Nightlife : Innovation + Job News

"You have to look at his lines," said Janet Echelman of the collection of rare Van Gogh paintings on display at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the venue for the Knight Arts Challenge Awards ceremony on Monday night. "Look at his drawing skill." Echelman, an internationally known sculptor known for her public art, was on hand to share in the honor of a $400,000 grant to the Center City District to transform the Dilworth Plaza, and be completed in March 2014, according to Paul Levy, who accepted the Knight Award on behalf of the CCD.

Winners and ceremony attendees were treated to a private viewing of the blockbuster exhibit of impressionist paintings, and Lorene Cary, who received a $100,000 award for her Hip H'Opera project, toured the exhibit with Jeri Lynne Johnson, winner of $50,000 for the Black Pearl Chamber Orchestra.

The 35 winners, who have known for a month but were sworn to secrecy, uniformly reported great surprise upon receiving the news, hauling in a combined $2.76 million. "They don't just call you. They say, 'We want you to come into the office,'" said Lori Dillard Rech, who accepted $25,000 on behalf of the Center for Emerging Visual Artists' Made in Philly project. "You think you have to defend yourself, not knowing that you've already gotten the award."

Erica Hawthorne, who applied as an individual on behalf of other individuals, could not believe she was granted $60,000 for her Small-but-Mighty Arts Grant, which will award local artists anywhere from $50 to $1,000 each.

Speakers at the event included Office of Arts, Culture and the Creative Economy's Gary Steuer, who said that the Knight Arts Challenge, now in its second of three years, is making its imprimatur on the city. Mayor Nutter remarked upon the larger effect of $9 million in Knight grants, which translates to $18 million, since each grantee must come up with matching funds, touching the lives of all Philadelphians and bringing in tourism dollars.

On a related note, the Greater Philadelphia Tourism and Marketing Corporation received $350,000 for Midnight Madness, an effort to engage younger audiences with a series of late night summer happenings to include music, food and rare midnight tours of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Barnes Foundation and the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts. Campus Philly, helmed by Deborah Diamond, received $100,000 to offer free or discounted admission to college students visiting the city's cultural venues.

It's not all about Center City. Neighborhoods likw Nicetown-Tioga, West Philadelphia, and East Kensington will also be getting a little Knight magic. You can see the full list of winners below, and a video here.

Performing Arts Will Diversify Old City's First Fridays
Project: Arden Festival Fridays
Recipient: Arden Theatre Company
Award: $50,000
To diversify artistic offerings by presenting multidisciplinary performances alongside gallery events during Old City's monthly First Fridays

"Pop-Up" Performances Bring Latin Jazz to Philly Neighborhoods
Project: AMLA Flash Jazz Mobile
Recipient: Artists and Musicians of Latin America
Award: $35,000
To cultivate new audiences for Latin jazz by presenting "pop-up" performances by local artists using a portable stage

Stories of Urban Youth Come to Life in "Hip H'Opera"
Project: Hip H'Opera
Recipient: Art Sanctuary
Award: $100,000
To celebrate two art forms that use the human voice to tell profound stories by creating a "Hip H'Opera" using the stories of urban life

Communities Experience Art in Unexpected Places
Project: Neighborhood Spotlight Series 
Recipient: Asian Arts Initiative
Award: $45,000
To provide everyday artistic experiences by creating site-specific works for nontraditional places like restaurants, storefronts and public plazas

Late-Night Cabarets Explore Social Issues with Sparkle on the Avenue of the Arts
Project: Bearded Ladies Cabaret Revolution
Recipient: Bearded Ladies Cabaret
Award: $30,000
To attract new audiences to theater – using the medium to explore social issues with sparkle – through a series of original, late-night cabarets

New Form of Symphonic Pops Concert Celebrates World Music
Project: Black Pearl Pops!
Recipient: Black Pearl Chamber Orchestra
Award: $50,000
To showcase diverse cultures by transforming a symphonic "pops" concert into a celebration of world music

College Students Gain New Access to the City's Arts Scene
Project: Campus Philly's Passport to the Arts
Recipient: Campus Philly
Award: $100,000
To foster a lifelong appreciation of the arts by offering free or discounted admission to venues and performances for college students

