Past recommended events

Events recommended by PASC | Archive

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Jayson Musson at Fabric Workshop and Museum

"Ollie," puppeteered by Cedwan Hooks, and Jayson Musson as "Jay" perform in front of a green screen for a scene in episode one, "Hey Young World." Photo credit: Carlos Avendaño.

Book release party held in 2022. Click for details, including table of contents, about 'PATAPHYSICS UNROLLED on the Penn State University Press website.

Scene from The Idiopathic Ridiculopathy Consortium's production of “Exit the King,” by Eugene Ionesco. Photo: Johanna Austin

PAST EVENTS | 2023

The cast of IRC’s ‘All That Fall’, from left: Brian McManus, Kevin J. McCann, Tina Ann Brock, John Zak, Elliot Colahan, Bill Rahill, and Brittany Holdahl Donahue. (Photo by Johanna Austin @AustinArt.org.)

SEPT. 5 - 24: Samuel Beckett's All That Fall, presented by The Idiopathic Ridiculopathy Consortium, directed by Tina Ann Brock, who shines as Mrs. Rooney (Maddy). "A hilarious and unsettling jaunt to a train station in 1950s Ireland ... offering laughs right up to gut-punch finish," writes PASC's Emily Schilling in Broad Street Review. At the Louis Bluver Theatre at the Drake, 302 Hicks Street, Philadelphia. Tickets, $20-$25. idiopathicridiculopathyconsortium.org.

AUG. 25-OCT. 14: Exhibitions at the UArts Art Alliance: Dan Levenson: SKZ Monochrome Classrooms and L’école, a group show featuring works by Mangelos, Jessica Wynne, Annson Kenney, Sharka Hyland, and Erica Baum. The artists are focused on language, teaching, communication, directions, calligraphy, and text. University of the Arts Art Alliance, 251 South 18th Street, Philadelphia. (215) 545-4302 or uarts.edu.

THROUGH SEPT. 9 (Online/Switzerland): "Roth Bar" at Hauser & Wirth St. Moritz. A fully-functional bar, conceived by artist Dieter Roth in the early 1980s, activates the gallery’s ground floor space as a hub for socializing and performances. At Roth's request, a bar formed part of his first show with Hauser & Wirth in 1997. Since its first iteration, the bar has evolved. Versions have operated at Reykjavik Art Museum in 2005; Hauser & Wirth Coppermill, London (2006); HangarBicocca, Milan (2013); to Hauser & Wirth Zurich, and Hotel Les Trois Rois, Basel (2015). It was last shown in 2019 at Museum Tinguely in Basel. For those who visit Switzerland this summer, a trip to St. Moritz might be on order. The bar is open Thursdays 11 am – 7 pm and Fridays and Saturdays, 11 am – 11 pm. Via Serlas 22, 7500 St. Moritz, Switzerland. For those who can't get there in person, enjoy the display online.

THROUGH AUG. 20 (London): Anselm Kiefer: Finnegans Wake, an exhibition of new paintings, sculptures and installations about James Joyce's Finnegans Wake (1939). White Cube Bermondsey, 144-152 Bermondsey Street, London, U.K.

Installation view of "Afterwork#10," by Rodrigo Valenzuela. 2021, gelatin silver print, 24” x 30”, edition 1 of 3, on view at The Print Center through July 15. Photo by Emily Schilling.

THROUGH JULY 15: solo exhibition, Rodrigo Valenzuela: Workforce, recent and newly created work by the Chilean-born artist, at The Print Center. Opening reception: Friday, April 14, at 5:30 p.m. The Print Center, 1614 Latimer Street, Philadelphia.

William Schwedler. "Shaped Panel." 1980, acrylic and collage on plywood, private collection. Photo by Emily Schilling.

THROUGH JUNE 30: William Schwedler: Against the Grain, at UArts' Rosenwald-Wolf Gallery. The first solo exhibition of Schwedler's work in nearly 40 years, the show includes work from the artist's days as a student in Chicago until his death in New York from HIV/AIDS on Sept. 25, 1982. Born in Chicago in 1942, Schwedler's exceptional talent was recognized while he was in high school. After graduating from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in 1964, Schwedler moved to New York, where he received his MFA from the Pratt Institute in 1966. Schwedler taught at Tyler School of Art and exhibited locally at Tyler, Penn State, Moore College of Art, and the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. He was represented in four Whitney Museum exhibits, among other prestigious national and international venues. After a posthumous exhibit at Tibor de Nagy, his estate was distributed among friends, and Schwedler’s work was never assembled again until now. Schwedler was shown at the Rosenwald-Wolf in 2003 in The Other Tradition: Alternative Representations and Eccentric Abstraction, and in 2020 among the works in UArts' multivenue exhibition, Invisible City: Philadelphia and the Vernacular Avant-garde. Rosenwald-Wolf Gallery, 333 S. Broad Street (at Pine Street), Philadelphia.

THROUGH JUNE 26: Taji Ra’oof Nahl / TR7: Cross Pollination, presented by Marginal Utility at the gallery and additional venues. Avant-garde conceptual artist TR7 explores the gallery’s spatial dynamics, which will serve as an observatory that presents the ongoing creative research into his "Calculating Banneker; Apis Project". Programming will be fed back to the observatory (Marginal Utility) from the various sites, including the Philadelphia Beekeepers Guild’s Apiary at Awbury Arboretum, The Rotunda, and The House of Schlesinger. Check Marginal Utility's website for updates; 319 N. 11th Street, 2nd Floor, Philadelphia. Saturdays and Sundays, noon to 5 pm, and by appointment.

THROUGH JUNE 4: Goldsmiths Centre for Contemporary Art in London presents On Discomfort, solo exhibition by artist Pilvi Takala (b. 1981, Finland). The exhibition includes the multi-channel installation Close Watch (2022), which was presented at the Finnish Pavilion for the 2022 Venice Biennale. Takala was employed as a security guard at a large shopping mall and filmed subsequent workshops with her colleagues. Goldsmiths CCA, St James’s, New Cross, London, UK.

APRIL 19 - 29, 2023: "Plum Bun" by Jessie Redmon Fauset, directed by Walter DeShields, who also worked with Lane Savadove to adapt the novel. Along with season co-presenter Theatre In The X, EgoPo Classic Theater stages "Plum Bun" at Christ Church Neighborhood House, 20 N. American Street, Philadelphia. Tickets and information here. For more about Jessie Redmon Fauset (1882-1961), visit Britannica.com's entry about the remarkable Philadelphian.

Farideh Sakhaeifar’s 'ISIS/NASA' series (2015), a collection of photographs housed in a small, official-looking aluminum box, is displayed on the gallery’s wide, low windowsill. (Photo by Emily Schilling)

THROUGH APRIL 21: Numb Images, exhibition at Twelve Gates Arts gallery. Bombarded with images, we fail to recognize the visual fields around us that build our sense of the world. Three artists take the ‘numb image’ of the horrors of war and activate new meanings and points of view through mixed media: Farideh Sakhaeifar, Francis Estrada, and Syed Hussain. Curated by Rashmi Viswanathan, this exhibition is "revelatory on many levels, and well worth a visit," writes PASC's Emily Schilling in Broad Street Review. Twelve Gates Arts, 106 N. 2nd Street, Philadelphia. (215) 253-8578 or twelvegatesarts.org.

THROUGH MARCH 16: Exhibition, Alex Da Corte: The Street, Rosenwald-Wolf Gallery at University of the Arts. Opening reception, Friday, Jan. 13, 5 to 7:30 p.m. Da Corte’s The Street is an installation of large reverse-glass paintings hung against a background mural of the artist's design in an environment of masonry columns, neon and placards. Mural Arts Philadelphia, the largest public-arts program in the United States, assisted with the exhibit. The Street references Philadelphia as an incubator of avant-garde art and architecture, as well as pop culture in general. PASC's Emily Schilling reviews the exhibit in Broad Street Review. Rosenwald-Wolf Gallery, 333 S. Broad St., Philadelphia. Opening hours: Tue-Fri, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sat, noon to 5 p.m. Free.

A corner of the Rosenwald-Wolf Gallery shows the vivid mural backgrounds, part of Alex Da Corte's 'The Street,' up through March 10. Photo by Emily Schilling.

On the wall across from the gallery attendants' desk, everyone who helped create the installation is named. Photo by Emily Schilling.

THROUGH MARCH 7, 2023: Exhibition, BOOK.DATA.FILE., Kamin Gallery, Van Pelt-Dietrich Library Center (first floor), 3240 Walnut Street, UPenn campus, Philadelphia. Following an item from the reading room, to digitizing, and pushing the boundaries of data-driven research, this exhibition draws on Penn Libraries’ involvement in digital technologies for research and scholarship. The annual Lawrence J. Schoenberg Symposium on Manuscript Studies in the Digital Age and efforts like OPenn to make available and usable archival images and metadata place Penn at the forefront of open data in cultural heritage collections. Similarly, the Center for Research Data and Digital Scholarship fosters data literacy and critical thinking in digital project collaboration. For details: daily hours and visitor information.

JAN. 11 - 22, 2023: World premiere theatrical staging of "The Ways of White Folks" by Langston Hughes. EgoPo Classic Theater presents immersive staging at the historic Glen Foerd Estate on the Delaware River. EgoPo's season co-presenter is Theatre In The X. Conceived for the stage by EgoPo's Artistic Director Lane Savadove, directed by Ontaria Kim Wilson and Dane Eissler. The Mansion at Glen Foerd, 5001 Grant Avenue, Philadelphia. Valet parking for all shows; shuttle from center city for matinees. Tickets and information here.

PAST EVENTS | 2022

Click for details, including table of contents, about 'PATAPHYSICS UNROLLED on the Penn State University Press website.

Inspired by the 2014 "Philadelphia à la Pataphysique" conference that also led to PASC's formation, ’Pataphysics Unrolled, edited by Katie L. Price and Michael R. Taylor, was published in April 2022 by Penn State University Press. ’Pataphysics Unrolled "collects critical and creative essays to create an unauthorized account of pataphysical experimentation from its origins in the late nineteenth century through the contemporary moment.

"Touching on disciplines such as literature, art, architecture, education, music, and technology, this book reveals how pataphysics has been a platform and medium for persistent intellectual, poetic, conceptual, and artistic experimentation for over a century.

"In addition to the editors, the contributors to this volume include Charles Bernstein, Marc Décimo (translated by Anne M. Mulhall), Adam Dickinson, Johanna Drucker, Craig Dworkin, Catherine Hansen, James Hendler, John Heon, Ted Hiebert, Andrew Hugill, Steve McCaffery, Seth McDowell, Jerome McGann, Marcus O’Dair, Jean-Michel Rabaté, Orchid Tierney, and Brandon Walsh." (Description from the Penn State University Press website.)

"Ollie," puppeteered by Cedwan Hooks, and Jayson Musson as "Jay" perform in front of a green screen for a scene in episode one, "Hey Young World." Photo credit: Carlos Avendaño.

Jayson Musson at The Fabric Workshop and Museum

Jayson Musson as “Jay” with “Ollie.” Jayson Musson, in collaboration with The Fabric Workshop and Museum, Philadelphia, “His History of Art,” 2022. Photo credit: Carlos Avendaño.

EXTENDED THROUGH DEC. 31: Exhibition, Jayson Musson: His History of Art, The Fabric Workshop and Museum (FWM), 1214 Arch Street, Philadelphia. Using costuming, props, puppetry, and scenery created in collaboration with FWM employees, Musson has produced three episodes of a surreal, hilarious sitcom he describes as "orbiting art history and all the fun to be had dancing on the minefield of the past." Accompanying events, programs, and workshops are still being added. Visit The Fabric Workshop and Museum's website for details and updates.

John Zak and Tina Brock are brother and sister locked in a fever dream/nightmare. "The Two-Character Play" runs through Sept. 25. Photo by Johanna Drucker

THROUGH SEPT. 25: "The Two-Character Play" (Out Cry) by Tennessee Williams, produced by The Idiopathic Ridiculopathy Consortium (IRC), at The Bluver Theatre at The Drake. The IRC's production of "The Two-Character Play" is a surreal, poetic fever dream featuring John Zak and Tina Brock, both of whom also direct, along with Peggy Mecham. The Bluver Theatre at The Drake, 302 S. Hicks Street, Philadelphia (between Spruce & Pine, 15th & 16th Streets). An exhilarating production. Tickets here.

In addition to beautifully pitched interpretations by the actors, "The Two-Character Play" brings many talents together for a superb production, including costumes by Shannon Zura; set by Dirk Durossette; sound design by Christopher Colucci. Technical Director: Tony Clemente; Scenic Artist: Mona Maria Damian Ulmu; Stage Manager: Juliet Dempsey; Ways and Means: Bob Schmidt.

Tina Brock plays Clare in Tennessee Williams's "The Two-Character Play (Out Cry)," highly recommended. Photo by Christopher Colucci.

THROUGH AUG. 19: Solo exhibition "Philadelphia Wireman", curated by Fleisher/Ollman director Alex Baker, is a rare chance to see 35 of the anonymous maker's fascinating works on display at Fleisher/Ollman Gallery. Also up: "New Inventory Masterworks," 20th-century artists who are regarded as pioneers in the self-taught realm and increasingly recognized for their contributions to American Modernism. Fleisher/Ollman Gallery, 915 Spring Garden Street, Suite 215. July hours: Tuesdays through Fridays, 10:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.; August: open by appointment.

Two works by the Philadelphia Wireman were displayed in UArts' comprehensive exhibition "Invisible City: Philadelphia and the Vernacular Avant-garde" (Jan. 21 through April 4, 2020). Photo: Emily Schilling

Philadelphia Wireman. Philadelphia Wireman. Untitled (No. 664), c. 1970-1975. Courtesy Fleisher/Ollman Gallery; used with permission.

THROUGH JULY 31: Muse Gallery presents "This Very Place," an exhibition of vibrant, lyrical, mixed-media paintings and works on paper by Joann Doneen. 52 N. Second Street (between Arch and Cuthbert), Old City, Philadelphia. Wednesdays through Sundays, noon to 5 p.m., and First Friday: Friday, July 1, 5 to 8 p.m. The artist will be present at First Friday, as well as Saturdays, July 9, 16, and 23, and Sunday, July 31.

Morris Blackman, "Biomorphic Abstract 008," 79” x 50”, acrylic on panel, among the works on view at Gross McCleaf Gallery through July 30. Image courtesy of Gross McCleaf Gallery, used with permission.

THROUGH JULY 30: Exhibitions of Philadelphia artists, Gross McCleaf Gallery: "Morris Blackman: SAVE FOR FUTURE USE" and "Ed Bing Lee: The World on a String." Blackman's versatility is on full display in this panoramic retrospective of paintings, drawings, and assemblages; the accompanying booklet includes an essay by Miriam Seidel. Bing Lee's knotted works are also on view. Two opening receptions are planned: Bing Lee on Saturday, July 9, 1 to 4 p.m.; Blackman on Saturday, July 23, 1 to 4 p.m. Gross McCleaf Gallery requests RSVPs (here) for the receptions. Gallery hours: Wednesdays through Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and by appointment. 127 S. 16th Street (between Moravian and Sansom Streets).

Ed Bing Lee, "First Love," 19” x 19”, cotton embroidery floss over linen. Image courtesy of Gross McCleaf Gallery, used with permission.

