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Philly Like a Local: Where to Get Your Art On
Art Of All Kinds Is Accessible, Affordable And Fun In Philly
Press Release
PHILLY LIKE A LOCAL: WHERE TO GET YOUR ART ON
Art Of All Kinds Is Accessible, Affordable And Fun In Philly
PHILADELPHIA, December 1, 2006
Art After Hours
The arts in Philly work overtime: Some of the coolest art happenings take place after the sun goes down. Every Friday night is a party at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, when the Great Stair Hall is transformed into an intimate jazz club with drinks, live music and tasty food. You can stroll through the galleries or join a museum tour. Across town in Old City, the streets are packed with artsy types on First Friday as galleries, antique shops and design studios open up their doors to evening visitors. Live music, performances and wine and cheese are usually on hand, along with the latest in local art. Even the museums and galleries outside of Old City get in on the action with their own openings and events on most First Fridays, such as The Fabric Workshop and Museum’s exhibit tours and artist lectures.
Fabric Workshop and Museum
Photo by M. Persico for GPTMC
Small Places With Big Aspirations
You’ve heard of Philly’s Impressionists, Duchamps and Rodins, but amidst the big-name museums are some smaller, edgier art centers that you don’t want to miss. The Institute of Contemporary Art has the lock on the kind of fresh, groundbreaking works you’d see at the Whitney Biennial. The Fabric Workshop and Museum’s oft-overlooked permanent collection includes textiles and works in experimental materials by such luminaries as Louise Bourgeois.
Dig a little deeper and you’ll find mind-blowing art here. A Philadelphia institution since the 1960s, the Painted Bride Art Center is all about art by underserved communities and exhibits that promote social change. The area’s only art center devoted exclusively to Caribbean and Latino culture, Taller Puertorriqueño brings in a steady stream of international works. You can browse and shop at Northern Liberties’ gallery and boutique Art Star, which specializes in animé- and pop-inspired paintings and highbrow crafts with a funky edge.
Artists On The Edge...Of Greatness
For the latest and greatest in all things artistic, you can’t miss Old City, which has scores of galleries showcasing everything from paintings and photographs to jewelry and glass works. In the heart of this originally industrial nab is the Temple Gallery, run by Temple University’s Tyler School of Art. But Tyler is only one of the city’s four major art schools—there’s Moore College of Art & Design, The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts and University of the Arts. All four display student art as well as the works of internationally recognized artists. The List Gallery at Swarthmore College and the Arcadia University Art Gallery in Glenside are two school-run galleries that show big city-quality work in the ’burbs.
The youngest forces in the art scene, outside of art schools, can be found in galleries such as the F.U.E.L. Collection, which stands for Fostering Undergraduate Exposure on Location, or in the Philadelphia Open Studio Tours held in October at studios around the city, where you can check out the creative process firsthand.
Visiting an art collective is another great way to see the hippest work in its native habitat. At Vox Populi, solo member shows and video exhibits are the focus; at Basekamp, it’s large-scale collaborative projects; and at Space 1026, it’s skate-punk screen-prints and paintings. The newest of the group spaces, Black Floor Gallery is run by a crew of young artists who relocated to Philadelphia from Cincinnati. Their Loft District space also houses the Print Liberation silkscreen studio, a great source for cool t-shirts.
For The Love Of Performing Arts
If the moving, talking sort of art is more your thing, be sure to stick around in early September, when the Philadelphia Live Arts Festival and Philly Fringe gets going. The Live Arts portion of the festival promotes curated events, while the Fringe is open to musical, literary and performance artists from around the world.
During the rest of the year, drama queens can soak up the thespian vibe at the People’s Light & Theatre Company, the Arden Theatre Co. and The Wilma Theater, all of which regularly present the works of emerging playwrights. African American theater is the focus at the famous New Freedom Theatre, located in an historic mansion in North Philadelphia. You’ll find global drumming, spoken word and pretty much anything that you won’t see anywhere else at Old City’s Painted Bride Art Center.