Workshop Gives Voice to Unheard Stories of the Lao-American Community
Project: Laos in the House: Voices from Four Decades of the Lao Diaspora
Recipient: Catzie Vilayphonh
Award: $25,000
To promote storytelling within the Lao-American community through a writing, performance and filmmaking workshop

Public Art Transforms Dilworth Plaza and Thriving Center City
Project: New Public Art at Dilworth Plaza
Recipient: Center City District
Award: $400,000
To help transform historic Dilworth Plaza by commissioning internationally recognized sculptor Janet Echelman to create an artwork inspired by the site's historic association with water and steam

Art Installation Open to All Inspires Dialogue on Art and Spirituality
Project: In the Light: A Skyspace by James Turrell
Recipient: Chestnut Hill Friends Meetinghouse Project
Award: $80,000
To offer visitors a contemplative art space by incorporating the work of internationally acclaimed light artist James Turrell into a new facility


Residents Transform Vacant Lots Into Visual and Sound Gardens
Project: Site and Sound Gardens
Recipient: COSACOSA art at large
Award: $75,000
To transform abandoned spaces into "sacred" art parks for the community by engaging residents to create visual and sound gardens in the Nicetown-Tioga neighborhood

Local Artists Get Support From Mini Grant Program
Project: Small-But-Mighty Arts Grant
Recipient: Erica Hawthorne
Award: $60,000
To give a boost to local artists by creating a mini grant program to help finance their art making with awards ranging from $50 to $1,000

Mobile Studio Brings Community Art to New Neighborhoods
Project: ColorWheels: Delivering Creativity to Your Community
Recipient: Fleisher Art Memorial
Award: $50,000
To engage the community in hands-on art making by expanding the reach of a mobile studio where participants create projects inspired by their neighborhoods

West Philadelphia Lots Become Artistic Skate Parks
Project: Skateable City
Recipient: Franklin's Paine Skatepark Fund
Award: $100,000
To help transform West Philadelphia neighborhoods by turning blacktop lots into art-laden skate parks

Free Theater Festival Showcases Diversity On Stage
Project: Philly Urban Theatre Festival
Recipient: GoKash Productions
Award: $20,000
To promote original plays through a free theater festival dedicated to multicultural themes 

Late-Night Museum Happenings Encourage New Audiences
Project: Midnight Madness 
Recipient: Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation
Award: $350,000
To engage younger audiences in the visual arts through a series of simultaneous late-night happenings at three of Philadelphia's premier  art museums

Cutting-Edge Performing Arts Gain New Visibility Through Residency Program
Project: Underground Residencies at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts
Recipient: Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts
Award: $150,000
To engage new audiences in the performing arts by creating a residency program in the Kimmel Center's black-box theater for innovative and emerging art groups

Visual and Performing Arts Fill an East Kensington Lot
Project: Little Berlin Fairgrounds
Recipient: Little Berlin
Award: $10,000
To help transform the East Kensington neighborhood by turning an empty lot into an event space for musicians, art fairs and children's workshops

Outdoor Summer Film Series Showcases Local Artists and Filmmakers
Project: Urban Drive-In with DIY Food Culture
Recipient: The Galleries at Moore College of Art & Design
Award: $20,000
To introduce the work of local visual artists and filmmakers to a wider audience by establishing an outdoor independent film series on the Parkway

Weekly Drumming Lessons Inspire Local Youth
Project: Drum Line 
Recipient: Musicopia
Award: $90,000
To empower and inspire Philadelphia's youth through their participation in an indoor percussion ensemble by providing weekly drumming lessons and performing opportunities

Gospel Choirs, Composers and Jazz Ensembles Celebrate Dr. King
Project: New Music Celebrations of the Life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. 
Recipient: Orchestra 2001
Award: $40,000
To celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Orchestra 2001 will present a concert featuring a new concerto based on the civil rights leader's life

Design Center Provides New Resources to Theater and Visual Artists
Project: Philadelphia Theatrical Design Center
Recipient: Partners for Sacred Places
Award: $180,000
To expand the capacity of the city's theater community by providing a new space for theater designers and visual artists at a repurposed local church

