 "Photo: Rosie Snow")
A hand-blown glass necklace sparkles in the light coming through the window. A silk kimono, dyed sunset pinks and oranges, drapes from the wall. Next to it, carefully stitched jean jackets are on display, begging to be worn. But there are no changing rooms here.
These clothes are more than just something to throw on - they are art.
The Newark Arts Alliance is now showcasing the work of 15 community members in their "Art of Adornment" exhibit. The artists, ranging from ages 14 to 70, created a wide variety of wearable artwork, including dyed silk, embroidery, quilting, beaded pieces and knits.
Fourteen-year-old Eliza Caws contributed dangly hotdog earrings, one topped with ketchup and the other with mustard. Her mother, Nancy Breslin, crafted earrings out of purple stomach pain tablets.
For Breslin, artistic inspiration came at a seemingly strange time - when she had stomach trouble. She does not like swallowing pills, so she said she would tip the contents of the capsules into yogurt, and then put them back together.
"I had all these capsules and they were so beautiful that I didn't want to throw them out," she said. "They looked so lovely, just these little plastic objects."
She laughed, and said the other earrings she made were of tablets for joint pain.
"They just seem like the perfect earrings for when you're 40," she said.
Another piece by Breslin is a blue silk scarf entitled "Exposed." On the pockets, she applied a special photographic process so the detailed outlines of a Verizon cell phone, Delaware driver's license, $1 bill and spare change are imprinted, creating the illusion of X-ray vision.
"I call it my PATRIOT Act scarf because it's supposed to look like you're seeing what's in my pocket," she said. "It's basically a statement on how the PATRIOT Act infringes on privacy."
Another artist, Laura Spencer, painted bright Gerber daisies on a silk scarf for the show.
Spencer said she was strolling around a flower shop one afternoon when she came upon Gerbers.
"I fell in love with them," she said. "They're just such lively, beautiful flowers, almost too perfect to be real."
Spencer, who has been painting on silk for 10 years, expressed a great love for the medium.
"Working with silk is such a sensuous experience," she said. "It's very seductive - it's something about the colors and the light that comes back from the silk and just the way it flows."
Susan Logan, manager of the Newark Arts Alliance, said most people initially fail to recognize the artistic value of wearables.
"There's a lot of thought that goes into it," Logan said. "It's not just sewing and stringing beads. It's really art."
Browsing through the collection, community members can see a necklace made of copper, pearls, glass and jasper. A crocheted "Red Hot-Pepper Scarf" made of Turkish ribbon yarn hangs near a scarf dyed spring colors.
Foreman said approximately 50 people attended the opening reception for the exhibit and the work was well-received. The exhibit runs through Feb. 25. The Newark Arts Alliance, located on Elkton Road, is open 11 to 7 p.m. Tuesday to Friday, 11 to 5 p.m. on Saturdays and 12 to 4 p.m. on Sundays.
Terry Foreman, program director of the exhibit, said the purpose is to show the diversity of local talent.
"A lot of the things in here are not pieces you'll find in a store," Foreman said. "They're all so unusual, incredibly unique. Just the fact that they're homemade makes them special."
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