Small Works at the Philadelphia Sculpture Gym

Last night was First Friday in Philadelphia, and the Philadelphia Sculpture Gym put on a Small Works show. It was so good to go out after a really long two weeks to see friends and some really lovely work in a neighborhood I don't spend much time in. (I have three of my While You Were Sleeping pieces in it!)

The Philadelphia Sculpture Gym won the Knight Arts Challenge in 2011, and it was started "to help Philadelphia sculptors create their works safely by creating a “sculpture gym” where artists can use heavy-duty tools, have storage space and get one-on-one help with projects."

Although they are still in the midst of finishing the space, the vision is really impressive. The gallery is in full swing, already hosting shows featuring casting and wood processes and a solo show by Terri Aluise. There will be classroom space, a woodshop, hot and cold metal shops, and storage space. I'm definitely considering a membership there!

Philadelphia First Friday

One of my "new year's" resolutions (in this new life in a new city) has been seeing more art. Somehow despite my best efforts, I only inconsistently made it out to New York galleries during all the time that I lived there. But now that I've moved both getting out more and galleries to the top of my to-do list, we're getting somewhere. I've resolved to try to make it to most First Fridays in Philadelphia. For October's, I went first to Old City and wandered around and then went to 319 N. 11th Street which holds a number of galleries (including Vox Populi and Grizzly Grizzly) and studios. My favorite piece of the night was Katie Murken's Continua on the second floor. Seeing it first online did not do it justice. The tall dyed columns were beautiful in the details, and her specific color choices were better appreciated in person, as I suppose is to be expected. They were interesting on their own, but I absolutely loved the next room, filled with embossed and printed diagrams showing which hues were chosen for each dye lot and the ratios of each color based on the rolling of a die. I love seeing process and decision-making in the work itself, and I think she did a particularly good job of it- deliberate decisions shown subtly with consideration for process' place in the work. It completely made my night.