Bayonne artists come in all varieties, as the February Art Circle show at the Bayonne Community Museum proved, whether it was the photographs of former pet cats by Patricia Mulligan to the curious and haunting works by Marc Scrudato.
Andrew Sharp, director of the Arts Circle, said he wanted to bring together some of the local talent and at the same time to raise awareness of the community museum as a viable venue for public displays.
Built in 1912 as the Bayonne Community Trust, the museum – located at Ninth Street and Broadway – has been in development for almost a decade, opening its doors finally to the public last March
“Not only did we want to open this space up for public displays,” Sharp said. “But we want this to become a center of the arts in Bayonne. We would like to offer a show once a month if possible.”
Along with graphic and other fine arts, he said, he would like to hold concerts, classes, and other shows in the space as well.
“It’s about promoting arts and culture,” Sharp said.
The February show kicked off 2013 after several attempts failed to get off the ground in late 2012 thanks to the arrival of Hurricane Sandy.
Artists of all sorts
Kevin DeLaney, who had a number of ink on bar napkin drawings that included names such as “Dali and Decay,” “Clockwork Orange” and “Doomsday Minus One,” said he drew for years then stopped only to pick it back up again about a years go. He sold a work in 2004
“I started drawing on bar napkins,” he said.
Scrudato said he had not sold anything, but was influenced by an uncle who was really a great artist.
Like many of the other community arts, he works by day and creates on his own time, but came from a tradition of graphic novel-like imagery.
“We would like to offer a show once a month if possible.” – Andrew Sharp
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Caryn La Grecca had a number of photographs of Bayonne from Hudson County Park in the north to the Bayonne Bridge.
Chris Taylor, meanwhile, displayed a number of local images as well as some from New York City.
While a number of photographers put on displays such Anastasia Konn, Ben Faresich, and Barbara Beeman, the show had a number of water colors and oils from artists such as Anthony Sienkiewicz and Bill Kadish. Bill Zbylut, Christopher Cremer, Fernando Fernandez, Gerald M. Glover, and even Joe Waks – better known for his photography.
There were a number of mixed media, acrylic and sketches by people such as Joe Kovacs, Jon Britt, Jessica Robertson, Isabella Smith and others.
Trying to find humor in the works that he does, Zbylut sometimes uses his friends as models, such as in his oil painting “Courting the Clones.”
Participation in the exhibit is open to members of the Art Circle of Bayonne. It is not necessary to be a Bayonne resident to join the organization. Membership in the Art Circle is available for $25 per year. To join the Art Circle, send an e-mail to info.artcircle@yahoo.com.
“The Art Circle of Bayonne provides a creative outlet for artists to share their talents and it’s a welcomed addition to our community,” said 3rd Ward Councilman Ray Greaves.
Al Sullivan may be reached at asullivan@hudsonreporter.com.