Yendor Arts Beautifies Newark With Building Murals

As a part of our "Newark at a Crossroads" series, taped at NJIT, Rodney Gilbert, Founder and Executive Director of Yendor Arts, shares the ways he and his team are beautifying Newark by painting positive and powerful murals on buildings throughout the city.

9/26/16 #1902

Excerpt:

"We are thrilled to welcome our good friend Rodney Gilbert founder and executive director of an organization called Yendor arts how you doing? I’m great Steve, how are you? I’m doing great, by the way talk about what Yendor arts is. Yendor arts was created to serve underserved populations and artists who kinda, their voices weren't heard I had worked for major arts institutions along the east coast and decided I wanted to form something that kind of served Newark area, the area here, so that the kids would get to see me on a continual basis, working on arts. To disclose, Rodney works excuse me, in cooperation with our stand and deliver youth leadership development program you've made such a difference with the young men and women in our program, why do you believe, Rodney, arts education is so, and the arts so important for young men and women in the city? Well, I believe we all have a niche, you know, some people are athletes, some people are high scholars and then I think some people are artists, or the arts can be a way where you find your voice or you are allowed to take the discipline of the art form and apply it to your academics or apply it to your life skills so that's been my experience over the, you know, last twenty some odd years, with youth it either, they have a true artistic calling or they're looking for another way to discipline themselves and the arts and public speaking has always been a way for you to formalize that beyond public speaking and that's what we focus on and Rodney's been so helpful on that way, murals we're gonna show some murals this mural initiative. Talk about it as we look at it. It initially started as a way as a gateway entry into Newark for people to see the city as a beautified place, this is one of our actual latest murals for 350th at Newark... 350th anniversary? 350th anniversary of Newark and Newark school of the arts which is almost at its 50th. Who did that? Benchmark. An artist Sterling Brown and another artist, Malcolm rolling worked on this piece they are four stories wonderful piece, wonderful piece. Pick up the next one because I’m gonna ask you a personal question... This is the latest piece that got a New York Times mention, this is in partnership with the Lincoln Park coast cultural district, and this is about culture and how it bubbles up, by a local artist who's a graffiti artist Turf Warz, Oscar crews fantastic artist, lives in the north ward, is raising his children here..."