Category Archives: Philadelphia Abstract Art

Non-representational art in all media including drawing, painting, photography, sculpture, prints, video, on-line, writing, etc.

Absolutely

Absolutely Abstract 2015

Absolutely Abstract 2015, The Philadelphia Sketch Club

The Philadelphia Sketch Club‘s Annual Absolutely Abstract Exhibition is like wandering through a magic garden of random events captured in slow motion time. Time is elemental to the wide selection of contemporary abstract art filling the historic gallery. It’s so weird because The Philadelphia Sketch Club is the oldest artist’s club in America and the abstract show is about exploring the time when abstract art was considered radical.

The collection of artworks range from action paintings, deep impressionist landscapes, nature photography and more. There is a lot of art in the show, every effort was made to make it fit. At dinner tonight my host was cranky about overly edited art shows and whether it’s better to display salon style or not. It would be really fun to edit the show to a top 40 but there is great pleasure in the sensual overload of an abundance of art.

Absolutely Abstract 2015Absolutely Abstract 2015, The Philadelphia Sketch Club, Michael Cooper, Fertility Figure Gone Wild, wood, clay and paint

Fertility Figure Gone Wild manages to find an alternate reality space in a room full of enthusiast competition for attention. The piece is interactive and modulates the space around it with depth of force field, developing a conversation with the viewer. Dream-like states flow while scanning and gazing, the temporal information flows like time in a multiverse.

The space does feel like a time capsule with reflections on the past and illumination of the future in color and marks, architecture and history. Connecting with deep primal image recognition and stories seem to flow through the room like a stream of consciousness. Abstraction is all around, our peripheral vision is abstract shapes and marks that communicates information to the consciousness. Absolutely.

Absolutely Abstract 2015Absolutely Abstract 2015, The Philadelphia Sketch Club

2015 Absolutely Abstract Open Juried Exhibition through September 19, 2015. 235 South Camac Street, The Avenue of the Artists, Philadelphia, PA, 19107. Hours: Wednesday, Friday, Saturday & Sunday 1:00 – 5:00pm

Written and photographed by DoN Brewer

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UNcommons

UNcommons, Little Berlin, University of PennsylvaniaKaitlin Pomerantz

UNcommons

September 4 – 27, 2015. Opening reception Friday, September 4 from 6 to 9 PM

Little Berlin gallery is pleased to present UNcommons, a guest exhibition with the University of Pennsylvania. UNcommons deals with issues of space and spatial interventions in the physical, psychological, and digital worlds. The exhibition showcases five artists – chukwumaa, Shaina Gates, E. Jane, Kaitlin Pomerantz, and Marianna Williams. The opening reception will take place at the gallery, located at 2430 Coral Street in Kensington, on Friday September 4th from 6:00 to 9:00PM.

Each of the five artists featured in UNcommons presents possibilities for reconfiguring, remembering, and disrupting our experience of space in a variety of media, including natural and found materials, paper, photography, video, and sound. Further information about the artists can be found on the event page for the exhibition: http://littleberling.org/  Curated by Haely Chang, Kirsten Gill and Hilary Whitham, UNcommons is the first exhibition in the newly launched Incubation Series, a collaboration between students in the Fine Arts and History of Art graduate programs at the University of Pennsylvania.
UNcommons is sponsored by the Departments of Fine Arts and History of Art at the University of Pennsylvania. For more information about the exhibition or the series, please contact Hilary Whitham at pennincubationseries@gmail.com.”

