For decades, brilliant holiday displays adorned the
grand lobby of the venerable Hahne's building in downtown Montclair. Now,
after nearly nine years of stark vacancy, it is the structure's
exterior that will catch the public's eye.
A group of artists have turned the landmark into their creative palette,
converting it into a giant municipal seasonal decoration. ...
It's all because of First Night Montclair, the action-packed New Year's
event that is making its 10th year in the township. Paul Ellis director of
First Night Montclair, wanted the edifice to be
the centerpiece of New Year's activities. But the transformation of the
landmark went beyond his expectations. ...
Saj decorated the storefront windows with poetry and children's artwork.
The "Hope" window features the poem by Emily Dickenson, "Hope is a thing
with feathers."
Hope is a thing with feathers that perches in the soul and sings the
tune without the words, and never stops at all...
"I started looking for things that would give kids ideas," says Saj.
"It's about looking towards the future." In keeping with her futuristic
theme, Saj enlisted the help of students
from the Renaissance School in town asking them to draw portraits of how
they'd envision themselves in 20 years. ...
