Project for Empty Space Announces New Public Art Commission for RWJBarnabas Health and Saint James Health in Newark’s Ironbound
Project for Empty Space (PES) is excited to announce that we have selected artists Karena Bravo and Mike Maka to create a new large-scale exterior mural for 604 Market Street in Newark’s Ironbound neighborhood. This artwork will be part of the site's development, which aims to expand access to community-based health services.
The public artwork will transform the exterior of the new site into a visible expression of care, belonging, and community wellness.
The artists were selected through an open call for New Jersey–based artists facilitated by Project for Empty Space, followed by a jury process comprised of local arts and community professionals. The mural is anticipated to be installed in mid-fall 2026.
Bravo and Maka’’s proposed mural centers intergenerational care, family, healing, and community wellness. Drawing from Newark’s diverse cultural communities, the artists envision an artwork that honors the role of family and elders—particularly women—in transmitting traditions of care and healing across generations. The mural will weave together imagery inspired by medicinal plants, healing flowers, nature, family, and contemporary healthcare, connecting cultural heritage with preventative care and holistic well-being.
“We see public art as a form of community care—a visual intervention that can create space for connection, pride, reflection, and belonging. With this mural, we want to expand the conversation around health beyond clinical care and recognize the ways that family, culture, environment, and community all contribute to our collective well-being. Our hope is that the mural reflects the strength and resilience of the Ironbound and reminds people that care can take many forms, including the ways we care for one another.”
- Karena Bravo and Mike Maka, Artists
Community engagement will be central to the mural’s development. In partnership with the Ironbound Community Corporation, Karena Bravo and Mike Maka will lead workshops with local youth and families, inviting participants to create imagery inspired by medicinal plants, healing flowers, family, and care. Elements from these workshops will be incorporated into the final mural.
On October 10, 2026, PES and the artists will host a community engagement event at the adjacent River Bank Park in conjunction with the Newark Arts Festival. The event will invite Newark residents, families, youth, patients, and neighbors to learn about the project and participate in the creative process, including an opportunity for community members to contribute directly to the mural.
Through this process, we aim to ensure that the final artwork is not simply located in the Ironbound, but is shaped by the people and cultural histories of the neighborhood.
About the Artists
Karena Bravo is a multidisciplinary artist from Colombia whose work celebrates women, cultural identity, and the connection between nature and feminine power. Her practice draws from her African and Latin roots and incorporates vibrant visual storytelling. Originally trained in graphic design, Karena has worked across fashion, community projects, illustration, and public art. Her international practice has taken her from Colombia to Australia and Spain, where she exhibited, collaborated with artists, and worked as a teaching artist. Now based in New Jersey, she has collaborated with organizations including the Museum of Urban Arts and Artolution. In 2025, she was selected for the NYFA Immigrant Artist Program and participated in the Mural Arts Philadelphia Training Program.
@bravokarena | bravokarena.com
Mike Maka is a painter and multidisciplinary artist whose practice encompasses large-scale murals, painting, illustration, and sculpture. After moving to New York in his early twenties, he began an international artistic journey that has taken him from the Berlin Wall and the Ganges to Brazil’s favelas and Aboriginal communities in Australia. His work explores the relationship between humans, animals, machines, and the natural world, imagining nature reclaiming space from an increasingly built environment. A longtime member of Everfresh Studio, Mike has exhibited internationally, with work held in collections including the National Gallery of Australia, National Gallery of Victoria, and MONA Tasmania. Based between the Tristate and Melbourne, Australia, Mike brings decades of international public art experience to his collaborative practice. @mike.makatron | www.makatron.com
