Center City
Arts & Culture Week
Now through Sunday, Oct. 30, take advantage of half price tickets to many of Philadelphia's best exhibits and shows as part of Center City Arts & Culture Week. Finally take that trip to the PMA that you've been putting off for years, or check out one of the many exhibits that are offering free admission tomorrow for Gallery Night.
Mio Culture
Kellijane
1721 Spruce Street
Fri, 5:30 p.m.‹¨«8:30 p.m., Free
(215) 790-0233
Sick of looking at the white walls in your room? Trying to think of ways to cover up the holes that last year's resident left? Kellijane is a textile/linen store that features products that are "art but functional." This Friday they are hosting an exhibit by Mio Culture, a Philly-based design group, displaying a laser-cut aluminum wall hanging. Because anything made by a laser has to be cool, take some time and check out this free exhibit.
Richard Serra:
Large Scale Etchings
Works on Paper
1611 Walnut Street, Mezzanine
Fri, 5:30 p.m.‹¨«8:30 p.m., Free
(215) 988-9999
I have a theory that artists don't make sense when they talk. "You become the audience in reconstructing the process of their making," Richard Serra said when interviewed about his art. What? Fortunately, great artists can express themselves openly and beautifully in whatever medium they use -- they don't have to explain themselves with words. Wow, did Serra ever luck out because he can draw on metal plates like they are pieces of paper. Who needs words when you can do that?
Jennifer Bartlett/ Nancy Graves
Locks Gallery
600 Washington Square South
Fri, 5:30 p.m.‹¨«8:30 p.m., Free
(215) 629-1000
www.locksgallery.com
Diptych. If you say it quickly enough, it sounds like a dirty word. I'm sorry to report, however, that it's actually two painted or carved panels hinged together. Jennifer Bartlett has 11 of them on display. And Nancy Graves? Nothing even quasi-dirty about her exhibition, just some 3-D pieces made of bronze, steel and paint in a collection called "The Shining, Elusive Element." I blame going to college for making me look for dirty undertones in art terms and exhibitions.
Open Juried Photo Competition
Philadelphia Sketch Club
235 S. Camac Street
Fri, 5:30 p.m.‹¨«8:30 p.m., Free
(215) 545-9298
www.sketchclub.org
The oldest art club in the country is holding an open photo competition. Yes, the oldest, so it may as well say "most prestigious." The exhibit shows black and white, color and digital photos selected by a group of discerning judges, and the gallery itself shows an extensive permanent collection of art from the 19th to 20th century. So even if you're not a photography connoisseur, you'll be sure to love the exhibit.
Kate Abercrombie,
Eva Wylie,
Nami Yamamoto and Guest Artists
Vox Populi Gallery
1315 Cherry Street
Fri, 5:30 p.m.‹¨«8:30 p.m., Free
(215) 568-5513
www.voxpopuligallery.org
White Noise. Near Berserk. Ghost Town of the Sky. Sound like album names to you? Nope, they're the titles of pieces of artwork on display at the Vox Populi Gallery. Founded in 1988 to support the work of new artists, the Gallery is famous for its exhibits of experimental modern artwork. So why miss an opportunity to come see the solo shows of three artists, including Nami Yamamoto?
We Run Out of
Continent
Fleisher/Ollman Gallery
1616 Walnut Street, Suite 100
Fri, 5:30 p.m.‹¨«8:30 p.m., Free
(215) 545-7562
www.fleisher-ollmangallery.com
When you think of art, you usually think about little watercolor paintings or big marble sculptures. Well, Isaac Resnikoff's "We Run Out of Continent," currently on display at the Fleisher/Ollman Gallery, is a sculpture of carved wood, rope and carpet. Although this seems quite unique for a piece of artwork, it is not out of the ordinary for the place; founded in 1952, Fleisher/Ollman is known for its works by self-taught American artists. So come on over to see it; who knows, it might inspire you to finish that bust you were building out of stale macaroni and cheese.