Free Digital Cameras Give Access to Communities for Photography Exhibition
Project: Bring to Light: Philadelphia
Recipient: Philadelphia Photo Arts Center
Award: $35,000
To encourage broader audience participation in the city's visual arts by expanding Philly Photo Day, where everyone is invited to take a picture on the same day for an exhibition

Architecture Seen in a New Light with 3D Video Art Events
Project: Animated Architecture: 3D Video Mapping Projections on Historic Sites
Recipient: Sean Stoops
Award: $20,000
To support an innovative form of 3D digital animation by creating site-specific video art events screened on local buildings

Plays in Nontraditional Spaces Bring Adventure to Audiences
Project: Outside The (Black) Box
Recipient: Swim Pony Performing Arts
Award: $50,000
To weave the arts into the community by presenting original, contemporary plays in nontraditional spaces, including Eastern State Penitentiary and the Academy of Natural Sciences

Multidisciplinary Festival Features Black Male Artists
Project: Henry "Box" Brown - The Escape Artist 
Recipient: The Brothers Network
Award: $25,000
To introduce diverse audiences to the performing arts by creating a multidisciplinary festival that features black men as thinkers, artists, choreographers, dancers, composers and more

Locally Produced Art Populates Neighborhood Public Spaces
Project: Made in Philly
Recipient: The Center for Emerging Visual Artists
Award: $25,000
To bring visual art to a wider audience by placing locally produced art in public advertising spaces in the same neighborhood where the piece was produced

Ceramic Mug "Assault" Explores Relevance of Handmade Things
Project: Guerilla Mug Assault
Recipient: The Clay Studio
Award: $15,000
To explore the relevance of handmade ceramic objects in the 21st century by providing a handmade mug to people leaving coffee shops and encouraging them to post about their experiences on the Web

Choral Works for Nontraditional Spaces to Be Commissioned
Project: Performances at the Icebox
Recipient: The Crossing
Award: $50,000
To introduce a wider audience to contemporary choral music by establishing a series of new works designed specifically for a nontraditional venue – the recently restored Crane Arts' Icebox

Sculptural Installation Explores Visual Art and Theater
Project: Daniel Arsham: Performative Architecture
Recipient: The Fabric Workshop and Museum
Award: $80,000
To create a sculptural intervention by artist Daniel Arsham within The Fabric Workshop and Museum that will include a live performance to explore the boundaries between museum and theatrical spaces

Teaching Program Fosters New Knowledge for Use of Technology in the Arts
Project: Corps of Interactive Artist Teachers
Recipient: The Hacktory
Award: $40,000
To promote the use of technology in the arts by developing an intensive tech/art curriculum for local artists who will share their knowledge with Philadelphia students

Creative Incubator Supports Emerging Creative Businesses
Project: Creative Incubator
Recipient: The University of the Arts
Award: $120,000
To promote economic stability for the city's cultural community by offering support to emerging creative businesses with pre-seed funding, mentorship programs and workshops

Citywide Scavenger Hunts Introduce Teens to Art and Adventure
Project: ARTward Bound: a creative orienteering adventure
Recipient: The Village of Arts and Humanities
Award: $60,000
To develop young people's awareness of the city's vibrant cultural scene through interactive scavenger hunts led by local artists

Master Class Series Provides Advanced Training for Local Actors
Project: Creating a Common Artistic Voice
Recipient: The Wilma Theater
Award: $60,000
To enhance training for local actors by creating a series of master classes

Public Art Enlivens The Porch at 30th Street Station
Project: A Permanent Place for Temporary Art in University City
Recipient: University City District
Award: $120,000
To establish a new outlet for public art that showcases temporary installations at The Porch at 30th Street Station

Source: Mayor Michael Nutter, Gary Steuer, Lori Dillard Rech, Erica Hawthorne, Lorene Cary, Janet Echelman, Paul Levy
Writer: Sue Spolan

Coming soon: a mad dash. The Weekend Treasure does discounters like Groupon and Amazon Local one better. Each week, subscribers will receive an email with two clues as to where a giveaway will take place over the weekend.

