The Photographic Society of Philadelphia‘s show in City Hall has been extended by popular demand through May 29th!!! The gallery is on the 5th floor and includes work by many of Philly’s finest established and emerging photographers. The guest entrance is at the northeast corner of City Hall.
The Art of the Flower show at the Philadelphia Sketch Club is an annual, open juried competition for 2 or 3 dimensional works of art on the theme of the flower by prominent and emerging regional artists. This year’s juror, James P. Repenning, chose not only traditional styles of flower painting but also abstractions, photography, prints and even a neon sculpture. Rik Viola, committee co-chair, pulled together an exceptional show with a new twist on flowers in art with an opening reception that was well attended and exciting. The awards were kept secret until they were announced at the gala which added an aura of anticipation since even the winners didn’t know until the announcement. The exhibition runs through March 22nd and will be followed by the annual Small Oil Paintings show.
The winners wall at The Philadelphia Sketch Club’s annual Art of the Flower Show which overlaps the famous Philadelphia Flower Show. 1st Place, Emerging Amarylis, monotype by Rona Richter, 2nd place, Roses with Reflection, pastel by Beverly Jensen, 3rd place, Dried Flowers in a Burl Vase, pastel by Ben Cohen, 4th place, White Iris, photography award by Elizabeth Bard. Honorable mentions went to Tony Anthony, Robert Bohne, Doris Peltzman, Jessie Joern, Gus Sermas and Eve Hoyt.
DoN Brewer‘s inkjet print collage, “Gingko“.
3-Dimension award winner – Luminous Flora – Neon by Eve Hoyt.
Cactus Flower, ink and watercolor, Peter Petragia.
Glories, color pencil & ink, Hal Taylor.
Black Rose, etching, Thelma Grobes.
White Orchid, digital print, Valerie Hutton.
Artist Gus Victor Sermas with his mixed media drawing, Flower 1, at The Philadelphia Sketch Club’s Art of the Flower show through March 22nd, 2009.
Justin Duerr: Song-Story Images in Black and White (and some Red) @ St. Asaph’s Gallery, presented by Coalition Ingenu is a tour de force in magic realistic drawings. Duerr’s marker drawings, some huge and involving, some small and dream-like, fill the Gothic room with Bosch-ian imagery of bird-men, crawling words and psychedelic thought forms. The presentation by Robert Bullock of Coalition Ingenu is pristine, with simple framing with glare-free plexiglass, permitting the viewer to delve into the mind of Justin Duerr.
Cake decorated by Justin Duerr for his opening party at St. Asaph’s gallery. One of Duerr’s first jobs was working in a bakery where he learned to work with frosting.
Gallery view of the Justin Duerr installation @ St. Asaph’s Gallery, 27 Conshohocken/State Road, Bala Cynwyd, Pa.
“Ghost Born Free From Cages and Jails”, drawing by Justin Duerr.
Justin Duerr @ St. Asaph’s Gallery through April 5, 2009.
Paintings by Bob Arufo in his fourth and final major retrospective paired with Bob Jackson‘s life drawings is beautiful and inspiring. Arufo’s paintings are luminous and speak of a period in time – vaguely Vargas mixed with Edward Hopper – the sence of immediacy and liveness is refreshing. Jackson’s use of humble materials, ball point pen and typing paper or drawing paper, shows a singular vision, a practiced hand and a studious mix mark marking and seeing, each drawing framed with thought and restraint. Shoshka and DoN soaked in the vibe of Dirty Frank’s: a long haired man in a Matrix style leather coat drank cocktails with a green-haired girl, Bob’s wife knitted with light up knitting needles, old Bowie songs playing on the jukebox, and sipping whiskey at an ancient wooden table.
Bob Arufo @ Off the Wall Gallery in Dirty Franks, 13th & Pine.
Bob Arufo @ Off the Wall Gallery in Dirty Franks, 13th & Pine.
Bob Jackson, president of the Plastic Club, in the 5th Annual Mary Liz Memorial Masters Exhibition @ Off the Wall Gallery in Dirty Frank’s. Jackson’s drawings are impeccable.
Kathryn Pannepacker curated the “On the Fringe of Fiber” exhibit @ Art in City Hall, filling each of the luminous new display cases with cutting edge fiber arts from the elegant to the extreme, blobby constructs and wearable art to crafts and fine art, fluidly mixed together in an eleoquent statement on the state of the arts in fiber. On the Fringe of Fiber is on floors two and four of the historic building; art is truly integral to Philadelphia, Art in City Hall in a real gift to the city and it’s artists.
On the Fringe of Fiber @ Art in City Hall. The dress on the left is shredded paper – Bjork would LoVe it! The dresses were done by Lesley Haas and the middle fiber piece was marvelously done by Duane Weber. The display cases are right outside Mayor Nutter’s office on the 2nd floor.
Pat diPaula Klein, stitched by hand over several months with cotton floss on linen, the process and the materials speak of women’s work, texture and time, rhythm and repetition (catalog).
