FOCUS, 2026

September 1, 2026 – Ongoing

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This installation brings together images made by Prof. Anthony Alvarez and students from the Studio Photography class, creating portraits of participants in FOCUS Hispanic Center for Community Development, Inc.’s older adult program. The program provides seniors with comprehensive services in a caring environment that promotes wellness, independence, and social connection. Through portraiture, the project creates a space for participants to be seen as individuals with rich histories, experiences, and contributions to their communities. These portraits center the themes of legacy and family, inviting participants to reflect on the people and stories that have shaped their lives while celebrating the long standing presence and diversity of the Hispanic community here in Newark, NJ. 

 

The project is rooted in a collaboration with Prof. Chantal Fischzang and students in the Design Consortium class, who are working with FOCUS on a brand refresh. Together, the photography and design projects explore how visual identity can communicate the cultural richness of the organization and the people it serves. These portraits are images that honor the individual while connecting personal stories to larger narratives of family, migration, resilience, cultural identity, and belonging. By bringing students into direct collaboration with FOCUS participants, the project creates an intergenerational exchange by which photography becomes a tool for listening, storytelling, and a celebration of the legacy of the Hispanic community and the families whose histories continue to shape our community.

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Mantel

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Carved from cherry wood, this Neoclassical-style fireplace mantel dates to the 1890s and was acquired from its original location in Park Slope, Brooklyn. MANTEL was brought to Express Newark as a reference to a fireplace that once stood in the historic Hahne & Co. department store.

A booklet published for Hahne & Co.’s 53rd anniversary in 1964 described four mezzanine balconies situated between the first and second floors:

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“Midway between the First and Second Floors were four Mezzanine Balconies which were intended for the use of patrons desiring to rest or write, or as places to meet their friends. One of these is devoted to nursery purposes and here children can be rightly cared for and entertained. The finest views of the first floor may be had from these points.”

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Just outside Express Newark’s present-day entrance was one of these balconies, featuring an ornamental brick fireplace mantel, pictured below in a historic illustration and a 2016 photograph taken before the building’s renovation. Though decorative, the fireplace was constructed of actual brick and wired for two side sconces and electric logs in the hearth.

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MANTEL reimagines this element of Hahne’s history for Express Newark. Like the mezzanine balconies that preceded it, it is intended as a destination for resting, meeting, and gathering. The mantel will also serve as a changing site for artists, presenting rotating exhibitions and interventions. ​​​