"The email features a local product from a local merchant that's 100 dollars or less in value," says founder Dave Clarke, who has his sights set on the demographic of 22 to 40 year old urban professionals. "The idea is if you want it and love it, and you can figure out the clues and find it, it's yours." It will be Clarke himself standing at the destination with product in hand.

Riffing off the very popular phenomenon of City Chase and other urban scavenger hunts, Clarke says The Weekend Treasure was one of those two in the morning jump out of bed ideas (and seriously, has nothing to do with the fact that Clarke in getting married in a month). "No one is doing this type of thing. By no means do I think I am going to conquer Groupon or Living Social. I am interested in the idea of creating instant delight," says Clarke, who cites recent work with a behavioral psychologist as inspiration for The Weekend Treasure.

Now in pre-launch, with a goal to roll out this spring, The Weekend Treasure will also reward runners up with a discount at the featured merchant. "We'd like to prove it will actually drive traffic," says Clarke. "If a merchant is giving away a hundred dollar product and we drive 2 customers, that's a win. A small win, but better than ecommerce." There is an exhaustion in the marketplace due to the proliferation of email coupon businesses that have jumped on the Groupon train.

Clarke also runs AuthenticMatters, a digital communications consultancy, but says The Weekend Treasure has been gaining mindshare over the past three or four months. Urban adventurers can sign up via The Weekend Treasure's Launchrock powered home page. And Clarke promises he will keep the contest clean. "It's not going to be weird where you have to crawl in a sewer."

Source: Dave Clarke, The Weekend Treasure
Writer: Sue Spolan

Really, it's not stalking. Interact, launched in open beta on April 4 for iOS, is a mobile app that tells you who's nearby, even if you are not yet friends. The ambient location tool created by Anthony Coombs scrapes Facebook data so that when you launch Interact, you get a screen populated with people who are a set distance from you. But it's not creepy, says Coombs. "On a scale of 1 to 10, it's a 2."

Coombs built the app, which joins competitors Banjo, Highlight and Sonar, to foster and facilitate human interaction. "I'm pretty sure human beings connected before the iPhone. What we are doing is mimicking real life human interaction and using the iPhone as a conduit," says Coombs.

Ambient location apps were the talk of SXSWi this year. What sets Interact apart, says Coombs, is that the user can specify business or pleasure.

You are in a cafe and it's love at first sight. Turn on Interact and if your potential paramour is on Facebook, suddenly you have intel. Interact provides a first name, picture and common interests. You both like Led Zeppelin and bowling? It's on. If you both have iPhones, one better. Interact allows users to send a direct text. Coombs is planning an Android rollout as well, but chose to begin with one platform to work out the bugs.

Interact also allows you to specify that you are all work and no play to assist in creating business connections. You can set the geosocial interaction app to check for connections up to 25 miles away. Coombs stresses the privacy controls built into the app missing in others of its ilk. A user can appear invisible, and Interact does not employ GPS to constantly track users. "When I use the app, this is my location," says Coombs. "The app is stamping, not following you."

On the marketing front, Interact is launching a contest to find the most connected college student in Philadelphia. On April 23, Coombs will present A Guide to Building Location Based Social Networks at Philly Tech Week.

Coombs is now actively seeking a few good developers to bring Interact to the next level, and is also seeking user feedback. The app is free and available in the iTunes store.

Source: Anthony Coombs, Interact
Writer: Sue Spolan

Sure Old City is ground zero for the Philly tech scene, but Philly Tech Week 2012 organizer Christopher Wink has his eye on advancing technology citywide. Kicking off April 20 with Philly Startup Weekend, PTW 2012 is designed to reach a bigger audience with curated events organized by track. With over 60 items now on the calendar, and more to come, Wink says he wants PTW to reflect a broad, inclusive and impactful tech community.

"I have always been interested in digital access issues," says Wink, who is working with State Representative Rosita Youngblood on an event aimed at increasing computer literacy for seniors, as well as widening the circle to include neighborhood groups outside the city ring. Wink, who is also the co-founder of Technically Philly, is looking forward to the robotics expo, which aims to show middle and high school kids that technology can be both cool and practical.