Teresita Fern‹¨«ndez
Fabric Workshop and Museum
1315 Cherry Street, 5th floor
Fri, 5:30 p.m.‹¨«8:30 p.m., $5
(215) 568-1111
www.fabricworkshopand
museum.org
What's more exciting than an exhibit on multicolored fabric representing a volcano or a roaring forest fire? Rather than answering that, just head over to the Fabric Workshop and Museum to see the work of Teresita Fern‹¨«ndez.(The exhibit's open through Nov. 12.) Two concentric rings of hand-dyed thread paint a fiery landscape that dances and twists as one travels around the outer edge. Rather than any other medium, Fern‹¨«ndez chooses elaborate man-made materials such as woven thread to represent natural phenomena as a way of tying the two back together. So, if textural minimalism is your thing, make sure to catch this intriguing exhibit before it leaves town.
Winesburg, Ohio
Arden Theatre Company
40 N. 2nd St.
Fri, 8 p.m., Sun, 2 p.m. &
7 p.m., Tue, 8 p.m., $29-$45,
through Nov. 6
(215) 922-1122
www.ardentheatre.org
We know from facebook that Midwesterners pride themselves on being nicer than the rest of us. Based on a 1919 Sherwood Anderson novel, this play proves that that doesn't make them any less screwed up and emotionally stunted. This angst-ridden story's been adapted into a musical, boasting a folksy score. If you're hankering for some straight-out-of-the-Heartland pathos right here in Philadelphia, only the Arden Theatre's production will do. And may I just add, poor Sherwood Anderson. He died of swallowing a toothpick. True story.
+++halloween
Don't be a halloweenie: Do something different for Halloween this year.
Boo at the Zoo
Philadelphia Zoo
3400 W. Girard Avenue
Sat, 9:30 a.m.‹¨«3 p.m., $16.95
(215) 243-1100
www.philadelphiazoo.org
Have you ever thought about what would happen if the animals accidentally got loose at a zoo? They might be really angry about being stuck in cages all their lives and go crazy when they're free. But don't worry, Boo at the Zoo is nothing like my irrational fear. Instead, you get to trick or treat at the zoo and feed some of the animals. Just be ready to run if one of the animals gets a funny look in its eye.@Listing Title 2005:Rittenhouse Row
Halloween
Celebration
Broad and Walnut streets
Sat, 10:30 a.m., $10
(215) 972-0101
www.rittenhouserow.org
It's that time of year again! That magical night is nigh, and it's only a matter of time until those creepy, crawly disgusting things descend on the city of brotherly love. If getting scared stiff is what gets your mojo pumping, then head on over to Rittenhouse Row for some fright-night horror. Think that this yuppie paradise can't be home to anything scarier than a $250 pair of designer jeans or maybe a fleece-wearing shih tzu? Well, that may be so, but for $10, you can earn yourself the right to celebrate Halloween in style, in one of the swankiest places in the city.
Bill of Frights
National Constitution Center
525 Arch Street
Sat, 11 a.m.‹¨«2 p.m., Free
(215) 409-6600
Celebrate Halloween the way our forefathers did. Yes, every Halloween, old Alex Hamilton and Jimmy Madison used to dress up as zombies and haunt the Independence Mall, and now's your chance to take part in the tradition. Don't miss the trick-or-treating, games and pumpkin- painting. This event will probably be most enjoyable for children, but Penn students will no doubt find some charm in popping out from under a table to scare the ghost of Ben Franklin, who will reportedly be in attendance.
Nightmares X-treme Scream Park
Wachovia Spectrum
3601 S. Broad St.
Thu, 6 p.m.‹¨«10 p.m.,
Fri, 7 p.m.‹¨«11 p.m.,
Sat, 5 p.m.‹¨«Midnight,
Sun, 1 p.m.‹¨«10 p.m.,
$20‹¨«$30
(215) 389--9543
www.nightmaresx.com
This is no ordinary run-of-the-mill haunted house; this is a haunted house gone Hollywood. The Nightmare X-treme Scream Park is a 90 minute walk-through, interactive tour of nine different attractions, including a movie on Poe, a 3-D freakshow and scariest of all, a jack-o-lantern tribute to all presidents, past and present! The horror! But seriously, you know it must be good if they drop the first "e" in "extreme." Too good for the "e" means pretty damn awesome.