JULY 24, 8 p.m.: Ars Nova Workshop presents Peeesseye with TALsounds at Johnny Brenda's--21 and older. Tickets here. Peeesseye musicians, reunited for the first time in more than 10 years, are Jaime Fennelly (electronics), Chris Forsyth (guitar), and Fritz Welch (percussion and vocals). TALsounds: Natalie Chami (electronics). Proof of Covid-19 vaccination required for entry, and attendees are encouraged to wear masks. Johnny Brenda’s, 1201 N. Frankford Avenue, Philadelphia. Tickets: $20 general admission. Doors open at 7 p.m.

Image courtesy Cerulean Arts, used with permission. Click for gallery website.

THROUGH JULY 24: Cerulean Arts Collective Members' Exhibitions, featuring Kassem Amoudi, Anthony Ciambella, Mo Gerngross, Tilda Mann, and Amanda Moseley. In-person reception: Saturday, July 2, 2 to 5 p.m. Virtual tour and talk: Wednesday, July 13, 6 p.m. (Eastern Time). Register here for virtual event. Cerulean Arts, 1355 Ridge Avenue (just below Broad Street, between Fairmount and Wallace), Philadelphia. Call (267) 514-8647 for information or visit the gallery's website. Hours: Wednesdays through Fridays, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Saturdays and Sundays, 12 noon to 6 p.m. (closed Mondays and Tuesdays). Masks required of all visitors, regardless of vaccination status. Cerulean Arts will be closed for summer break during August.

THROUGH JULY 16: The Print Center presents "A Brand New End: Survival and Its Pictures," a solo photography-based exhibition by Carmen Winant, who draws from the archives of Women in Transition (WIT) and the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence (NCADV) for her project. Among the exhibition's programs are artist-designed posters installed in Philadelphia bus shelters (link for map on this page) to raise awareness of issues around domestic violence. Masks and proof of vaccination required at The Print Center; admission is free. 1614 Latimer Street, Philadelphia; Tuesdays through Saturdays, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Content warning: please be advised that this exhibition contains adult content, including depictions and descriptions of domestic violence. Organized by Ksenia Nouril, The Print Center’s Jensen Bryan Curator, "A Brand New End: Survival and Its Pictures" has been supported by The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage.

THROUGH JUNE 26: EgoPo Classic Theater presents Sam Shepard's "Curse of the Starving Class," directed by EgoPo's founder and artistic director, Lane Savadove. Winner of the 1978 Obie Award for Best New American Play, "Curse of the Starving Class" asks whether our family is our destiny or if we can alter our own futures. At the URBN Center Annex Black Box Theater at Drexel University, 3401 Filbert Street, Philadelphia. Season sponsor: Pat Savadove; production sponsors: Dr. Joel and Bobbie Porter. Proof of covid vaccination and masks required. For more information and ticket sales, visit EgoPo's website.

Graphic courtesy of the Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts

Past events from Warhol @ Penn Again, a series of exhibitions (up through July 28) and events including a symposium, "Translating Warhol: Symposium," June 23 and 24 - a hybrid event, on Zoom and in the Class of 1978 Orrery Pavilion, Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts, Van Pelt-Dietrich Library Center, 6th floor. A special exhibition of Warhol writings in translation, curated by Dr. Reva Wolf, will be on view in the Snyder-Granader Alcove in the Kislak Center during the symposium.

Warhol Wednesdays

As part of the Andy Warhol @ Penn Again project, the Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts presents Warhol Wednesdays--presentations by noted experts on topics related to the Andy Warhol @ Penn Again project. (All events are via Zoom; Paul Maréchal’s and Börje Bengtsson’s presentations are hybrid, in person and via Zoom):

April 27, 5:30 - 7 p.m.: Cheryl Harper, Independent Curator and Project Director, offers "Setting the Stage for Warhol and the Philadelphia Exploding Plastic Inevitable Event in 1966," a rearview mirror portrait of Warhol’s Exploding Plastic Inevitable performance at Philadelphia's Gershman Y on Dec. 17, 1968. Information and registration, here.

May 4, 5:30 - 7 p.m.: Jo Ann Caplin, Lecturer, Center for Contemporary Writing, Department of Critical Writing at the University of Pennsylvania: "Iconic Artists, Iconic Images: Leonardo, Picasso, Warhol," her remarkable comparative study of Leonardo da Vinci, Pablo Picasso and Andy Warhol, drawing a number of similarities and differences among these three great artists. Register here.

May 18, Art historian Patrik Lars Andersson discusses curator Pontus Hultén, the inaugural Director of the Moderna Museet (who organized Warhol’s 1968 exhibition there) in his lecture, "Moving Art: Pontus Hultén and the Question of Andy Warhol's Copies." Register here.

June 1, 5:30 - 7 p.m.: "A Collector's Journey into Warhol's Unknown Works": Art historian, author, and curator Paul Maréchal describes collecting Warhol and the preparation of his three (and counting) catalogues raisonnées: Warhol’s commissioned record covers, advertisements and posters. Register for in-person or Zoom here.

June 22, 5:30 - 7 p.m. on Zoom: "Amazing Stories of a Collector: An Interview with Börje Bengtsson" (Bengtsson Fine Art, Landskrona, Sweden): Bengsston, who has operated his rare book and contemporary art business since the early '90s, discusses how he was offered the first Marilyn in 2009, which he then sold to Gregory McCoy, and his subsequent search for additional copies of the Marilyn screenprints. Free; register here to receive the Zoom link.

and ... June 8, Screening of Niagara, the 1953 noir thriller starring Marilyn Monroe and Joseph Cotten, directed by Henry Hathaway.

Registration is required for both Zoom and in-person events. For more information and registration, click here.

Scene at the opening reception for "Out of Sight: An Art Collector, a Discovery, and Andy Warhol" on May 19

Moo. (Check out the interesting notes left outside of the trim line)

Laconic icon

Collector Gregory McCoy talks with attendees about his quest to find and learn about the 300-plus Marilyns he has discovered since 2009.

April 27, 5:30 - 7 p.m.: Cheryl Harper, Independent Curator and Project Director, offers "Setting the Stage for Warhol and the Philadelphia Exploding Plastic Inevitable Event in 1966," via Zoom; a rearview mirror portrait of Warhol’s Exploding Plastic Inevitable performance at Philadelphia's Gershman Y on Dec. 17, 1968. This is the first of a series of Warhol Wednesdays: As part of the Andy Warhol @ Penn Again project, the Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts offers Warhol Wednesdays--presentations by noted experts on topics related to the Andy Warhol @ Penn Again project. Information and registration, here.

PASC recommends books from Eric Schmaltz, past PASC presenter: Language in Hues, a suite of poems by Schmaltz, comprised of words that appear in specific colors on signs and advertising in urban environments. Published by TIMGLASET, publisher of visual poetries, Malmö, Sweden.
Edited by Eric Schmaltz and Christopher Doody, I Want to Tell You Love is published by University of Calgary Press. Published in its intended form for the first time, I Want to Tell You Love is a collaboration between bill bissett and Milton Acorn, a shared vision of resistance and longing for a better world. This critical edition offers the manuscript in its intended form alongside contextualizing scholarship in a significant contribution to literary history.

"Language in Hues" by Eric Schmaltz, published by TIMGLASET. Click for details.

Click for more about "Language in Hues" by Eric Schmaltz.

Created in the '60s and published in its intended form in 2021, "I Want to Tell You Love" is a significant contribution to literary history.

MARCH 31, 8 p.m.: Ars Nova Workshop and WRTI FM present a special live performance by a generation-spanning trio of jazz luminaries, featuring saxophonists Odean Pope and Immanuel Wilkins, and Danish drummer Kresten Osgood. The performance celebrates the U.S. launch of "Dangerous Sounds," a podcast about Danish jazz. Philadelphian Odean Pope, at 82, remains an inspired tenor saxophonist. Upper Darby native Immanuel Wilkins recently released his second album. Pope and Wilkins are joined by Kresten Osgood on drums, an in-demand member of the European jazz scene and host of the "Dangerous Sounds" podcast. RUBA Club, 416 Green Street, Philadelphia. Tickets are $25.

MARCH 30, 8 p.m.: Ars Nova Workshop presents a new quartet, "George," featuring leading lights of the New York City avant-garde, New Orleans traditional and Canadian electro-pop scenes: John Hollenbeck, Anna Webber, Aurora Nealand and Chiquita Magic. PhilaMOCA, 531 N. 12th Street, Philadelphia. Tickets are limited; click here for details.

THROUGH MARCH 27: EgoPo Classic Theater presents the world premiere of "Life is a Dream," based on the preeminent classic of the Spanish Golden Age by Pedro Calderón de la Barca. Created by Brenna Geffers and Felipe Vergara, "Life is a Dream" poses the question, can we dream up alternate realities and begin to live within them? Geffers directs Keith Conallen, Anthony Crosby, Jessy Gruver, Emma Johnson, Kishia Nixon, Rachel O'Hanlon-Rodriguez, Vanessa Sterling, and Lexi Thammavong in this production sponsored by Drs. Lisa and Glenn George at Theatre Exile, 1340 S. 13th Street, Philadelphia. Season sponsor: Pat Savadove. Proof of covid vaccination and masks required. For tickets and information, visit EgoPo here.

MARCH 19, 8 p.m.: Ars Nova Workshop presents "Fly or Die" with exploratory trumpeter jaimie branch and her stunning quartet Fly or Die, performing at the RUBA Club, 416 Green Street, Philadelphia. Featuring bassist Jason Ajemian, cellist Lester St. Louis and drummer Chad Taylor, this daring, unpredictable and exhilarating band is not to be missed. $25 general admission. Click here for details and tickets.

MARCH 18, 8 p.m.: Ars Nova Workshop presents TREFOIL in concert, a trio of modern jazz luminaries featuring trumpeter Ambrose Akinmusire, pianist Kris Davis and drummer Gerald Cleaver--three innovative artists shaping jazz today. At the American Philosophical Society’s Benjamin Franklin Hall, 427 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia. $25. Click here for details and tickets.

MARCH 16, 5 to 6:30 p.m.: In-person/live webinar lecture, "The Life and Letters of Migration," with Pulitzer Prize-winning author Viet Thanh Nguyen. Cosponsored by the University of Pennsylvania's Wolf Humanities Center, Department of English, and Asian American Studies Program, the Dr. S.T. Lee Distinguished Lecture in the Humanities takes place in the Harrison Auditorium, Penn Museum, 3260 South Street, Philadelphia, and as a live webinar. Planning to visit the Penn campus in person? Read about PennOpen Campus covid symptom check and reporting tool here.
Nguyen's novel The Sympathizer won the Pulitzer Prize, a Dayton Literary Peace Prize, and made the finalist list for the PEN/Faulkner award. On March 16, Nguyen reads from his latest novel, The Committed, and talks with Penn scholars Josephine Park and Dagmawi Woubshet about literature, culture, politics, and migration. Details, click here. To register, click here.

FEB. 23, 12 noon - 1 p.m.: Artist Ai Weiwei, art dealer James Lally, and Hiromi Kinoshita, Curator of Chinese Art, Philadelphia Museum of Art, discuss copying in Chinese art, tying in with the Philadelphia Museum of Art's installation, Authentic: Truth and Perception in Chinese Art (through July 3), and the exhibition at Kettle's Yard, University of Cambridge, Ai Weiwei: The Liberty of Doubt (through June 19). Registration for this free virtual talk closes at 9 a.m. on Feb. 23.

Through FEB. 21, 2022: Man Ray: The Paris Years, exhibition of American artist Man Ray's innovative portrait photographs of the many international avant-gardes who came to Paris between 1921 and 1940. Curated by PASC co-founder Michael R. Taylor, Chief Curator and Deputy Director for Art and Education, Virginia Museum of Fine Arts (VMFA), Richmond; Dr. Taylor gave a live-streamed talk on Friday, Oct. 29, from 6:30 to 7:30 pm (Eastern Time). For more about the exhibition, visit VMFA's website here. Dr. Taylor's talk can be seen on Vimeo, beginning at 19:37 on this recording.

Through FEB. 13, 2022: Jasper Johns: Mind/Mirror retrospective exhibition, Philadelphia Museum of Art and Whitney Museum of American Art, New York City. Each stand-alone show includes celebrated paintings, sculptures, drawings, and prints, along with recent works. The two related exhibitions mirror one another, providing insight into the working process of one of the greatest avant-garde artists of our time. Philadelphia Museum of Art, Dorrance Special Exhibition Galleries & Whitney Museum of American Art, New York.

Through JAN. 28, 2022: Voices and Visionaries, a Philadelphia Sculptors exhibition at Philadelphia’s Cherry Street Pier, highlights the talents of a diverse group of exceptional artists with ties to Philadelphia. A collaboration between the exhibition curators and seven selected artists, the show's multimedia installations, as well as traditional and non-traditional sculptures, will populate different locations on the pier. Featured artists in Voices and Visionaries: Syd Carpenter; Eiko Fan; Lucia Garzón; Mei-ling Hom; Taji Ra’oof Nahl, past PASC presenter; Jermaine Ollivierre; and Heryk Tomassini. Free and open to the public every day, rain or shine. Mondays–Thursdays, noon to 10 p.m.; Fridays, noon to 11 p.m.; Saturdays, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m.; Sundays, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Cherry Street Pier, 121 N. Columbus Boulevard, Philadelphia (just south of Race Street Pier).

PAST EVENTS | 2021

Through DEC. 30: Ulysses Jenkins: Without Your Interpretation, retrospective exhibition of groundbreaking video/performance artist Ulysses Jenkins at Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA), 118 S. 36th St. (at Sansom St.), Philadelphia. Co-curated by Meg Onli, ICA Andrea B. Laporte Associate Curator, and Erin Christovale, Associate Curator, Hammer Museum at UCLA, where the exhibition will travel, 6 Feb–15 May, 2022. From ICA's website: "A pivotal influence on contemporary art for over fifty years, Ulysses Jenkins has produced video and media work that conjures vibrant expressions of how image, sound, and cultural iconography inform representation. Using archival footage, photographs, image processing and elegiac soundtracks, Jenkins pulls together various strands of thought to interrogate questions of race and gender as they relate to ritual, history, and the power of the state. Beginning as a painter and muralist, Jenkins was introduced to video just as the first consumer cameras were becoming available. He quickly seized upon the television technology as a means to broadcast alternative and critical depictions of multiculturalism—citing the catalyst of Melvin Van Peebles’s Sweet Sweetback’s Baadasssss Song (1971) and its call to Black filmmakers to control their subject-hood by controlling the media depicting them. Adopting the role of a “video griot,” Jenkins is inspired by the oral traditions in videos that are often structured around music and poetic recitation, as well as dynamic performances." For videos and events accompanying the exhibition, visit ICA's website. ICA is open Wednesdays through Sundays, noon to 6 p.m. Admission is free; please see ICA's health and safety guidelines information here.

