EDUCATION
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- PhD in American Studies, expected completion 2027
Rutgers University, Newark
- Dissertation Committee: Dr. Mary Rizzo (chair,), Dr. Neil Maher, Dr. Kate Doyle
- Exam Fields: Public and Digital Humanities, Environmental and Urban Studies, Theory, Practice, and History of Contemporary, Experimental, and Activist Art
- M.A. in American Studies, Public Humanities Track, 2022
Rutgers University, Newark
- B.A. in Fine Arts, photography concentration, 2005
Montclair State University
GRANTS AND AWARDS———————————————————————————————————————————————
- Dean’s Dissertation Fellowship, 2026
Graduate School, Rutgers University, Newark
- Community Arts Grant, 2023
New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC) North to Shore Festival
- Outstanding Graduate Student Award, 2022
New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT)
- Price Institute PLACE Collaboratory Fellows Award, 2022
Clement A. Price Institute on Ethnicity, Culture, and the Modern Experience, Rutgers University
- Artist Accelerator Grant, 2021
The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts Regional Regranting Program, The New Jersey Arts and Culture Recovery Fund, Project for Empty Space
- Individual Artist Grant, 2018
Newark Arts Council
- Fine Arts Grant, 2013
Puffin Foundation
- International Photography Grant, 2008
Alternate Ending Studios
SOLO EXHIBITIONS select
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- Mapping Apparitions: An Amorphous Art History Pilot, 2021 – 2022
Index Art Center, Newark
- #miniretro, 2019
Art & Artifacts of Newark, Newark, NJ
- Newark Artists Photo Documentary Project: We Are the Ghosts of our Future, 2018
Index Art Center, Newark, NJ
- Time and Tide, 2012
Tyson Gallery, Portland, OR
- KUMAGUTZ, 2011
*two-person exhibition with Hiroshi Kumagai, Index Art Center, Newark, NJ
- Time and Tide: A Social Documentary of Contemporary Cambodia, 2010
Paul Vincent Gallery, Hoboken, NJ
- Thesis Exhibition,2004
Gallery 3.5, Montclair State University, Montclair, NJ
GROUP EXHIBITIONS select
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- Index: Open Doors,2025
Index Art Center, Newark, NJ
- Lines of Inquiry,2023
Clement’s Place, Rutgers University, Newark, NJ
- Welcome Back to the World,2021
Index Art Center, Newark, NJ
- Fifty Years of Inspiration and Impact: The Photographic Legacy of Klaus Schnitzer and His Students, 2020
George Segal Gallery, Montclair State University, Montclair, NJ
- Plume House of Prayer Series: The Camera I Always Wanted,2019
Shine Portrait Studio, Express Newark, Newark, NJ
- ArtReach XXV, 2017
City Without Walls Gallery, Newark, NJ
- Women of the World,2017
NJPAC, Newark, NJ
- The 5 Wards,2017
Hycide Magazine, City Without Walls Gallery, Newark, NJ
- Intersection 2016,2016
Index Art Center, Newark, NJ
- Newark Artists Photo Documentary: Select Color Prints,2016
Gallery Aferro, Newark, NJ
- Queen of Angels: When a Church Dies,2016
Newark 350 Celebration, Newark, NJ
- Like Jazz…A Visual Perspective,2016
NJPAC, Newark, NJ
- Emerging Ideas,2015
Newark Open Doors, Newark, NJ
- Everything Like This,2014
Javier Santiago Gallery, Montclair, NJ
- Labor of Love2013
_Gaia Gallery, Jersey City, NJ
- Printed in Newark,2013
Gateway Project(s), Newark, NJ
- Single Fare 3,2013
RH Gallery, New York, NY
- Transformations,2012
Index Art Center, Newark, NJ
- 3 Photographers,2010
Kedar Studio of Art, Newark, NJ
- Uncommon Threads,2009
Walsh Gallery, Seton Hall University, South Orange, NJ
- Theater Town,2009
NJIT, Newark, NJ
- 100 Artists,2009
JaJo Gallery, Newark, NJ
- The Westinghouse Poject,2008
NJIT, Newark, NJ
- Black September,2008
Lex Leonard Gallery, Jersey City, NJ
- Strange Country,2008
City Without Walls in Jersey City, NJ
- Metro 25,2007
City Without Walls, Newark, NJ
- Transport,2007
Index Art Center, Newark, NJ
- The New Artists,2005
Wise Owl Gallery, Nagano, Japan
CURATORIAL select
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- GoggleWorks 16th Annual Juried Exhibition, 2024
GoggleWorks Center for the Arts, Reading, PA
- Going Deep: Work and Process Presented by Three Artists,2023
North to Shore Festival, NJPAC, Newark, NJ
- Perceptual Engineering,2023
Paul Robeson Galleries, Rutgers University, Newark, NJ
