Throughout March, the 1978 Maplewood Arts Center has celebrated Women’s History Month with its annual collaborative art exhibition, Just Like a Girl. The exhibition will be up for viewing through this weekend, Saturday and Sunday, March 28 and 29, from 4 to 7 p.m. each day.
“The exhibition aims to challenge stereotypes and showcase the creativity, strength, and vision of young female artists,” is how the Center describes the show on its website. “The exhibition strives to explore and redefine the phrase Just Like a Girl through their art — flipping outdated narratives and demonstrating the power, resilience and brilliance of girls in the creative world.”
The exhibition showcases 55 works of art by more than 30 Maplewood and South Orange artists between the ages of 10 and 20 who identify as female or non-binary.
During the opening reception earlier this month, the 1978 Maplewood Arts Center, in partnership with the Maplewood Division of Arts & Culture, announced its first, second and third place winners along with two honorable mentions:
Caroline Shaw, 17, took first place with her oil and embroidery on canvas titled, “We Share a Moment in the Meadow.”
Caroline Shaw’s oil and embroidery painting on canvas titled, “We Share a Moment in the Meadow.”
Thalia Mazzocchi, 16, took second place with her acrylic painting titled, “The Only Way Out is Through.”
Thalia Mazzocchi’s acrylic painting titled, “The Only Way Out is Through.”
Francie Christensen, 17, took third place with her oil painting on canvas titled, “Darkness Reveals.”
Francie Christensen’s oil painting titled, “Darkness Reveals.”
Saanvi Rohatgi, 18, was the first honorable mention with her photograph titled, “Bloom, Anyway.”
Saanvi Rohatgi’s photograph titled, “Bloom Anyway.”
Alice Schabacker, 16, was the second honorable mention with her oil painting titled, “Property Sold at 1:00.”
Alice Schabacker’s oil painting titled, “Property Sold at 1:00.”
Village Green talked to a few of the artists about their art and their inspirations.
When asked what inspires her to create art, Francie Christensen said, “I have never been great with writing or verbalizing my thoughts and feelings, so art is my way of transforming these feelings into something physical that can potentially mean something to other people. Interesting people also inspire me to create art.”
A photograph by Francie Christensen
Alice Schabacker said that she loves to “take inspiration from my surroundings. I love using art to capture the beauty of things that would otherwise go unnoticed.”
They also discussed their art processes look like. “I need to tap into the right headspace,” Christensen said, “and then I kind of just go for it.”
Schabacker described her process this way: “I love taking my own pictures of things that I find beautiful. When I translate the photos, I like to play with color and contrast, enhancing things to make it more visually appealing.”
Additional painting by Alice Schabacker
When asked what art means to her, Christensen replied, “Art means every single thing to me.”
For Schabacker, “Art is a way for me to relax and take my mind off of external pressures. When I draw or paint, my mind is completely fixated on what I’m creating, allowing me to take a step back from reality.”
Both girls began making art when they were quite young, with Christensen starting as a toddler and Schabacker showing interest in preschool.
“It was in elementary school when I started drawing more frequently and middle school when I started taking classes to improve,” Schabacker said.
Both say they plan to pursue careers in art. “I wouldn’t be happy if I did anything else,” Christensen said.
Schabacker said she plans on going to school for art and would love to someday teach either college or high school students.” I think it’s really important for people to learn how to say what they’re thinking without needing to use words, as one language can’t be understood by all, but art transcends language,” she said.
Another featured artist, Áine Cope, a 5th grader at Seth Boyden, also shared what she likes best about creating art: “My favorite part about creating art is getting into a flow state, where I stop thinking and just make the art.”
Aine Cope, a 5th grader at Seth Boyden, in front of her colorful mixed media art.
Khadijah Lane is a 12th grader at Columbia High School, working as paid student freelancer with Village Green through a grant from the NJ Civic Information Consortium.
