July 1- 7, 2004

first friday focus

Chris Macan, Susi ID #3 (2004), 6 1/2 inches by 8 1/2 inches, Polaroid, at Nexus.

by Lori Hill

Nexus

Nothing like admitting what being in a small gallery on a sweltering summer afternoon feels like. Nexus is rolling out some events for those sticky days with its Summer Sweatbox Series, beginning with the "Identity" show. The two artists taking part in "Identity" are coming at the idea from very different vantage points. Chris Macan's "The ID Project" considers the place of official identification pictures in the country's current climate of security concerns. This "study in identification portraits" is Macan's way of addressing how the need to present identification upon entering certain buildings or requesting certain services can affect our personal sense of security — all in the name of protecting the security of the greater public. Macan's sitters are pictured from the torso up, with whatever jewelry and eyewear they were already wearing — and nothing else. Macan shot them with a standard ID camera and Polaroid film, and the effect is sometimes as unnerving as a mug shot and sometimes as joyful as a photo-booth picture taken at a carnival. (Nexus has secured an ID photo booth of its own for visitors willing to become part of this ongoing project.) Delia King, who does complicated and beautiful reverse glass paintings as well as murals, has contributed "Un/Married Woman," a series of works concerning her own marital status. The centerpiece of the exhibit is the title work, a painting started in 1999 and completed three years later. King added to the series with Reception, a piece finished around the time of her own wedding this spring. The works range from pastel on paper to multilayer reverse glass painting (employing everything from silicone sealant to spray paint to glitter). The next Summer Sweatbox event will be a musical performance by the band The Soviettes at 7 p.m. on July 28.

Reception Fri., July 2, 5-9 p.m., closing reception Fri., July 23, 6-8 p.m., gallery open by appointment only during July, 137 N. Second St., 215-629-1103.

Caf Lift

For the last year or so, a nonprofit group called the Reading Viaduct Project has been working toward an environmentally viable and neighborhood-friendly solution to the abandoned tracks of the titular old viaduct running through the Callowhill and Chinatown sections of the city. The viaduct, a 4.7-acre, mile-long structure built for the Reading Railroad, has been idle since 1984, when SEPTA completed its commuter tunnel at the Reading Terminal Market. Since then, the viaduct's disuse has resulted in overgrowth and neglect. Artists Sarah McEneaney and John Struble started the Reading Viaduct Project aiming to generate discussion, and eventually execution, of plans to preserve and rehabilitate the structure for public use (the viaduct's views are something rare and wonderful for a city structure). It recently decided to make use of the wealth of young talent in the city's college community and asked architecture students to come up with proposals for the best use of the space — especially in light of the burgeoning "Loft District." Undergrads from Drexel spent two semesters working on concrete ideas, while Penn Design and Penn Praxis held a four-day workshop for grad students to develop more general concepts. McEneaney says the students' proposals range from the incredibly specific (ideas tailored to small sections of the viaduct) to the visionary (lighting, placement of buildings).

Reception Thu., July 1, 5-8 p.m. Exhibition runs through Aug. 1, 428 N. 13th St., 215-922-3031.

And Then There's …

Try your hand at printmaking this summer with the Philadelphia Print Collaborative and you'll get your work on display at the Constitution Center in September. PPC is sponsoring The Rub! Workshop, a tuition-free adult series held at the Fleisher Art Memorial (pay only $10 for materials). Wednesdays, July 7, 14, 21 and 28, 6-9 p.m., register by calling 215-922-3456 or e-mailing jmundie@fleisher.org.… The mallets will be flying at The Crane Arts Center's Ice Box space this month, where more than 30 artists, working in teams, have created a 10-part, 30-by-15-foot interactive croquet course. The artists had free rein for their section of the course, and organizers say themes include "class and power, cooperation and rivalry, and tradition and rebellion," with the artists exploring "the iconography of croquet as well as the spirit of the sport." Reception Fri., July 9, 6-9 p.m., 1400 N. American St. (two blocks north of Girard).… Altoids, those curiously strong mint people, also happen to be curiously avid art collectors. For six years, they've been assembling the Altoids Curiously Strong Collection, and this summer, the Morris Gallery at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts will play host to its minty fresh works of art. Next Friday is the opening, but don't miss PAFA curator Alex Baker's conversation with the collection's local representative, installation artist Paul Swenbeck, on July 29. Reception Fri., July 9, 6-9 p.m., 118 N. Broad St., 215-972-7600.