DEC. 18, 5 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. (Eastern Time): Live-streamed performances of The Stronger by August Strindberg, featuring Sonja Robson and Tina Brock as Mrs. X and Miss Y in an adaptation by David Robson, based on a new translation by Sonja Robson. David Robson is an award-winning playwright whose work for the stage has been hailed as "compelling," "forceful," and "gut-wrenching" by The New York Times, and "an important contribution to contemporary theater" by The Philadelphia Inquirer. Join The Idiopathic Ridiculopathy Consortium for one or both showings and a conversation post-show. Tickets are free; reservations for are requested. For 5 p.m., register here. For 7:30 p.m., register here. Or watch the shows live-streamed on The Idiopathic Ridiculopathy's Facebook page.

DEC. 15, 6:30 to 8 p.m.: "Coffee & Conversation: Unknown Parallels with Taji Ra'oof Nahl," presented on-site and via Zoom by Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA), 118 S. 36th St. (at Sansom St.), Philadelphia. From ICA's website: The work of "Philadelphia-based artist Taji Ra’oof Nahl has connections with Ulysses Jenkins on many levels: a rich understanding of collaboration, utilization of video, historical indexing, and reenactment as practice. The conversation will connect Jenkins’s and Nahl’s interdisciplinary work, their use of video editing techniques, staging of art happenings, documentation, and social commentary. Moderators are Penn graduate lecturers Enrique Morales and Will Owen. The conversation will triangulate the connections between Jenkins and Nahl, their engagement with interdisciplinary actions, video editing techniques, staging Art Happenings, collaborating with friends and peers, documentation, homage, social commentary, and 'being in the streets with art.'” Learn about health precautions and register for either the on-site conversation or to attend via Zoom here.

DEC. 2 -12: A selection of original drawings from EX LIBRIS by Matt Madden, on display at Partners and Son, 618 S. 6th Street (between Kater and Bainbridge), Philadelphia. Thursdays and Fridays, noon - 6 p.m.; Saturdays and Sundays, noon - 5 p.m. Call (347) 262-8541 or visit Partners and Son online. Reception and reading: Friday, Dec. 3 at 6 p.m. Admission is free, but masks and proof of vaccination are required. From Matt Madden: "At the reception on Friday, I'll be doing a short slideshow reading of a few scenes from Ex Libris, signing books, and hanging out with all of you! I hope to see you there."

DEC. 2 - 3: 2021 Jay I. Kislak Symposium, "The Ethics of Collecting in the 21st Century," a virtual event. Keynote speaker: Erin Thompson, Associate Professor of Fraud, Forensics, Art Law & Crime, Department of Art and Music, John Jay College, City University of New York. Thompson is the author of Possession: The Curious History of Private Collectors (Yale, 2016) and the forthcoming Smashing Statues: The Rise and Fall of America’s Public Monuments (Norton, 2021).
In light of current debates about historic record (Who decides? What qualifies? Whose story does it tell?) the symposium will engage with colleagues working in archives and special collections to reflect on the urgent ethical challenges confronting collection building past and present. Co-sponsored by the Wolf Humanities Center; for information and to reserve your virtual seat at the Zoom webinar, click here.

(Into the Absurd continues occasionally, rather than every Saturday. The archive of recordings is on YouTube.)

Ongoing: SATURDAYS, 5 p.m., online series, Into the Absurd: A Virtually Existential Dinner Conversation (Where We Bring Good Nothingness to Life, Until We Eat Again). Hosted by The Idiopathic Ridiculopathy Consortium (IRC) on Zoom and Facebook Live. Click here for details, link, and registration. From the IRC: "One of the joys over the years at the Consortium has been working with many interesting, funny and wickedly bright conversationalists whose work you've come to know and appreciate. A dream for years has been to round up favorite creators and artists from the IRC and the broader community at the dinner table. And so, Into the Absurd, a Virtually Existential Dinner Party was born. ... We'll gather with a guest for the better part of an hour to chew the fat and explore what it means to live and to think about art in a brave new world -- how our thinking and actions are changing in our community and in neighborhoods and the country. Bring a beverage, your curiosity and yell over the fence to your neighbors to eavesdrop on the conversation."

Take a seat at IRC's virtual table, Saturdays at 5 p.m. Click image for IRC's Facebook page, where the week's guests and Zoom link details are published. Join the conversation on Zoom, or just drop in on Facebook Live.

Theodore A. Harris at The Painted Bride in Philadelphia, 2013

Through NOV. 21: Theodore A. Harris: Art As Social Praxis, artist residency and solo exhibition dedicated to art historian David Craven, curated by Thea Gahr.
Linfield Gallery, Linfield University, McMinnville, Ore. Opening reception and artist talk: Thursday, Oct. 14, 6 p.m. For artwork, interviews and more, visit Harris's website here.

(From left) "Greenberg's Forked Tongue" (2015); installation by Harris and Taji Ra'oof Nahl for PASC (2019); "After Aime Cesaire" (2015)

NOV. 7, 2 to 3:30 p.m.: "On Larry Day: A Conversation with Phong Bui" at Woodmere Art Museum. Participants include Phong Bui, artistic director, The Brooklyn Rail; Ruth Fine, retired curator of special projects in modern art, National Gallery of Art, and widow of Larry Day; Sid Sachs, director for exhibitions, Rosenwald-Wolf Gallery at University of the Arts; Richard Torchia, director of exhibitions, Arcadia University; and William R. Valerio, the Patricia Van Burgh Allison director and CEO, Woodmere Art Museum. FREE; advance registration required. Woodmere Art Museum, 9201 Germantown Avenue, Philadelphia. Click here for information and here for registration.

Through OCT. 17: "Gideon Mendel: Drowning World" exhibition of photographs, video and found objects by South African photographer Gideon Mendel, presented by The Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University. Mendel began photographing major floods in 2007, emphasizing our shared vulnerability in both the poorest and wealthiest communities on the planet. The Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University, 1900 Benjamin Franklin Parkway, Philadelphia. Hours: Thursdays through Sundays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Timed tickets are encouraged; visit ansp.org/ .

Theodore A. Harris

OCT. 14, 6 p.m.: Opening reception and artist talk, Theodore A. Harris: Art As Social Praxis, artist residency and solo exhibition through Nov, 21 dedicated to art historian David Craven, curated by Thea Gahr. Linfield Gallery, Linfield University, McMinnville, Ore. For artwork, interviews and more, visit Harris's website here or follow the artist on Facebook.

SEPT. 26, 4 - 6 p.m.: 'Summoning the Future Forest' with SUN RA ARKESTRA. Tickets are limited, FREE with registration. The Cope House, Awbury Arboretum, 1 Awbury Road, Philadelphia. RSVP here for an intergalactic evening with the Sun Ra Arkestra. The Awbury Arboretum in Germantown has been a free public park and arboretum for more than 100 years. Public transportation: entrance directly across from Washington Lane Station on SEPTA’s Chestnut Hill East Line. Follow Station Road toward the Cope House. SEPTA bus routes 18 and 26 stop on Chew Avenue; the XH bus stops on Washington Lane. Click here for driving directions and more about Awbury Arboretum.

Matt Madden author photo by Nicolas Guerin

Matt Madden (photo by Nicolas Guerin)

All images from EX LIBRIS are copyrighted by Matt Madden and used with permission.

SEPT. 27, 7 p.m.: Reading by Matt Madden at City Reliquary, 370 Metropolitan Avenue in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, New York.
A Bookend event of the Brooklyn Book Festival, Carousel Reading Series, hosted by R. Sikoryak, with Matt Madden and fellow artists Emily Flake, R. Kikuo Johnson, Arielle Jovellanos, Robyn Smith, and Jeremy Sorese.

You must bring proof of covid vaccination; for information and tickets, click here.

SEPT. 18, 6:45 - 7:45 p.m. Eastern Time, Matt Madden at Small Press Expo (SPX) virtual festival on YouTube, "Playing with the Medium." For more information on SPX 2021, click here.

Through SEPT. 5: "Taking Space: Contemporary Women Artists and the Politics of Scale," exhibition at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, curated by Jodi Throckmorton and Brittany Webb. The group show examines how size and repetition can act as political gestures in the practices of many women artists. PAFA is at 118-128 N. Broad Street, Philadelphia. Hours: Thursdays and Fridays, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Saturdays and Sundays, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Timed ticketing required; please check ahead for health and safety protocols at www.pafa.org/museum/visit.

Through AUG. 22: "New Grit: Art & Philly Now," exhibition at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, curated by a cross-departmental team. Philadelphia-connected artists explore being and belonging through ceramics, fiber, glass, painting, photography, sculpture, video, and more. Works include five commissions and the show inaugurates the museum’s new space for contemporary art. The artists are: Howardena Pindell; Jane Irish; Mi-Kyoung Lee; Jesse Krimes; Roberto Lugo; Wilmer Wilson IV; Mohamed Bourouissa; Kukuli Velarde; Daniel Traub; David Hartt; Eileen Neff; Micah Danges; Tiona Nekkia McClodden; Jonathan Lyndon Chase; Ken Lum; Hiro Sakaguchi; Judith Schaechter; Tim Portlock; Sharon Hayes; Becky Suss; Michelle Angela Ortiz; Doug Bucci; Alex Da Corte; Odili Donald Odita, and Nichole Canuso. The Philadelphia Museum of Art, 2600 Benjamin Franklin Parkway, is open Fridays through Mondays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., staying open until 8:45 p.m. on Fridays. Visit philamuseum.org/visit/locations-hours for information about health and safety measures and related jawn.

Through AUG. 8: Soutine / de Kooning: Conversations in Paint exhibition, organized by the Barnes Foundation and the Musées d’Orsay et de l’Orangerie, Paris (where the exhibit travels after it closes at the Barnes Foundation). Co-curated by Simonetta Fraquelli, consultant curator for the Barnes Foundation; and Claire Bernardi, chief curator of paintings at the Musée d’Orsay, Paris. The Barnes Foundation, 2025 Benjamin Franklin Parkway, Philadelphia, PA, is open Fridays through Mondays, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Please check ahead for health and safety protocols: www.barnesfoundation.org/

JULY 3 - AUG. 7: Crossroads, exhibition of works by outsider artist Leroy Johnson, presented by Tiger Strikes Asteroid. Johnson's assemblages of found objects, photographs and painting celebrate life in Philadelphia. Works on paper created during Johnson’s artist residency at the Barnes Foundation in 2019 are also included: artworks incorporating materials like corn husks, paint, caution tape, and union and confederate flags connect historical and contemporary racial injustice in the United States. Reception: Thursday, July 8, 6 to 9 p.m. Gallery hours: Saturdays, noon to 4 p.m. and by appointment. Tiger Strikes Asteroid, 1400 N. American Street, #107, Philadelphia (between Master and Jefferson Streets). (484) 469-0319 ~ for more information, visit www.tigerstrikesasteroid.com/

JULY 6, 6:30 p.m. Eastern Time: broadcast, “Documents in the Archive: Research and Poetic Practice.” Charles S. Carr interviews Jena Osman and Orchid Tierney, who will also read from their work, part of the Moonstone Poetry 2021 Philly Loves Poetry Interview and Readings Series. Live broadcast: Comcast Cable 66/966HD/967 | Verizon FIOS 29/30 in Philadelphia | PhillyCAM TV: https://phillycam.org/watch

JUNE 28, 7 pm Eastern Time, online: Moonstone Art Center's Virtual Poetry with Rachel Blau DuPlessis and Theodore A. Harris, moderated by Ron Silliman. Zoom meeting ID: 819 5645 4446 Password: 997369 moonstoneartscenter.org/

UP NOW: PUBLIC ART PROJECT BY CARRIE MAE WEEMS--Resist Covid Take 6!, presented by the University of the Arts in Philadelphia. While encouraging us to “Take 6” and practice social distancing by maintaining six feet of distance from others, the project also highlights how the coronavirus pandemic has disproportionately harmed Black, Latinx and Native American communities. The exclusive presenter of this project in Philadelphia, UArts brings Weems’s work to the city through billboards, creative messages, public art projects and more. Weems conceived the Resist Covid Take 6! project with Pierre Loving at Syracuse University. Look for the installations on the UArts campus: Hamilton Hall, 320 S. Broad Street; Terra Hall, 211 S. Broad Street; Rosenwald-Wolf Gallery's Window on Broad, 333 S. Broad St., and The Philadelphia Art Alliance, 251 S. 18th Street, Philadelphia. Phase 1 of the project at UArts is generously supported by the Jessica Hamilton Hardy Visiting Artist Fund.

Chanell Phillips. "The Muse: Christen Harvey." 2020; photo by Zamani Feelings

THROUGH APRIL 30: Exhibition, "The first time, ever I saw your face," Slought, 4017 Walnut St., Philadelphia. Organized by and presented in partnership with The Colored Girls Museum (TCGM), the exhibition recreates a one-room school house that replicates the experience of being in the house museum. Joining painting, multimedia, and installation, it is centered by a portrait series of six paintings by Black female artists of Black girls ages 10-18. The artists and their muses include Misha McGlowen/Madison Proctor, Nile Livingston/Tyjanea Williams, Chanell Phillips/Christen Harvey, Serena Saunders/Myka Ollison, Aysha Ray Walker/Haley Ray, and Tara Pearson aka Misty Sol/Ayah Pearson. Read about Slought's reopening and schedule your visit (at least one hour ahead of time) here. Slought will adapt its reopening plan in accordance with changes to safety protocols.

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 3, 5 to 6 p.m.: "Dancers' Choices, Choreographers' Choices," free online performance and conversation presented by Wolf Humanities Center. Lead dancers from Philadelphia’s premier modern dance company, PHILADANCO!, perform a piece paying homage to Yoruba deity Oshun, the protector of humanity. Following the dance, Dixon Li will moderate a conversation among the dancers and dance scholars Jasmine Johnson, Deborah Thomas, and Dawn Marie Bazemore. Support for "Dancers' Choices, Choreographers' Choices" is provided by The Sachs Program for Arts Innovation. Cosponsored by the Department of Africana Studies and the Center for Africana Studies, University of Pennsylvania. Click here for more information and to register.

FRIDAY & SATURDAY, FEB. 19 - 20, "(Re)Constitutions of Choice," symposium presented by Wolf Humanities Center, University of Pennsylvania. From Wolf Humanities Center's website: "What does it mean to make a choice? Decision-making is rarely as simple as right or wrong, black or white, yes or no: it is a murky and complex process filled with human (and nonhuman) will, impulse, and error. This event brings together nine artists, activists, and scholars from across disciplinary boundaries to explore how choices are made, and why. Join us for three exciting panels that examine the social, philosophical, and creative contours of choice-making.
"The event in itself is choice-filled: talks and performances are available to be streamed two weeks before the live discussions, empowering the audience to choose when and in what order they engage with the material. Live, mediated 90-minute discussions, including audience Q+A, will take place online February 19 and 20.
"A program of the Wolf Humanities Center's 2020-2021 Forum on Choice. Free and open to the public. Pre-registration required in order to receive links to synchronous Zoom sessions. Links to pre-recorded talks and performances will be shared with registrants in early February."

WEDNESDAY, FEB. 10, 5 - 6 p.m.: "The Ethical Algorithm and the Future of Choice," talk by MICHAEL KEARNS, presented by the Wolf Humanities Center, University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Kearns is National Center Professor of Management & Technology, Computer and Information Science, University of Pennsylvania. From Wolf Humanities Center's website: "Concerns about machine learning and artificial intelligence include the potential for discrimination, leaks of personal data, and inscrutable decisions made by unintelligible models. Amidst recent calls for stricter regulation, there has been an explosion of research on how to forge better-behaved and more socially aware algorithm design. Michael Kearns surveys these developments and attempts to place them in a broader societal context, exploring how we should and will make decisions in the future. This talk is based on his book, The Ethical Algorithm, co-authored with Aaron Roth (Oxford University Press). Cosponsored by Penn's Department of Computer and Information Science and the Cinema & Media Studies Program, the talk is free online; registration is required.