“Willie Cole’s Ecological Interventions Turn Trash Into Art” Laura van Straaten, New York Times
- People,2019
Brick + Mortar Gallery, Easton, PA
- Ideogrammatic,2019
Brick + Mortar Gallery, Easton, PA
- Bringing It All Back Home,2019
Index Art Center, Newark, NJ
- Vast Expanses,2019
Brick + Mortar Gallery, Easton, PA
- The Ether Acre,2018
Index Art Center, Newark, NJ
- Landholdings,2017
Index Art Center, Newark, NJ
- Forum in Form,2015
Index Art Center, Newark, NJ
- Dichotomy,2014
Index Art Center at Paterson Art Walk, Paterson, NJ
- Chapter 237,2013
Index Art Center, Newark, NJ
TEACHING EXPERIENCE
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- Part Time Lecturer, 2018 – 2022
Rutgers University, Newark, NJ
- Introduction to Photography, in-person and zoom
- Seminar in Contemporary Art, in-person and zoom
- Senior Studio Art Seminar, in-person and zoom
- Problems in Contemporary Art, co-taught with Willie Cole
- Adjunct Professor, 2022
Brookdale Community College, Lyndhurst, NJ
- Introduction to Darkroom Photography
- Guest Lecturer, 2017 – 2019
Rutgers University, Newark, NJ
- On Photographing Artwork
- Workshop Instructor
Newark Museum of Art, zoom
- On Documentary Photography, 2020
Newark Artist Database, zoom
- Natural Light Photography
Montclair Art Museum, Montclair, NJ
- Creating Cyanotypes, 2014
Newark Print Shop, Newark, NJ
- Creating Cyanotypes, 2013
- Assistant English Language Teacher, 2006
Yashiro High School, Chikuma, Nagano, Japan
- Beginner to advanced high school level classes
- English Club, Tea Ceremony Club
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
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- Certificate in Effective Online Teaching Practices,2022
Professional Development, Association of College and University Educators (ACUE) and American Council on Education (ACE)
- Researcher-in-Residence, 2021 – 2022
Express Newark, Rutgers University, Newark, NJ
- Scribe and Student Organizer,2025
Our Green New Deal: A Virtual Series of Community-University Working Sessions 1, 2
Clement A. Price Institute, Rutgers University, Newark, NJ
- Community Partner and Artist-in-Residence, 2017 – 2023
SHINE Portrait Studio, Express Newark, Rutgers University, Newark, NJ
- Blended Learning Program: Strategic Planning and Funding Your Work,2016
Creative Capital, Gallery Aferro, Newark, NJ
PRESENTATIONS select
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- Intersectional Feminist Activisms,2025
Guest Speaker, Lafayette College, Easton, PA
- Community and Restoration: Environmental Capstone, 2025
Guest Speaker, Lafayette College, Easton, PA
- Directed Projects, 2024
Guest Speaker, Bennington College, Bennington, VT
- Why American Studies? Why Now?2021
Presenter, American Studies Symposium, Rutgers University – Newark
- Newark Artists Photo Documentary Project, 2019
Presenter, Index Art Center, Art & Artifacts of Newark, Newark, NJ
- On Documentary Photography
Guest Speaker, City Without Walls at Arts High School, Newark, NJ, 2014
Guest Speaker, St. Peter’s Preparatory School, Jersey City, NJ, 2009
PANELS AND DISCUSSIONS
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- Warehouses, Democracy & Environmental Justice,2025
Panelist, Lafayette Environmental Justice Group, Lafayette College, Easton, PA
- The Shadows Grow Longer,2025
Moderator, Halsey Art Center, Newark, NJ
- Going Deep: Work and Process Presented by Three Artists,2023
Moderator, North to Shore Festival, NJPAC, Newark, NJ
- Mapping Invisible Landscapes: Public Art Interventions Preserving Newark’s History and Communities
Panelist, Art in the Open Abbey Mural Symposium, National Academy of Design and Project for Empty Space, Newark, NJ
- Dialogue in a Time of Fracture: Creative Practice, Activism, and Dialogue,2022
Panelist, Express Newark, Rutgers University 75th Anniversary, Newark, NJ
- Black Spatial Futures, Black Portraiture[s] VII Conference, 2022
Moderator, 42nd Annual Marion Thompson Wright Lecture Series, Express Newark, Rutgers University, Newark, NJ
- The Ether Acre & de profundis: Artist Talk,2018
Moderator, Index Art Center, Newark, NJ
- Landholdings: Community Discussion, 2017
Moderator, Index Art Center, Newark, NJ
- Women Speak: Art and Jazz at Newark 350, 2016
Panelist, NJPAC, Newark, NJ
