the 215mag blog

Chinatown Block Party

2011-06-18T10:57:00.003-04:00

The annual Taste of Philadelphia Chinatown Block Party isn't a 'block' party per se, more like a whole neighborhood throw down. Go to 10th and Race to hit up a huge open-air market with traditional Chinese entertainment. We're partial to the heady drum beats that accompanies the dancing dragon.
You'll also be able to sample many different types of cuisine...including anything you can imagine on a stick. Everything's better served on a stick, so come hungry! There will even be craft stations where you can make your own China celebration prop and parade it's streamers through the air in the name of independence! Viva la Streamers!

The party will be going down July 2nd, 12-4 p.m.

Follow Welcome America on Facebook and Twitter to stay in-the-know about all the latest happenings and special promotions. Together with the Welcome America team, we'll be spotlighting the festival's coolest events until Independence Day.

Philly @ the Movies Schedule

2011-06-15T12:45:00.002-04:00

Philly at the movies is definitely one of the events in all the fourth of July festival madness that we'll be hitting up. It's summer, that means it's time to take your movie viewing outside, in the open-air...with an open-container (What? We didn't say that!). Here's the schedule so you can get in on the projected action:

6.27 - Best in Show @ The Piazza
6.28 - Fame @ Dell East (33rd and Dauphin)
6.29 - Rocky @ The Art Museum
6.30 - The Devil Wears Prada @ Rittenhouse Square
7.1 - Hairspray Sing-Along @ Love Park

All movies start as soon as it decides to get dark.

Follow Welcome America on Facebook and Twitter to stay in-the-know about all the latest happenings and special promotions. Together with the Welcome America team, we'll be spotlighting the festival's coolest events until Independence Day.

"The Fourth of July on the Parkway should be what New Year’s Eve in Times Square is to New York," Questo Says

2011-06-13T16:56:00.003-04:00

In what is being toted as the 'largest free concert in America," the Wawa Welcome America concert on the Parkway will be insane on Fourth of July. Sure, every year there is an epic concert in front of the art museum, but this year, ol' Questo is playing music curator. The Roots chose to stick with an all-American lineup that includes DJ Jazzy Jeff, Earth, Wind & Fire, Estelle, Michael McDonald, and the just added Nico's Gun.

Follow Welcome America on Facebook and Twitter to stay in-the-know about all the latest happenings and special promotions. Together with the Welcome America team, we'll be spotlighting the festival's coolest events until Independence Day.

Found Theater Presents FOUND SOUNDS

2011-06-08T14:07:00.006-04:00

Up-and-coming theater company will play host to an evening of rock 'n' roll and dance music. With bands like Mt. Joy, The JLE, Rosie Lanagabeer, and DJ Stab + Grab, it should be an ecclectic and raging night of creativity and fun. Doors open at the BookSpace (1113 Frankford Ave.) at 10 P.M., $7 at the door. It will be a night unlike any other! www.foundtheater.blogspot.com

Sunlit Serenity: Ruche Lookbook, Early Summer '11

2011-06-08T02:10:00.003-04:00

Sometimes Facebook has value outside of unreportable stalking. When I'm bored enough, the advertisements that sit ever present on the side of my screen become unexplored internet shopping terrain. Facebook helped me discover everything from reasonably priced conflict-free diamond jewelry to online stores I've never actually seen in a mall (and when I say discover, I mean that loosely like Christopher Columbus style). Ever since the Nicki Minaj mini clones discovered Forever 21 and H&M, it's getting harder and harder to achieve a unique look without thrifting. And admittedly, I'm not the best thrifter (#dontjudgeme). So internet shopping and local boutiques become my refuge. One of my favorite stores right now is Ruche. They always have reasonable prices and very feminine pieces. Check out Sunlit Serenity, the early summer lookbook.

JOBBED: Exposing the Truths of Lay-offs

2011-06-03T13:23:00.008-04:00

These days finding a decent salaried full-time job is damn near impossible. That is unless you're the CEO's sister's neice's third cousin. But even the lucky ones who do eventually land positions are not safe and secure. I hate to be the black cloud on this gorgeous Friday afternoon, but at any given day, your job position could be terminated and you could be dunzo. Back to square one.

Philadelphia's own Leslie Mayer and Howard Rice plan to stimulate awareness of the effects of unemployment through their newest creation. JOBBED examines the struggles and difficulties that arise after one is laid-off. The show's characters are not only losing their means of income, but find themselves questioning their true identities as well.

"This production is based on the real stories of hundreds of people who have lost their jobs,” said Mayer, producer of JOBBED. “My hope is that audiences will see themselves in these characters and become more aware of the psychological and human toll that is exacted when individuals find their very identities at risk.”

JOBBED premieres June 25th at 8:00 p.m. at Ambler's Act II Playhouse to a private audience. A second and final performance will be June 26th at 2:00 p.m. open to the public for FREE. For more information, please visit Facebook.com/WereYouJobbed.

Written by Leslie Mayer and Howard Rice
Directed by Ben Smallen
Produced by Leslie Mayer and Melissa Zimmerman

Heineken USA's Passion For Beer @ the Downtown Marriott 05-18-11

2011-05-23T10:34:00.001-04:00

The Beer Lovers Cheat Sheet
Photos by Mercedes Jones via 215mag.com

Heineken USA hosted a informative and entertaining vignette of specialty seminars called "Passion For Beer". Held at the spacious Downtown Marriott, groups of bartenders, managers, distributors, and beer lovers alike, were given tutorials to heighten their beer senses.

A panel of well versed experts schooled us on "Ingredients" and the science that goes into creating Heineken's superior brews; "Tasting & Describing" to help distinguish the qualities in their brand; and "The Perfect Pour" technique, to ensure a pleasurable drinking experience.

Everyone left an expert, check out the video and pics...

Master Pourer, Franck Evers teaches us how to pour the perfect Heineken:

Colorfast Apparel Introduces, Active Audio

2011-05-20T13:38:00.001-04:00

Ever wondered what it would be like to have your clothes work simultaneously as headphones for your iPod? Colorfast Apparel has done just that, creating & patenting "Active Audio", which incorporates music directly into your garment with headphones built into the drawcord for iPod integration. It is super cool and gives you a flawless combination of style, music, & function, while remaining comfortable and washable.

The innovative pieces come in a variety of styles, including zip up hoodies, parkas, and vests, and range from $70-$125. "Active Audio" apparel and the rest of the active and trend forward fashion basics can be found at stores such as; Bloomingdales, Urban Outfitters, Metro Park, The Buckle, Kitson in LA, Shoe Gallery in Miami, Len Druskin in Minneapolis, Lansky’s in Memphis, Circa 2000 in Plano TX, Boogies in Aspen CO, and 88 tees in Honolulu Hawaii.

Beyonce Drops New Video

2011-05-19T11:07:00.000-04:00

The dusty, dance-heavy video for "Run the World (Girls)", the Major Lazer-sampling first single from Beyoncé's forthcoming album 4 (out June 28 on Columbia), premiered last night. Watch it below, and wait for a thousand YouTube bedroom dancers flood the Internet with their own takes.
(via www.pitchfork.com)

Lady GaGa's Album Leaks in Full

2011-05-19T10:54:00.002-04:00

Little Monsters everywhere were faced with the heavy decision; "To listen, or not to listen?" after the highly anticipated release from Lady Gaga, "Born This Way" was leaked in full before the May 23rd release. The album was set to stream for users of the English newspaper, Metro, on Wednesday and shortly after was leaked to the rest of the internet.
GaGa has been strategically releasing tracks from the album such as, "Hair" and "Edge of Glory" on a certain timeline. She even collaborated with popular Facebook app, "Farmville" for a viral promotion to release "Marry the Night" which challenged fans to unlock levels in "GaGaville" that would ultimately give access to the song.The Gaga labeled "greatest album of the decade" is an electro mix of pop rock and a throwback to the 80's.
While the world can't seem to get enough of Lady Gaga her loyal fans otherwise known as little monsters have had mixed reviews since the leak. Many were upset with GaGa's choice to stream the entire album with Metro before the release date. Now that the entire album has leaked fans are split between illegally obtaining the album or loyally continuing their lengthy wait to purchase the album on May 23rd. With a few searches on Google the album of the decade can be yours, but what's a fan to do?

Plus-Sized Model Sees Untimely Death

2011-05-11T12:44:00.000-04:00

Mia Amber Davis, a plus-sized model mostly recognized for her role in the movie "Road Trip," dies at a fairly young age. She played the gorgeous big girl that seduces Kyle at the Frat Party (scene included below). As both a model and the creative Editor-At-Large of Plus Model Magazine, Davis was known for convincing the world and the fashion industry to love her curves just as much as she did. So today we say goodbye to an icon and a pioneer. (Read more about the Davis story and see more photographs here http://bluecentric.com/?p=31037)

Philly's Own The SHOW - SIXTEEN SUNDAY The Mixtape: Presented by DjAYEboogie x Socialite Mike x Kings Rule Together

2011-05-10T19:39:00.005-04:00

After dropping a hot 16 for a consecutive 16 weeks, Philly's own The Show is joined by Abstract Thought's DjAyeBoogie, Kings Rule Together, and Socialite Mike to bring to you, Sixteen Sunday: The Mixtape. Featuring the first single Relax with fellow Philly native, Jasmine Sullivan, The Show lyrically portrays to us his signature lifestyle talk through music. Though you may recognize just about all of the instrumentals on this tape, the man behind the music breathes a breath of "Fresh Heir" into them all.

Download Link via Mediafire: http://www.mediafire.com/?d01phwaxwx8x8m2

Keep up with The Show:

TWITTER.COM/THECLASSPREZ

YOUTUBE.COM/CLASSPRESIDENTTV

FACEBOOK.COM/THECLASSPREZ

WWW.UNCOOLISTHENEWCOOL.COM

Joan Shepp Unwrapped

2011-05-09T15:20:00.008-04:00

Joan Shepp celebrated 20% off the Men's and Women's Y-3 Collection at a shopping event last week. Complimentary booze, sandwiches, and a DJ made customers feel better about the grenade that would explode in their wallets with every purchase.

But I must say, I was jealous of those who could actually afford to buy. With a rather bold take on this Spring trend toward neutral colors, flair and convention make a healthy compromise on Joan Shepp's racks. From movie inspired shades to silk berets, I could tell that Paris didn't just come to PIFA this year. The clothes possess a Parisian-inspired subtle edge. Nothing too dull, nothing too bright--everything's just right. Non? So here are some of my favorite things...

an electric blue crop top

a sequined skort

a Beatles button-down

floor length peasant dress with messenger bag

Silk dress with trench vest

The silk beret

Tan sneakers with a lime green trim

Neutral colored sandals

The wicker shoe

Hipster City Cycle

2011-05-03T11:51:00.003-04:00

Ever wish a video game would offer a chance for you to help a hipster fulfill his dreams of becoming a broke cyclist in the city of Philadelphia? Hipster City Cycle has got you covered. Coming to the Apple App Store, May 19th 2011 the game will offer players a chance to virtually weave through the streets of Philadelphia as hipster Binky Mckee. The game will not just consist of leisure bike rides through the city, Binky will face challenges that will include;earning medals across the city for speed, style and skill, unlocking 22 unique bikes with interchangeable wheels, competing with friends for top times and scores through Game Center, experiencing challenging retro style gameplay with intuitive modern control, and last but not least the opportunity to Party your way through Binky's entire trust fund.

Hipster City Cycle has been in the makings for the last two years and is the brain child of three friends who met while going to school in Philadelphia. The three collaborators decided the city, now boasting a growing indie game scene would be the perfect backdrop. The unique hand pixel'd neighborhoods and characters were developed by Keith McKnight while the soundtrack was put together by Patrick Todd and Joey Mariano of Cheap Dinosaurs.

Check out the game in the Apple App Store, May 19th 2011

(screen shots provided by:hipster city cycle)

Rite of Spring, done the Lyfestile way.

2011-04-28T14:52:00.010-04:00

This Friday (April 29), Club Lyfestile will perform their most ambitious dance to date. I sat down with Club Lyfestile member Mike Rehrig to chat about sexy singlets and tomorrow's "Rite of Spring" performance.

Stravinsky's "Rite of Spring" became an instant sensation (prompting riots and upheaval) in its day and continues to fascinate current movers and shakers.

Club Lyfestile, a D.I.Y. dance collective formed in 2006, will perform their own version of the notorious piece at The 5th Side (part of the Maas Building) in South Kensington tomorrow night.

