N.B. exhibit in the cards for local photographers
BY JENNIFER AMATO
Staff Writer

Natalie Zaman (l) and Katharine Clark began working on a project in 2003 to take photographs of local graven images and display them as prediction cards. The photographs will be exhibited in the North Brunswick Municipal Building throughout May. Left: The photograph of the prediction card "Blessing" was taken at the Van Liew Cemetery on Georges Road, North Brunswick. The two hands signify a Jewish blessing of God through the triangle to the congregation, according to Clark, a tarot specialist. Below: Five tombstones in the Christ Episcopal Church, New Brunswick, photographed by Zaman, are facing a wall that was built around the gravesite. The prediction card, written by Clark, represents a lack of focus and alerts the necessity for a new reading.

NORTH BRUNSWICK - Jim Morrison opened up the doors to an extensive photography exhibit for two local artists.

Natalie Zaman, 37, of Bridgewater, took her first trip to Europe in 1994. While visiting Paris, she went to the Pére Lachaise cemetery to see Morrison's grave. Instead of leaving some film for the other tourist attractions she planned to experience, she shot all of it at his gravesite. She had always been interested in the occult, vampires and witches, for reasons she is still unsure of today, but decided to take her interest to a new level.

"I liked cemetery photography. It sits still, it doesn't go anywhere. And from then, that's been it," she said.

Zaman presented an idea to Katharine Clark, 52, of North Brunswick, 11 years ago about photographing scenic areas of local cemeteries. She had read "Circles, Groves and Sanctuaries" by Dan and Pauline Campanelli, in which Clark's work was featured; Clark specialized in tarot readings and New Age topics.

In 2003, Zaman decided to devote herself to the project of compiling an oracle and asked Clark to write the interpretations of the cards. Zaman is now exhibiting 20 of her photographs, as well as a poster featuring 71 of her prediction and meditation cards, titled "Graven Images Oracle," at the North Brunswick Municipal Building as the May Artist of the Month.

With the exception of one scene from Sleepy Hollow, N.Y., all of the locations she visited are in New Jersey, and several are specific to North Brunswick. She chose to capture images that were familiar to anyone, anywhere across the world.

"No matter where you go, you are able to pick out a lamb or an angel in different places," she said.

Zaman's favorite piece is from Elmwood Cemetery on Georges Road, that of a stained glass window that was later vandalized. She had to shoot the scene through a keyhole because the door of the church was bolted shut. When she returned on a later visit, she found that the window was boarded up and very little was left remaining. She said her photograph is the most recent and possibly the only record of the window. She had a company in Massachusetts take shards of the broken glass and incorporate them into a necklace, which features the photograph of the original window.

"I remember when it happened, it just broke my heart," she said.

The card represents the ability to rise above hardships and misfortune and may also stand for growth through struggle, overcoming a negative past in order to shine, or learning to stop sabotaging yourself in order to evolve, according to Clark's writings.

There is also the story of Elizabeth Donnan, a woman who is buried in the Christ Episcopal Church cemetery in New Brunswick. Although she was married, she died at the age of 27 and was buried in her mother's and father's plot.

The intrigue lies in five headstones facing the corner of a wall, because a building was constructed around the site. The only way for Zaman to get a photograph of the front of the grave markers was to fit between the wall and the headstones. She was able to capture the names on the tomb and look up their history, thus preserving the story of the family.

"The energy around the tomb is like that of isolation and desolation," Clark said, stating that they promised never to let the memory of Donnan fade.

This card appears when the reading in progress is tainted by lack of focus when shuffling, a confused or jumbled question, or any outside forces. It alerts the reader to end the session and begin again, according to the tarot-like card.

From the Van Liew Cemetery on Georges Road, there is a headless angel praying, called "Fidelity," which Clark said represents someone standing their ground longer than they had to. There is also "Blessing," a picture of two hands in the pose of a Hebraic blessing in which the ray of God comes through a triangle made by the hands to bless the congregation. A picture of a muscular arm holding a weight, called "Strength," represents the inner fortitude to withstand adversity and persevere through sheer force of will, according to the card deck.

The prediction cards should be completed in the late summer and will definitely be featured by Halloween. Zaman is hoping that the more exposure people have to the monuments, the more respect they will have and thus the less vandalism that will occur.

"People need to get out and appreciate them before the elements and pollution wear them all away," Clark said.

Zaman has been featured in several media publications and as part of the Caladan Gallery in Highland Park and Gallery 181 in Massachusetts. She also writes and edits Broomstix.com, an E-zine for pagan children, about eight times a year, and is finishing up a young adult novel about dragons. She and Clark will showcase their work at the 15th annual Kindred Spirits Fair in Harmony May 26 and 27 and at the Somerset County Cultural and Heritage Commission Show Oct. 22.

For a free online tarot reading and to learn more about the oracle project, visit www.GravenImages

Oracle.com.

Zaman will host an opening reception for her gallery May 14. The gallery is located in the Department of Parks, Recreation & Community Services' wing at 710 Hermann Road. Normal gallery hours are 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. For more information, call (732) 247-0922, ext. 475, or contact CLaBarbera@northbrunswickonline.com.