Art Without Limits

“Art Without Limits speaks more to the artist than the art. It speaks to the process of creating, and the unlimited imagination of the creator.”
– Eileen Murray, Director of Arts Access

One of the most highly anticipated events at Arts Access, Full Circle is a multi-disciplinary fine arts showcase featuring original work created by the Arts Access artists. This year, Full Circle explored the very core of our program’s ideology: creating art without limits.

Leading up to the event, a number of articles were written promoting Full Circle and highlighting some of the incredibly talented artists who would be participating this year.

One article shined a spotlight on Josh Handler, an artist who has been participating at Arts Access since the program’s inception in 1993. Already a well-established visual artist, Josh debuted his original choreography for the first time at Full Circle this year. Inspired by Debbie Gibson’s “Lost In Your Eyes,” Josh’s dance is an expression of the pure joy of movement with a personal narrative, feeling love and expressing love.

A second article featured several artists, including Amy Myers, another first-time participant in Full Circle’s stage show. “All of my plays are about stories of my life,” Amy explained in the article. “Playwriting is a way that I get my feelings out. It’s a good way to explain about people with disabilities, about my life, and what people don’t understand.” Amy was also one of the playwrights who attended a summer theatre workshop at Raritan Valley Community College this summer.

On Saturday, November 2, the doors of the Robert Schonhorn Arts Center opened wide to welcome the excited public for Full Circle 2019.

In the gallery, the talents of the Arts Access painters were on full display. The walls were lined with 65 acrylic and digital paintings. The wide breadth of styles, techniques, and motifs elegantly exemplified this year’s theme of Art Without Limits. Several of the artists got to mingle with their fans and supporters, sharing insights and receiving praise for their work.

This year’s stage show featured diverse work from 11 different Arts Access writers and choreographers. Three of those artists were first time participants in the Full Circle stage show. The audience laughed and cried, and all of the artists were met with thunderous applause at the conclusion of the show.

Lee Papierowicz, a newcomer to Arts Access, opened the stage show with her first completed choreography “Confident.” Lee’s dance is a tribute to her cousin who currently serves in the US Army, while also demonstrating her own patriotism and personal strength.

Chris Saglimbene debuted a powerful and personal performance piece about emotional and mental health to the song, “One More Light” by Linkin Park. At the end of the piece, Chris joined the performers onstage and gave an impassioned speech about the importance of mental health and shared publicly for the first time his own struggle with depression and anxiety. As Chris said, “Do not be afraid to admit that you suffer in silence. You are not alone.”

At the end of the afternoon, seven original paintings were sold from the gallery, many dozens of pieces of merchandise featuring artwork by the Arts Access artists were purchased, and the many attendees were delighted by the unique works performed on stage. Arts Access was proud to celebrate once again the creative achievements of our artists. Thank you to everyone who joined us to celebrate the infinite and limitless imaginations of the Arts Access artists!