WEDNESDAY, JAN. 27, 5 - 6:30 p.m, "Freedom and Choice in Art and Literature," online event, free and open to the public. Presented by Wolf Humanities Center, University of Pennsylvania. Margaret Wilkerson Sexton, author of A Kind of Freedom, and artist Risa Puno, whose works include interactive public art project called “The Privilege of Escape,” will present their work and discuss art and choice with Sophia Rosenfeld, topic director of Wolf Humanities Center's 2020-2021 Forum on Choice. Cosponsored by Penn's Department of Africana Studies and Program in Comparative Literature. Register for the free program here.

THROUGH JAN. 24, 2021: exhibition organized by Ars Nova Workshop and Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA), Milford Graves: A Mind-Body Deal, at ICA, 118 S. 36th Street, Philadelphia. Wednesdays through Sundays, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.; admission is always free. ICA's protocol to ensure guest safety and mitigate the spread of COVID-19 includes timed ticketing; visit ICA's website here for tickets and details. Masks will be required for all guests, capacity will be reduced, and social distancing will be enforced within the museum.

PAST EVENTS | 2020

FRIDAY, DEC. 4, 1 - 4 p.m.: PASC invites you to its sixth annual Symposium: “Ad Absurdum: The Politics and Poetics of Absurdity in Avant-Garde Art and Thought,” free online webinar (1 to 4 pm Eastern Time, U.S. & Canada). Featuring Cheryl Harper, rod jones ii, Theodore A. Harris, John Heon, Laurel V. McLaughlin, Orchid Tierney, Loraine Wible, Lindsey Whittle, Steve Kemple, Tina Brock and Peggy Mecham for The Idiopathic Ridiculopathy Consortium, and Barbara Yoshida and Ralph Lewis for Peculiar Works Project. Renowned poet Jesse Glass was scheduled to read from his works, but unfortunately our connection was interrupted. We hope to present his reading at another time.
All PASC symposia are free and open to the public.

SATURDAY, NOV. 21, 5 pm: PASC co-founders/directors David McKnight and John Heon are guests on Into the Absurd: A Virtually Existential Dinner Conversation, hosted by Tina Brock and The Idiopathic Ridiculopathy Consortium (IRC) on Zoom and Facebook Live. Click here for details, link, and webinar registration. Past episodes can be viewed on IRC's Youtube channel.

David McKnight with artwork by Theodore A. Harris at the PASC 2019 symposium. Among David's forthcoming projects is a retrospective exhibition of Harris's work, scheduled for 2022-2023.

David McKnight, Director of the Rare Book and Manuscript Library, University of Pennsylvania, at PASC's art-making event at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, March 2017. Among the many exhibitions, conferences, and publications David has curated, led, written and edited is the recent "Wise Men Fished Here: A Centennial Exhibition in Honor of the Gotham Book Mart, 1920 - 2020," on display 18 Feb.-20 May 2019. "Wise Men Fished Here" was celebrated with a conference; the show's catalogue was featured in "The Times Literary Supplement."

John Heon inside Bruce Nauman's "Double Steel Cage Piece" (1974), during the exhibition "Bruce Nauman: Disappearing Acts," 21 Oct. 2018-25 Feb. 2019, MoMA and MoMA PS1, New York. John is an independent scholar specializing in the psychology, politics, and aesthetics of humor in modern/postmodern literature and visual art. His book in progress, "Articulate Art: Language, Literature, and Humor in the Works of Bruce Nauman," examines Nauman’s oeuvre in the context of avant-garde black humor and the comic theories of Nietzsche, Freud, Bergson, and Wittgenstein.

Click for Tina Brock's trailer for this week's episode of "Into the Absurd" with PASC's John Heon and David McKnight.

SATURDAY, OCT. 31, 5 p.m., SPECIAL ONLINE EVENT: Halloween Buffet Special, Idiopathic Trick or Treat Storytelling Mayhem with guests John Zak, Sonja Robson, Jane Moore, Jenna Kuerzi, Tomas Dura, John Rosenberg and Sharon Geller all telling tall tales. Tina Brock hosts this special edition of "Into the Absurd."
Every week, join The Idiopathic Ridiculopathy Consortium for "Into the Absurd" to hang out with artists, writers, theater-makers, Saturdays at 5 p.m., brought to you by Philadelphia's own theatre of the absurd. Click image for IRC's Facebook page; Zoom link changes each week, or you can drop in via Facebook Live. Grab your seat and join the conversation at the virtual IRC table.

DEADLINE EXTENDED TO OCT. 11 to respond to CALLS FOR PROPOSALS for the 52nd annual convention of the Northeast Modern Language Association (NeMLA), Philadelphia, March 11-13, 2021. The conference theme is Tradition and Innovation: Changing Worlds Through the Humanities.
Eric Schmaltz and Orchid Tierney chair "Writing within Interrogative Dynamics," a roundtable discussion among poets and academics engaging "with the ephemeral, enduring, sonic, social, conceptual, or visual registers of poetry within the unfolding conditions of crisis." Drs. Tierney and Schmaltz write, "In particular, we call for abstracts between 200 and 300 words on American, Canadian, Indigenous, or Transnational poetries in English that are conversant with the notion of 'crisis' and the experiment. Abstracts may focus on experimental writings that push the bounds of literary conventions including poetries that incorporate ephemeral documents, sound recordings, mycological poetries, scientific storytelling, site-specific works, Indigenous poetry, collage, and ecopoetry."
Dr. Jed Esty, Vartan Gregorian Professor of English at the University of Pennsylvania, gives the keynote address on Thursday, March 11; on Friday, March 12, the keynote event is hosted by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Jennifer Egan. The University of Pennsylvania is local host for the conference; the University at Buffalo is NeMLA's administrative home. Other calls for papers are for sessions including "Imagination and the Body in 20th-century Literature," "Commitment: Past and Present," "Henry Miller in New Contexts," and "Superheroes and Graphic Medicine," and more.

FRIDAY, OCT. 2, noon: Susan T. Marx Distinguished Lecture by renowned artist WILLIAM KENTRIDGE. "William Kentridge: The Moment Has Gone," presented by the University of Pennsylvania's Arthur Ross Gallery, via Zoom. Free; registration required. Kentridge's artistic practice combines drawing, writing, film, performance, music and theater. His work has been seen in museums and galleries around the world since the 1990s, including Documenta, Kassel; Museum of Modern Art, New York; Albertina Museum, Vienna; Musée du Louvre, Paris; Whitechapel Gallery, London; Louisiana Museum, near Copenhagen; Reina Sofia museum, Madrid; and the Kunstmuseum, Basel. For details, visit the Arthur Ross Gallery's website, here.

TUESDAY, SEPT. 22, 8 a.m. - THURSDAY, SEPT. 24, 8 p.m.: Artblog celebrates its 17th birthday with "Auction for Artblog's Future," on Instagram Live. Scores of artworks to bid on; learn more here (for instance, you can participate anonymously or without an Instagram account, if you want). Follow @phillyartblog to join the fun and support Philadelphia's beloved nonprofit, Artblog.

THURSDAY, SEPT. 24, 4 - 5:30 p.m.: "Monuments and Social Justice," online panel discussion presented by the Arthur Ross Gallery. Lynn Marsden-Atlass, Arthur Ross Gallery executive director and University curator, moderates the talk about removing monuments seen as symbols of racism colonialism, and oppression, such as the Jefferson Davis Memorial in Richmond, Virginia, the Albert Pike statue in Washington, D.C., King Leopold III’s monument in Antwerp, and the Frank Rizzo statue in Philadelphia. Join panelists Patricia Wilson Aden, President & CEO, African American Museum in Philadelphia; and University of Pennsylvania's David Brownlee, professor emeritus, 19th-Century European Art; and, from UPenn's Weitzman School of Design: Sharon Hayes, professor of fine arts; Ken Lum, chair of the fine arts department; and Randall F. Mason, associate professor, historic preservation, for this important conversation. Click here to attend via Zoom.

WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 23, 6:30 - 7:30 pm: Artblog offers "Art and Social Responsibility Today," Zoom event with leading Philadelphia artists Ken Lum and Karyn Olivier, moderated by Olivia F. Menta and Jacque Liu, revisiting issues from Artblog's 2015 "Art and Social Responsibility" panel. (Ticketed, pay what you wish). Sponsored by The Sachs Program for Arts Innovation.

MAY 22 - JULY 14, 2020: Marginal Utility presents Upon Second Reading or The Prequels, a solo online exhibition by Philadelphia-based artist Taji Ra’oof Nahl (TR7). Marginal Utility's gallery is currently closed; when it can safely reopen, its address is 319 N. 11th Street, 2nd Floor, Philadelphia, PA.

JULY 1, online 6 to 7 pm: Institute of Contemporary Art, University of Pennsylvania, presents "Moving Forward: A Conversation with Debbie Africa, Mike Africa Sr., and Mike Africa Jr." Click here to view the conversation on Youtube.

MAY 21, 5:30 to 6:30 p.m.: Online 'PAFA Pours' talk, "The Visuality of Covering." Artists, including Theodore A. Harris, will talk about their works in the PAFA collection. The conversation, centered on masking and the ways people cover themselves, will be led by PAFA's Contemporary Curator, Jodi Throckmorton, and Curator of the John Rhoden Collection, Brittany Webb. Free for PAFA members; $7 general admission. The talk was recorded and is available on Youtube, here.

CLOSED. THROUGH APRIL 16: Exhibition, Seamless: Craft-based Objects and Performance Practices, Stedman Gallery, Fine Arts Building, Rutgers University Camden. Guest curated by Cheryl Harper, the three artists, Angela Ellsworth, Caleb Weintraub, and Stephanie J. Williams, practice performance/video in addition to their object-making. Opening reception is Sunday, March 8, from 2 to 4 pm, and will feature the debut of a new performance by Ellsworth starting in the Stedman Gallery and ending in the Black Box theater.

Angela Ellsworth

CANCELED in accordance with University COVID-19 guidelines. APRIL 10, 6 p.m.: Arcana New Music Ensemble, Ensemble Persepolis: Contemporary Music from Iran, part of the University of Pennsylvania's “Music in the Pavilion” series. “Music in the Pavilion” showcases international musicians performing from standard concert repertoires as well as premiering works found only in the Kislak Center's collections. The concerts are preceded by brief lectures from eminent scholars and graduate students who offer historic, social and cultural context for the music. Refreshments begin at 6 p.m., the pre-concert talk starts at 6:15 p.m., and the concert at 7 p.m. Registration requested. Kislak Center, 6th Floor, 3420 Walnut St., Philadelphia. For more information, visit "Music in the Pavilion."

CLOSED. THROUGH APRIL 10: Exhibition, Writing Across Genres: African American Women Writers in the Joanna Banks Collection, University of Pennsylvania's Kamin and Goldstein Family Galleries, Van Pelt-Dietrich Library, 3420 Walnut Street, Philadelphia, 1st and 6th floors. African American women of the late twentieth century explored Black cultural and intellectual traditions through novels, poetry, cookbooks, children’s books, music, sermons, art, and more. Monday-Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Wednesdays, 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday and Sunday by appointment--contact 215.898.7088 or kislak@pobox.upenn.edu. Free and open to the public (please show photo ID at entrance). ALL PENN LIBRARIES ARE CLOSED AND EVENTS ARE CANCELED.

CANCELED/POSTPONED: APRIL 6, 8 p.m.: Ars Nova Workshop presents unique solo performances from guitarist Nick Zinner (Yeah Yeah Yeahs), violinist Jessica Moss (Thee Silver Mt. Zion), and tenor saxophonist Travis LaPlante (Battle Trance). Ruba Club, 416 Green Street, Philadelphia. Details and tickets here.

TEMPORARILY CLOSED: THROUGH APRIL 4: Invisible City: Philadelphia and the Vernacular Avant-garde, University of the Arts. Cancellation details here. This sweeping survey will take place in three venues at the University of the Arts and at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. Opening reception: Jan. 30, 5 to 7 p.m., at UArts' Art Alliance, 251 S. 18th Street, Philadelphia. Programs from March 12 onward have been canceled. Galleries are closed. For more information, please visit the Invisible City website here.

Invisible City includes an extensive, searchable database of Philadelphia's avant-garde connections. The "Invisible City" team filmed interviews with key members of Philadelphia's avant-garde community, including Jim McWilliams, Harry Anderson, John Ollman, Richard Saul Wurman, Mark Campbell, Joseph Rishel, G.H. Hovagimyan, Cynthia Carlson, Joan Kron, Denise Scott Brown, Ruth Fine, David Slovic, Judy Lieb and Diane Burko.

The project is supported by The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage.

Installation view of the film, "Hannah Wilke Through the Large Glass" (1976). Photo: John Heon

CANCELED: APRIL 2, 6 p.m.: Poetry Discussion; 7:30 p.m.: Reception. "An Evening of Poetry with Prof. Daisy Fried and Invisible City Poetry Award Winners" at the Art Alliance, 251 S. 18th St. Fried discusses the work of Philadelphia poet C.K. Williams (1936-2015), followed by a poetry reading by the winners of the Invisible City Poetry Competition inspired by the exhibition and C.K. Williams's oeuvre. Free; registration is requested. Cancellation details here. Support for the research, development, and presentation of "Invisible City" was provided by The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage.

CANCELED/POSTPONED: APRIL 2, 8 p.m.: Ars Nova Workshop presents mssv (Main Steam Stop Valve) and Bana Haffar. mssv is guitarist Mike Baggetta, drummer Stephen Hodges and punk legend Mike Watt. A record release celebration for “Live Flowers” (Striped Light Records), from last year’s Ars Nova-produced performance at Johnny Brenda’s. Haffar explores sonic transformation into new forms and synthesized experiences; she is co-founder of Modular on the Spot, a monthly outdoor synth happening that began on the Los Angeles river and now takes place around the world. You must be 21 to attend. Ruba Club, 416 Green Street, Philadelphia. Details and tickets here.

'Panning for gold underground.' Rosalind Morris and Prosper Ncube. Click image for more about 'The Zama Zama Project' at Slought. Used with permission.

GALLERIES CLOSED TEMPORARILY; lots to see, watch and learn on the Slought website, though. THROUGH MARCH 27: The Zama Zama Project, an installation about the waves of people whose livelihood depends upon scavenging in the toxic ruins of abandoned gold mines in South Africa. Created by Rosalind Morris, in collaboration with Ebrahim Hajee, Rogers 'Bhekani' Mumpande, Prosper Ncube and Darren Munenge, The Zama Zama Project features immersive video and narrative documentary short films from more than two decades of research in the Witwatersrand region. The most dangerous forms of scavenging for gold are called "Zama Zama mining"; the phrase means both to persist in trying, and to gamble.

Presented by Slought and SP2 Social Justice and Arts Integration Initiative at the University of Pennsylvania, 4017 Walnut St., Philadelphia. TEMPORARILY CLOSED. For more information visit Slought.org or call (215) 701-4627.