"This dance is a departure from anything Club Lyfestile has done before," says Mike Rehrig, "Normally, we come up with an idea and make music -- usually it all happens within 2 weeks to a month. This one started out more artistically. We thought, 'We're gonna redo Stravinsky's Ballet.' As we've been working on it, it's become more of a party dance, as we usually do. It's different because it's a lot bigger than what we usually do. We even have different divisions for labor: a choreography team, set design, costume and music."

In addition to his dance role in the collective, Rehrig also helps to design and create costumes. Reaching into his messenger bag, Rehrig produces a singlet he sewed for last month's Future Islands show. Rehrig describes the costume as a, 'Joosed-up wrestling singlet (when I say Joose -- I mean the alcoholic energy drink) with sexy, skinny suspender straps, with a sparkle razz-ma-tazz power pyramid on the crotch with a turquoise spandex Brazilian-waxed landing strip and a honey-gold back panel, with extra space for a bumpin' booty.' When I prompt him to give me a sneak peak at the "Rite of Spring" get-up, he smiles coyly.

"It's a secret."

This particular performance is unique in its scope. "I'm pretty new to Club Lyfestile," says Rehrig, "but we don't generally perform as the headlining act. We usually perform as an opening act for bands or collaborate with someone else."

And the work that goes into such a special production?

"We've been working really hard for months and months. Tip Flannery goes to the studio and works all day on the costumes -- like 10 hour days. Last night we were in the studio until 2AM."

The late nights and endless practices are par for the course. Club Lyfestile members aren't in it for hype. It's not just about dancing, it's about a lyfestile.

(Pictures courtesy of here & here.)

Preceding the dance will be live performances by Spirit Animal, Adult Content, and Jeff Melkerson. Following Club Lyfestyle’s performance will be a dance party with DJs Emilio Airhorn, Scotty Too Dope, and GRAVITRON.

4Square Your Way to Free Spaghetti

2011-04-28T11:47:00.002-04:00

In honor of the last week , the 4sq mayor of the PIFA Eiffel Tower at noon on Saturday, April 30 wins a $100.00 Maggiano’s gift certificate. According to the fourquare website, for those that aren’t familiar. You can become “mayor” of a place by checking in the most times. And it should be easy – since there are dozens of free events happening in the Plaza this week. All you have to do is stop in and check in.

To check out all the events happening in the plaza and get at that gift certificate, go to kimmelcenter.tumblr.com.
Winners will be notified on Monday, May 2 via Facebook.com/KimmelCenterPhilly.

Puentes/Bridges

2011-04-28T11:32:00.002-04:00

April 29th, a perfect day to see what's up with our Latin Community. Witness a ridiculously awesome collaboration between Taller Puertorriqueño, The Philadelphia Orchestra, Intercultural Journeys, the Artistas y Músicos Latino-Americanos (AMLA), and PIFA.

This is kind of a mini-festival inside a festival. All these fantastic organizations came together to offer master-like classes at Taller, Esperanza Academy and other community classes around Philly for the rest of the year.

Which brings us back to April 29th, where you can see an exhibit of the master-class attendees work and hear a jam session like no other. All parties listed above will converge to play an epic concert of modern renditions of popular Latin composers.

Exhibit starts at 6 p.m.
Concert starts at 8 p.m.
Price is Free!

Join a Flash Mob, You KNow You Want To

2011-04-27T15:11:00.002-04:00

How can you join a Flash Mob you ask? PIFA will take you in.

The first step is to view the instructional video to see what dance instructor Kate Watson-Wallace and her 'Anonymous Bodies' dancers have put together. Then, start practicing in your living room.
The dance itself will be commencing on April 30 at 1:45 p.m., smack dab in the middle of the street fair, an endeavor that will delight if not completely shock all of the other fair attendees. Dance dress rehearsal will be held April 30 at 11 a.m. in the parking garage of the Kimmel Center.
Interested? Email Kate at danceflashmob@pifa.org to get the details, then follow them on twitter and facebook so you don't miss out on any mob chatter.

Street Fair This Weekend

2011-04-26T11:25:00.002-04:00

This is a once in a philly-lifetime event! When else are you going to walk down Avenue of the Arts and see flying trapeze artists soaring over your head and a giant ferris wheel on Broad Street?

The end of the PIFA festival is near and the Parisian Street Fair is the sweet and extravagant goodbye. Catch street performers like mimes and jugglers, a grass park (they are bringing in grass?) and public garden , food vendors, no doubt serving up those delicious crepes from the Kimmel Center and, of course, the GIANT FERRIS WHEEL. We will be taking a few spins on that one.

There will also be some Parisian-inspired music performances on two stages, so the sensory overload options are a-plenty.

This month 215 Blog spotlights various highlights of the upcoming Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (April 7-May1) with the support of PIFA. You may follow them at http://www.twitter.com/PIFAPhilly or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/PIFA.Philly.

The fair is all day from 11 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. this Saturday and it is completely free!

ABSTRACT THOUGHT Spring 2011 Video LookBook

2011-04-22T09:14:00.003-04:00

Just in time for the weather change, one of Philly's elite clothing brands, Abstract Thought, brings to you their Spring 2011 video LookBook. The collection features some Abstract classics as well as some 'NEW' editions. Enjoy! And remember, ALWAYS THINK ABSTRACT!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VfpES9N8q8k

Twitter: @alwaysABSTRACT

Website: http://www.ImAbstract.com/

Party Down, Paris Style

2011-04-20T13:28:00.002-04:00

Okay, we've been attending gallery nights, dance performances, plays, orchestra recitals, jazz trios and concerts all month long, and now we are ready to PARTY.

Have no fear, party people, now is the time to live it up with PIFA. The very last day of the festival is upon us and it is going out with a bang. Make your way into the lobby of the Kimmel Center for the "last Night in Paris," party. Hosted by actor and all-around hot guy Boris Kodjoe, you can look forward to flowing cocktails, music by DJ Gary O, live performances by leah Smith with the Urban Guerilla Orchestra and dancing under the Eiffel Tower until whenever you feel like going home.

April 29th, Lobby of the Kimmel, 9 p.m. $30

This month 215 Blog spotlights various highlights of the upcoming Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (April 7-May1) with the support of PIFA. You may follow them at http://www.twitter.com/PIFAPhilly or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/PIFA.Philly.

Big Money, Medical Weed, & Fashion

2011-04-20T09:05:00.004-04:00

In the 4/20 spirit (because I'd never do this in my right mind if you catch my spliff), I'd like to take this opportunity to quote Wiz Khalifa on his and Curren$y's How Fly mixtape.

"All we know is big money, medical weed, and fashion."

Don't you just love this generation?

Happy Holiday!

Art, Beats & Lyrics....Oh My!!

2011-04-19T12:17:00.001-04:00

MMmm.....I smell a bboy gathering.

This Friday (4/24), the national tour of Gentleman Jack Art, Beats & Lyrics (GJ AB+L) hits Philly with a loud crash, bang, boom! Art, Beats, & Lyrics is a multi faceted fusion of all the essential hip hop elements featuring: graffiti, dee jaying, emceeing, and break dancing, and it's set to make its Philly premier at Sherman Mills--a brand new complex--located in Northwest Philly.

Hosted by hometown homie Hustle, the Philly lineup includes incredible music performances by live soul band YVPG, Philly hip hop native Sean Faylon and a special performance by Kendrick Lamar (protégé of Dr. Dre and member of XXL's 2011 Freshmen Class). But wait, that's not all...on the 1's and 2's turntable scientist's DJ Phsh and DJ Lord of Public Enemy.

The event is free and open to grown folk, 21 years or older! Register for complimentary tickets at http://www.gentlemanjackabl.com/ or on www.facebook.com/gentlemanjackabl.

Event starts at 7pm and goes H.A.M. until 12am. Get there early!!!

This jawn sounds like it's gonna aight, check out some press on their past events

AUTO: A Lesson in Movement

2011-04-18T15:33:00.003-04:00

Of all the PIFA events, we have to say that AUTO is definitely something that has blown our minds before we've even seen it. Here's the concept, an audience crowds into a parking garage on Henry Ave and are led around the space to witness different vignettes.

Performers interact with moving vehicles, to put us in the body of the driver, a passenger, and even, the car itself. The show really investigates car etiquette, car life; how we, as human, change within the confines of steel all around us, in a contraption that could crash, speed up, slow down, blow up or halt at any moment.

This piece is a follow up to the widely popular CAR performance from sold-out 2008 Live Arts Festival.

Showing now through May 1st. 8 p.m.
Falls Center Parking Garage, 3300 Henry Avenue
$20

This month 215 Blog spotlights various highlights of the upcoming Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (April 7-May1) with the support of PIFA. You may follow them at http://www.twitter.com/PIFAPhilly or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/PIFA.Philly.

Behind the Scenes: ROCKERS! Closet Photoshoot

2011-04-18T14:40:00.001-04:00

We stop, we stare, we smile, and we envy. A truly unique look catches our attention for two reasons. (1) The person looks amazing (2) We'd probably never have the confidence to actually pull the look off ourselves. But why? Quite frankly, fashion ain't for the weak of heart.To achieve a really great look, your swagger has to be on a hundred thousand trillion at all times. Two.One.Five took some of our friends who play it fashionably safe and gave them a makeover at Rockers! Closet--specializing in thrift couture--to infuse them with a little edge. The before and after pics will follow soon, but here's a little behind the scenes sneak peek at the makeover shoot.

Rockers! Closet just opened a new shop on 818 s. 4th St.

The Rockers! staff set out a number of looks for our friends to try on.

Photographer Alicia Martin gets up close and personal with one of our models.

Rockers! stylist Rebecca Roe finds the perfect necklace for the look.

Lovin' This Look

2011-04-18T05:50:00.003-04:00

This spring is all about neutrals. But a neutral color palette doesn't have to suck the boldness out of your look. Add printed scarfs for just a dash of fun colors. Check out this daytime look from American Apparel for the perfect balance of neutrals and bolds.

Proliferation of the Imagination

2011-04-14T16:41:00.002-04:00

Now this one sounds just plain sexy.

The Wilma Theater has partnered with BalletX, the adventurous ballet company, to put together a collaborative piece based on Guillaume Apollinaire's The Mammaries of Tiresias: Proliferation of the Imagination. Apollinaire, best known for coining the term 'surrealism' to describe his play, started the conjunction of the unconscious, science and art.

See the original re-imagined through an interdisciplinary, multimedia work incorporating ballet choreographed by Matthew Neenan, spoken text, video, and original music.

Shwoing now through April 24th; 8 p.m.
The Wilma Theater, $25-$35

This month 215 Blog spotlights various highlights of the upcoming Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (April 7-May1) with the support of PIFA. You may follow them at http://www.twitter.com/PIFAPhilly or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/PIFA.Philly.

It's Toe Freeing Season

2011-04-12T16:01:00.011-04:00

After months of cold weather and snow, the time has come to free the toes. Platforms. Wedges. Sandals. Whatever your shoe of choice may be, tis the season of the pedicure. And in honor of that, I wanted to share a few shoegasms with you (even some from local boutiques!) that'll help you get the best out of that $45 nail salon visit.

1) For the green at heart...

(J. Karma on 62 N 3rd Street for $62)

2) For the vintage loving sweetheart...

(Arcadia Boutique on 819 N 2nd Street & 265 S 20th Street for $98)

3) For the cheetah lover...

4) For the flower child...

5) And for the little toes on the prairie...

"How 'Ya Gonna Keep 'Em Down on the Farm after They've Seen Paree?"

2011-04-12T14:25:00.003-04:00

We became enthralled with this show strictly for it's title. "How 'Ya Gonna Keep 'Em Down on the Farm after They've Seen Paree?" is a show put together by the people at PAFA (The Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts) that exhibits art from the 1910s and 1920s connecting American artists and France.

At the centerpiece of the show is Florine Stettheimer's famous portrait of she and her sisters, Marcel Duchamp and Elie Nadelman having a picnic in Paris just after World War I. The Stettheimer sisters were somewhat of international party girls. They introduced European artists to American artists, they brought modernists ideas with them everywhere they traveled, they forged the transatlantic relationships that artists and produced some monumental works.

As part of this idea and curation, viewers will see a direct juxtaposition with Nadelman’s 1918 work entitled 'Chanteuse,' which rhymes visually with his portrait in the Stettheimer painting.

