Introducing Newark’s First Family of the Arts, "3-The-Art-Way "

(NEWARK, NJ) -- On Thursday, October 6th, Newark Arts Festival (“NAF”) will kick off at The Newark Museum of Art (“NMOA”). The event will celebrate 21 years of NAF, which was voted New Jersey’s Favorite Visual Arts Festival two years in a row. The exhibition, titled Newark Arts Festival: Artful Healing, is being organized by NAF Lead Curator Adrienne Wheeler and NMOA Curatorial Assistant Elena C. Muñoz-Rodriguez. It will feature the dynamic artwork from local and global artists using the theme that art is medicine.

This year’s celebration will feature hundreds of local and international artists as Newark celebrates its diverse contribution to the arts and the American fabric. This year’s celebration will also include Newark’s first family of the arts, dubbed “3-The-Art-Way,” encompassing a special trio that includes the works of a mother, Yvonne Onque, and her two sons, Samad Onque and Suliman Onque.

The family are all natives of Newark and were born into a well-known artistic family. Yvonne Onque, is an artist and graduate of Arts High School, as was their uncle, the late Bryon Onque, who was a singer, musician and composer who performed for Pope Paul VI in Rome in 1982 under the direction of Leonard Bernstein.

Both Suliman and Samad are also graduates of Arts High School and have been drawing since a very early age. They both participated in a variety of art and poster contests throughout their elementary and high school years and have garnered multiple accolades, awards and scholarships for their artwork.

Over the last several years, the trio has worked on various murals, art projects, exhibitions, and events in and around the City of Newark, as well as across the states of New Jersey and Maryland. The group’s artwork reflects the renderings of the African-American experience and incorporates "hidden messages behind each work of art”.

One of the group’s latest accolades include them all participating in a one-of-a-kind “Black Lives Matter” mural that spanned an entire parking lot at Manufacturers Village in East Orange. The mural is nearly 20,000 square feet and is the largest public art installation in East Orange, New Jersey. Each individual member of the trio brought their own artistic vision to the piece.

During this year’s Newark Arts Fest (NAF) exhibition, 3-The-Art-Way will be hosting an exhibition called h.e.A.R.T. felt (Healing x Expressions x Artistically x Removing x Trauma). The aim of the event is to help stimulate dialogue about the effects of trauma and violence, and how can stakeholders help to transform by inspiring peace through the arts. The group also seeks to create, connect and expand upon the local art scene by blazing trails for other artists from Newark.

The event will feature a range of artistic works through various mediums, including original gallery artwork, comic book illustrations, and wearable art, meshed with live painting, live music, spoken word, and socialization of artists.

“As a native Newarker, I recognize that it is a blessing to be a part of the Newark Arts Festival and the bustling art scene in Newark as a whole," said one of 3-The-Art-Way’s featured artists, Suliman Onque. "I am proud to be able to pay-it forward by partnering with (and raising awareness for) other local artists by helping to bring together up-and-coming artists from the area who do not have either the time or a large enough body of work to have their own gallery."

The reception will be held on Saturday, October 8th, 2022 from 3-6 p.m. at 3 3 Washington Street, Newark, NJ 07102. Along with 3-The-Art-Way, other featured artists and performers at the event include, Janice Anderson, Kwame (Jay Golding Art), Carol Cleveland, Denise L. Tony, Armano Diaz, and others.

For more information about the upcoming exhibition, contact Yusef Ismail at yusef163@gmail.com or visit www.3theartway.com, or www.newarkartsfestival.com.