The avalanche of events of last year's inaugural PTW, says Wink, was meant to rapidly raise awareness of the tech community. Feedback from 2011 led to curation of 2012 participants and creation of tracks for Entrepreneurship/Investment, Media/Transparency, Arts/Creative, Access/Policy and Design/Development. "Sixty to 70 events are too much to comprehend," says Wink. "The grouping of events makes it easier for Joe Entrepreneur." A close relative, by the way, to Joe Sixpack, organizer of Philly Beer Week and the inspiration for PTW.

That first weekend, beginning April 20, already packs a punch. In addition to Startup Weekend, which will take place at University of the Arts, the Women in Tech Summit meets all day Saturday, April 21, and on Sunday, April 22, Indy Hall sponsors a block party on North 3rd Street from 1 to 8 pm. You can also get a peek into how the Philadelphia Eagles choose draft picks, find out if your IP is leaking, and mingle with Switch Philly judges Josh Kopelman, Ellen Weber and Mayor Michael Nutter, who will choose one entrepreneur in the competition for a major prize package. The complete schedule can be found here.

Source: Christopher Wink, Philly Tech Week
Writer: Sue Spolan

Fifty-five finalists were announced last week for the Knights Arts Challenge Philadelphia, a three-year, $9 million community-wide funding contest for the most innovative local ideas in the arts.

Not surprisingly, there is a wide range of projects in the running. They stretch from Norris Square and East Kensington to Center City. They celebrate African, Latino and Asian culture. They are large organizations like Campus Philly and individuals like Katarina Dudas. Thirty-six winners will be chosen by the spring, the second round of funding after last year's debut.

"The diversity of finalists proves that good ideas really can come from anywhere," says Donna Frisby-Greenwood, Philadelphia program director for the Knight Foundation. "We're seeing ideas from across our many neighborhoods taht we believe will help bring us together through the arts."

The challenge is open to anyone with a great idea about the arts in or benefiting Philadelphia who can find funds to match Knight's commitment. Here's a complete list of finalists:

Artists and Musicians of Latin America
To cultivate new audiences for Latin Jazz by presenting "pop-up" performances of local artists using a portable stage

Arden Theatre Company
To diversify artistic offerings by presenting theater performances alongside the dozens of gallery events during Old City’s monthly First Fridays

Art Sanctuary
To celebrate two art forms that use the human voice to tell profound stories by creating a “Hip H’Opera” using the stories of urban life

Asian Arts Initiative
To provide everyday artistic experiences in Chinatown and South Philadelphia by creating site-specific works for nontraditional places like restaurants, storefronts and public plazas

Bearded Ladies Cabaret
To attract new audiences to theater – and use the medium as a way to explore politics, gender, sexuality and identity – through a series of original, late night cabarets

Black Pearl Chamber Orchestra
To showcase diverse cultures by transforming a symphonic “pops” concert into a celebration of world music

Brandywine Workshop
To celebrate the 40th anniversary of this printmaking institution by commissioning 10 emerging and established artists to create prints

Campus Philly
To foster a lifelong appreciation of the arts by offering free or discounted admission to venues and performances for college students

Catzie Vilayphonh 
To promote storytelling within the Lao-American community through a writing, performing and filmmaking workshop

Center City District
To help transform historic Dilworth Plaza by commissioning internationally recognized sculptor Janet Echelman to create an artwork inspired by the site’s historic association with water and steam

Center City Opera Theater
To attract more Hispanics to the opera by launching a Spanish-language opera festival featuring a new piece by a Philadelphia-based Hispanic composer

Center for Emerging Visual Artists
To bring visual art to a wider audience by placing locally produced art in public advertising spaces in the same neighborhood where the piece was produced

Chestnut Hill Friends Meetinghouse Project
To spark dialogue about contemporary art by incorporating the work of internationally acclaimed light artist James Turrell into a new Quaker meetinghouse that is open to all

Community Cultural Exchange
To bring the South Street business district together through music and culture by introducing family-friendly street performances to the area

COSACOSA art at large
To transform overgrown and abandoned spaces into “sacred” art parks for the community by engaging residents to create visual and sound gardens in the Niceville-Tioga neighborhood

Crane Arts
To raise the international profile of local artists by organizing an artist and exhibition exchange between Crane Arts and London’s V22 Collection