CANCELED: MARCH 28, 2 p.m.: Modern Architecture Walking Tour with William Whitaker, Curator of UPenn's Architectural Archives. Meet on the southwest corner of Fitler Square (24th and Pine Streets) and take a two-hour tour of Philadelphia's modern architecture with Whitaker, ending at the Art Alliance, 251 S. 18th St., for afternoon tea. Wear comfortable shoes! Rain date: April 4, 2020. Free; registration is requested. Cancellation details here. Support for the research, development, and presentation of "Invisible City" was provided by The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage.

William Whitaker, Curator, UPenn's Architectural Archives, talks about environmental influences on building materials in cities and neighborhoods during PASC's "Invisible City"-themed symposium on Nov. 15, 2019.

Installation view of Robert Venturi's model, "Venturi house," featured in the second floor galleries at the Art Alliance.

CANCELED/POSTPONED: MARCH 26, 6 to 8 p.m.: Ars Nova Workshop's Second Annual Fundraiser, in honor of Sun Ra Arkestra maestro Marshall Allen. Space & Company, 2200 Walnut Street, Philadelphia. All ages. Tickets, $100. Ars Nova will present the Nova Award to Marshall Allen at this elegant, fun evening with refreshments, a special performance by Yo La Tengo, and a concert by world-renowned musicians (to be announced), celebrating the best of the jazz community. Details and tickets, here.

CANCELED: MARCH 26, 6 p.m.: "Women of the Avant-garde" panel discussion, complementing the Invisible City: Philadelphia and the Vernacular Avant-garde exhibition. At the Art Alliance, 251 S. 18th Street. Art historian Jennie Hirsh hosts a round-table discussion with Y Arts Council members Joan Kron, Eileen Rosenau and Janet Kardon, as well as Julie Martin, director of Experiments in Art and Technology (E.A.T.). These trailblazing women organized the cutting-edge exhibitions, concerts and events connected to the Gershman YMHA/YWHA in the 1960s and the larger avant-garde moment. Cancellation details here. Support for the research, development, and presentation of "Invisible City" was provided by The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage.

An image from a PASC talk on Nov. 15, 2019: Gershman YMHA/YWHA board members preparing for a television interview

From a talk at PASC: A Happening, with performance artist Jim McWilliams staging his own funeral; Gershman YMHA/YWHA board member Joan Kron (right) mourns extravagantly.

CANCELED/POSTPONED: MARCH 25, 8 p.m.: Ars Nova presents two ensembles: Joshua Abrams’ Natural Information Society and Xylouris White. Ruba Club, 416 Green Street, Philadelphia. More about these outstanding groups, tickets, here. You must be at least 21 to attend.

CANCELED/POSTPONED: MARCH 19, 8 p.m.: Concert with RM Francis, Jason E. Anderson, and TR7 (a.k.a. Taji Ra'oof Nahl). At RhizomeDC, a nonprofit community arts space, 6950 Maple Street, NW, Washington, D.C. (a few blocks from the Takoma Metro station, Red line). Tickets $10; for more information, visit RhizomeDC's website.

CANCELED: MARCH 19, 6 p.m.: "Modern and Contemporary American Craft," Jennie Hirsh in conversation with Helen Williams Drutt English, complementing the Invisible City: Philadelphia and the Vernacular Avant-garde exhibition. At the Art Alliance, 251 S. 18th Street. Art historian Jennie Hirsh talks with Helen Williams Drutt English, craft scholar, former gallerist, and member of the Y Arts Council during this pivotal period in the city. Cancellation details here.

CANCELED: MARCH 12, doors at 7:30; show at 8:30 p.m.: Ars Nova Workshop presents Sun of Goldfinger, an exploratory trio featuring guitarist David Torn, saxophonist Tim Berne, and percussionist Ches Smith. Johnny Brenda's, 1201 N. Frankford Avenue, Philadelphia. Tickets, details, here.

THROUGH MARCH 8: Exhibition, Designs for Different Futures, Philadelphia Museum of Art. Organized by the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Walker Art Center, and the Art Institute of Chicago, the exhibit features drop-in conversations, artists and designers in the lab, and other activities. Visit the Philadelphia Museum of Art website for more information and event schedule.

MARCH 8, 2 to 4 p.m.: Opening reception and debut performance by Angela Ellsworth for Seamless: Craft-based Objects and Performance Practices, Stedman Gallery, Fine Arts Building, Rutgers University Camden. Guest curated by Cheryl Harper, the three artists in this exhibition, Ellsworth, Caleb Weintraub, and Stephanie J. Williams, practice performance/video in addition to their object-making.

Angela Ellsworth

MARCH 5 & 6: Invisible City symposium, "On Regionalism: Mid-century Art, Architecture and Culture in North America." Keynote address by noted art historian and critic Thomas E. Crow and an exclusive reinvention and performance by Alex Da Corte of the famed Happening, "Chicken," part of the ongoing celebration of the Invisible City: Philadelphia and the Vernacular Avant-garde. The keynote address will be at UArts' Terra Hall, 211 S. Broad Street (near Walnut St.); and "Chicken" will be performed at Gershman Hall, 401 S. Broad Street (near Pine St.), where it was originally performed by its creator, Allan Kaprow, in 1962. Visit UArts' "Invisible City" site for details and registration. Support for the research, development, and presentation of "Invisible City" was provided by The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage.

Chicken-related collages by Emily B. Schilling

FEB. 27, 6 p.m., screening of The Burglar, a thriller by Philadelphia writer David Goodis (1917-1967), who adapted his novel for the eponymous 1957 movie starring Jayne Mansfield; and 7:30 p.m. book discussion, complementing the Invisible City: Philadelphia and the Vernacular Avant-garde exhibition. At the Art Alliance, 251 S. 18th Street. Philadelphian Goodis was known for Dark Passage, Of Missing Persons, Street of the Lost, The Moon in the Gutter, Black Friday, Street of No Return, The Wounded and the Slain, Down There, and Fire in the Flesh. Lightbox Film Center at UArts presents the screening; UArts faculty member and Art Alliance Writers' Workshop Coordinator Steven Kleinman facilitates the book discussion. Free; registration is requested. See below for more programs related to Invisible City, a ground-breaking exhibition in four Philadelphia venues; visit UArts' "Invisible City" site for details and registration. Support for the research, development, and presentation of "Invisible City" was provided by The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage.

David Goodis in image from curator Sid Sachs' "Curatorial Visions" talk on Feb. 20, 2020.

FEB. 20 & 21: Symposium accompanying the exhibition, Writing Across Genres: African American Women Writers in the Joanna Banks Collection, University of Pennsylvania. The symposium begins at 4 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 20, with a tour of the exhibition. Van Pelt-Dietrich Library, 3420 Walnut Street, Philadelphia, 1st and 6th floors. The 2020 Jay I. Kislak Symposium features speakers Lorene Cary, Cheryl Clarke, Farah Jasmine Griffin, and Cheryl Wall, along with exhibition co-curators and Penn graduate students, Destiny Crockett and Kiana Murphy. The collector Joanna Banks will be joining the conversation. For more information and registration, visit the symposium website here. The symposium is co-sponsored by the Center for Africana Studies and the Wolf Humanities Center at the University of Pennsylvania. African American women of the late twentieth century explored Black cultural and intellectual traditions through novels, poetry, cookbooks, children’s books, music, sermons, art, and more; the exhibition is up through April 10. Monday-Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Wednesdays, 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday and Sunday by appointment--contact 215.898.7088 or kislak@pobox.upenn.edu. Free and open to the public (please show photo ID at entrance).

FEB. 6 - 16: "The Bald Soprano" by Eugene Ionesco and directed by Tina Brock, brought to us by the irrepressible Idiopathic Ridiculopathy Consortium, Philadelphia's own theater of the absurd. From IRC: "A reprisal of the IRC's 2017 Fringe Festival Favorite of audiences and critics, back just in time for the election year, making sense of the absurdity for all. A classic for our time, celebrating Philadelphia Theatre Week amidst the wonder of the collection of outsider art at The Bethany Mission Gallery, 1527 Brandywine St., Philadelphia." Click here for tickets.

FEB. 6, 6 p.m.: "The Electric Generation: An Evening with Victor Bockris," a program related to the Invisible City: Philadelphia and the Vernacular Avant-garde exhibition. At the Art Alliance, 251 S. 18th Street; registration is requested. Bockris, a renowned counterculture writer and author of seventeen books, grew up in Philadelphia. He attended the University of Pennsylvania, and the Victor Bockris Papers, 1970-1973, are in the Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts. See "upcoming events" for more programs complementing this ground-breaking exhibition in four Philadelphia venues; visit UArts' "Invisible City" site for details and registration. Support for the research, development, and presentation of "Invisible City" was provided by The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage.

FEB. 1, midnight: Deadline to enter the Art Alliance Writers' Workshop's first poetry contest, the Invisible City Poetry Award. Open to any writer living in the United States. Two poets will be selected: one living in the greater Philadelphia area, and one from elsewhere in the United States. Winners receive $100, publication in Horsethief Magazine, ten letterpress broadside prints of the winning poem, and an opportunity to read at the Art Alliance on Thursday, April 2. (See April events for details about "An Evening of Poetry with Prof. Daisy Fried and Invisible City Poetry Award Winners." The Art Alliance Writers' Workshop Poetry Prize celebrates the work of C.K. Williams this year and is presented in conjunction with UArts' "Invisible City: Philadelphia and the Vernacular Avant-garde" exhibition (Jan. 21 - April 4, 2020). Winning entries will be announced mid-March 2020. Click here for competition details and submission form.

JAN. 30, 5 to 7 p.m.: Opening Reception, Invisible City: Philadelphia and the Vernacular Avant-garde, with a performance of Philadelphia's masters, Persichetti, Rochberg and Crumb, by Sue Ann Kahn, flute; Christopher Finckel, cello; and Andrew Willis, piano. At the Art Alliance, 251 S. 18th Street. The reception is open to all, but registration is requested for the concert; it's now full but there is a wait-list. See "upcoming events" for more programs complementing this ground-breaking exhibition in four Philadelphia venues; visit UArts' "Invisible City" site for details and registration. Support for the research, development, and presentation of "Invisible City" was provided by The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage.

JAN. 19, 5:30 p.m.: Presentation and reading by artist Theodore A. Harris at Brickbat Books, 709 S. 4th Street (between Bainbridge and Monroe Streets), Philadelphia. Harris presents a recording of the late poet Amiri Baraka reading "Our Flesh of Flames," composed in conjunction with Harris's collages. Copies of their book will be available at the event for purchase. For more information, call (215) 592-1207.

Theodore A. Harris author photo by Brent Reaney

JAN .17, 6 p.m.: Jasper String Quartet & Friends, music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Erich Korngold and Karl Weigl, part of the University of Pennsylvania's “Music in the Pavilion” series. “Music in the Pavilion” showcases international musicians performing from standard concert repertoires as well as premiering works found only in the Kislak Center's collections. The concerts are preceded by brief lectures from eminent scholars and graduate students who offer historic, social and cultural context for the music. Refreshments begin at 6 p.m., the pre-concert talk starts at 6:15 p.m., and the concert at 7 p.m. Registration requested. Kislak Center, 6th Floor, 3420 Walnut St., Philadelphia. For more information, visit "Music in the Pavilion."

PAST EVENTS | 2019

THROUGH DEC. 31: Bill Viola: Ocean Without a Shore, exhibition at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts' Morris Gallery, Historic Landmark Building, 118-128 N. Broad St., Philadelphia.

THROUGH DEC. 24: Kim Kardashian is Dead! And Other Stories, an exhibition of photographic and filmic works by Indrani Pal-Chaudhuri regarding issues of social justice and human rights, presented by Slought and the SP2 Initiative. Slought, 4017 Walnut St., Philadelphia. For details, visit Slought's website.

THROUGH DEC. 22: Final exhibition of the three-part Colored People Time at Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA), University of Pennsylvania, 118 S. 36th St. (at Sansom St.), Philadelphia. Free admission; closed Mondays and Tuesdays. From ICA's website: "Conceived by Meg Onli, assistant curator at ICA, Colored People Time challenges the traditional exhibitions structure and format to initiate a profound exploration into the banal and everyday ways in which the history of slavery and colonialism permeates the present and impacts the future. Broken into three separate chapters--Mundane Futures , Quotidian Pasts, and Banal Presents--...the exhibition explores how the subjugation of black people in America was not only part of our country’s foundation, but exists within our present moment, and shapes our future. Colored People Time will feature a range of emerging and established artists including Aria Dean, Kevin Jerome Everson, Matthew Angelo Harrison, Carolyn Lazard, Dave McKenzie, Martine Syms, Sable Elyse Smith, and Cameron Rowland."

DEC. 15: 6 and 8 p.m., The Idiopathic Ridiculopathy Consortium offers two shows only of "The Onion: Holiday Fruitcakes!" Celebrate the holidays as the IRC brings to life the voices from the opinion pages of The Onion, America’s Finest News Source. "The Onion: Holiday Fruitcakes!" benefits the IRC’s 2020 season, featuring Eugene Ionesco's "The Bald Soprano," Enda Walsh's "The New Electric Ballroom," and Tennessee Williams's "Two Character Play."
"The Onion: Holiday Fruitcakes!" includes gems like: "It’s Not An Easy Thing To Admit When You’re Wrong, And That’s Why I Won’t Do It"; "I Can’t Imagine My Wedding Day Without You Sitting There Uncomfortably At A Table Full Of People You Don’t Know"; "There Are Going to Be Some Pointless Changes Around this Office"; along with a few classics from past shows. Click here for tickets, $25; "The Onion: Holiday Fruitcakes!" is performed at L'Etage Cabaret, 624 South 6th Street (above Beau Monde, between Kater and Bainbridge Sts.), Philadelphia. (This material, courtesy of The Onion, copyright 2019, is not intended for theatergoers under the age of 18.)

DEC. 13: Deadline for proposals to The Rutgers-Camden Digital Studies Center for its annual R-CADE symposium, April 23-24, 2020. From their website: "The Rutgers-Camden Archive of Digital Ephemera Symposium (R-CADE) provides funds for hands-on research and creative activity with digital technologies. Accepted panels receive up to $1,000 for the purchase of hardware, software, and other materials. This year's theme is "Repair," and the submission deadline is December 13, 2019. The symposium will feature a full-day workshop led by Darius Kazemi (Feel Train), a keynote presentation by Dr. Lara Houston (Goldsmiths, University of London), and non-concurrent panel presentations.The R-CADE defines ephemera broadly––nearly any digital artifact can be considered 'digital ephemera,' from early videogames like Spacewar! to spam to game consoles to websites like Friendster. Given the pervasiveness of planned obsolescence, there are seemingly infinite technologies that fit the category of “digital ephemera.” Unlike many archives, the R-CADE does not necessarily aim to preserve artifacts, at least not in the traditional sense of this word. Scholars are encouraged to take apart, dissect, and repurpose technologies as they attempt to understand their significance, explore possibilities, and retell the histories of digital technology." For more, visit the Rutgers-Camden Digital Studies Center website.

NOV. 24, 4 pm: A Conversation Between Theodore A. Harris and Warren Longmire, presented by Moonstone Arts Center at Fergies Pub, 1214 Sansom St., Philadelphia. Celebrating the second edition of Our Flesh of Flames by Theodore A. Harris and Amiri Baraka. An open reading follows; copies of the book will be available for purchase.

