Paper Mill Playhouse to Celebrate Black History Month with Thelonious Monk Visual Arts Exhibition

Paper Mill Playhouse will present The Space Between Notes: Dualities and Emotions Beneath Monk's Brim, the newest visual arts exhibition at The Gallery at Paper Mill in the Renee Foosaner Art Gallery on display from February 3 – February 28th
 
Using the legendary American jazz musician Thelonious Monk's iconic ideology – based on individuality, creativity, and musical themes as symbolic motifs – this exhibition is a celebration of Monk's unique musical genius and legacy. In addition to an exhibition of family archives, artists will interpret his emotional depth, dualities in music, and strategic use of silence through visual art.
 
Located on the mezzanine level of Paper Mill Playhouse, The Space Between Notes can be enjoyed daily from 12:00-6:00pm and by patrons attending an upcoming performance of the new musical Mystic Pizza. No ticket is required to view the Gallery.
 
The public is also invited to attend the exhibition’s opening reception on Monday, February 3 from 5:00-7:00pm.
 
Paper Mill Playhouse board member Rita J. Sallis has connected the Monk Family Estate and Paper Mill Playhouse for this celebratory exhibit of Monk’s life. Sallis said, “Paper Mill is the nation’s premier musical theater and has been an institution in our community for over eight decades. The gallery in the theater offers an opportunity to showcase more of the power of storytelling through visual medium. This exhibit celebrates the music and legacy of Thelonious Monk and introduces the work of several local artists influenced by his legacy. Paper Mill’s collaboration with the Monk estate highlights the genius of Thelonious Monk and how extensively a legacy can be felt beyond measure.” In conjunction with the Monk Family Estate, the exhibition will feature rare archival photos of Monk and family memories.
 
The 12 artists featured throughout the exhibition were selected through an open submission process hosted by the Estate. They are especially proud of the robust Monk-fandom who support our endeavors across platforms, which resulted in a higher volume of quality entries that made the selection process more difficult to finalize for the constraint of space.
 
Since the 2022 reopening of the reimagined and reinvigorated Gallery at Paper Mill in the Renee Foosaner Art Gallery, the space has housed 12 exhibitions, many shown concurrently and thematically with Paper Mill Playhouse productions. Exhibitions have showcased both local and nationally recognized visual artists, with an emphasis on showcasing diverse New Jersey-based artists made possible through local partnerships with J. Nunez Gallery, Calabar Gallery, Artfair14C, the New Jersey Arts Association and others.
 
The Gallery’s origins can be traced to Antoinette Scudder, one of Paper Mill’s original founders and a visual arts lover, who insisted that a gallery be included when the original design was created for the theater in 1934. The works of local artists were first displayed in the Gallery when the theater opened in 1938.
 

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