Now through May 29th, $8-$10; Museum Hours: Tues - Sat 10:00am - 5:00pm, Sun 11:00am - 5:00pm

This month 215 Blog spotlights various highlights of the upcoming Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (April 7-May1) with the support of PIFA. You may follow them at http://www.twitter.com/PIFAPhilly or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/PIFA.Philly.

Get To Know: Beyu Apparel

2011-04-10T23:03:00.012-04:00

While browsing through a family member's Facebook profile, I saw that he recently did a fashion show and photoshoot for a brand called Beyu Apparel. The brand started out in 2009, and looks to have come a long way since then. Aside from many great designs, what I like most about the brand is that their all about inspiring, enlightening, and empowering others to do what ever it is their hearts set out for them to be in life. That alone should get you far no matter what industry someone's working in, especially fashion. I'm looking forward to more awesome apparel from this brand and hopefully, working with the in the near future.

http://beyumovement.com/index.html

Tania Mouraud's Ipods

2011-04-08T16:01:00.003-04:00

Tania Mourand is a French video installation artist, well known for her pseudo-political work and contributions to social issues around the world. her medium of choice is video, but she also conveys her strong messages through photographs, live performances and alternative media and her main focus is on themes of anxiety (which we can all relate) and responsibility, and how globalisation and and an unbalanced economy takes it's hardest toll on the vulnerable and weak.

The artist kept a video diary on her voyages around the world, documenting the effect of this on different global societies, from India to Paris. The result is a montage of how people just like you and I are coping in other countries and how we are connected by our bonds of sympathy. Viewers can see the work on various Ipods set up around the lower level of the Kimmel Center throught he end of the festival.

It's an interesting element to the festivities already happening at the Kimmel Center this month, we suggest you get a glass of wine and wander around.

This month 215 Blog spotlights various highlights of the upcoming Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (April 7-May1) with the support of PIFA. You may follow them at http://www.twitter.com/PIFAPhilly or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/PIFA.Philly.

Marc Chagall and his Circle

2011-04-07T12:26:00.002-04:00

Speaking of artists that hung out in Paris coffee shops, indulging in conversations that owuld later change the world of art: There's Marc Chagall. Chagall is known for involving himself in a whole slew of different artistic styles, among them, cubism, fauvism, symbolism and surrealism. He, like Joyce, spent the majority of his life in Paris, painting the fair city and his eloquent peers like Jacques Lipchitz, Chana Orloff, Pascin, Modigliani, and more.

The art museum will be exhibiting the work of Chagall and his peers as they saw Paris, in the show Paris Through the Window: Marc Chagall and his Circle. It will include 70+ paintings and sculptures by these emigre artists all of which were created in Montparnasse, which still, to this day, remains a cool spot for artists to hang.

Showing now through July 10th, 2011. $12
Museum Hours: Tues-Sun: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

This month 215 Blog spotlights various highlights of the upcoming Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (April 7-May1) with the support of PIFA. You may follow them at http://www.twitter.com/PIFAPhilly or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/PIFA.Philly.

Hennessy Remixed Tour w/ Toccara Jones @ Vault Lounge 04/01/11

2011-04-07T08:22:00.001-04:00

Celebrity Model Tocarra Jones @ Vault Lounge 04/01/11
Untagged Photos by Bill Andrews (Courtesy of MSL Group)

Hennessy Remixed Family: Citrus, Berry, Ginger

Philly received the royal treatment thanks to the Hennessy Remixed Tour with Top Model/Celebrity Host Toccara Jones and master mixologist Jordan Bushell.

Hosted at the swank Vault Ultra Lounge, the tour rolled through Philly along its--eight city--cross-country tour, including stops in Atlanta, New York, Chicago and Dallas.

Toccara looked fabulous. She showed off her svelt figure, and was beaming when I asked her about her upcoming project, Trump's Ultimate Merger, now in its second season.

When asked her about her quest for love she said: "It's just going to be me, and 12 single guys. I can't wait it's going to be exciting! I haven't met the guys yet, but I'm hoping they're all going to be very yummy."

Now, I wasn't the biggest fan of Omorosa's attempt at the Ultimate Merger. But, I know that if Toccara brings her trademark personality and sass, it's sure to be entertaining.

The network is casting the show now, and should be filming shorty!

The Hennessy was flowing and the VIP was poppin...check out the pics!

Mixologist Jordan Bushell mixed up some of the Remixed cocktails for me, and I fell in love with the apple blends! The sweet density of the apple pairs well with the bold cognac. Not to mention, the intermediate mix, has a splash of Moet that takes it to another level!!

Hennest Remixed Apple-Easy Level:
1 1/2 oz Hennessy,

3 1/2 oz Apple Juice

Hennessy Remixed Apple-Intermediate Level
1 oz Hennessy, 1/2 oz Apple Liqueur, 1/4 oz Gomme
Top w/ Moet Brut Imperial

Joyce's Paris, Paris' Joyce.

2011-04-06T12:41:00.003-04:00

We just so happen to know a whole bunch of Joyce-heads that are dying over this PIFA event at the Rosenbach Museum.

This multimedia exhibition covers James Joyce's life during his time in Paris, when the guy pretty much single-handedly made the Left Bank district cool. Joyce chose the run-down part of Paris to call home while writing his works of literary genius, thereby ushering in the many poets, writers, and artist that would call it their home and start the avant-garde movement.

We'll find out why Joyce came to visit for a weekend and ended up staying in Paris for twenty years and how the interwar surfaces of the great city wound up in his most celebrated work.

See pages from the original Ulysses manuscript, Man Ray's portrait of Joyce, selections of Ezra Pound's poetry, documenting the times, and the first-edition of Ulysses smuggled out of Paris and into the States for Dr. Rosenbach himself in 1922.

Now until August 28th, 2011. $5-$10
Museum Hours: Tues & Fri: 12 p.m.- 5 p.m.
Wed & Thurs: 12 p.m. - 8 p.m.
Sat & Sun: 12 p.m. - 6 p.m.

This month 215 Blog spotlights various highlights of the upcoming Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (April 7-May1) with the support of PIFA. You may follow them at http://www.twitter.com/PIFAPhilly or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/PIFA.Philly.

Raid!: The Exposure of Streetwear

2011-04-05T20:15:00.009-04:00

"Streetwear is a distinctive style of fashion not to be confused with hip hop fashion."

-http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Streetwear

A few days ago a friend of mine sent me a link to one of Soulja Boy's newest videos 'AK47.' Approximately nine seconds into watching, I noticed that he was wearing a Supreme Black Dragon Mesh Back 5-Panel hat. This raised an eye brow. A couple of days prior to that, a friend and I were watching Travis Porter's video 'Bring It Back' and noticed a few of the members were wearing Flight Club apparel and 10.DEEP. Instantly, I began to laugh. For the longest time, a culture that was once underground has been exploited into the mainstream. All of the previously mentioned artist being of my generation, along with a long list of others, I've seen what they've come from, and none of them have ever been fashionable to say the least. Now for companies such as Supreme and 10.DEEP, this is free advertisement so of course they wouldn't have a problem with such artist wearing their pieces; but for those large amount of men and even women who are and have been immersed in the streetwear culture for years, they may be and probably are offended. Celebrities are given such high praise for wearing certain brands as if it's new, when the average Joe may have been in touch with the same brand but doesn't receive any recognition for it. (Laughing) I blame the stylist! Who do you blame?

Soulja Boy - AK47
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pAu_cP7LiuM

Travis Porter - Bring It Back
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VTCkmvSwIjw

Sartorialist in Philadelphia!!

2011-04-05T17:54:00.002-04:00

On my daily peruse through all of the blogs that I follow, The Sartorialist announced that he will be in Philadelphia in the next coming weeks!

On his blog he asked for suggestions on some good places to go...

So I suggest you whip out your most fashionable gear and just walk around the streets looking for him.

Check out the link!
http://thesartorialist.blogspot.com/2011/04/sartorialist-in-boston-and-philadelphia.html

Gertrude Group: This is to Say: A Stein Salon

2011-04-05T08:23:00.002-04:00

Gertrude Stein was one of those celebrities famous for a great number of things: Her extraordinary fiction, her public lesbian relationship with life-partner Alice Toklas; her art collecting, and her generosity to other writers and artists, summed up in her well-known Paris salons, wherein she would invite many of her literary and artist friends together to read works, showcase artwork, discuss politics and generally have an absorbing time.

As part of the PIFA Paris celebration, then, it makes absolute sense to recreate one of Stein's gatherings. This one will take place in the Kelly's Writer House in University City, and features readings in the round and an appearance by the late "Ms. Stein" herself. There will also be musicians performing pieces, featured readers, a moment or two of interactive theater, group discussions, an art exhibit, and a spread of food all from the (also famous) Alice B. Toklas cookbook. It should be a thoroughly noteworthy -- if not exhaustive -- good time.

This is to Say: A Stein Salon will take place on April 7 at 6:00 p.m. Admission is free.

This month 215 Blog spotlights various highlights of the upcoming Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (April 7-May1) with the support of PIFA. You may follow them at http://www.twitter.com/PIFAPhilly or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/PIFA.Philly.

Why NOT Attend a Cabaret?

2011-04-04T12:35:00.005-04:00

Traditional Parisian Cabarets were down-and-dirty, orgy-like, hash parties. And though, we aren't expecting anything other than PG-rated at the Woodmere Art Museum's Cabaret, the feeling will be there, I'm sure.

As part of the PIFA festival the Woodmere will host the Arpeggio Jazz Ensemble while you lounge around cushioned tables, guzzle wine and nibble cheese. The AJE consists of cool cats that have performed their vintage cabaret music all around the world; Warren Oree, Umar Raheem, Greg "Ju-Ju Jones, Doug Edwards and Frank Butrey. Grab a feller by the arm and mosey around the Demuth "City of Lights" art exhibit while you're there. Drop as many french phrases as you can, wear a feather in your hair, make it authentic.

$20 April 8th, 2011 7-9 p.m.

This month 215 Blog spotlights various highlights of the upcoming Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (April 7-May1) with the support of PIFA. You may follow them at http://www.twitter.com/PIFAPhilly or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/PIFA.Philly.

Abracadabra! Poetic Passageways

2011-04-04T07:14:00.001-04:00

One of Philly's most underrated art installations, Isaiah Zagar's Magic Gardens is the product of a 17-year labor of love by the fascinating mosaic artist, who used found ceramics, glass bottles, bricks, broken pieces of mirror and any other suitably hard and shiny material to create what has to be considered his masterpiece on South Street.

The piece is at times irreverent, beautiful, whimsical and almost overwhelming in its complexity, a perfect backdrop, in other words, for the work of Daddists and Surrealists such as Apollinaire, Maillarme, Breton, and Duchamp such as will be interpreted by dancers and musicians at this special two-night only event. The audience will travel through the installation itself, watching pieces put together by choreographer/dancer Olive Prince and composer/musician Christopher Farrell, as the performances blend into the curious power of the place itself.

With the odd bike wheel and other inexplicable metal contraptions embedded into the very form of the place, you imagine the Daddists, in particular, would be especially proud.

Poetic Passageways: Synethesia of Sight, Sound & Movement will run over two nights, on April 20 & 21, at 7 p.m. Tickets are $12-$15.

This month 215 Blog spotlights various highlights of the upcoming Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (April 7-May1) with the support of PIFA. You may follow them at http://www.twitter.com/PIFAPhilly or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/PIFA.Philly.

Music, Please: From Paris To The Pyrénées: The Songs Of Déodat De Séverac

2011-04-01T16:12:00.001-04:00

Artists in any medium are told to use the raw materials of their lives as their inspiration. The French composer Déodat De Séverac (1872-1921) took this idea very much to heart with his orchestral pieces and choral music, many of which are sung in Provençal, the traditional language of his native province, Languedoc (now known as the régions of Languedoc-Roussillon and Midi-Pyrénées, which is a bit of a mouthful).

In addition to using Provençal, he also routinely used Catalan, the ancient language of Rousillon, and employed verse by the noted French poets Verlaine and Baudelaire, making him not unlike any other Frenchman of his (or any) time: Fiercely proud of the country as a whole, but even prouder of his exact piece of the place.

Complimenting all this French-ness, PIFA is offering a lecture on our man Déodat along with a recital of some of his more pressingly famous works. It should be an illuminating late afternoon of music, prose and all things François. Francophiles rejoice!

The Songs Of Déodat De Séverac will take place April 7 at 4 p.m. Tickets are free.

This month 215 Blog spotlights various highlights of the upcoming Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (April 7-May1) with the support of PIFA. You may follow them at http://www.twitter.com/PIFAPhilly or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/PIFA.Philly.