Theodore A. Harris author photo by Brent Reaney

EXTENDED THROUGH NOV. 17: "Dance Nation" by Clare Barron, directed by Margot Bordelon. The comedy, called "potent and entertaining" by The Philadelphia Inquirer, follows a dance troupe competing for a national award. Barron's play was a 2019 Pulitzer Prize finalist; at Wilma Theater, 265 S. Broad Street, Philadelphia.

NOV. 16: Symposium, "Emancipating the Colonial Exhibition of Africa in the West," Widener Lecture Hall, 3260 South St., Philadelphia.
11 a.m. (Full; no seats left): Lead curator and professor Tukufu Zuberi, Ph.D.; and consulting scholars Barbaro Ruiz-Martinez, Ph.D., Monique Scott, Ph.D., Salah Hassan, Ph.D., and Vaniclea Silva Santos, Ph.D.; in conversation about the new Africa Galleries at the Penn Museum.
1:45 to 3:15 pm (Still spaces available; RSVP here): Four artists' work is featured in the new Africa Galleries. Join Jorge Dos Anjos, Muhsana Ali, Amadou Kane Si, and Breanna Moore in conversation about their site-specific artworks, moderated by Sara Lomax Reese of WURD, LLC. Click for details from the Center for Africana Studies, University of Pennsylvania.

NOV. 15, 1 to 6 p.m.: The PASC 2019 symposium, Illuminating the “Invisible City”: The Birth of the New in Mid-Century Philadelphia, in the Class of 1978 Orrery Pavilion of the Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books, and Manuscripts in the University of Pennsylvania’s Van Pelt Library, 3420 Walnut St., Philadelphia.

Illuminating the “Invisible City”: The Birth of the New in Mid-Century Philadelphia will be held in the Class of 1978 Orrery Pavilion of the Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books, and Manuscripts in the University of Pennsylvania’s Van Pelt Library, 3420 Walnut St., Philadelphia. The focus of this year’s symposium is the upcoming exhibition: Invisible City: Philadelphia and the Vernacular Avant-garde.

Invisible City will take place in three venues at the University of the Arts and at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts from Jan. 21 through April 4, 2020. Unprecedented in its depth and scope, Invisible City will examine the crucial role of Philadelphia in shaping postwar art and culture.

The PASC symposium is FREE and open to the public; please RSVP here.

The PASC 2019 symposium, 'Illuminating the "Invisible City": The Birth of the New in Mid-Century Philadelphia," is free and open to the public on Nov. 15, 1 to 6 pm at the Kislak Center, UPenn. Join us!

NOV. 8 - 10: SUPPER, People on the Move! presented by Drexel University’s Department of Performing Arts, performed by the Cardell Dance Theater with choreography by Philadelphia-based artist Silvana Cardell, Friday and Saturday at 7 pm, and Sunday at 2 pm. SUPPER will be performed in Drexel’s URBN Annex Black Box Theater, 3401 Filbert St., Philadelphia. For tickets, click here.

From Drexel's website: "SUPPER, People on the Move! explores the complex experience of dislocation. The dance is an examination of the human experience of all people on the move, looking for new horizons. Physical bodies moving between physical places define migration, and the immigrant journey is at the heart of humanity’s ability to survive. From this rich and fertile history, Cardell creates evocative forms of movement—abstract, personal, universal—performed with unrelenting physicality and striking moments of beauty. Featuring eight dancers of supreme ability and daring physicality, the highly regarded music of Nick Zammuto, and special guest artists, SUPPER is an exhilarating event. Each performance of SUPPER culminates in a communal feast with a moderated discussion on the themes of migration and immigration. Guests are also welcome in the lobby one-hour prior to the show to experience Portraits of People on The Move, a companion exhibition chronicling stories of Philadelphia-area immigrants, curated by Jennifer Baker."

Click for details about "SUPPER, People on the Move!"

THROUGH OCT. 31: The Potemkin Project, an exhibition exploring falsification in media and new frameworks for civic integrity. The project, part of Slought's ongoing Photographies of Conflict series, is organized by Ivan Sigal and presented in partnership with the Center for Media at Risk at the University of Pennsylvania. Slought, 4017 Walnut St., Philadelphia. Free and open to the public, Tuesday through Friday, noon to 5 p.m.

BILL VIOLA's exceptional artwork offers cool, meditative exhibitions in three Philadelphia locations:

(Closed SEPT. 15) at Barnes Foundation, 2025 Benjamin Franklin Parkway: "I Do Not Know What It Is I Am Like: The Art of Bill Viola," guest-curated by John G. Hanhardt.
(Closed OCT. 6) at Fabric Workshop and Museum, 1214 Arch Street: "The Veiling."
STILL UP THROUGH DEC. 31, 2019, at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts' Morris Gallery, Historic Landmark Building, 118-128 N. Broad Street: "Bill Viola: Ocean Without a Shore."

THROUGH OCT. 26: "Friends, Peace and Sanctuary: Collaborative Works on Paper" exhibition at Booklyn, Brooklyn Army Terminal, 140 58th St., Building B, Suite 7G, Brooklen, NY. Gallery Hours: Tuesdays through Fridays, noon to 5 p.m.; Saturdays by appointment. Follow the project on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for the latest updates, videos and more.

OCT. 16: 5 to 6:30 p.m., "Who Belongs at Home?" the Dr. S.T. Lee Distinguished Lecture in the Humanities. Award-winning novelist Kamila Shamsie in conversation with Emily Wilson, professor of Classical Studies, University of Pennsylvania, and 2019 MacArthur Fellow. Shamsie's seventh novel Home Fire was awarded the 2018 Women's Prize for Fiction and was long-listed for the 2017 Man Booker Prize. Lightbox Film Center, 3701 Chestnut St. Book signing follows the conversation; ASL interpretation provided. This second event in the Wolf Humanities Center's 2019-2020 Forum on Kinship is free and open to the public--to register, click here.

OCT. 15: DEADLINE to apply for one-year Andrew W. Mellon Postdoctoral Fellowships, awarded by the Wolf Humanities Center, University of Pennsylvania. You must be no more than five years out of your doctorate. The Wolf Humanities Center focuses on an annual topic; this year, it's "Kinship." The 2020-21 topic is "Choice."

ARS NOVA WORKSHOP (www.arsnovaworkshop.org/) presents the 2019 OCTOBER REVOLUTION OF JAZZ & CONTEMPORARY MUSIC; for more information, visit: www.theoctoberrevolution.org/ Festival passes are available for $150, or choose among the phenomenal lineup (past events are listed here; for upcoming events, click here.):

OCT 1, 8 p.m.: Roscoe Mitchell-Moor Mother Duo. Roscoe Mitchell, reeds & percussion; and Moor Mother, vocals & electronics. Ruba Club, 416 Green St. $25.
OCT. 2, 8 p.m.: Fred Frith Trio. Fred Frith, guitar; Jason Hoopes, bass; Jordan Glenn, drums; Heike Liss, visual art; and Susana Santos Silva, trumpet. Johnny Brenda’s, 1201 N. Frankford Ave. $20.
OCT. 3, 8 p.m.: Sarah Davachi / Matchess. Sarah Davachi, Nord Electro D6, electronics; Matchess, viola, Ace Tone, Arp Odyssey, tuning forks, electronics. Pageant: Soloveev, 607 Bainbridge St. $15.
OCT. 5, 8 p.m.: Makaya McCraven. Makaya McCraven, drums; Jeff Parker, guitar; Luke Stewart, bass; and Joel Ross, vibraphone. Ruba Club, 416 Green St. $20.
OCT. 6, 7 p.m.: Go: Organic Orchestra & Brooklyn Raga Massive. Painted Bride Art Center, 230 Vine St. $25.
OCT. 10, 8 p.m.: Miles Davis’s In A Silent Way 50th Anniversary Celebration. Monnette Sudler, guitar; Darren Johnston, trumpet; Mitch Marcus, Fender Rhodes, tenor saxophone; Daniel Clarke, Hammond B3; Brian Jones, drums; Ross Bellenoit, guitar; Ezra Gale, bass; Dan Scholnick, tabla; and Charlie Hall, drums. World Cafe Live, 3025 Walnut St. $25.
OCT. 17, 8 p.m.: Ethan Iverson Quartet featuring Tom Harrell. Ethan Iverson, piano; Tom Harrell, trumpet; Ben Street, bass; and Eric McPherson, drums. Caplan Center for the Performing Arts, 211 S. Broad St. $25.
OCT. 26, 8 p.m.: Patty Waters. Patty Waters, vocals; Burton Greene, piano; Adam Lane, bass; and Igal Foni, drums. Caplan Center for the Performing Arts, 211 S. Broad St. $20.
OCT. 27, 8 p.m.: Deradoorian / Lea Bertucci. Deradoorian, flute & electronics; and Lea Bertucci, alto saxophone, tape machines, electronics. Ruba Club, 416 Green St. $20.
OCT. 31, 8 p.m.: Sounds Of Liberation featuring David Murray. Sounds of Liberation: Monnette Sudler, guitar; Bill Mills, keyboards; Charles Veasley, bass; Dwight James, drums; Juan Diego, vibraphone; Omar Hill, percussion; and David Murray, tenor saxophone. PLUS Creative Arts Ensemble: Monnette Sudler, guitar; Charles Veasley, bass; Dwight James, drums; Juan Diego, vibraphone; Omar Hill, percussion; and Chuck Treece, sound effects. Johnny Brenda’s, 1201 N. Frankford Ave. $20.

THROUGH OCT. 4: "Legends and Legacy: Revolutions in Hand Papermaking," at The Rosenwald-Wolf Gallery, University of the Arts. Guest-curated by Cynthia Nourse Thompson; including work by Donald Baechler, Laurence Barker, Milcah Bassel, Willie Birch, Chuck Close, Gail Deery, Leonardo Drew, Maria Gutierrez, Daniel Heidkamp, Jonathan Lasker, Katherine Mojzsis, Roxy Paine, Juan Sanchez, Kate Shepherd, Jessica Stockholder, Barbara Takenaga, Mary Temple, Mickalene Thomas and Paul Wong.
Also on view through Oct. 4: "shadow, light, and form," work by paper maker and sculptor Winifred Lutz.
The Rosenwald-Wolf Gallery, 333 S. Broad St., Philadelphia, is free and open to the public Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Saturday, noon to 5 p.m.

OCT. 3, 6 to 8 p.m.: "Keith Carter: Art and the Archive." Keith Carter talks about his work and recent series, “Walt Whitman: ‘Beautiful Imperfect Things,’” at the Kislak Center, 3420 Walnut St., 6th Floor, Philadelphia. Keith Carter: Seek and Find is on view at The Print Center, 1614 Latimer St., through Nov. 16. Both the talk and exhibition are presented in conjunction with Whitman at 200: Art and Democracy. For more information, visit printcenter.org and Kislak Center.

OCT. 1: Proposal deadline for the PASC 2019 symposium, Illuminating the 'Invisible City': The Birth of the New in Mid-Century Philadelphia, which will be held Friday, Nov. 15, 2019, from 1 to 6 pm in the Class of 1978 Orrery Pavilion, Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books, and Manuscripts in the University of Pennsylvania’s Van Pelt Library, 3420 Walnut St., Philadelphia. The Call for Proposals is here.

OPENING RECEPTION: SEPT. 28, 6 to 9 p.m. for "Friends, Peace and Sanctuary: Collaborative Works on Paper" exhibition at Booklyn, Brooklyn Army Terminal, 140 58th St., Building B, Suite 7G, Brooklen, NY. Gallery Hours: Tuesdays through Fridays, noon to 5 p.m.; Saturdays by appointment. Follow the project on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for the latest updates, videos and more. Exhibition on view Sept. 27 through Oct. 26.

SEPT. 25, 5 to 9 p.m., First event for Wolf Humanities Center's annual topic, Kinship: Lecture and film screening at Lightbox Film Center, 3701 Chestnut St. Entitled “Work Is Work” Kinship, Race, and Violence on the Human Smuggling Trail, the 5 p.m. talk will be given by renowned anthropologist Jason De León, Professor of Anthropology and Chicana/o Studies, University of California, Los Angeles, and Executive Director, Undocumented Migration Project. The film, "Border South," directed by Raúl O. Paz Pastrana (2017), follows at 7 p.m. FREE and open to the public; pre-registration requested.

SEPT. 3 - 22: Idiopathic Ridiculopathy Consortium, Philadelphia's own theater of the absurd ("We Bring Good Nothingness to Life"), offers William Inge's "Come Back, Little Sheba" during Philadelphia Fringe 2019. IRC's productions are consistently brilliant and not to be missed.

Click image (used with permission) for more about William Inge's "Come Back, Little Sheba" during Philadelphia Fringe, Sept. 3 - 22.

SEPT. 5 - 22: Philadelphia's 2019 Fringe Festival - more than 1,000 performances. Visit the Fringe Arts website to see all of your choices.

Click for the Fringe Arts website

PASC recommends IRC's "Come Back, Little Sheba"; click for IRC's website.

We hear great things about "THE B-SIDE: 'Negro Folklore from Texas State Prisons' A Record Album Interpretation," produced by The Wooster Group. Click for more.

PASC recommends "There," by Etel Adnan, in partnership with Wilma Theater. Click for details.

"Medusa Volution" is offered Sept. 17 - 20. Click for more.

Click for the Fringe Arts website

THROUGH SEPT. 13: Works by JULIAN HOEBER at Rosenwald-Wolf Gallery of the University of the Arts. Opening Reception: Saturday, Aug. 3, 5 to 7:30 p.m. Born in Philadelphia, Hoeber's off-kilter canvases reveal both their recto and verso, playing with perception within the gallery space. The exhibition was conceived and co-organized by Isabel Lederman; the Rosenwald-Wolf Gallery is free and open to the public weekdays 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturdays, noon to 5 p.m. 333 S. Broad St., Philadelphia. Click here for more information.

THROUGH AUGUST: "The Duchamp Family" at Philadelphia Museum of Art. Features works by the artists Jacques Villon (born Gaston Duchamp), Raymond Duchamp-Villon (born Raymond Duchamp), Suzanne Duchamp and her husband, Jean Crotti. And, of course, Marcel Duchamp, whose The Large Glass and Étant donnés: 1° la chute d'eau, 2° le gaz d'éclairage . . . (Given: 1. The Waterfall, 2. The Illuminating Gas . . . ) are part of The Philadelphia Museum of Art's stellar Duchamp collection. For more, visit PMA's website. Curated by Matthew Affron, The Muriel and Philip Berman Curator of Modern Art; and Alexander Kauffman, The Andrew W. Mellon–Anne d’Harnoncourt Postdoctoral Curatorial Fellow.

THROUGH AUGUST: series of exhibitions by participants in Swarthmore College's FRIENDS, PEACE, AND SANCTUARY program, at Twelve Gates Arts, Parkway Central Free Library and Philadelphia City Hall in Philadelphia. In October 2019, works will be shown at Booklyn in Brooklyn, NY.

Follow the project on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for the latest updates, videos and more.

THROUGH AUG. 1 (AND SEPT. 13 - DEC. 22): Three-part exhibition, "Colored People Time" at Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA), University of Pennsylvania, 118 S. 36th St. (at Sansom St.), Philadelphia. Free admission; closed Mondays and Tuesdays.

