museum: The Unique, Unusual, Obscure and Historical 