Museums/Exhibits

Museums and exhibits have varying schedules; please callfor exact days, hours and prices.

• ACADEMY OF NATURAL SCIENCES , 19th St. & the Parkway, 215-299-1000. AMAZON VOYAGE: VICIOUS FISHES AND OTHER RICHES, Features live fish from the world's most biologically diverse river. Runs through Dec. 31. THE COMPLEAT HERBAL, Features medical botany publications from as early as the 16th century. Runs through Dec. 31.
• AFRICAN AMERICAN MUSEUM , 701 Arch St., 215-574-0380. EXCAVATION OF OUR HISTORY: DIGGING UP THE PAST, Features artifacts and pictures of the First African Baptist Church excavation. Runs through Sept. 16. ENGULFED BY KATRINA, Features photographs of the Gulf Coast in the aftermath of Katrina. Artists include Deborah Willis, D. Michael Cheers, Will Steacy, Sara Macel and Melvina Lathan. Runs through Aug. 5.
• AMERICAN PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY , 104 S. 5th St., 215-440-3400. UNDAUNTED: FIVE AMERICAN EXPLORERS, Features exhibits on five explorers with Philadelphia connections: David Rittenhouse, naturalist painter John Audobon, Arctic explorer Elisha Kane, freshwater ecologist Ruth Patrick and specimen collector Titian Peale. Runs through Dec. 28.
• ART IN CITY HALL , City Hall. Broad & Market sts., 2nd & 4th floors, 215-686-2803. ART OF THE CITY, Features photography and mixed-media work by local artists whose work is inspired by Philadelphia. Runs through Oct. 5.
• ART INSTITUTE OF PHILADELPHIA , 1622 Chestnut St., 215-246-3302. PHILADELPHIA STORIES, Features more than 80 photographs —some never before exhibited — from Philadelphia's city archives. The images go back 150 years, and include pre-construction blueprints of City Hall, photographs documenting the evolution of Philadelphia's infrastructure and studies of its neighborhoods old and new. Runs through Aug. 31. Opening reception Fri, Aug. 3, 4:30-7pm. *
• ATWATER KENT MUSEUM , 15 S. 7th St., 215-685-4830. HOW PHILLY WORKS: STREETS AS BAROMETERS OF URBAN LIFE, Features paintings, documents and prints to explain the urban activity of Philadelphia over a period of 300 years. Included is the Philadelphia City Charter drafted by William Penn, police paraphernalia from the late 1800s and other interesting remnants of the city's past. Runs through Sept. 2. THE WONDERFUL WORLD OF RADIO, Features antique radios from Atwater Kent, Philco and RCA, as well as early radio broadcasts. Runs through Sept. 16. THE ARTIST BEHIND THE IMAGE, Features 45 of his illustrated Saturday Evening Post covers by Norman Rockwell. Runs through Sept. 2.
• AVENUE OF THE ARTS INC. , 1616 E. Passyunk Ave., 215-731-9668. THE MYSTERIES OF REBIRTH, Features naturalistic watercolor paintings by Helena Domenic, which explore the obscurity of reincarnation, life after death and life between lives via bold, vibrant colors. Runs through Aug. 2.
• BELL'S TAVERN , 183 N. Union St., Lambertville, NJ, 609-397-2226. YES, THIS IS NEW JERSEY, Features paintings by Joe Kazimierczyk, which depict scenic country landscapes in New Jersey as well as asphalt and rusted guard rails. Runs through Aug. 2.
• BRANDYWINE RIVER MUSEUM , US Rt. 1, Chadds Ford, 610-388-2700. OUT OF NOWHERE, Features Tom Bostelle's major painting, "Lenape Jesus." Runs through Sept. 2. DOG DAYS OF SUMMER, Features 60 canine-inspired paintings and drawings by Jamie Wyeth, whose favorite model is man's best friend. Runs through Sept. 3.
• CHESTER COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY , 225 N. High St., West Chester, 610-692-4800. A QUILT SAMPLER, Features 30 19th-century regional quilts from the permanent collection, as well as related photographs and memorabilia. Runs through Sept. 16.
• DELAWARE ART MUSEUM , 2301 Kentmere Pkwy., Wilmington, DE, 302-571-9590. NATURE/CULTURE/BLUES: CONTEMPORARY AFRICAN AMERICAN ART, Features new works by Melvin Edwards, Jack Whitten, Tyrone Mitchell, Juma Santos and others, which were recently donated to the museum's collection. Runs through Aug. 29. THE CULTIVATED EYE: BRANDYWINE VALLEY PHOTOGRAPHERS, Features nature photography by regional photographers who capture the unfamiliar in our everyday world. Runs through Oct. 23. DECEITS AND FANTASIES, Features photographs of gardens by 16 American and European artists. Some worship gardens for their calm and beauty, while others explore the tension between the aesthetic pleasure we take from gardens and the fear inspired by nature's scale. Runs through Sept. 16.
