Arts and Culture : In The News

Vibe says Ar-Ab, aka "Top Goon of Philly" could be rap's most important new artist

Vibe Monday, September 17, 2012

Vibe reports that Philadelphia rapper Ar-Ab is releasing his latest mixtape, Who's Harder Than Me, Part 2 on Oct. 5.

Part of the Larsiny Family, Ar-Ab counts Cassidy as one of his closest affiliates. Both were taken to trial for murder, but while Ar-Ab -- who says he spent two and a half years fighting the case -- got off free, Cassidy was still sentenced to almost two years in the slammer, but got out after eight months. If Ar-Ab's life is any indication of what to expect on his upcoming mixtape, be very scared (in a good way.)

Original source: Vibe

Read the full story here.

The Words: Behind the scenes of Philly's growing Hollywood cred

CliqueClack Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Movie blog CliqueClack takes in the Philadelphia red carpet premiere of The Words, starring Bradley Cooper.

With the filming of scenes from Political Animals with Sigourney Weaver (USA), Paranoia with Liam Hemsworth and Gary Oldman, and Dead Man Down with Colin Farrell and Terrence Howard, as well as the film premieres of The Words and Think Like a Man, it looks like Hollywood’s slowly jumping on the Philly bandwagon.

I give partial credit for this to Sharon Pinkenson, Executive Director for the Greater Philadelphia Film Society; partial credit to Mayor Michael Nutter; and partial credit to the filmmakers and stars who have ties to Philadelphia and want to see it featured further, including the native Philadelphia writers/directors/star/producers of The Words – Bradley Cooper, Brian Klugman, Lee Sternthal and Jim Young.

Original source: CliqueClack

Read the full story here.

Historic jab: Joe Frazier's gym, legacy to be honored in Philly

The New York Times Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Late heavyweight great Joe Frazier is getting some posthumous love in his adopted hometown of Philadelphia, reports The New York Times.

Mr. Frazier’s relationship with the city was complicated. People flocked to him for autographs, especially in North Philadelphia, a neighborhood of boarded-up row houses, drug markets and littered streets. But even there, he labored in the shadow of his rival Muhammad Ali, who ridiculed him as an “Uncle Tom” and the “Great White Hope.”

Original source: The New York Times

Read the full story here.

Embracing Philadelphia's 'front porch' at 30th St. Station

National Resource Defense Council blog Friday, August 10, 2012

The National Defense Resources Council likes what's happenin gin Philly, citing The Porch, a placemaking creation of the University City District, as a welcoming entryway to the city.

What a great idea. The space is adjacent to the country’s third busiest train station and within easy walking distance of over 16,000 jobs. UCD’s executive director, Matt Bergheiser, says that 1,800 pedestrians on average stroll along the sidewalk every hour on weekdays. With some nine acres of developable land now covered only by surface parking lots, the area also has the potential for further walkable development linking Center City, the station, and University City.

Original source: National Resources Defense Council blog

Read the full story here.

Esquire declares Philly 'late-night capital'

Esquire Friday, August 10, 2012

Good brew and food for hungry fellas in the wee hours puts Philadelphia on Esquire's radar as the late-night capital of the U.S.

Once referred to as the "workshop of the world," the great factory city of Philadelphia still has a third-shift appetite: It gets hungry after midnight. And it doesn't hurt that the local love for microbrewing, dating to the late 1600s, shows up on beer lists so intricately compiled they'd be described as curated in more pretentious cities. (Yes, Brooklyn, I mean you.) Epic jukeboxes and random dartboards, roasted meat and melted cheese, super-hard-to-find beers and whiskey neat — all served up without judgment in an American stronghold for going big into the wee hours: Welcome to the dark side.

Original source: Esquire

Read the full story here.

Haas & Hahn's Philly Painting bolstered by Village of Arts & Humanities

The Atlantic Cities Thursday, August 02, 2012

The Atlantic Cities catches up with Philly Painting, which we wrote about in May.

Urhahn credits El Sawyer at the Village of Arts & Humanities, a community-based nonprofit organization dedicated to neighborhood revitalization through the arts, with orchestrating the duo's introduction to the neighborhood. “We didn’t just show up and start painting. We showed up and started making friends, talked to people, tried to get to know the neighborhood," says Urhahn. "Basically the first half-year we talked to everybody form the police officers to the guys on the corner and everyone in between. Especially the store owners."

Original source: The Atlantic Cities

Read the full story here.

Society Hill's Fame House helps DJ Shadow break new ground with BitTorrent

GigaOm Monday, July 30, 2012

We reported on Philadelphia-based Fame House's groundbreaking work with DJ Shadow in February. Now CEO Mike Feibach is receiving a heap of attention for helping Shadow become the first artist to make money through BitTorrent, reports GigaOm.

BitTorrent has been partnering with indie musicians and filmmakers for some time to distribute authorized content bundles through its popular uTorrent client. However, this is the first time that the company has struck a revenue sharing agreement with one of those artists. “It’s a really important moment in the history of content distribution,” said Mason.

That sentiment was echoed by Fiebach, who told me that he doesn’t see BitTorrent as a piracy tool. “That’s the wrong way to look at it,” he argued, adding that the technology itself couldn’t be blamed if people use it to pirate content. Instead, it’s a way to get to an audience of millions, he said, adding: “(Shadow) and I just see this as a great opportunity to make history.”

Original source: GigaOm

Read the full story here.

Pizza Brain's Kickstarter campaign will 'increase the piece' from Fishtown HQ

Tecca Monday, July 30, 2012

Fishtown will be home to the world's first pizza history museum when Pizza Brain opens in August, reports Tecca.