Exhumed Films Triple Features of Terror Grindhouse Horrors
International House
3701 Chestnut Street
Sat, 8 p.m., Free
(215) 387-5125
www.ihousephilly.org
What better way to celebrate Halloween than to watch really bad, old horror movies? You can even stroke your cultured ego a bit by watching two foreign horror flicks and one from the good old US of A. Start your scream season off right with the 1968 Mexican classic Night of the Bloody Apes, about a scientist who completes the first ever ape to human heart transplant only to discover his patient suffers from the unfortunate side effect of becoming a raging homicidal beast man! And it only gets better. The International House will also be showing The Witchmaker, (1969, USA) and When the Screaming Stops, (1974, Spain). There surely is no better way to spend your Saturday night.
+++
SOTA 10th Anniversary Celebration
SOTA: Spirit of the Artist
1022 Pine Street
Fri, 6 p.m.‹¨«9 p.m., Free
(215) 627-8801
www.sotagifts.com
Spirit of the Artist is one of those adorable little shops on Antique Row, and just so happens to be celebrating its 10th anniversary. It's never too early to begin the arduous task of holiday shopping, and SOTA's offerings vary from jewelry to sculpture to toys. Mom would just love, love, love a gift from SOTA from her darling offspring, so stop by and pick up a hand-made piece of artistry. Stay for some refreshments and light revelry.
Creative Collective Craft and Fine Arts Fair
Headhouse Square
2nd and Pine streets
Sat, 12 p.m.‹¨«11 p.m.,
Sun, 12 p.m.‹¨«6 p.m., Free
(215) 790-0782
www.geocities.com/ccartsfair
Aww ... arts and crafts ... brings you back to those second grade popsicle stick picture frames you used to bring home to mom and dad. OK, well, maybe the Creative Collective Craft and Fine Arts Fair sells things of a slightly higher quality than your paste-covered creations; their Historic Headhouse building is the country's oldest market place. And after all, a place that's been open continuously for the past 37 years has got to have something good.
Reelblack cinema presents Constellation
International House
3701 Chestnut Street
Thu, 7 p.m., Free
(215) 387-5125
www.ihousephilly.org
In an effort to raise the profile of African American film in Philadelphia, Reelblack Cinema showcases new and rediscovered gems of black cinema. The International House of Philly, whose goal is to provide the Philly community with cultural and social events, hosts Reelblack's next film event, Constellation. Centered around the coming-home story of Helms Boxer, played by Billy Dee Williams, the movie revolves around the complexities of interracial relationships in the South during the first half of the twentieth century. Both writer/director Jordan Walker Perlman and actress Zoe Saldana are scheduled to attend the screening of the movie.
Veruca Salt
Trocadero
1003 Arch Street
Mon, 7 p.m., $14
(215) 922-LIVE
www.thetroc.com
Does Halloween conjure up bad memories of stolen candy and horrifically embarrassing costumes? Looking for something to do that is not festive for Monday night? The female '90s alt-rock band Veruca Salt (of "Seether" and "Volcano Girls") will be performing at the Trocadero Theatre on the 31st. For those who miss the great decade of pissed-off chicks and one-hit wonders, the concert offers a nice escape from drunk fairy princesses and trashed Hugh Hefners.
Cky (Camp Kill
Yourself)
The Electric Factory
421 N. 7th St.
Mon, 8:30 p.m., $26.25
(215) LOVE-222
This isn't just a band. This foursome heads up a fan-driven movement, and so help them, they're going to "take over the name of rock and roll and piss on
its face." (Who honestly says that?) CKY got its start when one of the band member's brother, you may have heard of him, Bam Margera, used their songs on his skating video. Since then, they've been gaining fans through word of mouth, reaching out to the people who know that everything sucks and aren't afraid to say it. They're sharing their music, which doesn't have any choruses because "choruses are for pussies," with the Philadelphia area this Monday. If you've got rage or just hate life in general, you should check them out.