Saved from B.O.C

2011-03-31T14:59:00.002-04:00

We've all had those nights where we have that last shot that takes us overboard and into what I like to call Black Out City. After a long night of drinking, stumbling around, and getting hit on by creeps left and right it's about time to get your drunk ass home. You left your pals back about four drinks ago, and there is not a damn person at the bar you trust with your life or ladyhood, being the gem you are you begin to speak what sounds like french to you but is really Drunkenese and the likelihood of you falling asleep in the cab is spot on. Fortunately Incredible Things found the "Dear Cab Driver" napkin! It's like it was made just for you. It allows you or a fellow coherent bar hopper (rare find) to chicken scratch in a destination or where your cash might be so that you can safely make it home from your all too eventful trip from B.O.C straight to your bed where you belong.

It's Fashun, Dahling

2011-03-31T13:25:00.003-04:00

Friday April 8th in the lobby of the Kimmel Center, you can catch a Parisian-inspired runway fashion show right there on Broad Street.

The event will give due to Philadelphia up-and-coming designer Ralph Rucci with a Visionary Award for Fashion, who has been invited to show his design in Paris by the esteemed Chambre Syndicale de la haute Couture or, The Trade Union of High Fashion.

Other Philly designers with looks strutting down the catwalk are Melani Von Alexandria, Priscilla Costa, Katie Ermilio, Carmelita Martell (a 215 favorite, we used her designs in our last fashion shoot "Other Planes of There"), Janice Martin, Lonni Rossi, Alison Lewis, Jaames Nelson, Bela Shehu, Kristen Haskins Sims and Sarah Van Aken.

That group also includes four student designers who will be competing for an internship with Chado Ralph Rucci in New York.

April 8th. 7-9 p.m. Lobby of the Kimmel Center. $25-$100

Rise Up! Maudits Sonnants/The Celestial Carillon

2011-03-31T07:26:00.002-04:00

Traditionally, a carillon is a musical instrument housed in a bell tower or the belfry of a church, a complex contraption of different-sized cast bronze bells -- 23 or more -- which can play intricate melodies together when "played" on keyboard. As you can imagine, the combined weight of all those bells can be overwhelming: Some large carillons weigh upwards of a 100 tons, which is an enormous amount of weight to have to carry up and down many flights of stairs.

The performers of Compagnie Transe Express thought of a better way of going about it. Instead of enormous bells being raised into the sky, they use their own acrobatic musicians, each playing bells, drums or swinging on trapezes, hung from an elaborate massive chandelier and brought up hundreds of feet off the ground to perform high above their audience's head. The result is a dizzyingly beautiful spectacle, certain to enthrall. What you lose in bronze, you more than make up for in enthrallment.

Maudits Sonnants/The Celestial Carillon will be performed April 30, at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are free.

This month 215 Blog spotlights various highlights of the upcoming Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (April 7-May1) with the support of PIFA. You may follow them at http://www.twitter.com/PIFAPhilly or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/PIFA.Philly.

Marionated: Basil Twist's Petrushka

2011-03-30T07:45:00.001-04:00

If the words "puppet show" still conjure up overturned cardboard refrigerator boxes and dad's visible hand stuffed into a miniature version of Babar, you might need to recalibrate your expectations for a Basil Twist production. His shows, such as his Don Quixote take, are intricate, elaborate and extremely detailed.

The perfect compliment, in other words, to the original 1911 Ballets Russes' production of Petrushka, which concerns a love triangle between three figures: A gallant Moor; an affable clown; and the Ballerina with whom both are hopelessly in love, all amidst the pageantry and chaos of a Russian carnival.

Accompanying the production will be the Russian identical twin pianists, Julia and Irina Elkina, who will play Stravinsky's original ballet composition with a special dual piano arrangement. We're a long way from your folks' basement on this one.

Basil Twist's Petrushka will take place over a series of performances from April 7-15. Tickets are $10.

This month 215 Blog spotlights various highlights of the upcoming Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (April 7-May1) with the support of PIFA. You may follow them at http://www.twitter.com/PIFAPhilly or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/PIFA.Philly.

Get Baked: New Play Festival

2011-03-29T11:04:00.002-04:00

Playwriting is an odd mixture of elements: For a resultant work that will require nothing but intense collaboration with a disparate group of actors, technicians, producers and set-designers, the writer must first skulk off to a (presumably) darkened attic room somewhere, unperturbed, and skillfully write the play entirely on their own.

For PIFA's new play festival, the accent is placed on the adjective "new." Rather than having area playwrights bringing in new works of their own, PIFA is having them perform a "bake-off," inspired by Pulitzer-Prize winning playwright Paula Vogel's workshop exercise, wherein the group of writers all get together and create their own individual plays from the same basic theme and materials over the course of 48 hours.

The theme for this event, unsurprisingly, is "Paris in 1911." The playwrights will have written their pieces for a series of staged readings in front of a live audience -- this is where you come in. There will also be a panel of judges on hand to select certain plays for further development and, in some cases, fully staged productions. That might even make the playwright's forced seclusion totally seem worth the sacrifice.

The PIFA New Play Festival takes place over four consecutive evenings, April 20-23, from 6-7 p.m. Tickets are free.

Photo by alancleaver_2000/flickr

This month 215 Blog spotlights various highlights of the upcoming Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (April 7-May1) with the support of PIFA. You may follow them at http://www.twitter.com/PIFAPhilly or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/PIFA.Philly.

Bistro Academie Brunch

2011-03-28T20:28:00.002-04:00

The super posh, Parisian-style Bistro Academie Cafe will be partnering with Wolfgang Puck Catering for PIFA to offer a seasonal buffet of epically French proportions. The cafe is located inside the Academy of Music at Broad & Locust inside the the very recently restored and luxurious ballroom. The cafe will be offering the Wolfgang creations throughout the festival for Friday and Saturday night dinners for $24 bucks. But, we think the Sunday brunch will be particularly special for $38, or rather, you'll appreciate it more since you'll undoubtedly be hung over.

This month 215 Blog spotlights various highlights of the upcoming Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (April 7-May1) with the support of http://pifa.org/target=_blank>PIFA.You may follow them at http://www.twitter.com/PIFAPhilly or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/PIFA.Philly.

Stand and Deliver: Slam Nation

2011-03-28T08:24:00.002-04:00

It's a bit hard to explain, but much like Wes Anderson movies or the taste of Doritos, the collective effect of the experience is far greater than any summary thereof. Philly's First Person Arts organization have been doing these wildly popular monthly StorySlams for years (culminating in a "Grand Slam" championship in the late fall), so it makes perfect sense they would stage one as part of the PIFA festival.

This Slam adds a few wrinkles, however. Rather than relying on audience members to participate, this All-Star slam has invited accomplished storytellers from across the country to join with some of Philly's best in the competition. The theme is "Worldly Possessions," which could allude to favorite items in ones custody or the lack thereof, among other things.

If you're still skeptical, you might have to take a leap of faith, but we're pretty certain you'll be glad you did. After all, remember the first time you saw Rushmore?

Slam Nation will take place on April 26, at 8 p.m. at the Perelman Theater. Tickets are $25.

This month 215 Blog spotlights various highlights of the upcoming Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (April 7-May1) with the support of PIFA. You may follow them at http://www.twitter.com/PIFAPhilly or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/PIFA.Philly.

Swing, Daddio: Fly City Trapeze

2011-03-24T21:32:00.001-04:00

Talk about leaving a legacy. Most of us would consider ourselves incredibly lucky to make one lasting contribution to pop culture society in our lifetimes. French acrobat Jules Léotard has several, most notably, the creation of the Flying Trapeze in France during the latter stages of the nineteenth century.

Blessed with parabolic grace, the modern trapeze artist must employ a stirring combination of strength, timing and physical elegance to craft a performance. Fortunately, you won't need any of those things in order to enjoy PIFA's Fly School Circus.

Professional instructors will guide you through the basics, and give you the opportunity to get swinging under their watchful eye. Lessons are available for both adults and children, which makes this event an excellent way to spend quality time with the kids while fulfilling your own Cirque du Soleil dreams.

Oh, and to finish our earlier thought, Monsieur Léotard has left us with at least one other ubiquitous legacy: The skin-tight dance/gymnastic performance uniform that bears his last name. Take that, Einstein!

The Fly City Trapeze class will be offered four times a day at 9 a.m., 11:30 a.m., 4:30 p.m. and 7 p.m. from April 7-May 1. Tickets are $55.

This month 215 Blog spotlights various highlights of the upcoming Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (April 7-May1) with the support of PIFA. You may follow them at http://www.twitter.com/PIFAPhilly or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/PIFA.Philly.

We're Hanging Out at the Kimmel from Now On...

2011-03-24T17:05:00.004-04:00

The Kimmel Center has erected a steel 81-foot, light-bulb filled Eiffel Tower right in the lobby. They've also hung wires in which moving trains and planes navigate the skies of the great hall. It's certainly a sight to see. And there's even more incentive to check it out when, starting April 8th through May 1st the space will also be brimming with all sorts of French fare in which to take part. Everyday will see French wine tastings, French lessons and French food. And, in case, you haven't gotten your franco fill, there will be nightly performances and a full service bar. That beats drinking at McGlinchey's any night of the week. In fact, if you need us, we'll take our drinking to the lobby of the Kimmel Center from now on, thank you. Lobby Hours are from 10a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday through Tuesday and 10 a.m. to 12 a.m. Wednesday through Saturday.

The Eiffel Tower light show will take place everyday at 7 p.m. and 10 p.m.

This month 215 Blog spotlights various highlights of the upcoming Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (April 7-May1) with the support of PIFA.You may follow them at http://www.twitter.com/PIFAPhilly or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/PIFA.Philly.

A Taste of Burlesque: Peek-A-Boo Revue

2011-03-22T17:43:00.002-04:00

In the internet age of Wi-Fi streaming super-porn where virtually any prurient desire or demonstrative sexual activity can be witnessed with the merest click of a control pad or pinwheel, the idea of a teasing, tantalizing live show that almost-but-not-quite reveals its comely cast must sound little but quaint. But for those of you whom have never witnessed a real, honest-to-God burlesque show, you can't fully appreciate the collective, perverse comradery such an experience inspires.

And, of course, when it came to burlesque shows, nobody got the formula just right quite like the French, who turned the combination of singing, humor, striptease and vaudeville into its own art form.

Recreating some of that 1900s Parisian magic is Philly's own Peek-A-Boo Revue, who for more than a decade, have dedicated themselves to producing a new high-quality revue every month for their legion of fans.

For this special engagement, the Revue strive to re-create to exacting specifications the original style of French Burlesque. To say this is an adults-only, can't miss event is putting it damn mildly.

The Revue will offer one unique, special performance at the World Café Live on April 30, at 8 p.m. Tickets are $25.

This month 215 Blog spotlights various highlights of the upcoming Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (April 7-May1) with the support of PIFA. You may follow them at http://www.twitter.com/PIFAPhilly or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/PIFA.Philly.

The French Muse Concert

2011-03-22T16:49:00.002-04:00

The good people at Singing City have put together a concert brimming with the utmost force majeure, the 'French Muse' concert at the Bryn Mawr Presbyterian Church. The concert will feature a 115-voiced choir, under the direction of music director Jeffrey Brillhart. The choir will perform classically French pieces like Honegger's King David, a super-powerful song that will have the hair on your neck standing up straight. You'll also hear works by Lili Boulanger and, a new-comer, Andrea Clearfield. The Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia and Roxey Ballet troupe will also join to produce a show of epic proportions. Do not miss this one!

This month 215 Blog spotlights various highlights of the upcoming Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (April 7-May1) with the support of PIFA.You may follow them at http://www.twitter.com/PIFAPhilly or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/PIFA.Philly.

Confirmed! It is indeed Riccardo Tisci to replace Galliano at Dior!

2011-03-22T14:44:00.002-04:00

Twitter and fashion bloggers are abuzz as I type this with conformations from every direction about Givenchy designer Riccardo Tisci's placement at Dior. When the news broke last night those who approved voiced so very clearly, while others were displeased with the news, and then there are those who still have no idea who this young designer even is. First off It's pronounced "Tishee," not "TEE-She," or "Tisk-ee." Time to get it right, people. Tisci who graduated from London’s Central Saint Martins Academy, was named creative director for Givenchy womens wear in 2005 then menswear and accessories designer of the Givenchy men’s division in May 2008. Ironically head designer John Galliano also came from Givenchy before entering the world of Dior. No word on who will become the new creative director of Givenchy, so there is yet another guessing game on our hands.

