The Advocate
The non-profit organization New Brunswick Tomorrow was founded in 1975 in order to restore the community’s social resources after many of the city’s businesses and residents moved to the suburbs, and today is still dedicated to improving the quality of life in New Brunswick. New Brunswick is a unique community brimming with culture, including Latino influence, Hungarian history and a population of diverse college students. There are, however, a number of issues the community faces. A lack of creative community spaces where residents can organize is one of the main obstacles residents face, and through its Esperanza Neighborhood Project, New Brunswick Tomorrow is working to implement these spaces and motivate the community to come together as one.
Beginning in mid-2016, New Brunswick Tomorrow joined forces with coLAB Arts in order to create art in addition to creative spaces that reflect the neighborhood’s unique identity. coLAB Arts is an artist-driven organization that addresses the issues of vulnerable communities in New Brunswick through theatre, art and dance. New Brunswick Tomorrow, through its Esperanza Neighborhood Project, is working with coLAB Arts to creatively fulfill their mission of improving the lives of the people of New Brunswick.
Charles Bergman, the Director of the Esperanza Neighborhood Project, believes the inner city, composed of mainly Spanish-speaking residents, not only requires physical change, but social transformation. “Making the city look good and generating more real estate property taxes are great,” he states, “but what are we doing to meet the social and economic needs for the people living here?” This is where NBT, with the help of coLAB Arts, has stepped in. One central project is a city mural to be located at Las Cazuelas at the corner of French and Bayard Streets. The mural is to be finished in mid-May by local artist Ingrid Morales, wherein the stories, culture and personalities of New Brunswick’s residents will shine through. Through this artistic piece, the appearance of the city will flourish in addition to the social representation of its residents.
Bergman believes that through these art projects and installations, New Brunswick residents can collaborate with one another in a social setting. “The mural is a project to show that we can use this partnership to catalyze this art project driven by community input, and we hope it is a blueprint for further work, like making a market (mercado) a performance place or for more murals in the future.” Bergman predicts the brightened appearance through art in combination with the social response from residents will draw more community members out to organize and attend events such as dance performances or music festivals.
Through this collaboration and projects such as the mural or a new marketplace with fresh food, residents have come up with some ideas of their own. Community members, including parents and children, appear to be excited about the upcoming art projects, which has not been accessible to this Latino community before. Their interest in seeing their own cultural heritage being reflected in the community through projects like the mural have inspired them to explore art and music more, inspiring them to attend community outreach events such as the Esperanza Mercado Neighborhood Charrette. At the Charrette, I met with members of coLAB Arts in addition to people working with NBT, such as Bergman, where residents voiced their dreams and goals for the community. Residents introduced the idea of enhancing art and music education within city schools as one example. This is a project within itself, but is something that is motivating residents to create change through art.
When revitalizing a community with residents of low-income status or vulnerability, it takes a lot more than funding to create change. The collaboration between NBT and coLAB Arts has facilitated a welcoming environment wherein residents feel motivated to come together, formulate ideas, and work towards a piece of art or a performance that tells their stories and reflects their culture. The exposure to art projects and seeing the change in which they create has inspired residents to take part in these efforts. I am convinced that New Brunswick, and the Esperanza Neighborhood especially, will look a lot different in 10 years as a result of this collaboration.
