CONTACT: Tom Plante, (908) 527-4746
Seb D’Elia, (908) 527-4419
Sculptural Baskets by Elisa Kessler-Caporale of Summit
on Exhibit at Pearl Street Gallery
ELIZABETH, NJ – The Union County
Board of Chosen Freeholders is pleased
to present an exhibit of sculptural
baskets woven by Elisa Kessler-Caporale
in the gallery space at the Union County Office of Cultural and Heritage Affairs, located at 633 Pearl Street in Elizabeth.
A selection of her one-of-a-kind art baskets entitled “Shapes and Forms”
is on display at
the Pearl Street Gallery until April 3. Gallery hours are 8:30 a.m.
to 4:30 p.m. weekdays.
Elisa Kessler-Caporale is a professional basket maker who lives in Summit. Although Elisa weaves traditional
baskets, she is known for the unique contemporary baskets which often incorporate found objects, paper,
pottery and bark. She has woven with cardboard from cracker boxes and is working on a series of reed and copper tubing work.
Elisa has been making baskets for 23 years. She also demonstrates basket weaving throughout the tri-state area
and teaches locally at county Teen Arts Programs, senior centers, elementary after-school programs and the Morris and Newark Museums. She worked for several years as a guest artist at the Discover Charter School in Newark, N.J., which also incorporated a program for children with disabilities.
Elisa has a B.A. in Art History from Western College for Women, Oxford, Ohio, and was a design assistant for Harcourt Brace Jovanovich publishers after graduation.
In 1998, she received
a certificate in gerontology from
Union County College
in Cranford. She was
a volunteer in the
visitors’ center at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City for several years and worked on the children’s programs for their centennial year. Elisa has continued her art education exploring pottery, stained glass, paper and book making, loom weaving and beading.
She has exhibited in many juried shows throughout the United States and recently won a sculpture prize at the Visual Arts Center of New Jersey in Summit.
She was awarded First Place for Professional Crafts in the Union County Senior Art
Show and went on to win First Place in the State Senior Art
Show in 2007.
Union County artists (whose works can be hung on a wall) interested in exhibiting in the gallery space are welcome to apply.
For more information about the Pearl Street Gallery or to learn about other programs and services please contact the
Union County Office of Cultural and Heritage Affairs,
633 Pearl Street, Elizabeth, NJ 07202.
Telephone (908) 558-2550. NJ Relay users can dial 711.
E-mail to: culturalinfo@ucnj.org.
Union County Administration Building •
10 Elizabethtown Plaza • Elizabeth, New Jersey 07207
County Switchboard (908) 527-4000 •
Toll Free Information (877) 424-1234
