(ATLANTIC HIGHLANDS, NJ) -- The Atlantic Highlands Arts Council (AHArts) presents “DISRUPTION: art of change” in the main gallery, “DISRUPTION: art of change” and “Plums, Pomegranate and other Players.”in the window galleries. They will be on display from April 23 to May 28, 2022.

DISRUPTION will invite viewers into conversation about being alive in today’s volatile yet beautiful world. The exhibit will feature five artists, including several New Jersey-based artists and members of the Leonides Arts Collective. Through a mix of abstract paintings and portraiture, along with several sculptures and multi-media works, the exhibit will invite viewers to reflect on themes and experiences of disruption: Ecology and planetary change; the Black Lives Matter movement, racial and social justice and intersectionality; the changing art world – impacts of technology and social media on artists’ lives and livelihoods; disruptions to arts education – virtual classrooms and disrupted learning during the pandemic; and the human psyche and the subconscious response to a volatile world - navigating uncertainty.

“DISRUPTION: art of change” will feature: Jillian Carlock, Heather Roy, and members of the Leonides Arts Collective [Ricardo Osmondo Francis, David D. Oquendo, Seth Ruggles Hiler] 

In the street level window galleries, Stacey AS Pritchard fills the space with “Plums, Pomegranate and other Players.” Using hybrid animal-human characters, she continues to explore themes of myth, nature and feminism. With this grouping, she plays with patterns from the botanical world around her and investigates how they enhance and disguise form. She uses careful studies of American Holly, Plum, Dawn Redwood, Pomegranates, Flowers and more to experiment with repetition, light and form. This has led to new hybrid forms, speaking to various ideas of pleasure, self, history and nature.

Exhibits will be on display from April 23 through May 28, 2022. The gallery is open from Wednesday through Sunday. AHArts will be hosting an in-person Opening Reception & Artist Talk on Saturday, April 30, 2022 from 6:00pm-8:00pm, with the artist talk at 6:30pm.  For hours and directions, please click here.

The mission of the Atlantic Highlands Arts Council is to strengthen community through the arts. They are a 100% volunteer 501(c)3 non-profit organization that believes in the power of the arts to transform and enrich communities. Their primary function is to develop and execute events and arts related activities for the benefit of our communities.

IMAGES: (TOP) Artwork by Osmondo Francis, "Allegory of Triumph" (BOTTOM) Artwork by Stacey AS Pritchard, "Entwife of the Botanical Garden"