LE TRIOMPHE: Uristocrat hosts PIFA event at The Vault Ultra Lounge

2011-03-22T13:58:00.002-04:00

In the quaintly adorned Vault Ultra Lounge on Saturday March 19 a dolled up crowd of 800 gathered to kick-off PIFA. The Philadelphia Festival of the Arts which officially begins April 7th, was the topic of conversation throughout the evening. Men and women alike are excited about the upcoming events which include Philadelphia natives Questlove and Rennie Harris. With over 100 events planned in 25 days, the Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts will have something in store for everyone.

Django Reinhardt Night at PIFA

2011-03-21T13:32:00.002-04:00

This is a must-attend PIFA event as far as we're concerned. The Woodmere Museum plays host again to a tribute to pioneer, gypsy jazz guitarist Django Reinhardt. Reinhardt became famous after having to invent a style all his own after a fire injury paralyzed two of his playing fingers. The result was a fingered style that no one in the jazz world had ever seen before. He later went on to found the Quinetette du Hot Club de France, a well-known jazz ensemble composed only of strings, which was unheard of at the time. Jazz guitarist David Joel will play some of Reinhardt's best work and samplings of fine Frnech wine will be available. The concert is Oo La La! April 29th from 6-8 p.m.. Tickets are $10.

This month 215 Blog spotlights various highlights of the upcoming Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (April 7-May1) with the support of PIFA.You may follow them at http://www.twitter.com/PIFAPhilly or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/PIFA.Philly.

Exquisite Agony: Hell

2011-03-21T07:12:00.001-04:00

French writer Henre Barbusse's scandalous 1908 novel, Hell, concerns the observations of an unnamed narrator who one morning decides to cut a hole into the wall of his hotel and see how other people live. What he witnesses -- a series of 'shocking and outrageous' behaviors, including adultery, lesbianism and incest, culminating in death -- allows the protagonist to uncover all the secrets of life, for better and worse.

A treatise on solipsism and French existential thought that better known writer/philosophers such as Camus would adapt for their own purposes, the novel remains hugely inspiring to the world literature canon.

The PIFA festival, fully obsessed with all things turn of the century and French, have deduced a way to allow American audiences to experience this high-intensity work: The world premier theatrical adaptation of Barbusse's book on stage. Adapted and put together by the EgoPo Classic Theater crew, recently re-located to Philly from their birthplace in New Orleans following the harrowing experience of Hurricane Katrina, it should make for an interesting and unique theatrical affair.

EgoPo's production of Hell, directed by Lane Savadove, will play on five consecutive nights, from April 27-May1, with the first four shows beginning at 8 p.m. and the May 1 closing performance at 5 p.m. Tickets are $15-$30.

This month 215 Blog spotlights various highlights of the upcoming Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (April 7-May1) with the support of PIFA. You may follow them at http://www.twitter.com/PIFAPhilly or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/PIFA.Philly.

PIFA Cole Porter Night

2011-03-18T12:23:00.001-04:00

The Woodmere Art Museum will host The Cole Porter Night in conjunction with the PIFA festival and it sounds awesome. Now, of course, we've always been endorsers of the classics, but Cole is something entirely different. Not many people realize that he was the Kanye West of his day. Maybe not the first to do what he was doing, but bringing certain styles and sounds to the masses, understanding how to make avant ideas palatable to the public. Plus, he was famous for throwing lavish parties that included ballet dance troupes and tight rope walkers entertaining his guests as they dabbled in “bi-sexual activity and recreational drugs.” Sounds like Kanye's yacht parties.

Pianist Reiko Okuda and bass player Warren Oree will be playing Porter songs exclusively. The event is $10 and includes some wine and cheese to play it French while hearing Porter's francophile library. There's even a story hour for the kids from 6-7 p.m., with a reading of French classics Bonsour Lunne and Madeleine. Performance starts at 8 p.m.

This month 215 Blog spotlights various highlights of the upcoming Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (April 7-May1) with the support of PIFA.You may follow them at http://www.twitter.com/PIFAPhilly or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/PIFA.Philly.

Magnifique!: The Eiffel Tower Light Show

2011-03-18T09:28:00.002-04:00

The original Eiffel Tower in Paris was built more than a century ago, in 1889, as the grand entrance arch to the World's Fair, and remains, at 1063 feet high, the tallest structure in Paris.

As glorious as it might have been to reproduce an exact replica of the elegant structure on Broad Street, the zoning ordinances alone would have been, shall we say, difficult to procure. On the other hand, a Paris-inspired arts festival without any representation of the Tower would seem equally unthinkable. Quite a quandary. PIFA's equitable solution is a neatly scaled-down model of the world icon, standing 81 feet from the ground and thoroughly enhanced by a dazzling array of light bulbs placed inside the entire structure.

Situated just outside the Kimmel Center, it will serve as one of the hubs of activities during the entire festival, with daily wine tastings and food served around it as well as lessons in langue française. At night, the scaled-down Tower will serve a shining beacon of the festival, with free nightly performances and, most importantly, a full-service bar, to keep your artistic and cultural pursuits well lubricated.

The PIFA Eiffel Tower will be up for the duration of the festival, from April 8-May 1, with special light shows daily at 7 p.m. and 10 p.m. For a full list of daily and nightly activities, click here.

This month 215 Blog spotlights various highlights of the upcoming Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (April 7-May1) with the support of PIFA. You may follow them at http://www.twitter.com/PIFAPhilly or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/PIFA.Philly.

Sakura Sunday, April 10th

2011-03-17T14:23:00.002-04:00

The Suburu Cherry Blossom Festival is in full swing and if you're a freak for Japanese cuisine and culture, or if you haven't explored Fairmont park like you should, it's definitely worth taking part. Personally, we'll be attending the centerpiece of the festival, Sakura Sunday because it sounds like a ridiculously amazing way to spend a Sunday. We'll be sprawled out amongst the amazing array of cherry blossom trees of Fairmont Park's Horticulture Center, with a picnic (and maybe some booze). You can take in some live traditional Japanese music and dance performances. There will be an awe-inspiring martial arts and other cultural demonstrations to really transform the park into ancient Japan. While you're at it, do yourself a favor, and check out the Shofuso Japanese House and Garden, a 17^th century house with a koi pond, tea garden and courtyard garden. Later on, watch a fashion show comprised of creations from area fashion students, using traditional Japanese textiles and fabrics. The event is $5 for adults, kids are free. April 10^th, 11 a.m. - 4 p.m.

Of course, we encourage you to give any aid you can to the many victims and their families in Japan. Please find these links and decide which organization you'd like to make a donation.

Save The Children: Mobilising to provide immediate humanitarian relief in the shape of emergency health care and provision of non-food items and shelter. Call 1800 76 00 11 or visit www.savethechildren.org.au

Red Cross: Donors can contribute to the relief efforts by calling 1800 811 700 from anywhere in Australia or donate to the Red Cross over the counter at all Commonwealth Bank branches as well as via sending a cheque or money order to: Red Cross, GPO Box 2957, Melbourne VIC 8060. Donate online at www.redcross.org.au.

Mercy Corps: Mercy Corp has not sent its own team to Japan but it set up a donation fund for its partner, Peace Winds Japan, and its emergency assistance on the ground. To make a donation, call 888-747-7440 or visit the website here.

Medical Teams International: Medical Teams International is also on alert and staying closely in touch with its nine partners along the coast and in Japan. To donate to Medical Teams International, visit www.medicalteams.org.

World Vision Canada: World Vision is among the first organisations to begin relief work by distributing emergency supplies and sending highly-trained staff to assess and respond to the most urgent needs. To donate, visit www.worldvision.ca

Medecins Sans Frontiers: Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) is an international humanitarian aid organisation that provides emergency medical assistance to populations in danger in more than 60 countries. MSF workers are already on ground in Japan, assessing the situation. For more visit www.msf.org

DFAT: Assistance helpline: +61 2 6261 3305. DFAT hotline for Australians concerned about family and friends: 1300 555 135. Visit www.dfat.gov.au

This month 215 Blog spotlights various highlights of the upcoming Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (April 7-May1) with the support of http://pifa.org/ target=_blank>PIFA.You may follow them at http://www.twitter.com/PIFAPhilly or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/PIFA.Philly.

How to be your South by South Best

2011-03-17T12:11:00.000-04:00
by figuring out what you want to early adopt even more knowing what you're early adopting. That's how in front of the curve you have to be...

Rock Show: Les Films Muets

2011-03-17T07:17:00.001-04:00

The Relâche (rough translation: "no performance") Ensemble is an octet of innovative musicians, each with an instrumental specialty, who, in their own words combine "the familiar sounds of our popular world with the freshness and edge of the experimental avant garde."

The perfect soundtrack accompaniment, in other words, for Léonce Perret's engrossingly lyric 1912 short, Le mystère des roches de Kador ("The Mystery of the Rocks of Kador"), an early crime-genre caper that follows the scheme of an evil guardian (played by the director) as he attempts to steal the fortune of his young ward, leaving her in a kind of waking coma. In order to shake her out of her present state a film is made of the events that have lead her to this moment. Shockingly meta, especially for 1912.

In any event, Relâche will be performing a new score for the film by French composer Régis Huby, which will serve as an excellent main course. For a delightful aperitif, the musicians will also improvise the soundtrack to several short pieces featuring the French silent-era comedian Max Linder.

The performance will take place April 17, at 3 p.m. Tickets can be purchased in advance for $15-$20.

This month 215 Blog spotlights various highlights of the upcoming Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (April 7-May1) with the support of PIFA. You may follow them at http://www.twitter.com/PIFAPhilly or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/PIFA.Philly.

Silence is Not Golden: A Night at the Movies

2011-03-16T07:37:00.001-04:00

The unfortunate thing about silent movies has less to do with the lack of spoken dialogue (as long as you can read and pick up facial expressions, you get the story just fine) and more with the lack of a musical soundtrack to accompany the experience of the characters on-screen.

Enter Yanni Papadopoulo's School of Independent Rock, an after-school music program for Philadelphia kids, ages 7-18. The former Stinking Lizavetta guitarist offers private lessons and group performance training for his pupils. They will create and perform a live soundtrack to two classic films: Le Voyage dans la lune (1902), one of the earliest narratives ever made and the first Sci-Fi film ever; and incomparable funnyman Buster Keaton in one of his classic performances in Sherlock Jr. from 1924.

If that weren't enough, the musicians will also offer their rock interpretations of classic Cole Porter tunes with vocals by the estimable Martha Graham Cracker.

The performance is on April 29 at 8 p.m., and tickets are available for $10.

This month 215 Blog spotlights various highlights of the upcoming Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (April 7-May1) with the support of PIFA. You may follow them at http://www.twitter.com/PIFAPhilly or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/PIFA.Philly.

Catch the New Wave: Cinematheque

2011-03-15T15:28:00.002-04:00

France, it turns out, isn't just about wine, cheese and croissants, their cinematic exports have been some of the most influential in film history. Capturing the essence of French film during the PIFA festival is a month-long mini-festival, dubbed Cinematheque - A Month of Film Events at the Bryn Mawr Film Institute, features several significant French cinematic epochs.

Jules et Jim (April 5): (Pictured above) Francois Truffaut's 1962 French New Wave masterpiece stars a ravishing Jeanne Moreau as a woman caught between the love she feels equally for two different men. The film will be introduced by a French historian.

The Passion of Joan of Arc (April 12): One of the most influential films of the first part of the 20th Century, Carl Theodor Dreyer's remarkable work has every bit of pathos of anything contemporary, even though it was shot in 1928 and is silent. The film will be introduced by a film historian speaking on the history of silent film.

Ballet Russes (April 19): A contemporary documentary from directors Daniel Geller and Dayna Goldfine, the film traces the history of ballet and interviews an aging group of French dancers and choreographers who created modern Ballet. The film will be introduced by an arts historian who will discuss the significance of this particular group of artists.

All Quiet On the Western Front (April 26): An American film from 1930 about young German soldiers becoming ever more disillusioned with the misery and drudgery of war as they mount an assault on France. Lewis Milestone's iconic anti-war screed will be proceeded by a talk about WW I and its ramifications on the arts and culture of France.

Each film is at 7:30 p.m., tickets are between $5-$10.

This month 215 Blog spotlights various highlights of the upcoming Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (April 7-May1) with the support of PIFA. You may follow them at http://www.twitter.com/PIFAPhilly or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/PIFA.Philly.