The brainchild of Brian Dwyer and his friends, Pizza Brain -- with its delicious slogan, "Increase the Piece" -- will open its doors next month thanks to the power of Kickstarter, where Dwyer was able to raise enough dough earlier this year to turn his dream into a reality. The combination museum and restaurant will house hundreds of pieces of pizza memorabilia that Dwyer has amassed over the years -- a collection which got him recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records last July.

Original source: Tecca

Read the full story here.

Bucks County site is where pianos go to die

The New York Times Monday, July 30, 2012

A trash-transfer station in Southampton, 20 miles north of Philadelphia, are a regular stop for piano movers looking to dismantle played-out pianos, reports The New York Times.

The value of used pianos, especially uprights, has plummeted in recent years. So instead of selling them to a neighbor, donating them to a church or just passing them along to a relative, owners are far more likely to discard them, technicians, movers and dealers say. Piano movers are making regular runs to the dump, becoming adept at dismantling instruments, selling parts to artists, even burning them for firewood.

Original source: The New York Times

Read the full story here.

New Opera Company of Philadelphia composer-in-residence ushers in alt-classical

The New York Times Tuesday, July 17, 2012

The New York Times writes about Missy Mazzoli, the recently appointed composer-in-residence at the Opera Company of Philadelphia and her inviting, quirky original music.

Welcome to the world of indie- or alt-classical, where musicians are equally divided about which of those names they dislike more but share a stylistic omnivorousness that makes their work fresh and surprising.

Original source: The New York Times

Read the full story here.

Philadelphia leaders take to Toronto to share and 'steal'

Yonge Street Tuesday, July 17, 2012

Greater Philadelphia Economy League Executive Director Steve Wray talkes to Flying Kite sister publication Yonge Street about his organization's Greater Philadelphia Leadership Exchange, which visits Toronto this week.

One the focuses of the Economy League is what it means to be a world-class region and what it would take for Greater Philadelphia to attain status as a world-class region. As we select places to go, we look for regions that are world class or striving to be world class. Clearly Toronto has attained the status in the global community as a city and region on the rise, as a global financial capital and as an international city. We thought there were a lot of lessons we could bring back to Philadelphia from Toronto that would serve us well.

Original source: Yonge Street

Read the full story here.

Art Museum's 'Gauguin, Cezanne, Matisse' exhibit has imperfections, but worth pondering

The New York Times Monday, July 09, 2012

The New York Times comes down hard on the Philadelphia Museum of Art's current exhibit, "Gauguin, Cezanne, Matisse: Visions of Arcadia," but still sees value in the "mixed bag of 60 works by 25 artists."

The exhibition catalog is filled with excellent color reproductions of many great works not in the show, including Botticelli’s “Primavera,” Titian’s “Concert Champêtre,” Manet’s “Déjeuner sur l’Herbe” and Matisse’s “Bonheur de Vivre.” An exhibition displaying everything in the catalog would be a once-in-a-lifetime event and a richly illuminating meditation on the classic Arcadian myth of pastoral bliss and what it means for the modern world. But if you want to know what you will see in the flesh, you have to consult the thumbnail-illustrated checklist at the back of the book. Can you say, “false advertising”?

Original source: The New York Times

Read the full story here.

Everything you ever wanted to know about Philly's opera scene

New Music Box Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Fresh off the 2012 Opera America conference in Philadelphia, New Music Box writes of a changing Philadelphia opera landscape that includes collaboration, new works and better education.

Over the past two seasons, however, the Opera Company of Philadelphia (OCP) made international waves when it presented two operas by the iconic German composer Hans Werner Henze and announced a plan to present ten new American operas in the next ten years. In 2011, they launched an innovative collaborative Composer In Residence Program, together with New York partners Gotham Chamber Opera and Music-Theatre Group, funded by a Mellon grant of $1.4 million over five years.

Original source: New Music Box

Read the full story here.

American Revolution Center's "historical" design plans draw mixed reviews

Art Info Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Art Info weighs in on plans to overhaul the American Revolution Center's Museum of the American Revolution at Third and Chestnut.

Saffron is one of several critics and locals who see Stern's conservative Georgian reproduction to be a lost opportunity for Philadelphia. Her criticism comes up against the cheers of neo-traditionalist advocates, who argue that a "historical" style is appropriate for a building that will not only house historical artifacts but also abut landmarks dating back one, even two centuries. However, as Hidden City Philadelphia writer Nathaniel Popkin points out, the Revolution museum's surroundings are sprinkled with buildings from various time periods: the neighboring First Bank of the United States boasts a grand neoclassical façade, and the Merchant Exchange Building is likewise a tribute to white stone and Renaissance-era tectonics. Also nearby are twinned cast-iron high-rises and other buildings that visibly embrace the advent of glass-and-steel construction.

Original source: Art Info

Read the full story here.

'With art Philadelphia,' campaign ponders the most artistic mile in the country

The New York Times Friday, May 25, 2012

Five city institutions have combined to launch the "With art Philadelphia," advertising that makes the city hard to ignore as a visual arts destination, reports The New York Times.

The campaign, with a budget estimated at $2 million over the next two years, is being sponsored by the tourism marketing organization and more than a dozen other organizations, associations, foundations and institutions.

They include the City of Philadelphia, the Philadelphia Convention and Visitors Bureau, the Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance, the State of Pennsylvania, the Barnes, three other museums and the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society.

Original source: The New York Times

Read the full story here.