Also on view: "Introducing Tony Conrad: A Retrospective," through Aug. 11.

From ICA's website: "Conceived by Meg Onli, assistant curator at ICA, Colored People Time challenges the traditional exhibitions structure and format to initiate a profound exploration into the banal and everyday ways in which the history of slavery and colonialism permeates the present and impacts the future.

"Broken into three separate chapters--Mundane Futures , Quotidian Pasts, and Banal Presents—which will open consecutively over the course of 2019, the exhibition explores how the subjugation of black people in America was not only part of our country’s foundation, but exists within our present moment, and shapes our future. Colored People Time will feature a range of emerging and established artists including Aria Dean, Kevin Jerome Everson, Matthew Angelo Harrison, Carolyn Lazard, Dave McKenzie, Martine Syms, Sable Elyse Smith, and Cameron Rowland."

TUESDAY, JULY 16, 6 to 7 p.m. at the Barnes Foundation, Curators in Conversation: Bill Viola with Nancy Ireson, deputy director for collections and exhibitions & Gund Family Chief Curator at the Barnes, Susan Talbott, executive director of the Fabric Workshop and Museum, and Jodi Throckmorton, curator of contemporary art at PAFA. $10 admission includes Barnes exhibition access from 5 to 6 p.m.; free for members and students.

JUNE 11-30: Don't miss Betty's Summer Vacation by Christopher Durang, directed by Tina Brock. June 11 - 30, 2019, produced by the Idiopathic Ridiculopathy Consortium (at Walnut Street Theatre's Independence Studio on 3. Philadelphia's Idiopathic Ridiculopathy Consortium: "We Bring Good Nothingness to Life."

Click image for the Idiopathic Ridiculopathy Consortium's website. Screenshot used with permission. Christopher Durang's "Betty's Summer Vacation" ran from June 11 through 30, 2019.

JUNE 18, 7 p.m. 'Dreamweapons: A Musical Afterlife of Tony Conrad' with Jennifer Walshe and Lary 7's Owl Movie, celebrates the many influences of Tony Conrad (retrospective at ICA, through Aug. 11), presented by the Institute of Contemporary Art and Ars Nova Workshop. Free admission, Lightbox Film Center, 3701 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia. Visit Ars Nova's site for more information and to RSVP for the free event.

THROUGH JUNE 16: Works by Elisabeth Kley, Rosenwald-Wolf Gallery's Window on Broad project space, organized by Isabel Lederman. Kley's solo exhibitions of ceramics, watercolors, drawings and prints include: Pierre Marie Giraud (2017), CANADA (2016), GAVLAK (2015), 39 Great Jones (2014), Schema Projects (2014), John Tevis Gallery (2012), The National Gallery at the Georgian National Museum (2011), Le Petit Versailles (2010), and Momenta Art (2007). At the closing reception on Friday, June 7, 5 to 7:30 p.m., limited-edition (40) screen prints were available. Window on Broad, 333 S. Broad St., Philadelphia. (215) 717-6480. Hours: Mondays through Fridays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Saturdays, noon to 5 p.m.

JUNE 13, 8 p.m.: Ars Nova Workshop presents SUN RA ARKESTRA, SOUNDS OF LIBERATION and ELI KESZLER at a Marshall Allen 95th Birthday & Record Release Celebration. Union Transfer, 1026 Spring Garden St., Philadelphia. $20 General Admission - tickets are selling fast, and VIP tickets are sold out. The Sun Ra Arkestra continues Sun Ra's legendary interstellar sound, and their maestro, alto saxophonist Marshall Allen, turns 95 this year. Join the celebration with Sun Ra Arkestra and another Philadelphia collective, Sounds of Liberation. Sounds of Liberation has been a leader in Philadelphia's avant garde since the 1970s; Eli Keszler is "experimental electronic music's favorite drummer." For more about this phenomenal music event, visit Ars Nova Workshop's website.

MAY 30, 7 p.m.: PATTI SMITH at The Philadelphia Museum of Art. Click here for ticket information. Singer, artist and poet Patti Smith and her daughter Jesse Paris Smith reflect on the legacy of Walt Whitman through spoken word and song. Presented as part of Whitman at 200: Art and Democracy

THROUGH MAY 20: "Wise Men Fished Here: A Centennial Exhibition in Honor of the Gotham Book Mart, 1920–2020," Kislak Center, 3420 Walnut Street, Philadelphia. For opening days and times or to purchase the exhibition catalogue, visit the Kislak website here.
From the Kislak Center’s website: “During its formative years, the Gotham Book Mart was one of the few book shops in North America to specialize in avant-garde and modernist literature, film, and art. Over its long run of 85 years in business, the shop attracted not only New Yorkers but also an international clientele eager to purchase little magazines and small press publications. Like other modernist bookshops, the Gotham Book Mart not only served as a retail space, but also acted as a publisher, distributor, and agent. The shop played an advocacy role for independent publishers seeking a space to promote new books, and provided a meeting place and salon for many writers. Above all, founder Frances Steloff provided support and friendship to five generations of Anglo-American and European writers (and expatriates) who visited her shop in midtown New York."

Click for exhibition website

MAY 19, 1 to 9 p.m.: Germantown Arts presents a celebration of Nina Simone. "Singing Nina: a cultural festival and conference" takes place in several Germantown locations: 1 to 2:30 p.m., "What Happened, Miss Simone" documentary screening at the People’s Sanctuary (5507 Germantown Avenue), followed by a panel discussion with Ursula Rucker, Tony “TNT” Jones, and Randall Grass, moderated by Sara Lomax-Reese. The festival continues: a VIP event with performance by M’Balia Singley at the Germantown Historical Society, a garden party at the historic Wyck House, and culminating in a 7 p.m. performance of "Dear Nina: a sonic love letter to Nina Simone" with Drea D’Nur and Rootstock Republic at Rittenhouse Filmworks, 219 W. Rittenhouse Street in Germantown. For tickets, click here.

THROUGH MAY 12: Wilma Theater presents a world premiere by Kate Tarker, "Dionysus Was Such A Nice Man," directed by Dominique Serrand. From Wilma Theater's website:

"Eat, drink and be merry, for tomorrow we self-destruct.
"When a family of shepherds in the suburbs of Corinth learn their adopted son Oedipus has ascended the throne of Thebes, they plan a bender to end all benders. But who’s on cleanup after the party’s over? Equal parts irreverent comedy and emotional journey into family dysfunction; this world premiere commissioned for Wilma’s HotHouse Company examines with horror and humor the lasting effects of personal trauma."
'Anything that can be laughed at should be taken seriously, and vice versa.'
– Kate Tarker, playwright

Wilma Theater, 265 S. Broad St. (at Spruce), Philadelphia. Box Office: (215) 546-7824. Visit Wilma Theater's website here.

WILMA THEATER presents the world premiere of Kate Tarker's 'Dionysus Was Such A Nice Man.' Come hear more from the playwright and others on Thursday, April 18, 5:30 to 7 pm. Click image for more. (Photo of Leo Sweeney by Matt Saunders, used with permission from Wilma Theater)

MAY 11, 1:30 p.m.: Panel Discussion; 3 p.m.: House Tour, "Rafael Villamil, An Impassioned Vision," Woodmere Art Museum, Chestnut Hill, Pa., with David B. Brownlee, professor, History of Art, University of Pennsylvania and Rafael Damast, curator, Taller Puertorriqueño. Tour Villamil’s unique, multi-tiered house in Chestnut Hill. Tickets, $10-$25. Click here to register.
The program complements artist and architect Rafael Villamil’s exhibition at Taller Puertorriqueño, "Paradise Has No Memory," up now through June 8 at Taller Puertorriqueño, 2600 N. 5th St., Philadelphia. Open Mondays through Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

MAY 9, 6:30 to 9 p.m., "Public Lands, Private Hands" at Slought, 4017 Walnut St., tribal leaders and native community activists speaking about indigenous and settler land use and the Bears Ears National Monument. From Slought: "Slought and the Penn Social Justice & Arts Integration Initiative are pleased to announce Public Lands, Private Hands, a gathering of tribal leaders and community activists from Utah, Oklahoma, New Mexico, and Arizona speaking about indigenous and settler land use and the Bears Ears National Monument. The participants will speak about the importance of the Bears Ears National Monument debate, and about their relation to the sacred lands on which they live. This event is free and open to the public, and will include a public reception. The discussion will be moderated by Jaskiran Dhillon, co-editor of the forthcoming Standing with Standing Rock: Voices from the #NoDAPL Movement."

APRIL 26, 6 - 10 p.m.: DEF POETRY REUNION at The Philadelphia Museum of Art. Nearly sold out: standing room only available. Click here for ticket information. PMA closes at 5 p.m., reopening at 6 p.m. for ticket holders.

APRIL 18: 5:30 to 7 p.m. at Kislak Center, University of Pennsylvania, 3420 Walnut Street, Philadelphia: "A Very Nice Panel on Dionysus," readings by actors Campbell O'Hare and Frank Nardi, Jr. from Dionysus Was Such A Nice Man by Kate Tarker, and discussion with the playwright.

The panel discussion, moderated by Mari Shaw, included Kate Tarker, playwright; Wilma Theater; Rosemary Malague, Program Director and Senior Lecturer in Theatre Arts, UPenn; Walter Bilderback, Dramaturg/Literary Manager, Wilma Theater; John Heon, PASC Co-Director; and Jessica Rizzo, writer, director and dramaturg. Presented by Wilma Theater; Producer Mari Shaw, Producer and former Board Chair, Wilma Theater; and PASC, this event is free and open to the public.

Click here for details, and come celebrate the world premiere of "Dionysus Was Such A Nice Man."

Says Paula Vogel (Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright, "How I Learned to Drive"): "With Kate Tarker the American theatre at long last has a woman comedic anarchist, in the company of Jarry, Orton, Durang, Apollinaire!"

APRIL 17: 6 to 8 p.m. at Slought, 4017 Walnut St., Philadelphia: "The Politics of Race in America" with Jonathan Metzl, Dorothy Roberts and Anthea Butler, presented by Slought and the Health Ecologies Lab. The panelists will discuss the impact of racial resentment on public health issues, followed by a reception and book-signing for Metzl's Dying of Whiteness (Basic Books, 2019). For details, please visit Slought's website.

APRIL 16: 7 to 9 pm, special screening of ZAMA (2017), presented at Lightbox Film Center, 3701 Chestnut St. Philadelphia, by Slought and the SP2 Social Justice and Arts Integration Initiative at the University of Pennsylvania. ZAMA, an award-winning surreal satire directed by Lucrecia Martel, is based on Antonio di Benedetto's novel. Film scholar Natalia Brizuela will talk about the film after the screening. Free and open to the public; registration requested. Seating is first come, first served--registration doesn't guarantee a seat, so please come early. Here's a link for more about the event on Slought's website.

APRIL 10:, 5 to 7 p.m., poetry reading and conversation with renowned poet Yu Jian at Slought, 4017 Walnut St. From Slought's website: "Slought is pleased to announce A Future Without History Is a Wild Horse, a poetry reading and conversation with Yu Jian about modernity and modernism in Chinese contemporary poetry. Yu Jian is a Chinese poet, essayist and documentary film director, and is currently the director of the New Poetry Institute of Southwest Associated University, affiliated to Yunnan Normal University, as well as a professor in the department of Chinese Literature. The reading will be followed by a conversation with professor Lei Yanni from Sun-Yat Sen University and scholar Jean-Michel Rabaté, a Senior Curator at Slought." For details, visit Slought's website.
Stay for a screening of excerpts from "Wackersdorf" (2018), 7 to 9 p.m. The film is "a true story of a Bavarian community taking a stand against injustice and corruption, and a local-level politician taking on a much stronger governing power. The program will be introduced by scholar Simon Richter; following the film program, director Oliver Haffner and film scholar Rahul Mukherjee will engage in conversation, followed by public Q&A." (From Slought's website; details here.)

APRIL 6: 7:30 to 9:30 p.m., screening of award-winning Trouble the Water, followed by discussion with directors Tia Lessin and Carl Deal at Slought, 4017 Walnut St.
The documentary, from 2008, focuses on a young couple's survival of Hurricane Katrina. Presented by Slought and the SP2 Social Justice and Arts Integration Initiative at the University of Pennsylvania. Free and open to the public; please visit Slought's website for more information.

APRIL 5: 5 to 7:30 p.m., Opening reception for "Jonathan Lasker: Paintings and Studies of Paintings" exhibition at The Rosenwald-Wolf Gallery of the University of the Arts, 333 S. Broad Street, Philadelphia. The exhibition continues through April 20. Visit the Rosenwald-Wolf Gallery's website for more information.

APRIL 2: 6 p.m. at the Arts Cafe, Kelly Writers House: Poetry reading by ALLISON COBB and BRIAN TEARE (Creative Writing Program).
From KWH's website: "BRIAN TEARE is the author of five critically acclaimed books, most recently 'Companion Grasses,' which was a finalist for the Kingsley Tufts Award, and 'The Empty Form Goes All the Way to Heaven.' His sixth book, 'Doomstead Days,' will be out from Nightboat Books in 2019. ... ALLISON COBB is the author of 'After We All Died' (Ahsahta Press); 'Plastic: an autobiography' (Essay Press EP series); 'Born2' (Chax Press); and 'Green-Wood,' originally published by Factory School with a new edition in 2018 from Nightboat Books."

MARCH 28-30: Events and exhibition through April at Swarthmore College begin a series of shows by participants in FRIENDS, PEACE, AND SANCTUARY. Exhibitions continue, June through August, at Twelve Gates Arts, Parkway Central Free Library and Philadelphia City Hall in Philadelphia. In October 2019, works will be shown at Booklyn in Brooklyn, NY.
PANEL DISCUSSION: Thursday, March 28, 4:30 p.m. at Swarthmore's Lang Performing Arts Center, Cinema.
EXHIBITION OPENING and GUIDED GALLERY WALK: Friday, March 29, 4:30–6 p.m. at Swarthmore's McCabe Library.
ALL-DAY CELEBRATION, with food, art-making, advocacy workshops, and more: Saturday, March 30, noon–6 p.m.at Swarthmore's McCabe Library, Science Center 101, Eldridge Commons, Science Center Quad.
Follow the project on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for the latest updates, videos and more.

THROUGH MARCH 31: Slought, 4017 Walnut St.: "The Image-Event: A Joint Struggle." Exhibition that features the archive of the photographic collective Activestills. For more information, visit Slought's website. Opening reception: Friday, February 22, 2019, 6 to 9 pm, with a conversation featuring Vered Maimon, Paul Weinberg, Ahmad al-Bazz, and Shiraz Grinbaum at 7 pm. From Slought's website: "Working in Palestine/Israel since 2005, the collective is comprised of Palestinian, Israeli, and international activist-photographers."

THROUGH MARCH 31: "Rina Banerjee: Make Me a Summary of the World" at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts (PAFA) Historic Landmark Building, 118-128 N. Broad St., Philadelphia. Co-organized by PAFA and the San José Museum of Art (SJMA), the exhibition is the first in-depth exploration of the contemporary practice of artist Rina Banerjee. From PAFA's website: "Though Banerjee’s work has been shown extensively in Europe and South Asia, PAFA and SJMA will be the first North American museums to delve into the artist’s complex and fanciful worlds. ... Known for her large-scale sculptures and installations made from materials sourced throughout the world, Banerjee’s works investigate the splintered experiences of identity, tradition, and culture, prevalent in diasporic communities."