Little Berlin is a cooperative exhibition space run by approximately 10 people who curate the space using a collaborative, do-it-yourself ethic. Located in Kensington, Philadelphia, members actively pursue community outreach through ongoing projects such as the Philadelphia Public History Truck, The Fairgrounds community garden as well as monthly exhibitions. As opposed to an artist cooperative, we do not usually show our own artwork. Instead, we feature emerging and established artists from the neighborhood, from around Philadelphia, and from across the country.

little berlin is located in the Viking Mill, a historic textile-mill turned artist space in the Kensington neighborhood of Philadelphia located at Boston St. at Coral St. – enter through the courtyard at Coral St.” – Little Berlin

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allTURNatives

allTURNatives: Form + Spirit 2015, The 2015 Windgate ITE International Residency Exhibition at The Center for Art in Wood, John Thornton Films

“The 2015 Windgate ITE International Residency Exhibition at The Center for Art in Wood. For 20 years Philadelphia’s Center for Art in Wood has hosted the Windgate ITE International Residency Program. This year, five artists, a scholar, and a photojournalist were brought to Philadelphia and given the opportunity and freedom to develop their work, explore new ideas, and learn from one another. I met this year’s extraordinary group at their exhibition which is called “allTURNatives: Form + Spirit 2015.” – John Thornton Films

“Celebrating The Center for Art in Woods 20th year hosting the Windgate ITE International Residency Program, the resident fellows worked together for two months in Philadelphia to collaborate and focus on new directions in their work, which culminates in the allTURNatives: Form + Spirit 2015 exhibition in the Center’s Gerry Lenfest Gallery. This multidisciplinary exhibition will reflect each resident fellow’s experience including objects produced before and during the residency. Three dimensional work will be accompanied by photos, video, and other documentation depicting the summer experience. Follow the Windgate ITE blog at https://internationalturningexchange.wordpress.com/2015/

THE 2015 WINDGATE ITE RESIDENT FELLOWS ARE:
Julia Harrison, Artist (WA, USA); Rex Kalehoff, Artist (NY, USA); Zina Manesa-Burloiu, Artist (Romania); Adrien Segal, Artist (CA, USA); Grant Vaughan, Artist (NSW, Australia); Seth C. Bruggeman, Scholar (PA, USA); Winifred Helton-Harmon, Photojournalist (PA, USA).” – The Center for Art in Wood

allTURNatives: Form + Spirit 2015, The 2015 Windgate ITE International Residency Exhibition at The Center for Art in Wood through September 26th, 2015

Hours / Location

Visit The Center for Art in WoodThe Center for Art in Wood
141 N. 3rd Street, Philadelphia, PA 19106

Phone: (215) 923-8000
Fax: (215) 923-4403

Hours of Operation
The Center for Art in Wood is open 10:00 am. – 5:00 pm. Tuesday through Saturday. Closed on Sunday & Monday.

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Panorama

Panorama:  Image-Based Art in the 21st Century, Main Line Art CenterDavid and Goliath © Marjan Moghaddam 2012

Main Line Art Center Unveils Panorama: Image-Based Art in the 21st Century
Two-month extravaganza features 15+ programs across greater-Philadelphia, free evening festival, and virtual exhibition opportunities.
September 12 – November 4, 2015

HAVERFORD, PA (July 29, 2015) — Fresh off the heels of Main Line Art Center’s new digital media program and building and campus expansion, the Center, located in Haverford, announces the unveiling of the first annual Panorama: Image-Based Art in the 21st Century.  The two-month happening runs September 12 through November 4, 2015 and is a celebration of the photographic image and its expansive role in contemporary artforms like digital photography, printmaking, video, film, animation, and gaming design.  Panorama is supported by Wilkie Lexus and Main Line Today (as of July 28, 2015).

Anchored by the on-site exhibition Modern Utopias and a dynamic and interactive evening festival at Main Line Art Center, Panorama features physical and virtual exhibitions, lectures, portfolio reviews, and educational programs held at Main Line Art Center led by accomplished artists who utilize digital technology to deliver the unexpected.  In addition to the programs occurring on the Art Center’s campus, Panorama includes image-based programs produced by Creative Partners, arts and culture organizations spanning from Philadelphia to Lehigh County.  As of July 28, 2015, Creative Partners include ArtsQuest, the Delaware Center for the Contemporary Arts, Gravy Studio & Gallery, inliquid.com, James Oliver Gallery, Pentimenti Gallery, Philadelphia’s Art in City Hall, Philadelphia Photo Arts Center, The Print Center, and Silicon Gallery Fine Art Prints.  For a list of Creative Partner programs, visit www.mainlineart.org.

