Posts By montana torrey
“Here Not There” in Rittenhouse Square
If you happen to be near Rittenhouse Square, you may notice a makeshift gallery in an unlikely home amid prime real estate on Locust Street. Inside the temporary space is an exhibition, Here Not There, curated by Philadelphia Salon creator and director Caryn Kunkle and featuring the work of three of its members: Caryn Kunkle, Pete Zebley, and Jordan Griska. The Philadelphia Salon is a collective of artists that meet weekly in the former Baird mansion on Broad Street. The Salon’s goal is “not to be exclusive” and to “connect the artist with the audience”. In addition, part of the ... More » »
Curating the personal – I Just Can’t Get You Out of My Mind at Seraphin Gallery
Hiro Sakaguchi is an honest curator. His curatorial statement for “I Just Can’t Get You Out of My Mind” at Seraphin Gallery reads: “I choose artists whose works I want to see again for selfish reasons.” Simple enough. And, as uncalculated as his curation may be, Sakaguchi still managed to weave together a diverse and talented group of artists he discovered in the Philadelphia-area, all of whom tackle conceptually and aesthetically complicated issues with ease. By using personal taste to navigate the curatorial process, one begins to understand just what it is that Sakaguchi is interested in: detailed, relatively small ... More » »
The 84th Annual International Competition: Photography at The Print Center
The Print Center’s 84th Annual International Competition: Photography, one of the nation’s oldest juried exhibitions of its kind, has managed to stay relevant yet another year with the help of guest curator Ingrid Schaffner. Schaffner, the senior curator at the Institute of Contemporary Art in Philadelphia, has brought together a group of 40 artists out of a pool of 550 (not an easy task). The result: a pastiche of work investigating a myriad of themes such as dystopic landscapes, melancholia, communal living and the creative process. Schaffner describes the exhibit as a “picture show” and appropriately likens the viewing experience ... More » »
Studio visit: Colleen McCubbin Stepanic
Colleen McCubbin Stepanic’s work ruminates on the universality of form, from rock formations to the modern home. Her current exhibit at The Painted Bride, “Home”, is a meditation on the challenges of the housing crisis. I recently had the opportunity to sit down with Colleen at her studio at the Crane Arts building to see what she had to say about her intensely laborious paintings.