• DELAWARE CENTER FOR THE CONTEMPORARY ARTS , 200 S. Madison St., Wilmington, DE, 302-656-6466. DUPED, Features 21 prints by Alison Saar, whose work explores issues of racial identity, the African Diaspora, racism and sexism. Runs through Aug. 5. CONTEMPORARY WOODCUTS, Features woodblock prints by Phillia Yi. Runs through Aug. 5. THE ADMINISTRATOR, Features interactive installation pieces by Michael Aurbach, who uses satire and caustic wit to challenge those in positions of higher authority and expose abuses of power. Runs through Sept. 23. MFA BIENNIAL, Features work by 35 current regional MFA students. School include American University, Towson and UArts. Runs through Sept. 9. REVOLUTION, Features several 24-hour films by Ben Whitehouse that document the earth's revolution from different locations. Also on display are stylized paintings inspired by the footage. Runs through Jan. 6. SYMBIOIS, Features ceramic sculptures by Dale Shuffler. Runs through Nov. 4. WITNESS/DIARY, Features ordinary objects made engrossing by their presentation in different contexts of light, space and color by Rebecca Dietz. Runs through Sept. 9.
• DELAWARE MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY , 4840 Kenneth Pike, Wilmington, DE, 302-658-9111. DR. ENTOMO'S PALACE OF EXOTIC WONDERS, Features some of the world's most bizarre insects and gives viewers a sneak peak of their curious behaviors. Runs through Sept. 3.
• FABRIC WORKSHOP AND MUSEUM , 1222 Arch St., 215-568-1111. SELECTIONS, Features mixed-media work from the permanent collection by Louise Bourgeois, Mona Hatoum, Kiki Smith, William Wegman, Isaac Julien and Iran De Espirito Santo. Runs through Sept. 29. STOREFRONT, Features a window installation by Mark Bradfod and Juan Carlos Avendano, who use photographs and unfinished wood beams to create the illusion of an interior space under construction. Runs through Sept. 26.
• FLUXSPACE , 3000 N. Hope St., 610-864-2424. IT'S NOT THAT FAR OFF..., Features sculptures and videos by John Lightfoot Greiner of Art Making Machine. Greiner takes everyday objects such as sofas and distorts their size, shape, color and patterns. Runs through Aug. 24.
• FRANKLIN INSTITUTE , 20th St. & the Parkway, 215-448-1200. THE GIANT HEART, Features a gigantic walk-through model of a human heart. Ongoing. TUTANKHAMUN AND THE GOLDEN AGE OF THE PHAROAHS, Features 50 artifacts from the tomb of Tutankhamun, as well as 70 more from other rulers of the Golden Age. Runs through Sept. 30.
• FREE LIBRARY OF PHILADELPHIA , 1901 Vine St., 215-686-5322. ENTER THE ACTRESS, Features images, playbills and memorabilia that document two centuries of actresses. Runs through Aug. 10.
• GROUNDS FOR SCULPTURE , 18 Fairgrounds Rd., Hamilton, NJ, 609-586-0616. REMINISCENCE, Features contemporary weavings, glassworks, paintings and sculptures that reference the tradition-oriented world of domestic art. Together, they honor the exhibition space's former role as part of the New Jersey State Fairgrounds. Runs through Sept. 23. SCULPTOR OF GLASS, Features glass work by Richard Jolley, a contemporary pioneer in the medium known for making line drawings on curved glass surfaces. The exhibition is divided into categories that mirror various stages of his career. Runs through Sept. 23.
• HAGLEY MUSEUM & LIBRARY , 298 Buck Rd., Wilmington, DE, 302-658-2400. HAGLEY AT 50: EXPLODING WITH HISTORY, Features photographs and artifacts following the history of Hagley from its humble beginnings as an abandoned gunpowder mill. Runs through Dec. 30.
• HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF DELAWARE , 505 Market Street Mall, Wilmington, DE, 302-655-7161. MADE BY DELAWARE HANDS, Features a range of objects from the permanent collections, many of which have not been on exhibit in more than 20 years. Runs through Aug. 18.
• E'S PASSYUNK , 1500 E. Passyunk Ave., 215-755-2790. THE PORTRAITS, Features portraits in colored pencil by Evelyn R. Manlove. Runs through Sept. 5. Opening reception Thu, Aug. 2, 7-10pm. *
• HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF MONTGOMERY COUNTY , 1654 DeKalb St., Norristown, 610-272-0297. PAST TIME PURSUITS, Features objects that help explain how people in the past spent their free time. Ongoing.
• HUGH MOORE PARK , 30 Centre Square, Easton, 610-559-6613. JOSIAH WHITE CANAL BOAT, Features tools used to make canal boats, old vessels and the cargo that the boats carried. Ongoing.