Sweet surprises at Second Saturday.

2011-03-15T13:00:00.008-04:00

My last experience on East Passyunk's Second Saturday had me bobbing my head to noir hip-hop whilst marveling over magazine collages...at a hair salon after hours.

This past weekend, my destination was Sweet Jane, an intimate vintage boutique. The snug gallery space is located towards the back of the shop, where Avalon Clare's lush illustrations hang behind glossy frames.

After a lengthy stay at Sweet Jane, I made my way to 10th and Annin Streets. Lo and Behold: a DJ, disco lights, dancing and art surrounding washers and dryers.

Second Saturdays: defying norms with gusto. I'm a fan.

Suspend Your Disbelief: PIFA Street Fair

2011-03-14T11:03:00.004-04:00

Just what, exactly, French children might have found extraordinarily fascinating in 1911 might be a bit hard to judge, but it's a decent bet it would have involved music, street performers, lots of food, a massive Ferris Wheel and some kind of outlandish performance by musicians suspended 100 feet off the ground.

This is the idea of the PIFA Street Fair. On April 30, Broad Street between Pine and Chestnut will be shut down from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. in order to make space for this massive event, happening on multiple stages up and down the blocks.

Begin at the first stage at Pine and take in some music before sauntering past food vendors, impromptu cafés and a massive green-space garden park with a special children's area, before hitting up the massive Ferris Wheel between Sansom and Walnut and then doubling back to Spruce for the outrageous performance of La Compagnie Transe Express high above Broad Street.

It's a full day of arts-soaked fun for your family, and, believe it or not, the entire event is free. (Though, we're betting the vendors will be charging for their food and drinks, sadly.) Vive la Paris!

This month 215 Blog spotlights various highlights of the upcoming Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (April 7-May1) with the support of PIFA. You may follow them at http://www.twitter.com/PIFAPhilly or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/PIFA.Philly.

Photo courtesy Pikaluk on flickr

Men will do anything to stare at breasts

2011-03-10T12:21:00.002-05:00
Even develop a study that says his health is dependent on it.

A Southern Comfort Mardi Gras @ Tendenza 03/08/11

2011-03-09T20:17:00.001-05:00

So I woke up this morning with a ton of beads and no recollection of how I got them (don't judge me). Surely you feel my pain???

Having graduated from college some years ago, I don't have the luxury of a whimsical spring break tryst. So when Mardi Gras rolls around I have to manage right here in the city of brotherly love.

Last night I got lucky! Southern Comfort and Philly2Night.com hosted a Fat Tuesday party at the swank new Tendenza. A starkly new venue abruptly located at the foot of the Piazza at Schmidts. Stunningly beautiful, Tendenza is owned and operated by Cescaphe Events Group and is situated on a section of 2nd street that hasn't reached it's full potential yet.

The party filled up pretty quickly. Everyone swooned over the complimentary Southern Comfort cocktails, and naturally being the kind of lady I am, I gravitated towards the Scarlett O'Hara. She totally didn't disappoint.

As if the beautiful atmosphere wasn't enough, Cajun fare, street performers and the Fralingers' string brigade rounded the evening off.

So, as per usual I was in my glory, check the pics...
Scarlett O'Hara Recipe
-2 oz Southern Comfort® peach liqueur
-6 oz cranberry juice
-1 lime wedge
Pour 2 oz. Southern Comfort over ice in an 8 oz. glass. Fill with cranberry juice. Squeeze one wedge of lime into drink. Stir and serve.

Minx Nails Featured at Thierry Mugler Fashion Show

2011-03-08T18:17:00.010-05:00
Hmmm Minx Nails? Sounds kind of kinky. And it doesn't help that the main celebrities in support of Minx Nails include the likes of Lady Gaga, Rihanna, and Beyonce.

When I was a little girl, they would sell nail art kits for kids. The kits came with like 1000 stickers. Smiley faces, flowers, stars--everything you could think of that would make a ten-year-old girl go apeshit. Throw in a couple of markers, some sticky rhinestones, a few faux nails that you could glue on with double-sided glue ons, and you had the ultimate sleepover right there in a box.

We're not kids anymore but this Minx Nails trend reminds me of those kits. The basic concept is that of a sticker heated and applied to the nail--like a decal for your fingers. Minx nails involve no polish, which apparently makes them a green alternative. And the fact that no one ever has to draw on your nails makes the design capacity for Minx endless. In the fashion world, they seem to be getting a lot of attention. They were recently featured in Thierry Mugler's Fall/Winter 2011 show (along with Lady Gaga) and Alexander McQueen's Fall/Winter 2011 show.

I'm not sure how I feel. Someone get them and tell me what they're like!

Jai Tanju / TEASER !

2011-03-08T14:00:00.006-05:00

Hailing from San Jose, artist Jai Tanju is featured this month at the Slingluff Gallery. Jai's background is colorful, in his lineage: Turkish painters, as for his experience: skateboard photography and amateur metalworking.

What's the mindset behind your show “Heavy”?
I called the show “Heavy” because of the heavy content of the photos and because half the show is mounted on metal with another piece of metal with hinges so you can lift them up to reveal the photo under it.

Most all the metal work is interactive (meaning you can actually handle it) so it should be interesting to see how people interact with it.

Are you drawn towards documenting "heavy" aspects of life? Or did these themes arise serendipitously?

They just kinda came together like that, so yeah they did arise serendipitously. I live in downtown San Jose and walk my dog all around the city, so I see a lot. Last year, I started documenting all the assisted living homes around my area; there are like twenty-seven around downtown...so that's kinda heavy. And at the same time, I was working with metal at work so when I was thinking about the show and what I wanted to show, “heavy” just seemed to fit.

Stay tuned for the full interview...

F(c)ake! Inedible delights.

2011-03-08T12:51:00.007-05:00

Scott Hove's fantastical creations aren't too far from the larger-than-life cake sculptures on TV shows like Cake Boss and Ace of Cakes -- yet Hove's intent is entirely different.

(courtesy: Scott Hove)

Hove calls the project "Cakeland" and says, "The sculptures have all of the appeal of the best cake you have ever tasted, but can never be eaten. The nature of edible cake is fleeting, lasting only as long as the brief celebration it was made for. These cakes last as long as the artist or society have the wherewithal to preserve them."

(courtesy: Scott Hove)

I'm constantly astonished by a confectioner's ability to make -- say, tongues and teeth -- out of sugars. Yet, I often wonder: how does it actually taste? And... the texture?

Asians Can Dance

2011-03-08T11:26:00.001-05:00
and i never wanna hear that they can't again.

Jen Aniston's Sex Tape!

2011-03-07T12:35:00.002-05:00
Nah, just her first video to have a "virus". Really cute. She's plugging Glaceau's smartwater by attempting all of the different formulas that seem to work for videos on the darnedfangled internet.

Old Spice is Back!

2011-03-04T14:05:00.002-05:00
A behind the scenes of their new commercial. I just wanna know, do you think anyone ever says that spending another moment with their crew (i.e. camera man, director) would make them want to puke?

Maluca, wtf?

2011-03-02T14:46:00.002-05:00
Strange times. Diplo ex and a pretty attractive lady when she keeps her mouth shut, Maluca is embarking on a very strange chapter of her career. The intro of her new webasode series shows her bemoaning how poor she is with clips of what looks like a sorta glamorous life to seriously confuse the crap out of the viewer. My partner and pop culture translator, Tayyib Smith says it's an homage/rip off of odb's mtv tour of the food stamp/welfare world. I say it's f*$#ing nuts.

Beef up your Resume cuz Galliano is Gone

2011-03-01T13:37:00.011-05:00
There's been some heavy drama up in Dior ever since head designer John Galliano has been parading his drunk ass all over town and making racist and anti-semetic remarks to random strangers. The final straw: a cellphone video showing Galli boy telling some females that their "mothers, your forefathers, would all be fucking gassed.” Clearly, Dior (and Natalie Portman) will not stand for said shenanigans.

So who's on the radar to replace the man:

1. Riccardo Tisci
Age: 36
Nationality: Italian
Currently works for: Givenchy
Street cred: used his transsexual assistant as a model. Galliano also came from Givenchy before entering the world of Dior...hmmmm.

2. Alber Elbaz
Age: 40
Nationality: Morrocan/Israli
Currently works for: Lanvin, previously with YSL
Street cred: dresses Hollywood starlets. Named one of Time Magazine's Top 100 Most Influentional People in 2007. And he designs timeless, feminine pieces, which is right up Dior's alley.

3. Stefano Pilati
Age: 46
Nationality: Italian
Currently works for: YSL, previously with Prada/Miu Miu
Street cred: employed by almost every fashion house in Milan. Not afraid to beef with Tom Ford, calling him "talented but not gifted." Hates red-carpet stylists and male models. Former druggie.

Who else is worthy of such a coveted spot in fashion? Will Marc Jacobs abondon Louis Vuitton for the gig? What about Dior's creative director, Homme Kris Van Assche? Will anyone be able to top Galliano's 16-year run and 700 million Euro annual profits?

We can speculate all we want, but it's all up to Mr. Bernard Arnault, the chief executive of LVMH, owner of Dior.

Despite all the rigmarole, Dior is still scheduled to show this Friday at Paris Fashion Week.

215's candid chat with artist John Isaac Williams

2011-03-01T12:02:00.006-05:00

At the quirky Satellite Cafe in West Philly, I sat down with John Isaac Williams to discuss art, the meaning of “cool” and his “surrogate mountains.”

John, I've been admiring your art in the Green Line on Baltimore Avenue—the juxtaposition of mountains and bright inverted triangles—where did this inspiration sprout from?

I'm always focused on the subconscious imagery. I think the mountain imagery—heavily influenced by the Pacific Northwest, the mountains that loom over Portland—well they don't loom exactly...

All depends on perspective.

Yes, well, I guess I got thinking about how our small family—my wife, Oscar, and me—are over 3,000 miles away from the rest of our family, and the homesickness that comes from that realization. The mountains are the surrogates for wanting to be home.

Then the abstractions, the tumultuous sky, the geometrics, they represent the chaotic aspects of life, and our little family making it work.

Hm, that's interesting because when I first noticed your paintings, I took it a different way completely. For me, it was a compelling contrast of geologic—the organic, and geometric—which is human projection.

[leans back in chair] I guess I'm always fixated on the emotional aspect, always thinking of the subconscious. I'm definitely really concerned with design, too, though. Angular, bright shapes.

At the [Pennsylvania] Academy [of Fine Arts], you have to spend your first year painting in grey. The point is to make you understand relationships. One instructor said that generally, males are stronger in seeing tonal, and females are stronger in seeing colors. I kind of hated that. I didn't want to do tonal relationships. Yet, now, I am going back to the tones.

In that sense, your paintings are almost like a marriage between male and female.

Yeah, I guess that's true.

So are you from Portland?

No, I actually grew up in Eugene, Oregon, then lived in Portland for a bit. [My wife and I] moved to Philly in 2004.

What brought you to Philadelphia?

It was a joint decision between myself and my wife, she is a teacher and I wanted to go to the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts (PAFA). We heard that there were lots of jobs in Philly and that it pays well.

Do you feel this is a long-term decision, or would you like to go back to Oregon?

Not necessarily, all of our family is in Oregon. Right now, we can't afford to move back, financially, but we will most likely move back eventually.

Have you always pursued art?

Yea, I mean, I was always drawing as a kid. I never took art classes in high school though.

Really? How come?

Eh, I was into skateboarding back then. In my mid-twenties, I decided I would get serious and go to art school.

What changed?

Kinda realized I was goofing off, I met Rachel, my wife, and decided to take my art seriously. I guess I was becoming “an adult” as they say.

That's ironic, [laughs] usually when a youngster wants to become an artist, they are told to “grow up and stop being impractical.”

Ha, [laughs] yeah that is true. It is impractical, not frivolous, but it is impractical.

Growing up, what influenced you artistically?

In high school and through my twenties, I was drawn to the graffiti style and underground comic books. Since I was really into skateboarding, it was all about the skateboard design. The late '80s and early '90s were all about the underground and the graphics of the scene.

Did art school change your focus?

At PAFA, there is a real emphasis on figure drawing. The first two years are really focused on traditional skill. In your third year, you finally get free reign. So I was forced to focus on a more classic approach, but throughout this time I read magazines like Juxtapoz, sometimes Hi-Fructose, but that magazine bugs me.

It bugs you? What about it?