There’s no better place to catch nationally renowned dance companies like Philadanco and Koresh Dance Company. You’re guaranteed to be impressed by the b-boy skills and hip-hop moves of Rennie Harris PureMovement or the hilarious social satires of Headlong Dance Theater. Keep it moving in the summer at DanceBoom!, a citywide dance festival held at The Wilma Theater.
ADDRESS BOOK
Art, After Hours:
Small Places With Big Aspirations:
- Institute of Contemporary Art, 118 S. 36th Street, (215) 898-5911, www.icaphila.org
- The Fabric Workshop and Museum, 1315 Cherry Street, 5th floor, (215) 568-1111, www.fabricworkshopandmuseum.org
- Painted Bride Art Center, 230 Vine Street, (215) 925-9914, www.paintedbride.org
- Taller Puertorriqueño, 2721 N. 5th Street, (215) 426-3311, www.tallerpr.org
- Art Star, 1030 N. 2nd Street, (215) 238-1557, www.artstarphilly.com
Artists On The Edge...Of Greatness:
- Temple Gallery, 259 N. 3rd Street, (215) 782-2776, www.temple.edu/tyler
- Moore College of Art & Design, 20th Street & the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, (215) 965-4045, www.thegalleriesatmoore.org
- The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, 118 N. Broad Street, (215) 972-7600, www.pafa.org
- University of the Arts, 320 S. Broad Street, (215) 717-6000, www.uarts.edu
- The List Gallery, 500 College Avenue, Swarthmore, (610) 328-8488, www.swarthmore.edu/Humanities/art/Gallery/
- Arcadia University Art Gallery, 450 S. Easton Road, Glenside, (215) 572-2131, www.arcadia.edu/gallery
- F.U.E.L. Collection, 249 Arch Street, (215) 592-8400, www.fuelcollection.com
- Philadelphia Open Studio Tours, www.philaopenstudios.com
- Vox Populi, 1315 Cherry Street, 4th floor, (215) 568-5513, www.voxpopuligallery.org
- Basekamp, 723 Chestnut Street, 2nd floor, (215) 592-7288, www.basekamp.com
- Space 1026, 1026 Arch Street, 2nd floor, (215) 574-7630, www.space1026.com
- Black Floor Gallery, 319A N. 11th Street, www.blackfloorgallery.com
For The Love Of Performing Arts:
- Philadelphia Live Arts Festival and Philly Fringe, (215) 413-9006, www.livearts-fringe.org
- People’s Light & Theatre Company, 39 Conestoga Road, Malvern, (610) 644-3500, www.peopleslight.org
- Arden Theatre Co., 40 N. 2nd Street, (215) 922-1122, www.ardentheatre.org
- The Wilma Theater, 265 S. Broad Street, (215) 546-7824, www.wilmatheater.org
- New Freedom Theatre, 1346 N. Broad Street, (215) 765-2793, www.freedomtheatre.org
- Painted Bride Art Center, 230 Vine Street, (215) 925-9914, www.paintedbride.org
- Philadanco, (215) 387-8200, www.philadanco.org
- Koresh Dance Company, 2020 Chestnut Street, (215) 751-0959, www.koreshdance.org
- Rennie Harris PureMovement, (215) 665-5718, www.rhpm.org
- Headlong Dance Theater, 1170 S. Broad Street, (215) 545-9195, www.headlong.org
- DanceBoom!, The Wilma Theater, 265 S. Broad Street, (215) 546-7824, www.wilmatheater.org
The Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation (GPTMC) makes Philadelphia and The Countryside™ a premier destination through marketing and image building that increases business and promotes the region’s vitality. For more information about travel to Philadelphia, visit www.gophila.com or call the Independence Visitor Center, located in Independence National Historical Park, at (800) 537-7676.
Note to Editors: For photos of Greater Philadelphia, visit our Photo Gallery. On the pressroom, you can also subscribe to RSS feeds to receive updates on topics that are specifically of interest to you: What’s New, Dining, Events, Seasonal Travel, Hotel Packages and Tourism Research.
CONTACT:
Caroline Bean, GPTMC
(215) 599-7433, caroline@gptmc.com
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