- Forum in Form: Panel Discussion,2015
Panelist, Index Art Center, Newark, NJ
- Black September: Artist Talk, 2008
Panelist, Lex Leonard Gallery, Jersey City, NJ
PUBLICATIONS
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- The Story of Newark Fashion: Atelier to Runway,2024
Kristen J. Owens, Newark Museum of Art
- A Fresh Look,2022
Newark Museum of Art
- Plume House of Prayer Series: The Camera I Always Wanted,2019
Colleen Gutwein (O’Neal), Shine Portrait Studio Press
- Newark Women: From Suffragettes to the Statehouse,2018
Barbara Kukla, Swing City Press
- In Flux Issue,2018
Hycide Magazine
- A Dedication to Memory: Voices on Newark Arts,2018
Newark Arts (Council)
- we are the ghosts of our future,2016
Colleen Gutwein (O’Neal), bluetan zines
- The New People,2014
Hycide Magazine
COLLECTIONS
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- Metropolitan Museum of Art Thomas J. Watson Library
- Hycide Magazine
- Plume House of Prayer Series: The Camera I Always Wanted
- Newark Public Library
- Hycide Magazine
- Plume House of Prayer Series: The Camera I Always Wanted
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
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- Environmental Advisory Council,2026 – current
Council Member, City of Easton, PA
- Stop the Wood Ave Warehouse Campaign,2024 – current
Organizer, Easton region, PA and NJ
- EcoArt Salon,2020 – 2021
Committee Member, Clement A. Price Institute on Ethnicity, Culture, and the Modern Experience, Rutgers University, Newark, NJ
- Immigrant Artist Mentor Program2017 – 2019
Mentor, New York Foundation for the Arts, Newark, NJ
- The Newark Artists Photo Documentary Project,2013 – 2019
Creator, https://www.newarkartsphotodoc.com/, Newark, NJ
- ArtReach,2013 – 2017
Mentor, City Without Walls Gallery and Newark Arts High, Newark, NJ
- Asheville Community Darkroom,2016
Volunteer, Asheville, NC
- Index Art Center,2006 – current
Volunteer Gallery Assistant, Newark, NJ
PRESS
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2025 A Million Sq Ft, independent documentary film
https://youtu.be/pEbD3ECMH3Y?si=DX3aRdPIFLlRp6es
2024 September – current, Stop the Wood Ave Warehouse campaign: https://nomegawarehouse.org/about/
2023 July, Interview with Colleen Gutwein O’Neal, The Newarker: History, Culture, Politics, and Society
https://newarkermag.com/2023/07/31/interview-with-colleen-gutwein-oneal/
2023 February 23,Willie Cole’s Ecological Interventions Turn Trash Into Art, Laura van Straaten, The New York Times, https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/23/arts/design/willie-cole-art-newark.html
2020 January, The Shape of Things That Have Come, Jeanne Brasile, AS | Mag https://asmag.substack.com/p/the-shapes-of-things-that-have-come
2020 January, Culture Shock: Season 2020, “People” + “After People” Megan Frank, PBS39, https://www.pbs.org/video/culture-shock-curator-eastons-brick-mortar-gallery-cdxren/
2019 October, Culture Shock: Season 2019, “Ideogrammatic” Megan Frank, PBS39, https://www.pbs.org/video/culture-shock-artist-jose-camacho-tq0btb/
2019 August, The Shortest Distance Between A Local Artist and an Easton Gallery is a Straight Line, Connor Lagore, Lehigh Valley Live https://www.lehighvalleylive.com/entertainment/2019/08/the-shortest-distance-between-a-local-artist-and-an-easton-gallery-is-a-straight-line.html
2018 October, A Dedication to Memory: Voices on Newark Arts, Newark Arts https://www.newarkarts.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Newark-Arts-Festival-2018-JOURNAL.pdf
2016 October, City Without Walls Exhibits the 5 Wards, Tehsuan Glover, The Newark Times https://thenewarktimes.com/city-without-walls-celebrates-reflections-newark-fall-exhibit/
2016 June, The Artist Recreates the World, Gary Campbell, YouTube
2016 April, Newark Arts Photo Documentary Project Creates a Window into the Scope of the City’s Art Scene, Brick City Live
2015 October, Open Doors 2015: Forum in Form Features Five Women Sculptors at Index Art Center Brick City Live
2015 July, Up Close and Personal: Portraits of Newark, Newark Bound
2015 May, Photo Project: Newark, Newark Happening
2014 July, Interview: The Life of a Curator, Silk City Love Magazine
2014 January 19, A Gallery is Revived, Dan Bishoff, The Star-Ledger
colleen gutwein o'neal 