View of 2601 Pacific Avenue where artists have transformed a former church into a pop-up art gallery. (Photo courtesy of Ruben Garcia / Atlantic City Arts Foundation)
(ATLANTIC CITY, NJ) -- Atlantic City Arts Foundation unveiled 'The Ministry of ARTeriors' at 2601 Pacific Avenue with three days of opening weekend receptions. This marks the 11th installment of ARTeriors, an immersive pop-up art installation that highlights the power of art to transform vacant commercial spaces in transition. The Ministry of ARTeriors is open now for free gallery hours on Fridays and Saturdays through December 13, 2025 for the public to experience and explore.
"We are thrilled with the turnout and the overwhelmingly positive response from the community," said Michael Atkins, Executive Director of the Atlantic City Arts Foundation. "ARTeriors demonstrates the capacity for art to breathe life into underutilized spaces and create accessible platforms for artistic expression. This weekend proved the vital role that art and creative placemaking play in the revitalization and renewal of Atlantic City, and the power of art to enhance urban environments. A healthy city has clean and safe streets, and art galleries."
The nonprofit organization hosted three opening receptions with music and food to showcase the work of ten selected artists whose mediums include murals, sculpture, mixed media, video installation, neon gaslighting, upholstery, and puppetry, all displayed within the unique setting of a previously active storefront ministry. Many of the artists examined themes relating to faith, divinity, spirituality, worship, and signs of peace. Featured artists were selected from a pool of 52 applicants, all of which were evaluated with the help of a 12-member advisory committee representing artists, business owners, and advocates who live or work in the city.
Em White, Assisting Artist, with standing with her installation Come & Color. (Photo courtesy of Nastassia Davis / Atlantic City Arts Foundation)
"I chose to serve on the Advisory Committee because I think that creativity and community go hand in hand and is much needed here in Atlantic City," said KJ Tandoc, local DJ and Atlantic City resident. "My message to artists is to continue to use your talents to transform, uplift and inspire. Atlantic City welcomes you with open arms!"
Past pop-up gallery sites have included the James Salt Water Taffy Factory (2023), the Formica Bakery (2016), Showboat (2019), and the Tanger Outlets (2023). ARTeriors has a track record of spurring redevelopment, with many of the earliest galleries occurring within the emergent Orange Loop. To review the past decade of ARTeriors, please read more online.
"This art is here and now but not forever, that's one reason ARTeriors is so special, is that it's ephemeral," said Tina Notaro, Program Manager at Atlantic City Arts Foundation. "Participating artists have the chance to take risks and experiment, having only two weeks to install something that will only exist for a month, it creates pressure while at the same time alleviating it. This program is truly a testament to the creative spirit and what is possible when vision meets action. Anyone who visits this iteration of ARTeriors will be enchanted and inspired by what they see."
The Ministry of ARTeriors is hosted on a block of Pacific Avenue known as Farmers Row, at the site where C.R.O.P.S. (Communities Revolutionizing Open Public Spaces) will operate a food distribution hub to forward their mission of fighting food insecurity in Atlantic County. The local nonprofit organization strives to increase access to nutritious local food by creating spaces for community members to grow food and participate in gardening education and farmer training programs. C.R.O.P.S. is developing the food hub in partnership with CARING, Inc., Reed's Organic Farm, Chelsea EDC, and the Green Coalition of Atlantic City.
The Ministry of ARTeriors is open through December 13, 2025 with free public gallery hours from 12:00pm to 5:00pm on Fridays and Saturdays. The gallery will host additional programming during its run, including a closing reception on Friday December 12, 2025.
Gallery visitors examine Malcom by Sam Cronick at the Ministry of ARTeriors. (Photo courtesy of Nastassia Davis / Atlantic City Arts Foundation)
The Ministry of ARTeriors includes the following artists and their titled artwork:
* Sam Cronick, Malcom
* Bernard DelaCruz, Art Saved Me
* Alissa Eberle, Disappear Here
* Kenneth Lazan Faulk, Jr., Everyday Saints
* Nat Greene, Giant Accordion Playing Puppet - Malcolm Tent
* Chanelle René, Saints + Sinners
* Heather Shawne, In Luck We Trust
* Vanessa Spollen-Jaramillo, Echoes from the Shore
* Intercommunity Collaboration (Ramona Williams, Kelley Prevard, David Bowman & Belinda Manning), Seeding a Community of Peace
* Painted Lady Studio (Helen Clymer), Believe
More information about ARTeriors can be found at www.atlanticcityartsfoundation.org/arteriors.
Atlantic City Arts Foundation wishes to thank the sponsors who support the nonprofit and our local community of artists. Special thanks to our Presenting Sponsors Thrive AC and Prudential North to Shore, and to our Site Sponsor CARING, Inc. for partnering to make the space available and open to the public. Additional support provided by ACDEVCO, Stockton Noyes Arts Garage, and the Casino Reinvestment Development Corporation.
The Atlantic City Arts Foundation creates artist opportunities and engages the community with free arts and cultural programming. ACAF programs activate civic pride and self-esteem through interaction with public art, including 105 murals, the city's largest mural arts program, as well as the 48 Blocks Festival and ARTeriors. ACAF envisions a city where residents, businesses, government, and visitors value arts and culture as a means to stimulate economic development, encourage engagement, and promote community well-being.
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