By Pam Hersh
My journey through the alleyway transformed me into an annoying person, although some would say that adjective always applied to what I euphemistically label my “perseverant” personality.
I bugged several very busy people in order to discover what exactly was going on with the alley, and I apologize.
Not really. In the 2016 vogue of apologetic non-apologies, I offer only an Alec Baldwin-as Trump “apple-gize.” Thanks to my unrelenting emails and phone calls, I now can convey an inspiring story of an evolving arts installation — one that will be transformative to the entire Princeton community and beyond.
I walked through the 20-foot-by-80-foot Dohm Alley between Landau’s and Starbucks a few weeks ago, the day after the installation of pavers, bluestone, and metal arches in what formerly was an unattractive and somewhat creepy space. I learned that Joseph Ruvulo, co-owner with his brother Vincent of Livingston Park Nursery, had donated the labor and the high-quality, natural bluestone and Cambridge paving stones needed to form the infrastructure of the arts initiative known as DaDA — Design at Dohm Alley.
“We are a family-owned business in North Brunswick and take joy in doing community projects within surrounding, local towns so that we may give back some token of appreciation,” Mr. Ruvulo said. “Throughout the year, we consistently help homeowners to create outdoor oases (on private property), so it was a pleasure to create a public space which all can enjoy.”
Before embarking upon the project, Joe, a Rutgers graduate, studied Princeton University’s bluestone walkways so that the Dohm Alley space would transition naturally onto the university campus, whose entrance is directly across from the alleyway.
What drew him to the project was the creative vision of Kevin Wilkes and Peter Soderman, who have collaborated on Princeton public art installations in the past (Writers Block, 2004, and Quark Park, 2006).
Last May, I wrote about Kevin Wilkes, Princeton resident, president of Princeton Future and the owner of his own design-build firm Princeton Design Guild, unveiled the concept of DaDA, a $100,000 project.
The plan was to transform the Dohm Alley space from an unattractive, cracked-blacktop and concrete, useless “negative space, into a mind-blowing, audio-visual Princeton arts, history and horticulture exhibition, a ‘positive’ space, dubbed a ‘sensorium’ appealing to the full range of one’s senses,” Mr. Wilkes said.
Local landscape design artist Peter Soderman further elaborated: “Dohm Alley is a social experiment and art installation which will convert a formerly, vacant space into a radio station, movie theater and linear shade garden.”
Last May, Mr. Soderman and Mr. Wilkes indicated a Summer 2016 opening of the arts alley adventure. Each day in July and August, I would check the alley for any sign of DaDA. Seeing nothing, I assumed that the project had fallen victim to the monsters (lack of money and lack of approvals) in the sea of well-intended redevelopment.
Money and approvals have been “issues,” but DaDA refused to go down. Kevin and Peter now are upbeat for a Mother’s Day 2017 completion.
“Although the delay of a few months is frustrating,” Peter said, “I have been thinking about this for a decade. All this began with the former Princeton Public Library Director Leslie Berger, who met with me about doing an arts project in the alley to celebrate National Poetry Month.”
What has evolved is more than poetry through written words, but rather poetry and knowledge, experienced through a variety of sensory tools.
In addition to Kevin and Peter, the DaDA team of artistic, design and fund-raising volunteers includes: Richard Chenoweth, David Crow, Peter Abrams, Lawrence Roth, Catherine Shen, Mattew Passey, Geneva Martin, Seema Kapoor, Michelle Maw, Greg Moore.
“We want people to come in, bump into something arcane, learn about it, and come away transformed,” Mr. Soderman said.
He and others soon will learn that my transformation will fail to include exorcising my annoying qualities, especially when it comes to raising awareness about great community initiatives.