The focal point of Panorama is Modern Utopias, the featured exhibition on view in Main Line Art Center’s galleries September 12 through November 4.  Curated by Main Line Art Center Executive Director Amie Potsic, Modern Utopias presents compelling visions of modern existence, human potential, and virtual realities through works by Marjan Moghadden (New York, NY), Noah Addis (Columbus, OH), and Nicole Patrice Dul (Philadelphia, PA).  The Art Center will host an Artist Talk & Opening Reception on Friday, September 18 from 5:30 to 8:30 pm, and Artist Nicole Patrice Dul will present a two-day workshop on her process, Solarplate Etching, on Tuesday, September 29 and October 6 from 6:30 to 9:30 pm.

Beginning September 12, anyone, regardless of age or experience, can contribute to the Panorama virtual exhibition, which will be available on Main Line Art Center’s newly redesigned website in December.  Community members are encouraged to visit Community Partners, which include gardens, parks and green spaces in the greater-Philadelphia area, or other locations to document what utopia means to them, and then upload their digital photograph or video to www.mainlineart.org.

Finally, virtual and hands-on collide at Main Line Art Center on Saturday, October 24 from 5 to 9 pm for the high-energy Panorama Festival featuring music and entertainment, food trucks, live art experiences, innovative art-making, digital demos, and more.  Artist Tim Portlock will light up the night with a presentation of site-specific work, kicking-off the Center’s new Digital Artist in Residency Program.

Main Line Art Center is the community’s home to discover, create, and experience visual art.  A frequent recipient of Best of Awards for its beautiful galleries and high-quality art instruction, the Center’s visual art classes and contemporary and innovative exhibitions stimulate creativity, conversation, and joy. The mission of the Art Center is to inspire and engage artistic creativity for all ages and abilities and celebrate and strengthen the essential role of visual art in community life.  Last year 16,000 people found inspiration at Main Line Art Center, including artists with disabilities in the Center’s Accessible Art Programs, now in their 51st year, and 80,000 others were touched through the Center’s programs in the community.

Main Line Art Center is located at 746 Panmure Road in Haverford, behind the Wilkie Lexus dealership just off of Lancaster Avenue. The Art Center is easily accessible from public transportation and offers abundant free parking. For more information about Panorama including a list of all programs, please visit www.mainlineart.org or call 610.525.0272.

Thank you to Rachel Ammon, Communications Director of Main Line Art Center for the content of this post.

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Inside Out

public24Dog Barking at the Moon (1926) by Joan Miro, photographed by Laura Storck

Inside Out, Philadelphia Museum of Art,

Museum Masterpieces in Your Community

Written and photographed by Laura Storck

I spy art in unexpected places! That’s right — high-quality reproductions of famous art works have popped up in local communities as a part of the Inside Out program, a project sponsored by the Philadelphia Museum of Art through a grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. In this program, the museum is sharing 61 framed replicas from its collection around the region.  Brilliant!

public22Two Calla Lilies on Pink (1928), Georgia O’Keeffe, photographed by Laura Storck

What a great way to bring fine art outside of the confines of the gallery walls to the public realm. I felt absolutely ecstatic when I learned that 11 works would be sprinkled throughout my own backyard in Haddonfield, NJ. Not only does this allow for the convenience and easy accessibility to enjoy these works nearby, but I can savor them en plein air; I absolutely adore the organic context.public21The Libraries Are Appreciated (1943) by Jacob Lawrence, photographed by Laura Storck

Since I spend the majority of my free time in Philly, this outdoor exhibit also allows me to rediscover, reconnect, and to appreciate this beautiful neighborhood and all it has to offer.

public20The Kiss (1916) by Constanin Brancusi, photographed by Laura Storck

I was able to locate and photograph the pieces in under an hour (by the way, I DO love a good scavenger hunt!). These alluring works are very carefully placed, and complement each spot very well. The art at each location conveyed a cosmic romanticism and palpable energy that forcefully pulled me in.

