The African American Heritage Museum of Southern NJ will present a new exhibit that traces the history of coiled basketry in Africa and America and explores the evolution of an ancient art. Entitled Grass Roots: African Origins of an American Art, the exhibit will open on Saturday, November 12th with a reception scheduled from 2:00-5:00 p.m. at the Martin Luther King Center in Newtonville. The exhibit will be on view through January 7, 2012.
A variety of items including baskets, basket-making tools and historic rice cultivation artifacts will be on display. Grass Roots highlights the remarkable beauty of coiled basketry and shows the humble market basket as a work of art, object of use and container of memory. This survey of the beautifully crafted coiled basket is instructive about the creativity and artistry characteristic of Africans in America from the 17th century to the present.
The exhibition has been made possible by NEH on the Road, a special initiative of the National Endowment for the Humanities. Grass Roots: African Origins of an American Art was organized by the Museum for African Art in New York City in collaboration with the Avery Research Center for African American History and Culture in Charleston, SC. It was co-curated by Chief Curator Enid Schildkrout, Museum for African Art, and Curator and Historian Dale Rosengarten, College of Charleston. The exhibition is toured by Mid-America Arts Alliance through NEH on the Road. NEH on the Road offers eight different exhibitions for small to mid-sized communities across the country. Mid-America Arts Alliance was founded in 1972 and is the oldest regional nonprofit arts organization in the U.S. For more information, visit http://www.nehontheroad.org or http://www.maaa.org

Betty Ann Bembry "I can't believe that my time has come," the artist wrote in her biographical statement. She credits Museum founder and president, Ralph Hunter, with recognizing her talent and staging her first exhibit at the Museum. The local artist's prints and original pastels were well received and sold quickly at her first show and that was when Betty Ann Bembry began to understand the power of her gift. Her pastel paintings tell stories from her personal experience with vibrant colors and simple lines. They make you smile and remember. Her current show, Life's Experiences, marks her third exhibit at the Museum.

Jeff Schwachter His name is already familiar to the readers of Atlantic City Weekly and South Jersey Magazine. Jeff Schwachter is a writer, editor and performer who covers the local music scene. While earning a degree in English at Temple University Jeff Schwachter also studied music and painting. His exhibit, "Jazz Portraits," features oil pastel and mixed media drawings of jazz legends and provides a visual depiction of African-American music

Ralph J. Taylor is a veteran of the Philadelphia Police Department, a former casino Vice President and the author of two books. He is presently working on a volume of poetry which he also hopes to publish. Clearly motivated to exercise his creativity, the artist will display his talent for painting in this exhibition of his recent work. Mr. Taylor studied under William Letvenko and Thomas Linker.

Ralph Hunter, Sr. is the President and founder of the African American Heritage Museum of Southern New Jersey where he oversees the collection of memorabilia that can be seen at the Martin Luther King Center in Newtonville. It had been his dream to travel to the shores of the great River Nile in Africa and the dream was fulfilled when he and a small group toured the continent in 1995. He will share photographs of his cultural adventure and discuss some of the highlights at a reception.

Stunning natural scenery is featured in Rod Robinson's photographs of East and South African landscapes and wildlife. Robinson hunts his graceful prey with a digital camera. The viewer is transported to the plains of Africa with the a blink of his lens. His pictures describe the dusty heat and the fragility of its natural inhabitants and vegetation and combine to share the thrill of a rare moment in time. The former attorney and son of a Tuskegee Airman enjoys sharing his passion for the beauty of God's creation.

Jacqueline Hall-Smith resides in Mays Landing but her curiosity about human nature has taken her all over the world. Seeking knowledge about her African roots, her extensive travels have helped her to learn more about people of color everywhere and therefore about herself. The African American Heritage Museum is pleased to display artifacts she collected on trips to Senegal, Ghana and Ethiopia. Her exhibit will become a family affair as she also presents a fashion show during the reception featuring the African-inspired clothing designed and marketed by her sister, Angeline Hall-Watts, for Damali Creations. The garments are made by Ghanaian craftspeople of African cloth. A portion of the profits supports the economic development of workers.

It's not often that someone has a chance to right historical wrongs.But that's the case with the painter Earl K. Parker III. From the 1900's to the early 1950's, Atlantic City's beaches were segregated. But Mr. Parker, who is black, recently finished a series of murals of Atlantic City beach scenes in the 1940's in which he made sure that those beaches were integrated by painting in himself, his family and his friends...

Leonard was born in Orange, New Jersey where he attended public school and was graduated from East Orange High School in 1962. Upon graduation Leonard worked for an advertising agency in Montclair until his induction into the Armed Forces. His separation from the U.S. Air Force in 1970 led him back to his Hometown where he joined the police department. Leonard served seven years on the Orange Police Force. While with the p.d. he decided to go back to art school part-time...

Todd is an artist with an ever-growing desire to produce art. "We all have God-given talents, and I believe two of my talents are: 1) seeing art in the smallestof things; and 2) being able toproduce art using various conventional and not so conventional methods."Acrylic, watercolor, gouche. pencil, pen airbrush, spay cans, pastel, oil, alkyd, and the list is growing...

In the Main Gallery, the inspirational photographs and poems of Re! Banfield a.k.a. R. E. B. Manning combine for an exhibit with a twist. His photography complements his poetry in this exhibit of his work. A busy artist, Banfield/Manning also serves as Organist in the service of his church. An educator by day, Banfield/Manning describes himself as a modern artisan with faith in the possibilities of life and love.

Her paintings of flowers and stylized figures are rendered in brilliant acrylic colors that relate a sense of calm and ease when viewed. Her imaginative assemblages are intricately crafted from mixed media. Ms. Irvis' expressive works reveal a quiet wit seasoned with a bold appreciation for nature and a zest for life. The artist accepts commissioned work at her studio in Hammonton.

The cigar box pocketbooks that contemporary artist and cartoonist Rosalyn Wooding creates are portable, whimsical, wearable works of art. She incorporates vibrant color in her expressive designs. Whether artfully displayed on a pedestal or dangling from one's wrist, her one-of-a-kind purses make an emphatic fashion statement. Her son, Jordan, helped to design two of the creations on display.