David Clayton
To help residents fully experience the city’s two main waterways by creating a floating workstation along the Schuylkill and Delaware Rivers where artists can interpret and explore the surroundings

Delaware River Waterfront Corporation
To use world rhythms – from cowbells to congas, beat-boxing to Bhangra – to learn about cultures at an interactive music and dance festival

Erica Hawthorne
To give a boost to local artists by creating a mini grant program to help cover their costs with awards ranging from $50 to $1,000

Fleisher Art Memorial
To engage the community in hands-on art making by expanding the reach of a mobile studio where participants create projects inspired by their neighborhoods

Franklin’s Paine Skatepark Fund
To help transform neighborhoods by turning blacktop lots into art-laden skate parks

Geoffrey Johnson
To foster appreciation for public art by covering publically displayed statues in the city for a month – and then unveiling them with fan fare at a festival

GoKash Productions
To promote original plays through a free theater festival dedicated to the contemporary African-American experience

Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation
To engage new audiences in the visual arts by launching With Art Philadelphia, a two-year joint marketing program that includes late-night happenings for younger audiences at local museums

Iron Age Theatre
To create new performing arts experiences through a series of live-streamed, mini movies that patrons can watch throughout the city by scanning QR codes on their cellphones

Katarina Dudas
To develop the next generation of visual artists by pairing children with local artists to create site-specific environmental art in the Kensington community

Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts
To engage new audiences in the performing arts by creating a residency program in the Kimmel Center’s black box theater for innovative and emerging art groups

Little Berlin
To help transform the East Kensington neighborhood by turning an empty lot into an event space for musicians, art fairs and children’s workshops

Moore College of Art & Design
To introduce the work of local visual artists and filmmakers to a wider audience by establishing an urban drive-in movie theater on the Parkway

Music Row Philadelphia
To support emerging musicians and create a destination for live music by fostering the growth of music venues along Girard Avenue

Musicopia
To empower and inspire Philadelphia’s youth by providing them with weekly drumming lessons and performing opportunities

Norris Square Neighborhood Project
To preserve local Latino culture in North Philadelphia by creating a sound booth to record stories that will be featured in podcasts

Orchestra 2001
To celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. by presenting a new concerto based on the civil rights leader’s life and featuring local performers

Partners for Sacred Places
To expand the capacity of the city’s theater community by providing a new space for theater designers and visual artists at a decommissioned church

Philadelphia Art Alliance
To re-imagine public space and civic life by organizing an all-night, free arts festival based on the Nuit Blanche/Bring to Light events in Paris, New York, Miami and other cities

Philadelphia Photo Arts Center
To encourage broader audience participation in the city’s visual arts by expanding “Philly Photo Day,” where the community is invited to take and submit a picture that is ultimately used in an exhibition

Philadelphia Theatre Company
To use the theater as a way to examine the United States’ education system with a work that actor/journalist Anna Deavere Smith will create during a two-year residency

Philadelphia Youth Media Collaborative
To support the emerging creative underground in Philadelphia by establishing a festival that highlights the next generation of filmmakers, visual artists, musicians and performers

Phillyjazz.org
To foster the development of local jazz artists by formalizing mentor relationships between established and younger musicians, where the elders teach life lessons, and emerging artists offer tips on using new media

RAIR, Inc.
To create awareness about sustainability through art and design by establishing a yearlong series of projects that allow local artists to experiment with recycled materials

Scribe Video Center
To explore the city’s relationship to mass transit by publicly displaying multiple digital video works in high traffic public sites

Sean Stoops
To support an innovative form of 3D storytelling by creating a series of outdoor video art events screened on local buildings

Sharon Torello
To engage younger audiences in classical music through the creation of a group with membership benefits that include discount ticketing and unique social gatherings

Sojourner Ahebee
To further cultural understanding by facilitating youth-led poetry workshops for Liberian teenage girls in Philadelphia and Liberia

Swim Pony Performing Arts
To weave the arts into the community by presenting revamped versions of plays in non-traditional spaces, including Eastern State Penitentiary and the Land Conservancy of Elkins Park

The Brothers Network
To introduce more diverse audiences to the performing arts by creating a multidisciplinary festival that features black male choreographers, filmmakers, actors, writers and composers

