CAMDEN, NJ—New, hand-painted artwork is transforming the walls of businesses and parks in Camden, New Jersey, and local residents are tapping into their creative side to help. The almost finished ‘Welcome to East’ mural along the exterior of VIP Barbershop, near the corner of 27th and Federal Streets, is the most recent art installation in the East Camden neighborhood.
This mural is part of a local initiative to revitalize the East Camden neighborhood through art; the organization leading this effort is the Saint Joseph’s Carpenter’s Society (SJCS). For more than 30 years, the non-profit continues to promote neighborhood development and quality affordable housing within the City of Camden, which includes homeowner opportunities and education, community-building activities, and rental assistance for those in need. The mural, which receives much of its funding through grants–is one of six large-scale art projects that SJCS installed within the East Camden and Cramer Hill neighborhoods. SJCS collaborates with businesses, residents, and local organizations–like Camden Community Partnership, Hispanic Family Center, and the Camden City Arts Commission, to help beautify the neighborhood.
One of their largest pieces of art, Invincible Tiger, is a 26-foot-long orange and black tiger made from recycled automobile hoods–sits overlooking Eastside High School. The sculpture, which took three months to complete, pays homage to the school’s mascot and strong neighborhood pride. Another large installation, the Camden Kings and Queens Mural decorates Federal Street’s Dudley Grange Park with real-life portraits of smiling Camden students. The portraits, taken by local photographer Erik James Montgomery, stretch 7 feet tall and are surrounded by bright flags–that represent countries from all over the world. The many flags bring awareness to the diversity of cultures and ethnic backgrounds within Camden City.
Felix Moulier, a revitalization project manager at SJCS and lifelong Camden resident, is excited to have an active part in visually transforming his neighborhood. “There’s so much opportunity to beautify the City, so why not beautify through art,” says Moulier, who works to find ideal locations and grant opportunities for new art projects. He believes local art serves as a “catalyst for community development which residents really enjoy. They see the artwork, like the concept, then decide to beautify their businesses and their homes.” In an effort to keep the community at the center of each project, SJCS has an East Camden advisory committee they meet with regularly that helps to suggest art ideas.
Welcome to Camden East
The painter behind the most recent ‘Welcome to East’ mural, Roberto Trinidad Morales, Camden resident and local tattoo artist, who began to visually transform public spaces in Camden with his first mural in 2018. His dedication to creatively spotlighting the positives of Camden through public art landed him a seat as a member of the Camden City Arts, Cultural, and Heritage Commission, which he officially joined this month. His artwork is being noticed by residents, who are looking forward to seeing more.
Vanessa Moore, a resident of the East Camden neighborhood, spotted the nearly complete mural as she was leaving the nail salon on Tuesday and is eager to see the finished design. “The new art throughout the City definitely brightens up our community,” says Moore, “in the past, we only saw billboard advertisements, but we’ve never had art on display this before.” She hopes the creative artwork continues to grow and serve as an inspiration to the youth. ‘Welcome to East’ is part of a proposed ‘Welcome to Camden’ mural series that will be painted throughout other neighborhoods within the City.
SJCS has no plans to slow down efforts to collaborate with artists who are passionate about beautifying the City through creativity. They plan to launch a new project in June along the Federal Street business corridor in East Camden at the intersection of 26th and Federal Streets. According to Moulier, this new painting will be a collage that highlights special moments within East Camden’s history. Over the next few months, residents can be sure that businesses within their neighborhoods will continue to look more colorful.
To learn more about the work SJCS is doing in the Camden community, visit their website at: sjcscamden.org.
This story was produced as part of the Center for Cooperative Media at Montclair State University’s South Jersey Information Equity Project fellowship and supported with funding from the Independence Public Media Foundation.
