Experience SOMA's Best Art for Free on Sunday

This article originally ran on May 28.

South Orange and Maplewood are bursting with talented visual artists, and this Sunday presents a unique opportunity to experience their work locally, for free.

The 10th annual SOMA Artists Studio Tour, on Sunday from 11 a.m. – 5 p.m., features the work of nearly 80 artists in studios, galleries and group exhibitions throughout the two towns. The free tour is self-guided so visitors can set their own pace.

One of the region's most highly regarded arts events, the tour includes the work of painters, photographers, sculptors, ceramicists, jewelers, craftspeople, and multimedia artists. Participants can experience the creative process, talk to the artists themselves, and purchase selected works.

The tour was founded in 2003, as a joint project of the Pierro Gallery of South Orange and Friends of Maplewood Recreation / 1978. 

Check the SOMA Studio Tour website for artist profiles and galleries, and personalized tour maps searchable by genre, medium, and location—as well as family-friendly walking tours through specific neighborhoods. 

For more information on individual artists, visit Meet the Artists, a series of video interviews with 19 of the artists that can be seen on the Tour website, on YouTube the SOMATv website. 

Another aspect of the tour is ABC = Art & Business Connection, an ongoing series of exhibitions by area artists, hosted by South Orange businesses that runs through June 2. 

In conjunction with the Artists Tour are the following local exhibitions: 

The Pierro Gallery of South Orange will present SOMA: Engaging Art, an exhibition that relies on a community for its creation and significance.  Artists include: Gerard Amsellem and Mikel Frank; Russell Christian; William Figdor; Suzanne Henning, Jody Lee, William Moloney and the Community Coalition on Race. 

A special project curated by GAS Gallery owner and artist Rick Hauser entitled, TEN: The Soul of SOMA—a collaborative work created by local artists to commemorate the 10^th Anniversary of the Studio Tour. The exhibition celebrates the artists—as well as the creative community of South Orange and Maplewood—and will be open to the public through June 23.  

The Herb & Milly Iris Gallery at SOPAC will present Primal Convergence, a collection of paintings, drawings, collages, constructs, and sculptures by Gerard Amsellem & Mikel Frank, and Dan Fenelon. Curated by Micha Hamilton of GAS Gallery & Studio, runs through July 31. 

Seton Hall University’s Walsh Gallery will be hosting Cell Mates—two distinct group shows on view side by side in adjacent galleries.