The Clay Studio
To explore the relevance of handmade ceramic objects in the 21st century by providing a handmade mug to people leaving coffee shops with disposable cups and encouraging them to post about their experiences on the Web

The Crossing
To introduce a wider audience to contemporary chamber music by establishing a series of new works designed specifically for a nontraditional venue – the recently restored Crane Arts’ Icebox

The Fabric Workshop and Museum 
To create a new sculpture series by artist Daniel Arsham at the museum that will debut along with a live performance and explore the boundaries between the galleries and theater

The Hacktory 
To promote the use of technology in the arts by developing a corps of interactive artist teachers who will share their knowledge and expertise in programming and engineering with Philadelphia artists

The University of the Arts
To promote economic stability for the city’s cultural community by offering support to emerging creative businesses with pre-seed funding, mentorships programs and workshops

The Village of Arts and Humanities
To develop young people’s awareness of the city’s vibrant cultural scene through interactive scavenger hunts led by local artists

The Wilma Theater
To enhance training for local actors by creating a series of master classes

University City District
To establish a new outlet for public art that showcases temporary installations to the city’s tens of thousands of daily commuters

Vic Reznik
To help promote the city’s cinematic identity by commissioning emerging filmmakers from Philadelphia to produce shorts for a new, local film festival

Then twenty-somethings Matt Joyce and Tim Ifill were having the same kind of friendly planning conversation a few years ago that many people have across the city every night. The friends, who in 2004 founded Philly Fellows, the organization that works to create a pipeline of talent for city nonprofits, were pondering where they could stop off and get a six-pack of beer to bring to a social gathering.

In some states, it's a non-issue. You can't walk 50 feet without running into a convenient takeout spot. In Pennsylvania, however, it's a little different, what with its complicated and antiquated liquor laws. Different levels of costly licenses, and the seemingly random stipulations that come attached to them, create a maze of sorts for six-pack hunters.

That led Joyce, 30, over the last few months to create Philly6ers, an online resource for easily locating and rating nearby pizza shops and delis that sell takeout beer. The site has approached 1,500 visitors in the last week, according to Joyce, and he is already planning a mobile app and statewide expansion (PA6ers).

"It seems to address a pretty commonly held frustration in Philly, so the general feedback has been positive," Joyce says. He is still weighing an official launch event and whether he'll try to make the site profitable. Having worked his entire career in the nonprofit sector -- most recently for the William Penn Foundation – the Philadelphia resident is mostly focused on making the site a strong resource rather than a business.

Joyce pulled data from licensing information from the PA Liquor Control Board for all "E" licensed retailers in the city. That license is typically issued to eateries to sell takeout beer. Not a complete stranger to building websites – he and Ifil built the Philly Fellows site – Joyce leaned on Google to make the data presentable and functional.

"It ties in so nicely to Google spreadsheets and forms and now something called Fusion Tables, that if you know a little bit of Excel and can make data tables relate to each other, Google makes it easy to present this data online," Joyce says. "It's fun."

Philly6ers has already taught Joyce a thing or two. For one, some areas of Philly are relative beer deserts, like Fishtown and Port Richmond, which, according to the site, are practically devoid of licensed takeout spots. Joyce wonders why some areas are like that, while most of West Philly is covered with licensed establishments. Also, Joyce has discovered that the seemingly random and usually empty seating areas at small delis are mandated by law. Topics like these are covered on the Philly6ers blog.

One thing Joyce says he'll have to negotiate is how to handle bars that are licensed to sell six-packs. While many of us have asked nicely and overpaid for a brown paper bag full of loose cans or bottles of beer in an establishment that might technically allowed to sell takeout, Joyce does not want to dilute the Philly6ers database with those bars. Rather, he wants to include only those state-appointed "R" retailers with real capacity to do so. Since that data is not easily attainable, user feedback will be key.

Joyce is thrilled that he is already hearing feedback from those who have successfully used the resource. He jokes that the 76ers might send him a cease and desist order.

"But I have to imagine the Sixers organization is just as interested in knowing which delis sell beer as the rest of us," he says.

Source: Matt Joyce, Philly6ers
Writer: Joe Petrucci