Symbiosis is a mutually beneficial relationship between different groups or individuals. It’s a special type of bond that helps both groups grow and thrive together and in their own ways.
The Matheny Arts Access Program, part of Matheny Medical & Educational Center, is a fine arts program that empowers individuals with disabilities to create art without boundaries in the visual, performing, and literary arts in Peapack, NJ. The WAE Center at JSDD is a holistic, creative, and expressive arts learning center in Livingston, NJ, for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Each program is dedicated to enabling people with disabilities to produce fine art through the use of innovative systems and techniques.
Since the spring of 2011, these two organizations have come together every year to showcase the talents and achievements of artists with intellectual and developmental disabilities in New Jersey. For over a decade, Matheny Arts Access and the WAE Center have met in Newark and installed an expansive exhibit throughout the halls of Rutgers’ New Jersey Medical School. This annual summer exhibit filled the vast hallways with light, color, and possibility. The many artists whose work was on display attended openings and brought their families and friends to see both: the plethora of art and the artists who manifest it.
Back at the start of the pandemic, this annual summer exhibit and opening reception evolved into a digital space, keeping the artists and the attendees safe and healthy while also declaring that COVID wasn’t going to stop these artists from sharing their creativity with the world. This change completely transformed the scope and structure of the exhibit and allowed each artist to really listen to their peers speak about their process and their joy at creating.
Zak Zablow, an artist at the WAE Center, says “it is so great to see how many artists are out there creating stuff. Amazing work and so different than what I am doing. I love hearing each person’s story, and seeing how their art turns out.”
This year, we are seeing this partnership evolve once again into a new and exciting exhibit, Summer Symbiosis: a collaborative exhibit by Matheny Arts Access and the WAE Center, presented in-person at the Heidi Gallery at JSDD. It marks a new turn in the road of a longtime partnership in bringing the work of artists with intellectual and developmental disabilities into a commercial art space.
When told about being included in this year’s new exhibit, Josh Handler, an artist at Matheny Arts Access, said, “I’m so happy about that!” He went on to say how he “wants to keep the art world in suspense, wants to keep it fresh, and doesn’t want to disappoint his loyal fans.”
“Like a branch of the same tree we grew and grew to come together and exhibit art with Matheny once more as we have over the years,” Esther Tanahashi remarks. “Only this time in our very own Heidi Gallery, showing the work side by side.”
“Collaborating with the WAE Center has really become a highlight for us every year,” Arianne Petersen, Communications Specialist at Matheny Arts Access, says. “Besides the fact that our organizations are so aligned with our purposes, which honestly makes it such a joy to work together, our artists have expressed so much enthusiasm for our collaborative exhibits.”
Summer Symbiosis is a collaborative exhibit featuring two organizations, fifty artists, and innumerable possibilities. It celebrates the artists of both organizations as well as the long established relationship between them. Marilynn Schneider, a current member of the Heidi Gallery Advisory Committee and a longtime WAE Center Director speaks to the power of such a collaboration:
“Through many years the relationship between Matheny Arts Access and the WAE Center at JSDD has transformed the lives of all our members. This exhibit has brought the two organizations and their many artists together annually to share pride, anticipation, and connection. The two professional teams have worked hard and seen the reward of artists who see and hear kindred spirits: sharing ideas, inspirations, and their life stories. This growing connection between artists impacted families, friends, and caregivers, enriching the lives of all who have come to participate and observe this event.”
Summer Symbiosis will be on display from July 22 through August 18 at the Heidi Gallery in Livingston, NJ. Plan your visit to the gallery by visiting www.jsddmetrowest.org/heidi-gallery/ or emailing HeidiGallery@jsdd.org. And please join the artists for an opening reception on Sunday, July 28 from 2 – 4 pm.
Follow Matheny Arts Access on social media @MathenyArtsAccess and the WAE Center on social media @WAEcenter for the latest news about each organization and their artists. And follow the Heidi Gallery at JSDD on social media @HeidiGalleryatJSSD to hear about all their exciting events.
Read on the Bernardsville-Bedminster Patch here.
