shownotes at natkalbach.com/podcast

Shownotes at natkalbach.com/podcast

Zach Green's relationship with stained glass began in Lambertville, where a mentor told him to "get out of this town," and led him through Zanzibar's Batik workshops to Jersey City's historic windows and the legendary 111 First Street artist studios. In this conversation, we explore how growing up in Trenton taught him to see beauty in broken things, why stained glass restoration is an endangered art form, and what it means to work with light as spirit. Zach shares his journey from living on a sailboat while creating art to receiving recognition from the Jersey City Landmarks Conservancy, his philosophy of teaching stained glass to everyone from fourth graders to 90-year-olds, and his melancholic but honest reflection on what we've done to this place we call home.- check out the show notes at Natkalbach.com

Timothy Herrick, writer, journalist, and longtime Jersey City resident, discusses his new book The Subconscious City: Love, Art and Artists, Jersey City, USA. We explore the relationship between artists and urban spaces, the role of documentation in capturing vanishing moments, and what it means to think visually in a rapidly changing city.
Shownotes on natkalbach.com/podcast

In this powerful conversation, Jersey City photographer Duquann Sweeney shares his philosophy that photography is fundamentally an act of care. From his Bergen Lafayette neighborhood, Duquann has spent years documenting the dignity, joy, and everyday beauty of his community through striking black and white portraits. We explore his recent work honored by the Jersey City Landmarks Conservancy, the Royal Men Foundation he founded, and his collaboration on the WE'RE HERE Project documenting hidden histories. Duquann challenges us to hold onto three essential elements: history, love, and imagination.

find shownotes at natkalbach.com/podcast

Andrea McKenna's studio journey spans from a century-old garage on a Jersey City dead-end street to her aunt's former bedroom in Fort Lee. In this conversation, we explore how personal loss transformed her artistic practice, the evolution of Jersey City's art community, and what it means to hold space for other artists while navigating your own creative path. Andrea shares the story of the Raven Gallery, her seven years as gallery director at Art House Productions, and her collaborative performance piece "Arboreal Soul" with choreographer Megan Woods; a meditation on grief through movement and visual art.
find shownotes at natkalbach.com/podcast

I kick off Season 2 with Rimli Roy, founder and artistic director of Surati Studio, whose journey from IT programmer to cultural institution builder embodies the best of Jersey City's immigrant experience. From her first Halloween in America to creating festivals that unite thousands, Rimli shares how cultural work happens organically,through one person's willingness to share what they love, combined with a community ready to support that sharing.

check out the Show notes on natkalbach.com/podcast

In this special season finale, Nat sits down with her dear friend Chelsea Castro, Vice President of the Jersey City Landmarks Conservancy, for what starts as playful banter between two "separated at birth" preservation enthusiasts who find profound meaning in skeleton keys tucked in leather satchels and vintage clothing hidden in walls. But as their wandering conversation unfolds, something deeper emerges: a surprising web of connections threading through Season 1 that reveals how every guest - from jazz host Ted Chubb to ceramic artist Jin Jung to storytelling consultant Thaler Pekar - shares unexpected geographic, thematic, and philosophical overlaps. It's a conversation about the silly and the profound, ultimately discovering how curiosity, community care, and the simple act of showing up creates the fabric of neighborhood life.

Shownotes at https://natkalbach.substack.com/podcast