Independent Artist Studios in the Media

New mural stands out on theater at RVCC

This article appeared in the New Brunswick Home News Tribune on August 17, 2009

By MARTIN C. BRICKETTO
STAFF WRITER

Waves and swirls of stained glass in all colors of the rainbow now decorate what once was a less-than-striking wall in front of the Theatre at Raritan Valley Community College.

Artists Liz Nicklus and Carl Johnson on Friday were putting the final touches on a mural at the facility after two weeks of work. The theater's entrance is undergoing a broader face lift that includes the replacement of its front steps. The college's foundation is underwriting the cost of the mural.

"The main thing was that they wanted something very bright," Nicklus said. "They wanted a piece that would make an impact. They didn't want it to blend into the surroundings. They really wanted this to stand out."

Nicklus and Johnson operate under the name Independent Artist Studios. Before arriving at the college, the artists spent weeks cutting sheets of stained glass into smaller tiles and sorting them by color, a process that took place at their studio in Millville, Cumberland County.

"We're fortunate," Nicklus said. "They really wanted us to pull out all the stops with the color."

In addition to the stained glass, the mural includes several ceramic pieces crafted by college students, with designs ranging from a leaf to a violin.

A request for proposals for the project was issued in 2008, and yielded a dozen responses from all over the country, according to Betty Demy Hutcheon, executive director of the foundation.

"The arts are universal. They don't belong to a specific time or place or space," Hutcheon said. "For us, the feeling was that the abstract quality of this could have that universal appeal."

"People can look at it and see all kinds of things," Hutcheon added. "The rhythm, the color, the forms suggest to me the excitement I find in all of the arts."

The foundation hopes to raise $25,000 for the mural and an additional $250,000 for a theater endowment through the sale of paving stones and stars that also will be installed at the theater's renovated entrance.

The weather hasn't always cooperated with the artists. On Thursday, they worked through rain because the piece already had been grouted. The grout used to secure the mural will harden even in damp weather, they said. Nicklus said they ran to Wendy's and then sat in the car to see if the rain would let up in a short time span. It didn't.

"We just put on our rain gear and went back out," Nicklus said. "Once you start, you can't stop."

The 984-seat theater opened in 1985, with a black-tie gala on its opening night featuring Kitty Carlisle Hart. That first season included performers such as Pearl Bailey. Shows presented by the Theatre since then have included Tito Puente, Judy Collins, Lee Greenwood and the New Jersey Ballet.

Martin C. Bricketto: 908-243-6609; mbricketto@MyCentralJersey.com