Courtesy Tyler School of Art

Part of the Philagrafika festival, “Copy Light,” the exhibit from artist Superflex, is a workshop that produces paper-shaded hanging lamps printed with the image of a famous copyrighted lamp design.

Sample North Philadelphia’s arts treasures

On Saturday, April 24th, the North Philadelphia Arts and Culture Alliance will present the second annual Treasures of North Philadelphia Open House. More than a dozen organizations will open their doors to the public to show off the diversity, innovation and creativity that make Central North Philadelphia special.

At Temple, exhibits that are part of the Philagrafika 2010 city-wide festival celebrating print in contemporary art will be featured.

At Temple Galley, artist Superflex will show and sell “Copy Light,” a workshop that produces paper-shaded hanging lamps, each printed with the image of a famous copyrighted lamp design. The lights serve as both original works of art and copies of existing ones. In the artist’s words, they are meant to “disrupt convention” and reflect the contradictions in proprietary laws.

North Philadelphia is brimming with the arts. From the Cerulean Arts Gallery to the Wagner Free Institute of Science and the Arts Garage, small artistic enclaves positioned around North Philadelphia offer everything from handcrafted ceramics to jazz performances. They have everything that better Center City venues have — except the high volume of foot traffic.

That’s where Temple’s Shayna McConville comes in. Last year the interim director of exhibits at the Tyler School of Arts decided to create an organization to help increase the visibility of the arts in north Philadelphia. Armed with first-hand knowledge of the talent and creativity that resides in the areas surrounding Temple, she founded the North Philadelphia Arts and Cultural Alliance.

The collaboration brings together the diverse arts and cultural organizations in the areas surrounding Temple to share resources and collectively promote the district as a destination for cultural, visual and performing arts. To date the organization has helped foster creative collaborations between artistic groups in the area, and has shown to be effective in raising the overall profile of North Philadelphia arts.

Now in its second year, the alliance will host its annual Treasures of North Philadelphia Open House on April 24. Arts organizations affiliated with the Alliance will open their doors to spectators who are invited to explore the wealthy of art and culture of central North Philadelphia.

“We want to highlight what has always existed here,” McConville said. “There are pockets of amazing and beautiful arts and creative venues here that people drive by daily and never take a second look.  It’s one of the most artistic neighborhoods in Philadelphia. There are so many little pockets of wonderful things happening here that people just don’t know about.”

As an example, McConville points to the Cerulean Arts Gallery, a new Alliance affiliate that sits just half a block from Broad Street’s famed Divine Lorraine property. The bright blue exterior of the gallery is welcoming and its walls are filled with fine art canvases from its current exhibit, “Shadows and Veils” by Cairo-born artist Kassem Amoudi.

Owner Tina Rocha, a local architect, said she came to the area because she feels strongly about working to better our neighborhoods.

“We’re off the beaten gallery path,” said Rocha. “The biggest challenge has been getting people to come north, but the area has potential. It’s changed a lot in the four years that we’ve been here. There are more residences being built, vacant lots are being converted into townhouses and we’ve been getting more foot traffic.”

Cerulean has been open for four years and although they only attract a small number of visitors, the number of patrons is slowly starting to increase.

“The art gallery at Tyler is facing the same issues with marketing — we want people to know that we’re here,” McConville said. “Coming together and helping to promote other similar organizations seemed like the best way to approach the challenge.”

The alliance, which now comprises more than 20 organizations — including the Art Sanctuary, the Mural Arts Program and others — has hosted several collaborative projects throughout North Philadelphia.

“There are historic sites and so many artists and creative people in the area who are invested in their community and interested in working together,” McConville said. “The Alliance is an organization where we can coordinate our efforts.”