Oh, I don't know. [pauses] I mean I appreciate pop-surrealism, as they're calling it these days, but that magazine gets...

Maybe...redundant?

Yeah, maybe that's it. It just gets redundant.

Do you look to any contemporary artists for inspiration now?

Yeah, I like Lari Pittman, Jiha Moon, and I used to be really into Nicola Lopez. Oh, Jason Redwood, too.

What is it about these artists?

That surreal-pop sensibility. It's different from what I was referencing in Hi-Fructose, these artists seem more personal, more...

They embody something more unique?

Yeah, more unique and with their own personal vision and statement. Visually, they are really cool to look at, too.

You know, at PAFA, I had an instructor that absolutely hated the word “cool.” I have no problem with it. I just want to make really cool art.

Generation gap. How long have you been working as an artist?

I graduated from PAFA in 2008 and I got a travel scholarship, so Rachel and I went to Guatemala for six weeks. Rachel was pregnant during this time, and I didn't really get to do much art. But, I didn't want to be a statistic—the artist that graduates and never does another piece. So when we got settled into our house in West Philly, I turned one of the bedrooms into a studio. And I definitely had more time before Oscar [my son]. One of the most difficult things is finding how to work where you live.

What was your first exhibition like, where did it take place?

At the Academy, after your third or fourth year, you get a big wall to exhibit on. After my third year, I got to exhibit and it was basically a culmination of the year. I had this huge painting on unstretched canvas, twelve by eighteen feet. It was less geometric than my other stuff, it was these fleshy forms, high key colors on clouds, drippy, kinda corporeal yet cartoony.

And where is this painting now?

In someone's front foyer. The exhibit was opened to a select group of people—mostly collectors and alum. They buy up all your art.

Seriously? That's great...but did you get to name your own prices?

Oh yes, yeah, we got to name all our own prices. The house where my gigantic painting went was really cool. I got to help hang it and there was really cool art from previous PAFA students.

What's your take on the Philly art scene?

Honestly, I don't know it all that well. I am preoccupied with taking care of Oscar and working on my own art. I have friends who have shown at Artists' House, some are working at alternative art spaces. There is a real d.i.y. movement in Philly, young gallery owners, young artists.

Last year, the Toothless Cat asked me to be in a group show. The theme was Chimera—animal hybrids, so I made this painting of a hybrid grizzly bear and octopus. Unlike anything else I've done.

How'd you land at those two creatures?
[laughs] I wanted it to be just completely different. You can imagine a lion and a dragon somehow getting together, but a grizzly and octopus, just impossible.

Mother Monster's Manifesto

2011-02-28T14:44:00.008-05:00
Lady "Controvery" Gaga's newest video creation for "Born This Way" premiered earlier today. We can go back and forth discussing how creative and talented this woman is, but when it all boils down, this chick is bananas.

Directed by herself alongide genius fashion photog Nick Knight, and choreographed by Laurieann Gibson, the new Gaga-esque mindfuck salutes Thierry Mugler (who by the way has named Gaga's stylist Nicola Formichetti the new creative director) by showcasing the French fashion house's Zombie Boy (Rick Genest).

And that's about all I'm interested in. Oh yeah, and the nude nipple-zipper ensemble she sports while dancing with her head stuck in a shelf surrounded by other decapatated hers. Or are they strange fetuses from the new race she created - no one really knows.

I'm ready for Gaga to change it up a bit. If Jay-Z were to hump gay nuns and pull babies out of his snatch, sure, I'd say that's revolutionary. Hell, I'd call that brilliant. But from Gaga, that's what we're expecting. She needs some rims and bitches.

Check out the vid below. I'm particularly fond of the sparkly unicorns:

150 Greatest Lines from Movies

2011-02-24T19:50:00.002-05:00
This entertained me, might entertain you also...

The Anti Gauche

2011-02-24T10:57:00.000-05:00
Our little giant Tayyib Smith sat down with Philadelphia Status to talk about what he does, who he is and most importantly what he likes. Grab a pen, a pad and take note grasshoppers!

The Cool Kids Let Us Have A Taste Of Their Full-Length Debut

2011-02-24T09:52:00.002-05:00

While we're not too keen on bundling up much more, March is almost here, this track has us taking heed. Hard to believe that we're actually waiting for a fer-real debut because we've been hearing from (and about) the Kids for what seems like a long time. Anyway, here's a little taste.

A day in the life of folk musicians: Lewis & Clarke.

2011-02-23T14:40:00.007-05:00

1.) A Sunday afternoon show. Despite the sunshine out-of-doors, the atmosphere was dark and intimate at Johnny Brenda's folk session from 1-3 PM. Lewis & Clarke, a trio from the Poconos entranced the crowd with lively folk tunes that made midday feel like a laid-back night. In his understated way, lead Lou Rogai spoke into the mic, "Thank you guys for being so nice." The set was divided by an Q&A led by the Philadelphia Folk Song Society.

2.) Chillaxing at the Slingluff Gallery, between gigs. Entering back into the shock-bright of day, Lewis & Clarke convened at The Slingluff Gallery, owned by Jonathan and Leigh Slingluff. A transplant from the Pocono area, Jonathan is a longtime friend of the band.

3.) Folkadelphia live session recording at WXPN. Continuing with Frederick Knittel's Folkadelphia series, Lewis & Clarke performed in a cavernous studio at XPN. Multi-colored cords were snaked across the floor; the drums and guitar were audible to the listeners in the room, but only the clicking of the keyboard could be heard. XPN's Folk Show host, Gene Shay asked Lou Rogai, "How would you describe yourselves?" to which Lou responded, "Well, you know when you go to an ice cream parlor and you find that flavor that you really love, well that's kinda how we are."

For more pictures, see The Slingluff Gallery blog.

SOLD! To the Lady In Red

2011-02-17T13:13:00.005-05:00

Fine art, fine wine, and fine men. C'est la vie, non?

Valentine's Day the Vivant Gallery way includes men for sale! Okay, well, not literally for sale (wouldn't that be great?). More like for auction. I'm enjoying the scenery as eight of Philadelphia's most eligible--and blindfolded--bachelors try to charm these ladies out of their wallets. Suddenly, I'm feeling like I brought sand to the beach.

The first man up for grabs goes for a $1000.

On second thought, I'm glad I got that plus one because obviously I can't even afford to breathe the same air as these guys. Though I am quite content window shopping.

At least I look like a million bucks. Some of the attendees completely overlooked the part of the invitation that said "Semi-Formal/Sophisticated." Chi-Chi, however, the event coordinator, looks quite dazzling as the lady in red when everybody else is wearing tan (am I the only person who still loves the Nanny?).

Hosted by the CW's Natasha Brown, the evening flows nicely. All of the bachelor's go home with a lovely lady without a single cat fight erupting. In here, money talks. Everything else walks home lonely. After all, it is for charity.

Somehow, someway, I always end up fraternizing with some of Philly's phinest. Or at least the Philadelphians with money to burn. (Yes, my pockets are jealous!)

Modern-day ruins in our nation's cities

2011-02-17T09:25:00.003-05:00

Michigan Central Station - Rediscovering space from [PÅ::NU] on Vimeo.

(via woostercollective)

What makes us gravitate towards abandoned buildings, especially buildings that once held graduer? And why are cave paintings revered for their historical context, but the stages of graffiti on a decaying building dismissed?

This evocative film about Detroit's Michigan Central Station provides glimpses of how a shelled-out structure, once thriving, can affect its natives in significant (sometimes equivocal) ways.

In America, the tendency is to build anew. So I think it's safe to say we've all experienced empty, deserted buildings in our hometowns or cities. And often, as is the case with Michigan Central Station, it can leave quite a scar.

These filmmakers are documenting to compose a "research experiment on how to use film as a method of urban development." You see more videos about urban planning via Views of Detroit.

To experience this phenomenon in Philly, Tyler Scaife has "a multimedia photography exhibition" featuring abandoned schools in Philadelphia. The exhibit runs until February 27 at Art in the Age.

Art In The Age Presents: A Multimedia Photography Exhibition by Tyler Scaife from Art In The Age on Vimeo.

(via pharts & crafts)

It's All fun and Fabulous Until a Housewife Shows up

2011-02-16T16:20:00.004-05:00

One trend that I personally could not ignore this season at New York Fashion Week was the presence of certain Bravo reality stars. Sure, the Tents at Lincoln Center serve as a magnet for photo-hungry celebrities but this week the list went from D-List to Z-List. While waiting in line and watching the VBIP arrivals before DVF who comes strolling by with confusion in her eyes and a coach bag in hand (I could go on about that), but Teresa Giudice of The Real Housewives of New Jersey. While it isn't as bad as the Jersey Shore (J-Woww closed Richie Rich's show) it is still a little mind-boggling. Celebrities are bad enough, but why is god's name would you invite a woman who is more tanned than the leather? And furthermore, weren't her possessions recently auctioned due to the family's bankruptcy? Is this really the best venue to be strutting your stuff Ms. Guidice?

Then while waiting in the cold for Chris Benz to start Caroline Manzo shows up with her daughter by her side. Manzo, on the other hand, was a total lady, waiting outside with the rest of us nobodies (Debbie Harry was inside, warm as a mitten).

Who knows why designers invite these people, and maybe my point of view is harsh, but I thought we were getting back on track to refocus fashion week from front rows to the actual clothes. Call me crazy but isn't that why we go?

Reasons to Love: Chris Benz

2011-02-16T15:57:00.009-05:00

There are too many adjectives to describe Chris Benz. He's charming, funny, but above all, he's insanely talented. He's part of that new generation of New York designers that make everyone excited about tomorrow and relieved that it's no longer strictly the Marc and Oscar show.

His Fall 2011 show reaffirmed the aforementioned adjectives. The collection was feminine with an effortless elegance. All I could think of was if Holly Golightly lived today, this presentation would be her Tiffany's. He used a diverse array of colors from navy to pale grey with pops of lime and red. I love this idea of young girls dressing in traditionally mature classic design (much like Proenza Schouler last season), which was evident in the lady-like jackets and evening wear.
Of course Chis has massive celebrity following, I constantly see him tweeting with Kelly Osbourne. Obviously he was seen chatting it up (with his neon-colored highlights) with the likes of Susan Surandon, Debbie Harry, and of course the omni present Brad Goreski.

On top of it all he's a contributor for Fashionista.com, where he answers reader-submitted fashion queries. Everyone was loving him and we definitely concur.

Clothing Prices are Expected to Rise 10%, Worst Nightmare Come True!

2011-02-16T14:51:00.003-05:00

It's as if the clothing gods think that I have a ton of money burning a hole in my pocket! I'm already running on a tight budget as it is, but now the industry wants to rob us some more!!
The main culprit seems to be cotton which has doubled in price over the past year and reaching its record high. Along with Mr. Cotton, synthetic fabrics have also risen by about 50% due to higher demand.
Because of this it looks like prices of mostly all clothing will be going up about 10% in the upcoming months!
I guess I shouldn't hold off on that shopping spree anymore!
Donations to the Expanding Alexa's Wardrobe Foundation are always accepted! :)
(the picture is going to be me after my shopping spree... minus those awful shoes)

Black Thought of The Roots Will be at a Benefit Party in Philly this Friday

2011-02-16T14:29:00.003-05:00

This Friday, February 18th, there will be a benefit party called Let's Move it Philadelphia at The Blockley on 38th and Chestnut. This party is to benefit programs for children in Philadelphia and promote healthy choices. All proceeds from this night will go to The Black Rose Foundation Inc.

Not only is it an awesome cause but there will also be some great guests attending. The Black Thought of The Roots will be there along with The Money Making Jam Boys and world-renowned Philly top-DJ Rich Medina!

To get tickets you can either go to www.blackrosefoundation.org/calender.html or go to www.TheBlockley.com or just buy tickets at the door.

Love Nest: Uristocrat Hosts a Pre-Valentine's Day Affair at Walnut Room in the Name Of Love and Lust

2011-02-15T13:02:00.010-05:00

In the warm hues that lit Walnut Room on Sunday, Feb. 13, a light crowd gathered to celebrate Day of Love. DJ R to Da Izza and DJ Ambush provided the night's soundtrack on the wheels, spinning the most beloved love songs of hip-hop and R&B.

On any other night, couples hit the club and go their separate ways. Sunday, they sat cozily with interlocked fingers on held hands, bobbing as single units while the club's heart beat from the speakers.

Dot. L&S, Asaad, and Aime all performed, the latter serenading a clubgoer with the track "Ms. Dimples," produced by Paul Beats.