THROUGH MARCH 30: Philadelphia Photo Arts Center (PPAC). 1400 N. American St., Suite 103, Philadelphia, presents "The Women's Mobile Museum with Zanele Muholi." Concurrently, at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts (PAFA): "Zanele Muholi & The Women’s Mobile Museum," works created by South African photographer Zanele Muholi and ten Philadelphia women during Muholi's year-long residency in Philadelphia through PPAC. The exhibitions, including work by South African teaching artist Lindeka Qampi, challenge "barriers of the art world while supporting emerging artists and reaching new audiences. Muholi and her collaborators ask, 'Whose portraits are shown in museums?' and 'Who is art for?' (from PPAC's website). Visit PPAC's website for more.
PAFA's concurrent exhibition is in the Richard C. von Hess Foundation Works on Paper Gallery, Historic Landmark Building, 118 N. Broad St., Philadelphia. From PAFA's website: "The ten female poets, photographers, painters, and digital artists have collaborated with each other, Muholi and Qampi to create art reflective of their individual and collective experiences. ... In addition to the works by Muholi and Qampi, this exhibition features work by Afaq, Shasta Bady, Davelle Barnes, Tash Billington, Iris Maldonado, Danielle Morris, Shana-Adina Roberts, Carrie Anne Shimborski, Muffy Ashley Torres, and Andrea Walls." Curated by Jodi Throckmorton. Visit PAFA's website for more.

MARCH 24, 8 p.m.: Ars Nova Workshop presents Yunohana Variations. Experimental music with YoshimiO, drums; Susie Ibarra, drums and percussion; and Robert Aiki Aubrey Lowe (Lichens), electronics. Johnny Brenda’s, 1201 N. Frankford Avenue, Philadelphia. $18 General Admission; details and tickets, visit Ars Nova Workshop's website.

MARCH 27, 5 to 6:30 pm: "A History of Space Debris," lecture at Rainey Auditorium, Penn Museum, 3260 South Street, Philadelphia. Free and open to the public; registration requested. Dr. Stuart Grey, Teaching Fellow, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, University of Strathclyde Glasgow, researches the orbits of space debris; his talk is presented by Wolf Humanities Center, part of WHC's 2018-19 Forum on Stuff. From WHC: "The space race and more recent commercial space activities have led to a proliferation of objects in Earth’s orbit. What exactly are these objects? How do they behave? Who are we leaving them for? Is it junk or can it be reclaimed? Dr. Stuart Grey considers our role in polluting space and how this circulation of material impacts the future." For details and registration, visit the Wolf Humanities website here.

THROUGH APRIL 20: "Jonathan Lasker: Paintings and Studies of Paintings" exhibition at The Rosenwald-Wolf Gallery of the University of the Arts. Opening reception is Friday, April 5, 5 to 7:30 p.m., 333 S. Broad Street, Philadelphia. Visit the Rosenwald-Wolf Gallery's website for more information.

FRIDAY, MARCH 1: "PEAL," a special Modernism conference (see below) event, 6:15 to 7:15 pm. Randall Couch, author of Peal (Coracle Press, 2017), "together with performers from Charlottesville-based Orchestral Maneuvers, presents an inter-genre work combining aspects of text art, algorithmic composition, and conceptualist poetry. The presentation will include an introduction to change-ringing and the book’s genesis, followed by a reading and polyvocal performance. Concrete and conceptual, structured and sensuous, in performance Peal offers the opportunity for procedural poetry to be both heard and deeply felt. Orchestral Maneuvers performers include Sandra Bain Cushman, Molly Derdeyn, Connor Douglas, Lisa Goff, Kathy Kuhlmann, Virginia Osterman, Laura Rogers, Tucker Rogers, and Thea Tupelo-Schneck, as well as Phil Walker (Charlottesville support team).
"Interested in learning more about Peal? We encourage you to visit the exhibition "Writers Making Books," presented in conjunction with the Pew Foundation's regional project "Whitman at 200: Art and Democracy," at Arcadia University's Spruance Art Gallery in Glenside, PA, February 28–April 21, 2019." -- the Kislak Center's website

FEB. 28 - MARCH 2: ‘Modernism – Materiality – Meaning’
FREE three-day conference, Thursday, Feb. 28 through Saturday, March 2, at the Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts, 3420 Walnut St., Philadelphia. The conference is free and open to the public, but seating is limited; attendees are asked to register. PASC co-sponsors Session III on March 1, "James Joyce, Surrealism, and the Gotham Book Mart," featuring a talk by Dr. Matthew Affron, Curator of Modern Art, Philadelphia Museum of Art, on Marcel Duchamp's work in the 1940s and his Gotham window, "Lazy Hardware."

The Modernism conference is in conjunction with "Wise Men Fished Here: A Centennial Exhibition in Honor of the Gotham Book Mart, 1920–2020," up Feb. 18 through May 20. From the Kislak Center’s website: “During its formative years, the Gotham Book Mart was one of the few book shops in North America to specialize in avant-garde and modernist literature, film, and art. Over its long run of 85 years in business, the shop attracted not only New Yorkers but also an international clientele eager to purchase little magazines and small press publications. Like other modernist bookshops, the Gotham Book Mart not only served as a retail space, but also acted as a publisher, distributor, and agent. The shop played an advocacy role for independent publishers seeking a space to promote new books, and provided a meeting place and salon for many writers. Above all, founder Frances Steloff provided support and friendship to five generations of Anglo-American and European writers (and expatriates) who visited her shop in midtown New York.

Click for more about the exhibition, up through May 20, 2019

"Responding to growing interest in the concept of the modernist book store, the ‘Modernism – Materiality – Meaning’ conference will provide a framework for exploring the role of the Gotham Book Mart within the larger context of the printing arts, non-commercial publishing, retailing, and the marketing of modernism, with particular attention to the important role of little magazines and small presses. Other topics will include Surrealism, the New York poetry scene, the Beats, Edward Gorey, and much more. The conference will be preceded by a film festival inspired by the Gotham Book Mart’s promotion of modernist film. Other events will include a poetry reading, panels, and workshops.

"Speakers participating in the conference include keynote speaker Andrew Thacker (Nottingham Trent Oxford University), Lise Jaillant (Loughborough University), Matthew Affron (Philadelphia Museum of Art), Steve Clay (Granary Books), Brian Cassidy (Brian Cassidy Books), Anne Waldman (Naropa University), Dan Saxon (magazine publisher), Paul Saint-Amour (UPenn), Jean-Christophe Cloutier (UPenn), Josh Kotin (Princeton University), Brad Duncan (UPenn), Liliane Weissberg (UPenn), Michael Duncan (art critic), Michael Thurston (Smith College), Steve Rothman (book collector), and Tim Murray (University of Delaware), among others.

FEB. 5 - 24: Elmer Rice's "Dream Girl," The Idiopathic Ridiculopathy Consortium
("We Bring Good Nothingness to Life"), Philadelphia's own theater of the absurd, presents its 2019 season. Website and tickets here.
Elmer Rice's "Dream Girl," directed by Tina Brock, runs Feb. 5 through 24, 2019, presented at The Sanctuary at St. Mary's Church, Hamilton Village, 3916 Locust Walk. From IRC's website: "A lovely young woman quite inefficiently runs a bookstore, where the slightest suggestions send her off into the most extravagant daydreams. Thirty-two characters bring to life the Philadelphia premiere of this comedy in two acts from the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of 'The Adding Machine.'"
Tickets are also now on sale for "Betty's Summer Vacation" by Christopher Durang, June 11-30, 2019, presented at The Walnut Street Theatre's Independence Studio on 3.

THROUGH FEB. 18 & 25: MoMA, New York City: Bruce Nauman retrospective, "Disappearing Acts," is ongoing through Feb. 18, 2019 (and through Feb 25 at MoMA's PS1 location). Visit MoMA's website for more.

The PS1 exhibition is well worth the quick journey: from MoMA, go across 53rd Street to the subway station on 53rd near 5th Ave.) and take the E or the M to Court Square/23rd Street Station. Walk south three blocks to PS1 at 22-25 Jackson Ave, New York, NY 11101. The whole trip should take less than 20 minutes. For map, hours, driving directions and more, see www.moma.org/visit/ .

Philadelphia and PASC have connections with Bruce Nauman, whose "Topological Gardens," was the U.S. exhibition in the 2009 Venice Biennale, commissioned by curators Michael R. Taylor (PASC Co-Director) and Carlos Basualdo for the Philadelphia Museum of Art. "Topological Gardens" won the Golden Lion award for best national pavilion. Later that year, Bruce Nauman's "Days" and "Giorni," sound installations that were part of the exhibition in Venice, made their U.S. debut at the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

FEB. 19: "Jasper Johns: Redo an Eye": Talk by Dr. Roberta Bernstein at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Tuesday, Feb. 19, 6 to 7 pm.
Perelman Auditorium, Perelman Building. (Tickets are free with museum admission; members free). Dr. Bernstein, project director of Jasper Johns: Catalogue Raisonné of Painting and Sculpture, discusses her new book and experience working with Jasper Johns.
For more information, visit the Philadelphia Museum of Art website, the Jasper Johns Catalogue Raisonné Project site, in association with The Wildenstein Plattner Institute and published by Yale University Press.

Poster for a 1964 Jasper Johns exhibition at The Jewish Museum in New York. (Courtesy James Brewton Foundation)

FEB. 7 - 17: Philly Theatre Week. Events, discounted tickets: visit Theatre Philadelphia's website.

THROUGH FEB. 17: Slought, 4017 Walnut St., Philadelphia: Photography in Crisis: Depression Era, 2011-2019, a retrospective exhibition presenting the Depression Era project, a collective lens-based arts project based in Athens, Greece, with work that engages the so-called "Greek crisis" and its aftermath, on display through February 17, 2019. During this time, Allan Sekula's "Waiting for the Tear Gas" (1999) will also be on view in the Slought Mediatheque as a companion piece to the exhibition.

The opening reception, Thursday, Jan. 17, featured a conversation featuring with members of the collective, including Pavlos Fysakis, Yiannis Hadjiaslanis, Yorgos Prinos, Georges Salameh, Vangelis Tatsis, and Pasqua Vorgia.

FEB. 11 & 12: JOHN R. KEENE at Kelly Writers House, part of the Kelly Writers House Fellows program. Reading, Feb. 11 at 6:30 p.m.; brunch conversation, Feb. 12 at 10 a.m. Both programs will be broadcast live on KWH-TV; attendance is by RSVP only to whfellow [at] writing.upenn.edu.
From the KWH website: "John R. Keene, born in St. Louis in 1965, is a poet, fiction writer, essayist, translator, and professor best known for his fictions, "Annotations" (1995, New Directions) and "Counternarratives" (2015, New Directions). The latter book received an American Book Award. Keene received his bachelor's degree from Harvard College, and an MFA from New York University, where he was a New York Times Fellow. In 1989, Keene joined the Dark Room Writers Collective, and has been a Graduate Fellow of the Cave Canem Writers Workshops. He is the author of the poetry collection "Seismosis," with artist Christopher Stackhouse, and a translation of Brazilian author Hilda Hilst's novel "Letters from a Seducer." Keene received a 2005 Whiting Writers Award for fiction and poetry. He has had his work published in a wide array of journals, including African-American Review, AGNI, Encyclopedia, Gay and Lesbian Review, Hambone, Indiana Review, Kenyon Review, Mandorla, Ploughshares, and Public Space. He teaches at Rutgers-Newark where he is an Associate Professor of English and chair of the Department of African American and African studies. He also teaches in the MFA program in Creative Writing. John Keene is a 2018 MacArthur Fellow."

FEB. 8: Wolf Humanities Center symposium, "Stuff: Anxieties and Aspirations of the Material World," Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, from 9:30 am to 6 pm. Held at the Institute of Contemporary Art, 118 S. 36th Street, Philadelphia; for more information and RSVP, visit Wolf Humanities Center's site. FREE and open to the public.

From WHC's website: "'Stuff: Anxieties and Aspirations of the Material World' asks us to reconsider our relationship with stuff - the materials and matter that surround us on a daily basis. Stuff speaks both to the promises and perils entangled in things. Through the lens of aspiration and anxiety, the program will reflect on the creation, use, preservation, discarding and collection of stuff across geographic and temporal contexts. In doing so, the symposium brings together an interdisciplinary group of scholars to examine these themes and to probe the ethics, promise, and recalcitrance of human engagement with the material world."

FEB. 6: The Decolonial Imagination, 5 to 7 pm at Slought, 4017 Walnut St., Philadelphia. From Slought's website: "a conversation with Walter D. Mignolo, Gabriel Abudu, and Victor E. Taylor on the history and development of decolonial thought and theory, on Wednesday, February 6, 2019, from 5 to 7 pm. This event is co-presented with the York College of Pennsylvania's Institute for Civic Arts and Humanities and the Department of English at the University of Pennsylvania.

"The Decolonial Imagination engages Mignolo's recent book with Catherine E. Walsh entitled On Decoloniality: Concepts, Analytics, Praxis. As Mignolo writes, decoloniality is a way to fundamentally address and resist how human beings are being "ruled." It is an examination and confrontation of power alongside and before coloniality—the material conditions for invasion and control. Decoloniality is also a way of imagining, a process of creatively shaping a world-future that holds the possibility of an existence radically unaligned with Western systems of epistemological, political, and theological hegemony. The decolonial imaginary gives us a perspective on these possibilities and the material conditions required to bring them more fully to life in the arts, literature, and politics."

Wednesday, Jan. 23, 6 p.m. in the Arts Cafe at Kelly Writers House: A READING BY NASSER HUSSAIN (Writers Without Borders) hosted by Al Filreis. From KWH's website: "NASSER HUSSAIN is a Lecturer in Literature and Creative Writing at Leeds Beckett University. He published his first full collection of poetry, boldface, with Burning Eye Press in 2014. His work has appeared in a number of poetry journals and anthologies, most recently in Wretched Strangers (BoilerHouse press, 2018), and Concrete and Constraint (Penteract Press, 2018). His current poetic interest is mass transit, and his latest book, SKY WRI TEI NGS (Coach House Press 2018) is a book of poems written entirely from IATA airport codes. Tweet him @nassershussain"

Thursday and Friday, Jan. 17 (5:30 to 8 pm) and 18 (9 am to 5 pm), 2019, "Digital & Archival Approaches to Theater History, conference in honor of the Philadelphia Playbills Project at Class of 1978 Orrery Pavilion, Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts, Van Pelt-Dietrich Library Center, sixth floor 3420 Walnut Street, Philadelphia, PA. Free and open to the public (please show photo ID at entrance).

From the UPenn Libraries' website: "The challenge of theater and performance history has always been how to reconstruct and understand ephemeral events of a previous age. This conference addresses how scholars, librarians, archivists, and digital humanists take on this challenge in the 21st century as we look back at the materials in our archives that document past performances and look forward to the way new digital approaches can transform the we approach the study of theater history. Please register to attend here.
"We are grateful for the generous support of the National Endowment for the Humanities for making this conference possible."

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