Site Specific - The Role of Public Art

July 9- October 18, 2008

Public art has long been used by patrons to send a powerful, visual message to the community it stands to represent and inspire. Curated by the Stedman Gallery, Site Specific highlights the diverse range of public art which has become a part of Camden, and considers the different messages each work brings to the community. Examining historic Johnson Park, built in the first quarter of the 20th century by the Victor Talking Machine Company founder Eldridge R. Johnson, provides a window into the industrial past of Camden. A few blocks away the new Gateway project, a large-scale architectural wall sculpture by sculptor Clyde Lynds, presents a corridor linking Rutgers University to the community. Scattered throughout Camden are murals made by a single artist or even a group of students, which tell the story of Camden and its residents with tile, glass and paint. The exhibition will also examine the planning and artistic processes necessary for creating and maintaining public art, spanning from historic restoration, to mural painting, to the stages of bronze casting in a foundry. The gallery is open Monday - Saturday from 10am - 4pm.

Summer Writers' Conference

Summer Session 2008

June 23 through July 2, 2008

The 22nd annual Summer Writers' Conference is an intensive week of workshops and readings featuring a dozen nationally-known writers, and are followed by receptions with the authors. Visiting writers include novelist Karen Karbo, poet Jonathan Galassi, and nonfiction writer Rodger Kamenetz. For a complete schedule of readings, click here.

Newark Black Film Festival

September 11 - 26

Rutgers-Camden Center for the Arts is excited to welcome the Newark Black Film Festival (add a link to the site) to the Gordon Theater from September 11 through 26.

Since its inception in 1974, the Newark Black Film Festival has become known among its peers as the longest running black film festival in the United States. Throughout the years, it has continued to provide a progressive public forum for hundreds of emerging writers, directors, producers, performers and film buffs who enjoy African American and African Diaspora cinema. Screening in the summer months, the films that are shown reflect the full diversity of the black experience in America, both past and present. Each film selection encompasses a wide range of cinematic forms and formulas, from documentary to the avant-garde. Click here to see film schedule.

The Festival is free of charge to the public and receives funding in the form of special grants from foundations and corporations. The 2008 Festival season is made possible by a grant from Bank of America.