Visual art

101 results
Page 1
Crisp, richly saturated black & white photo of Ray looking in a mirror, holding a chess piece that casts dramatic shadows

TILT Institute for the Contemporary Image presents Wherever There Is Light

Stunning photographs by formerly incarcerated men of color

Wherever There Is Light, a new exhibition combining portraits, self-portraits, landscape, and collage, starts a new conversation about imprisonment, identity, and justice with cameras in the hands of formerly incarcerated people. Anndee Hochman reviews.
Anndee Hochman

Anndee Hochman

Reviews 5 minute read
Bright oil painting of two older Black people smiling and comfortably holding hands on a bench on a chilly, sunny day.

The Philadelphia Museum of Art presents The Time is Always Now: Artists Reframe the Black Figure

A historic, absorbing exhibition

A new PMA exhibition curated by Ekow Eshun gathers 28 contemporary artists from across the Black and African diaspora in the US and UK, exploring Blackness as lived experience rather than social construct. K.A. McFadden reviews.
K.A. McFadden

K.A. McFadden

Reviews 4 minute read
Finkle’s black & white photo, described in text below, of a Black woman sitting in the rain at a pro-housing protest.

Woodmere Art Museum presents In the Moment: The Art & Photography of Harvey Finkle

Picturing the people’s power

For half a century, Harvey Finkle has trained his camera on those fighting for the rights of homeless, displaced, disabled, or undocumented people on the front lines of American protest. An exhibition at Woodmere looks back on his legacy. Pamela J. Forsythe reviews.

Pamela J. Forsythe

Reviews 5 minute read
Gallery view of show's title wall, with a yellow/orange/purple gradient, and various ceramics on surrounding white pedestals

The Clay Studio presents The Future of Clay

What’s next for the enduring art of ceramics?

To close out its 50th anniversary year, The Clay Studio fittingly looks forward with The Future of Clay, which assembles eight artists for a streamlined show full of intriguing juxtapositions. Crystal Sparrow reviews.
Crystal Sparrow

Crystal Sparrow

Reviews 4 minute read
Collage work of bold prints shows a Black woman in repose, looking calmly outward, her eyes created by a black & white photo

The Barnes Foundation presents Mickalene Thomas: All About Love

A sparkling philosophy of love

A new multimedia exhibition at the Barnes featuring New Jersey native Mickalene Thomas celebrates queer existence and the female gaze with mixed-media painting, collage, photography, video, and more. K.A. McFadden reviews.
K.A. McFadden

K.A. McFadden

Reviews 4 minute read
View straight down into a few stories of the narrow exhibit, crammed with wooden structures and assembled found objects.

Arcadia University’s Spruance Gallery presents Perpetual Inventory: A Ruminative Installation by Scott Kip

Unmoored and uncanny

Visitors to Scott Kip’s Perpetual Inventory can decide if they want to look at an inventory or gallery notes before entering—but it might be worthwhile to wait for an impressionistic, mysterious encounter. Pamela J. Forsythe reviews.

Pamela J. Forsythe

Reviews 4 minute read

Sign up for our newsletter

All of the week's new articles, all in one place. Sign up for the free weekly BSR newsletters, and don't miss a conversation.

Franco’s piece, described in text below, is installed on the wall of a white gallery with a scuffed floor.

The Institute for Contemporary Art presents Where I Learned to Look: Art from the Yard

Art without walls

A new exhibition at Philly’s ICA explores what artists express in work made for the outdoors, from shrines to found objects to decorated cars and a mirrored orb by Jeff Koons. Pamela J. Forsythe reviews.

Pamela J. Forsythe

Reviews 5 minute read
A stylish, simple bronze chair with front and back legs like an Afro pick, with the handle forming the chair’s back.

The Wexler Gallery presents Jomo Tariku’s Juxtaposed

A fresh take on old and new art

Ethiopian American artist and design star Jomo Tariku, whose work spans from the PMA and the Smithsonian to Marvel’s onscreen Wakanda, gets his first-ever solo show at Fishtown’s Wexler Gallery. An Nichols reviews.
An Nichols

An Nichols

Reviews 4 minute read
Benner, a man in his late 30s in a black button-down, smiles proudly while pointing to a mural that says your voice has power

Philly artists get out the vote with To the Polls 2024, now on view in Love Park

“If you are voting, you are hoping for the future.”

Prolific curator and Streets Dept blog founder Conrad Benner is back with To the Polls 2024, a bi-annual nonpartisan project from Mural Arts urging Philadelphians—who may decide this Presidential election—to vote. Alaina Johns visits.
Alaina Johns

Alaina Johns

Features 4 minute read
A lantern-like chandelier lights the mansion’s entry space, which has arched doorways and fancy molding setting off the art.

Rockwood Mansion presents Nature of Gothic

Victorian ghosts in modern glass

Rockwood Mansion, a moody, historic northern Delaware house museum with a renowned collection of Victoriana, asks two contemporary glass artists to respond to its resident works. Gail Obenreder reviews.
Gail Obenreder

Gail Obenreder

Reviews 4 minute read