Category Archives: Art Spaces Philadelphia

Art galleries, shops, showrooms, lobbies, hallways, studios, warehouses, lofts, workshops, restaurants, coffee shops, schools, and any space where art is displayed in and around Philadelphia.

Energy & Matter – Diane Podolsky & Bonnie Schorske @ Gallery 22

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Gallery 22 in Center City West is an artist collective under the direction of Shawn Murray with rotating exhibits of member artists as well as an ongoing group exhibit. The space is lovely with wonderful light and excellent presentation – the current show Energy & Matter was installed by Shawn and member artist Diane Podolsky, pairing the expressive paintings by Podolsky with photographer Bonnie Schorske. Before last Sunday’s meet & greet DoN had the opportunity for some quiet conversation with Diane Podolsky while Katy the ArT DoG & Lady Doofie (the St. Bernard/Chihuahua mix) lounged on the sidewalk on 22nd Street.

Over the Summer Podolsky held a teaching fellowship with the Center for Emerging Visual Artists to work on an inter-generational art project bringing together young people and residents of a nursing home. The gist of the program was to get older people to pass along stories of their lives to the youngsters, incorporating the tales of their lives into an upcoming art installation. The kids were captivated by the stories told by an ex-professional baseball player from the Negro Baseball League in Philly, a former jazz club singer and folks who lived in simpler times in Germantown. The project involves cut out paper flowers & leaves and paper clothes to be hung on a clothes line in a nine foot long installation with the stories written on the elements. Diane was surprised at how much the kids enjoyed hearing the stories and sewing the paper clothes – many of them had never threaded a needle let alone actually sewing. DoN will keep you posted as to when the completed work with be displayed.

Olea Europaea Biceps Popeyi, Bonnie Schorske, digital capture archival print and Thorns, Diane Podolsky, oil & graphite.

Make a Wish, Diane Podolsky, oil & graphite and Olea Europaea Deja II, Bonnie Schorske, digital capture archival pigment print.

Bonnie Schorske @ Gallery 22.

Diane is quite self effacing about her work even though the bold works are expressive, intriguing and vibrant. Her style is abstract yet naturalistic, combining brushy strokes of muted color with recognizable objects such as chicken wishbones, woody tree shapes and animal forms. Matched with Bonnie Schorske’s impeccable black and white photographs of Majorica, the overall effect is transcendent as if following Alice down the rabbit hole. Bonnie told DoN there is a hidden narrative in the installation which is fun to investigate – kind of like “Where’s Waldo” on an highly sophisticated level. The skill and beauty of the artists’ work is perfectly complementary with dreamy photo realism aligned with neo-geo paintings; Energy & Matter is on display through November 8th to be followed by a one person show of paintings by the incomparable Ed Bronstein, Explorations…..in the Neighborhood featuring paintings created in Katy & Lady Doofie’s favorite place, the dog park!

The group show @ Gallery 22.

Daniel Reilly – PSoP Photographer – Trippin’ Around the World

“Fire Dance, Ubud Bali, Indonesia“, Daniel Reilly @ Bonte’s, 130 S. 17th, Philadelphia.

World traveler, photographer Daniel Reilly‘s current one-person show @ Bonte’s Cafe, 17th & Walnut, offers unique vistas, alluring compositions, mysterious visions and one-of-a-kind perspectives that only an artist could see – all in pristine black & white and color photos. Each photograph is a glimpse into a part of the world that many of us may never experience – from a birds eye view of Argentine street Tango dancers to haunting groundhog views of the ancient Greek Parthenon to quirky over the shoulder shots of Tibetan monks passing a can of Coke. A native Philadelphian, Reilly taught English in Buenos Aires for more than three years – the locals wanted to learn American slang such as, “Stop busting my balls!” – ah, pop culture’s influence, who knew? Daniel was a witness to the 2002 riot at the Pink Palace, he actually ran towards the scene after grabbing his camera only to high-tail it away when police on horseback came rushing towards him.

In San Francisco Reilly worked for a TV station, then spent nine months in Hawaii, on to the islands of Fiji, a tour of New Zealand, Australia, Bali, Indonesia, Lombak, Gili Islands, Singapore, Bangkok Thailand, Athens Greece – Reilly spent two years in Summer! Daniel told DoN the best time of his life was spent in Croatia. But, Reilly always come home to family in Philly. A recent member of the Photographic Society of Philadelphia, the show at Bonte’s is one of Daniel’s first one-person shows even though he’s been an event photographer for years with a catalog of over 30,000 images. Maybe that’s why the selection of pictures @ Bonte’s are so choice – some of the archivally matted and framed prints have already sold; DoN suggests you start to collect Reilly now before the prices go up.

Daniel Reilly, “Untitled, Rio de la Plata, Uraguay.”

“T is for Tango, Buenos Aires, Argentina”, Daniel Reilly, PSoP photographer @ Bonte’s.

Daniel Reilly @ Bonte’s Cafe.

“Holy Dolls, Madrid, Spain”, Daniel Reilly.

Written and photographed by DoN Brewer except where noted.

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Photographs by George Krause @ The Plastic Club

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The enormous photographs of football players by George Krause in the Plastic Club‘s Tea Room are thoroughly engrossing. The tough stares emitting from the players eyes, the sweat and grit on their faces, the glossy texture of their uniforms offers the viewer the opportunity to examine up close the epitome of masculinity, competitive aggression and stolid determination to win at all costs. DoN spoke with Krause as he installed the works and learned that the prints were created by scanning film negatives and printing the photographs on huge sheets of matte paper. Rick Wright, another great Philly photographer, pointed out how each of the photos are not exactly black and white but saturated with purple, green and maroon giving the images a lively glow.

As you enter the front door of the historic art club, a large book of over-sized portraits is splayed out on a table. At first DoN thought it was a unique way to present some photos that didn’t fit on the wall but instead discovered a book filled with intensely personal portraits of a wide variety of faces from hippies guys with earrings and greasy hair to stern women in power suits.

The exquisite gelatin silver prints beautifully presented answer the question of whether photography is true art is answered with a resounding,”Yes.”

George Krause was born in Philly, attended PCA, received the first Prix de Rome and the first Fulbright-Hayes Fellowships ever awarded to a photographer, two Guggenheim Fellowships and three grants from the National Endowment for the Arts. The entire Plastic Club is filled with Krause’s photos including an extraordinary group of life-sized nudes in the newly refurbished gallery in the basement – it’s hard to believe such a treasure is so easily accessible to all at the low, low price of free. The exhibit is on view through October 24th, make the effort to wander over to the Avenue of the Artists and experience a truly unique exhibit of world class photography.

DoNBrewerMultimedia – POST-X 2009

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