Younglove's Gallery Counterp[art], Valentine's Day-Style

2011-02-15T11:36:00.005-05:00

Tucked behind Younglove's vintage spread of clothing and records lives a gallery, revamped and on display.

Last night's Valentine's Day opening reception was a feast-your-eyes display of intricate line drawings by Christine Jones. Her work is sometimes gushing with braids or floral patterns, bows or microscopic chains. The very feminine themes often challenged by titles like "at the foot of the tomb that is my body" and "a tickle like a rip in time" hand written on the walls beneath each piece.

Something foreboding felt present beneath the tresses of hair and layers among layers of fabric in Christine's work. When the music started, (bands Tiger Hatchery and Nightburger, of Chicago) the discordant sounds were further disconcerting. The gallery was dripping with négligées, ribbons and cupcakes. It was Valentine's Day, after all. Yet the over-emphasis created another effect; have we gone overboard? Perhaps that question was teased out last night.

Whatever the case, Younglove's is a gem in West Philly, sure to entrance us with more sights and sounds in the coming months.

Move over shampoo bottles, it's time for the arts.

2011-02-13T13:17:00.005-05:00

Transforming the daytime space into a nighttime gathering of visual, audio and performing arts is the pursuit of Fringe Salon on East Passyunk's Second Saturdays. People casually lounge in the shampooing chairs, next to hairdryers and shampooing sinks are filled with ice and beer. The space converts seamlessly.

I walked by the Fringe Salon three times, unawares.

"I should've told you to look for the giant scissors," said Reuben Wilson, who informed me of the show. I thought the name "Fringe Salon" was a play-on-words art gallery.

It wasn't an "art gallery" by design, but the space was warm. The Five O'Clock Shadowboxers (noir hip-hop) were talented, engaging, and created the beats for both interpretative dancers and later, a crowd eager to move.

Joe Castro's art is a mix of paintings and intricate vintage magazine collages.

"When my art is featured at a gallery," said Joe, "friends ask me 'what should I wear? Do I have to dress up?' But when I have a show like this, they needn't ask."

Alternative spaces can deliver art to a demographic that may not trek to a gallery. Or maybe, after experiencing art in a new way, they'll find the stigmas of "art" and "gallery" melting away.

Ebony Fashion Fair @ Macy's Center City 02/09/11

2011-02-12T21:09:00.015-05:00

This past Wednesday I got the pleasure of going to the Ebony Fashion Fair. This fair was in honor of the world's largest traveling fashion show and also in salute to the founder and fashion icon Eunice W. Johnson. The traveling fashion show is known for its display of high fashions for Black America and its display of couture from fashion houses all over the world .

This event was hosted by Ebony Magazine and more specifically Elaine Welteroth, the Beauty and Style Editor of Ebony Magazine. Ebony and Macy's displayed the redesign of Ebony magazine and also a launch of Fashion Fair Cosmetics. This night was a chance to mingle, drink cocktails, and eat orderves.

Everyone left with a chance to be on their own Ebony Magazine cover after receiving an on stage makeover and then take home a little taste of the Fashion Fair Cosmetics with them and a copy of the newest magazine on stands.

Check out some of the picture from the event and all of the fabulous people....
Philly 360 Style Ambassador, Rakia Reynolds (on left), was there with Tina Byers, wife of another Philly 360 Creative Ambassador.

Makeovers with the Fashion Fair Cosmetics

Host and Beauty and Style editor for Ebony Magazine, Elaine Weltworth (left)
Couture from fashion shows on display!

For more images go to http://www.215mag.com/media_center_new.cfm/media/photos/item/751/thisImage/thumb_ebony_12.jpg

Previewing Sheila Frank

2011-02-12T11:18:00.004-05:00
I got the rare opportunity to preview a collection this morning. Designers are usually wary about showing their collections to press before the show, as changes are made up until the first model walks out. But Harrisburg-based Sheila Frank (pictured above), opened her studios to Two.One.Five with all the cheer and excitement one can handle.

Frank studied at Moore College and started off designing swim-wear with pin-ups and the 50's as inspiration. I checked out her Fall 2011 ready-to-wear collection and it was far from anything you'd want to swim in. There were dresses that evoked a Proenza Schouler-esque downtown girl with a hint of industrial slums. She said she was inspired by different eras, but most specifically the Industrial Revolution.

This is the young designer's 3rd New York show and there isn't a hint of attitude that seasoned and jaded designers often have. She told me she's a firm believer in the idea that fashion is art, which is most apparent in her detailing and finishes. Her show is tomorrow so check back in for photos!

Hyden Yoo | New York Fashion Week

2011-02-10T22:22:00.004-05:00
Dolled up vixens took over the Hyden Yoo Fall 2011 collection. Inspired by Edwardian style that took place in England, in the early 1950’s, this type of youth subculture slowly eased its way straight to the rock 'n' roll era in America.

The colors were comprised of plum purple, burnt orange, and charcoal. Also soft pink, chilled grey, and burnt olive were compliments. Fabric choices for women consisted of burnt jersey with washed cupro, wool knits, jersey laced with sheer mesh, and moleskin. For men the colors were mostly neutral. The style was pretty relaxed but with a cool twist. Each and every model with trousers had a perfect cuff with a neutral color sock to add some edge.

For women, the overall look was effortless chic, with a feminine twist. Hair was loosely braided into a Mohawk. The dresses were pinched at the waist with ribbing to compliment shape. Trousers are skinny with black piping details reflecting classic rock & roll. Blazers and ponchos came in a variety styles and fabrics from moleskin, and canvas with over the top collars. The portrait of Elvis hanging over the pool table couldn’t be anymore perfect!

For men, the military style could’ve started a world war! Fitted blazers with a single button were light grey and charcoal. Button down shirts was tailored loosely and came in plaids, stripes, plus a color blocking shade of blue and grey combinations. Knits came in a variety of shapes and sizes including relaxed turtlenecks, and plunging V-necks. A fantastic way to kick off New York Fashion Week.

Reported by Eric Barmore

Live From New York

2011-02-10T20:12:00.003-05:00
New York Fashion Week has officially begun. It is that biannual festival de fashion and it what the style team's dreams are made of. And, drum roll please, we'll be reporting from the shows of the up-and-comers that every Philadelphian will have to know in the seasons to come. But it can be quite difficult to navigate through the endless fashion blogs this time of year, so we put together a short list that everyone should read this week, and through the rest of fashion month (ie. London, Milan, and Paris).

Fashionista: This is the one-stop-shop for all the fashion news you can handle. They review the shows, publish pics from the hottest parties, and supply lots of gossip. What I love about their style is the honesty of their news and the cohesiveness of their articles. www.fashionista.com

Garance Dore: The Sartorialist's other half has been documenting street style for the past 5 years in Paris and we love her personal and quirky writing. She started out doing minimal illustrations of friends in the hottest looks and then turned to photography. In 2008 she launched an english edition of her site. It is the perfect anecdote to all the industry talk. www.garancedore.fr

Style Bubble: Susie Bubble is just that, a bubble of cute British energy. She started her personal style blog in 2006 with guides to trends and photos of her in eclectically styled looks. She has a great sensibility and is one of the most charming people in fashion. www.stylebubble.co.uk

Bryan Boy: Another personal style blogger, Bryan Boy is a bit on an enigma. He's single-handedly built himself a blogging palace. He's spotted front row at every show, often in haute couture or right-off-the-model RTW, and he reportedly made over $100k in 2009. Of course you don't get there without a stellar site, and he's got it. www.bryanboy.com

Man Repeller: This hysterical blog is devoted to the high fashion that makes your man go "Uh, really?". It's part personal style and part a witty joke on the fashionably bizarre's expense. www.manrepeller.com

So browse away and make sure you check back here daily as I'll be posting reviews, photos, and all sorts of goodies from the shows. Happy fashion week!

Ways to Celebrate Valentine's Day 2011 in Philadelphia

2011-02-10T12:58:00.014-05:00

Ways to Celebrate Valentine's Day (Feb.12th thru 14th) 2011 in Philadelphia...

...For the Confectionist
#1. Baking Kinky Cupcakes

...For the health nut
#2. Valentine's Day Single Run

...For the girl who likes it rough
#3. The Peek-A-Boo Revue presents Burlesque

...For the guy who can't get laid
#4. Red Sky Lounge's Anti-Valentine's Day Party. Open Bar = Open Legs

...For those of you with money to blow [in my drake voice]
#5. Beginner's pottery classes sounds romantic at the Clay & Mimosa Valentine's Brunch...(plus free booze = score!)

...For those of you with a hole in your wallets
#6. Window shopping is a free as it gets at Verde's "It's A Kegger" Valentine's Day Shopping Event

...For the bitter ones against the whole institution of Love
#7. Eat your heart out, Zombie Night at the M Room

...And finally, for the bleeding hearts!
#8. Feel good about yourself at a pre-Valentine's Day charity event for our soldiers & their pets at Tavern 15

Sole Sanctuary

2011-02-10T12:07:00.008-05:00

It's 2am and you've been dancing your behind off for the last three hours in four inch heels. You're ready to go but you're legs and feet start throwing a bitch fit. They won't move. You've tried. And now suddenly those five blocks back to the Night Owl don't seem like such a brisk walk. The way I see it, you have a few options: (1) Flirt your way into a ride from a stranger in a vehicle (2) consider walking the five blocks at the risk of having your feet later amputated (3) or walking barefoot through Philth. In other words, you're fucked.

Whether driving, dancing, or running marathons, wearing heels the size of Mt. Rushmore causes more drama than 9th grade girls. And some of the more resourceful women have came up with reasonable solutions for this. Like packing purses big enough for a pair of flats or flops & putting Dr. Scholl's inserts in all your shoes. Or I guess we could all just stop wearing heels (#blasphemy). Well yeah, that works--but...

[Enter the New World Order]

Tipsy Feet. Flat shoes that fold up into their own little pouch. I find them adorably practical.

And look they come in cheetah print!

The view from "Trestle Town": Vox Populi

2011-02-10T10:59:00.005-05:00

"Three and a half years ago, we were the only gallery in this building. Now, between eight and nine galleries occupy this space," says Andrew Suggs, director at Vox Populi.

When I ask Suggs what this part of town is called, he smiles and says that some people refer to it as "Trestle Town" due to the three remaining blocks of train trestles.

A veteran of the art scene in Philly, Vox Populi was founded in 1988 by a group of college grads who wanted a space to call their own. Suggs, who has been apart of the gallery for about six years, is elated about the expansion of art in Philadelphia.

"One of the artists in this show, Alyssa Wendt, was really impressed during First Friday," says Suggs, "She said 'I can't believe how many people are actually paying attention to my art...in New York, people just come out to be seen.'"

Stay tuned for the full interview with Andrew Suggs!

Levi Debuts the 'Ex-Girlfriend Jean' for Men

2011-02-09T14:54:00.002-05:00

Levi's website describes their latest "super-snug"-fitting jeans for men: "Remember the girlfriend with the great style? Here's a tribute to her -- a fit that's super-snug all over, an update of the five-pocket classic that's as skinny as it gets. Made with plenty of stretch." Of course, if a man could borrow jeggings from his current girlfriend, then he wouldn't need to buy his own.

If you ask me, this might be a little too tight. I don't think i want to share my jeggings with a man. If you can rock it like this model in the picture, i guess more power to you!

Exclusive Shopping Party at SA VA

2011-02-09T14:31:00.004-05:00

SA VA, which is located at 1700 Sansom Street is hosting a shopping night on Valentines Day! I personally despise the holiday with every fiber in my body so what's better than some retail therapy. If you have no love in your life, maybe you will fall in love with something at SA VA. Maybe after you can stuff your face with chocolate that you bought yourself.

Artist to watch: John Isaac Williams

2011-02-08T20:22:00.006-05:00

This morning I had the pleasure of interviewing John Isaac Williams, whose art is currently on display at the Green Line Cafe on Baltimore Avenue in West Philly.

Later today, I spent a couple of hours working at the Green Line and the sun was doing amazing things on the walls, over John's artwork. Stay tuned for the interview!

Love Trolley: It does exist!

2011-02-08T15:45:00.002-05:00

(reposted from philebrity)

On my way to Northern Liberties yesterday, I caught a glimpse of a bedazzled trolley car that I surmised must have been a mirage. It became a delightful fantasy to me, something only I saw.

Well, not so! Turns out, this is a legitimate trolley car, decorated by a legitimate trolley driver named Gary. Rock on, Gary.