Photos: Tribute to Father's Day featuring Joanna Gardner

Vocalist Joanna Gardner gave a stunning, sultry performance last Friday! Check out some photos from that night.

Spotlight: Instructor Paul DuSold

Paul DuSold is an instructor for Woodmere Art Museum's classes and is a graduate of the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Art.





Paul has painted portraits for Pennsylvania Hospital, The Federal reserve bank of Philadelphia, Thomas Jefferson University as well as many other institutions and private commissions. He is represented by Gross McCleaf gallery in Philadelphia.

Photos: Gershwin Night

Enjoy our photos from Gershwin Night with Warren Oree & the Arpeggio Jazz Band and pianist Reiko Okuda, a recent graduate of The University of the Arts.

Photos: Po/Jazz Night

We heard some amazing words from the poets at our Po/Jazz Night. Warren Oree & the Arpeggio Jazz Band also gave an incredible performance.

Chestnut Hill House Evolves into a Home for Art

Chestnut Hill House Evolves into a Home for Art 
By James Weaver

Some people have called it the “Addam’s House” because it resembles the house in the television show The Addams Family. Actually, no one knows where the name of the handsome Victorian mansion at the corner of Bells Mill Road and Germantown Avenue, Chestnut Hill, originated. Charles Knox Smith (1845-1916), a prominent Philadelphia businessman (oil brokerage and gold and silver mining in Mexico) and member of the Philadelphia Common Council (before it became City Council) acquired the house and grounds in 1901. Built sometime before 1867, it was already called “Woodmere” and the name stuck. Smith was the fourth owner. He was living in the city’s Kensington neighborhood at the time, but he was rapidly outgrowing his space. He had become interested in art and art collecting and his collection was growing.

Videos: Jazz Nights - Ellington, Coltrane, Gershwin, Armstrong

 

Warren Oree & the Arpeggio Jazz Band

Woodmere Reciprocal Membership Benefits

Woodmere Art Museum is a member of the North American Reciprocal Membership program! Our Contributor level membership ($100) is good at over 400 museums in the United States and Canada! Some of the participating museums near Philadelphia include:

Pennsylvania:

The Brandywine River Museum

James A. Michener Art Museum

Susquehanna Art Museum

Abington Art Center 

Lancaster Museum of Art 

Tyler Arboretum

Institute of Contemporary Art/University of Pennsylvania 

National Museum of American Jewish History 

Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts

The Philadelphia Art Alliance 

The University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology 

August Wilson Center for African American Culture

Pittsburgh Center for the Arts 

Reading Public Museum 

Valley Forge National Historical Park

Events: Jazz Nights in May and June!

Woodmere Art Museum is pleased to announce that the our Friday Night Jazz series has been extended into May and June! Because of the overwhelming support from our visitors, we decided to continue to offer this great music series to the public! Please join us for the following Friday Nights in May:

Classes: The Clothed Figure

The Clothed Figure
Meets 8 times
Wednesdays, May 18 and ending June 22, for 6 sessions, 6:30-9:30 p.m. 

(no class May 11)
Instructor: Frances Galante
price: $165 plus $60 model

 

In this class models are dressed in contemporary clothing and arranged in naturalistic poses in the studio. Students are encouraged to observe the gesture and tones of the figure in the setting, and create a composition that incorporates drapery (the clothing) and some surrounding details. The instructor’s medium is oil paint, but students can work in the drawing or painting medium of their choice. (Beginners start with drawing in charcoal).

Video: Reiko Okuda and Warren Oree at Cole Porter Night

 

Check out our short video clip of last Friday's Jazz performance. Pianist Reiko Okuda and bass player Warren Oree played music of the great American composer Cole Porter. 

Classes: Alla Prima Figure Painting with David Shevlino

 

This video highlights the Woodmere Art Museum's studio instructor, David Shevlino. David studied painting and drawing at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in Philadelphia and at the Art Students League in New York. He also received a bachelor of fine arts degree from The University of Pennsylvania.

Photos: Woodmere's Friday Evening Jazz Series - Cole Porter Night

Pianist Reiko Okuda, a student at The University of the Arts, and bass player Warren Oree gave an incredible performance last night at Woodmere. The music of the great American composer Cole Porter was featured.

Enjoy some pictures we took of the event. Thank you for your support!

Arpeggio Jazz Ensemble

 

Take a peek! Here is a video of a performance by the acclaimed Arpeggio Jazz Ensemble at our first Jazz event last Friday, April 8. Join us this Friday, April 15 from 6:00–8:00 p.m. for Cole Porter Night.

Photos: Woodmere's Friday Evening Jazz Series - Arpeggio Jazz Ensemble

Warming up...

We had a great turn out tonight! Thank you for coming out to listen to some jazz music, enjoy some french wines, and see our exhibitions. It was a packed house! 

We would also like to thank the Arpeggio Jazz Ensemble! The show was amazing! The music was incredible!

Bonjour! Paris is in the air!

Violet Oakley
(American, 1874-1961). Lady with a
Fan, 1895, oil on canvas, 28 x 18 in.

Paris is reborn in Philadelphia! 

We are incredibly excited to be participating in the long-awaited Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (PIFA). As part of this collaboration, Woodmere will be enjoying an evening Jazz series the first of which will be held this Friday, April 8 from 7:00pm - 9:00pm. In celebration of our new exhibitions Charles Demuth in the City of Lights and Violet Oakley and the Women Artists of Paris, french wines and cheeses will available along with a performance by the Arpeggio Jazz Ensemble. So come out and have some fun this Friday night! Oui, s'il vous plaît!

Looking for a place to have dinner before heading to Woodmere on Friday? Check out the restaurants along Germantown Avenue in Chestnut Hill. Great shops, great food, great art, and great music all in one night!

Art of the Story: Narrative Paintings

January 23-February 21

Narrative paintings tell stories drawn from history, mythology, literature, allegory, and everyday life. Narrative paintings are as old as art itself and often involve complex figurative arrangements that make apparent to the viewer the particular story to be told or virtue to be illustrated. Come see and investigate narrative works from Woodmere’s permanent collection in this modest tribute to some masters of storytelling. Some of the artists included are: Benjamin West, N.C. and Wyeth, Frederick James.

Contemporary Voices: 70th Annual Juried Exhibition

January 23-March 14, 2010

Woodmere Art Museum’s mission to support the arts of Philadelphia is realized, in part, through its annual Juried Exhibition. This, our 70th juried show, highlights a wide variety of contemporary artists in Philadelphia. Our juror, Michael Schantz, the out-going CEO and Director of Woodmere, selected 125 works by 112 artists out of a pool of over 400. A juror, selected as an expert in the arts, reviews all the submissions and decides who is in the exhibit and who is not. Michael has a strong passion for the arts. He has spent decades viewing art, mounting contemporary exhibitions, and immersing himself in the Philadelphia arts community.

Artists have not always been eager to have their work seen and evaluated either by a professional jury or by the public. For several centuries, artists were primarily concerned with pleasing their patrons. Exhibitions, so common an occurrence in today’s world, are actually a fairly new phenomenon and juried exhibitions, even more so. The first juried exhibition was held at the French Academy in the 1730s. Judged by academics, only a select few works were allowed in. The public had a...

Welcome to the Woodmere Art Museum Blog!

Woodmere Art Museum is happy to present its new blog to the public!

Welcome to Woodmere Art Museum where we celebrate the importance and richness of the art of the Philadelphia region. Visit often and become inspired by works in our permanent collection, exceptional exhibits, and educational programs.