Two weekends ago I was able to get a spot on the guided trolley tour of the Philadelphia Open Studio Tour (POST). The guided tour was coordinated by the Center for Emerging Visual Artists.
I missed the artist talks at the Center for Emerging Visual Artists where the tour started because I was stuck in traffic. Luckily, I got there in time to get on the trolley. The next stop was NextFab at 2025 Washington Ave. NextFab is a membership – based, high – tech workshop and prototyping center. Wow, the equipment and machinery there made everyone’s jaws drop. We were lead from room to room starting with the wood shop, the metal fabrication room, electronics work stations, large format printing and 3D printing. There was a small area our guide Jonathan Tekac called the textile area where I was watching someone be trained on an embroidery machine. There is a photography studio as well. Just about anything you can dream up can be made there!
The next stop was Artists at 40th Street Artist Residency, where we met Brenna K. Murphy who uses her own hair to embroider her work addressing the concept of home., Linda Dublin Garfield, mixed media printmaker and Mike Harpring, who makes beautiful illuminated assemblages from recycled materials.
The third stop was The Cedar Works, a newly renovated industrial building that houses artists studios.We met Jacques – Jean Tiziou, Douglas Witmer and Ken Beidler.
The description of Douglas’s work read “simple geometric imagery, emphatic color, and subtle manipulation of surface physicality.” His paintings are amazingly simple and complex at the same time.
The final stop was the Metropolitan Gallery 250 where Jake Beckman introduced us to his work which included drawings and an installation. Metropolitan Bakery provided yummy desserts to end the tour.
