BY BRYAN SABELLA
Staff Writer
MIGUEL JUAREZ staff Painter Edward Wetzel with a self-portrait, one of several of his works that can be seen at the Metuchen Art Works co-operative gallery. METUCHEN — The list of borough cultural attractions gets longer with the recent opening of Metuchen Art Works.
Tucked away behind Main Street, diagonally across from the train station in a generous first-floor space formerly occupied by Emerald’s beauty salon, the co-operative gallery on Station Place hopes to draw both commuters and many of the same patrons that frequent the restaurants, coffeehouses and shops downtown.
Madeline Tolins-Schlitt, a borough interior designer, painter and mother of two, got the ball rolling when Eric Berger, a Metuchen developer who owns the property, bought eight of her paintings for his office.
Berger offered her use of the space as a gallery. After deciding it was too much for one person to take on, Tolins-Schlitt opted to assemble a group of local artists.
“Through networking, I found a wonderful group,” Tolins-Schlitt said. “Everybody’s very accomplished.”
Most of the co-op’s 14 members (they’re looking for one more) hail from the borough, although a couple are from Edison and one member live in Lakewood.
“It’s a co-operative in that all of the artists are contributing to the expenses,” she said.
It’s also a co-operative in that each member will receive his or her time in the spotlight. Each month will feature a one-person show by one of the artists.
Works will be offered for sale at prices ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand dollars. Co-op artist Edward Wetzel said the gallery hopes to make prints available at some point.
But when you visit Metuchen Art Works, you’re going to meet with someone whose vested interest isn’t necessarily a sale.
“When you come in, you speak with an artist, not a dealer,” Tolins-Schlitt said. “And a dealer generally puts a 50-percent markup or even doubles the price.”
The gallery held a one-day preview during the recent Metuchen Country Fair.
“We were so crazed and rushed, but we got it done,” Tolins-Schlitt said.
The gallery officially opened Nov. 6 with a show by Michael Bransfield that will run through Dec. 3, after which Tolins-Schlitt will take her turn.
The co-op’s members are mostly painters, but their styles and approaches “run the gamut,” Wetzel said. “What’s nice about this is that everyone has a different expertise.”
The range spans the retro advertising graphic motifs of Jay Lander to children’s book illustrator Kim Adlerman’s 3-D nature scenes to Tolins-Schlitt’s abstracts in goauche, an opaque watercolor.
The gallery has become a mutual admiration and inspiration society, Tolins-Schlitt said.
“It’s wonderful that we’ve created a community of artists,” she said. “We really haven’t had that sort of reciprocity since college, that chance to have a conversation about art with another artist.”
Metuchen is an example of a small town remaking itself as a cultural destination, while malls and large chain stores drive small retailers out of business, Bransfield said.
“I think there’s an audience in this area for art,” he said. “It’s exciting.”