public18Tanis (1915) by Daniel Garber, photographed by Laura Storckpublic16Portrait of a Roman Lady (La Nanna, 1859) by Sir Frederic Leighton, photographed by Laura Storckpublic15Poplars on the Bank of the Epte River (1891) by Claude Monet, photographed by Laura Storck

Here is the list of all 11 replica art works that are currently on view at various locations in Haddonfield:

  • Rondel Depicting Holofernes’s Army Crossing the Euphrates River (1246-48), from France
  • Mont Sainte-Victoire (1902-4), by Paul Cezanne
  • The Libraries Are Appreciated (1943), by Jacob Lawrence
  • Dog Barking at the Moon (1926), by Joan Miro
  • Marine (about 1652-53), by Simon Jacobsz de Vlieger
  • Tanis (1915), by Daniel Garber
  • Two Calla Lilies on Pink (1928), by Georgia O’Keeffe
  • Portrait of a Roman Lady (La Nanna) (1859), by Sir Frederic Leighton
  • Pichincha (1867), by Frederic Edwin Church
  • The Kiss (1916), by Constantin Brancusi
  • Poplars on the Bank of the Epte River (1891), by Claude Monet

I was thrilled to see a photograph one of my favorite masterpieces of all time, Brancusi’s The Kiss, included in this outdoor exhibit. This piece is so simple yet it conveys such emotion, tenderness, and gentle eroticism that runs deep to the core. Personally, I am always swept away and overcome with emotion when this amazing sculpture finds my gaze.

public13Pichincha (1867) by Frederic Edwin Church, photographed by Laura Storck

public12Mont Sainte-Victoire (1902-4) by Paul Cezanne, photographed by Laura StorckInside Out, Philadelphia Museum of Art, Laura StorckMarine (1652-3) by Simon Jacobsz de Vlieger, photographed by Laura Storck

Inside Out is being unveiled in two cycles between Summer and Autumn 2015. From mid-May until August, you may find art works in the following communities:

  • Haddonfield, Camden County, NJ
  • Chestnut Hill and Mount Airy, Philadelphia, PA   
  • East Passyunk, Philadelphia, PA  
  • Media, Delaware County, PA
  • Newtown, Bucks County, PA

From mid-August through November, you may stroll through these neighborhoods to find the next wave of pop-up collections:

  • Fishtown, and Kensington, Philadelphia, PA
  • Ambler, Montgomery County, PA
  • Norristown, Montgomery County, PA
  • Wayne, Delaware County, PA
  • West Chester, Chester County, PA

This project does an amazing job of reaching out to make this fine art accessible to communities that are relatively geographically distant from the museum.  I sincerely look forward to checking out the rest of the outdoor exhibits!

Go to www.philamuseum.org/insideout for maps and detailed information.

Included in this article are photographs of all but one of the Haddonfield art replicas on display. I’ll leave the challenge up to you to find it!

“Inside Out, May 15, 2015 – Mid-November 2015

Encounter high-quality replicas of artworks from the Museum’s collection in your neighborhood. The Philadelphia Museum of Art is sharing its art. This summer and fall, sixty high-quality replicas of Museum masterpieces will find their way into communities around the region. Each participating neighborhood will feature about ten artworks within a short distance of each other. Walk through the park, hop on a bike, or meander down Main Street through each exciting outdoor exhibition.Join your family and friends and encounter art in unexpected places. Picnic next to Claude Monet’s iconicJapanese Footbridge, stop to smell the flowers near Georgia O’Keeffe’s Calla Lilies, or shine a flashlight on Paul Gauguin’s Sacred Mountain during a midnight stroll. Never been to the Museum? Inside Out brings treasures from its collection to you. Pick a neighborhood, grab your friends and family, and explore.” – Philadelphia Museum of Art, Inside Out

Written and photographed  by Laura Storck except where noted

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