• INDEPENDENCE SEAPORT MUSEUM , 211 S. Columbus Blvd., 215-925-5439. WOMEN AND THE SEA, Features works exploring the contributions of women mariners throughout history, as well as the roles of mariners' wives in commerce and in war. Runs through Sept. 3.
• INFUSION , 7133 Germantown Ave., 215-248-1718. NEW WORK, Features paintings by local artist and poet Heather Keton and Amoeba Art Shop owner Jay Thompson. Runs through Aug. 31.
• INSTITUTE OF CONTEMPORARY ART , 118 S. 36th St., 215-898-7108. KAREN KILIMNIK, Features 15 years worth of paintings, drawings, sculpture, photography and installation art. Runs through Aug. 5. PHOEBE WASHBURN, Features a terrarium made from accumulated objects and plants grown in the artist's own studio. Runs through Aug. 5. CRIMES OF OMISSION, Features work by Geraint Evans, Ken Gonzales-Day, Micheal Linares and others who draw attention to injustices by removing the visual traces of a crime. Runs through Aug. 5.
• JINXED CLOTHING , 620 S. 4th St., 215-978-5469. SKULL PROJECT, Features paintings and drawings by 150 artists who were given a page of a skull artwork book and asked to craft their own interpretation of the image. Runs through Aug. 25.
• LAVA SPACE , 4134 Lancaster Ave., 215-387-6155. ART AT LAVA, Features installations by Harmony Thompson, Zoe Cohen, Bilwa, Elysa Voshell, JJ Tiziou, Mary Tasillo, Cecily Anderson, Sarah Phillips, Jodi Netzer and Dominic Lepore. Works include wheat-pasted posters, murals, tile mosaics, site-specific sculptures and a solar-powered installation. Runs through Nov. 30.
• LONGWOOD GARDENS , US Rt. 1, Kennett Sq., 610-388-1000. INTREEGUE, Features eight of the garden's most notable trees, including the oldest ginkgo in the U.S. and a rebellious sugar maple that has chosen to grow in the sun. Each tree features its own unique art installation. Runs through Sept. 1.
• MARVIN SAMSON CENTER FOR THE HISTORY OF PHARMACY , Griffith Hall, 600 S. 43rd St., 215-596-8800. CIRCA 1821, Features decorative and functional objects crafted within or imported into the United States throughout the first half of the 19th century.
• MENNONITE HERITAGE CENTER , 565 Yoder Rd., Harleysville, 215-256-3020. AS LARGE AS PALACES, Features barn re-creations, historical photographs and diagrams of architecture in celebration of German barns in Pennsylvania. Runs through Oct. 30.
• MERCER MUSEUM , 84 S. Pine St., Doylestown, 215-345-0210. DOLLS FROM THE ATTIC, Features antique collections of dolls and dollhouses. Ongoing.
• MICHENER ART MUSEUM , 138 S. Pine St., Doylestown, 215-340-9800. FIRE AND ICE, Features paintings of soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan by Marine Corps combat artist Michael Fay. Runs through Oct. 21. SOLDIER, Features portraits by Suzanne Opton of men and women recently returned from military tours of Iraq and Afghanistan. Runs through Oct. 21.
• MICHENER ART MUSEUM-NEW HOPE , 500 Union Square Dr., New Hope, 215-340-9800. CREATIVE BUCKS COUNTY, Features work by visual artists, authors, playwrights, lyricists and composers who have lived and worked in Bucks County. Artists include Pearl S. Buck, Daniel Garber, Oscar Hammerstein II, Dorothy Parker, Jean Toomer and Charles Scheeler. Ongoing. PORTRAITS: GERSHWIN TO GILLESPIE, Features more than 50 photographs of American composers and performers, including Bob Dylan, Duke Ellington, B.B. King, Janis Joplin and Jim Morrison. The photographers are equally impressive: Ansel Adams, Chuck Close, Art Kane and Annie Leibovitz all have portraits on display. Runs through Aug. 7.
• MOORE COLLEGE OF ART & DESIGN , 20th St. & the Parkway, 215-568-4515. FELLOWSHIP SHOW, Features paintings, sculptures, graphics, prints, jewelry and mixed-media work by students competing for fellowships. Runs through Aug. 26.
• MORRIS ARBORETUM , 100 Northwestern Ave., 215-247-5777. LIVING FOSSIL: METASEQUOIA, Features viewing platform sculptures that allow visitors to experience ancient trees from their lower canopy branches. Ongoing.
• NATIONAL CONSTITUTION CENTER , Independence Mall, 525 Arch St., 215-409-6600. THE STORY OF WE THE PEOPLE, Features rare historical artifacts including a letter sent by George Washington to Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt's "Rough Riders" jacket and items pertaining to Lincoln's assassination. Ongoing. Runs through Feb. 16. EYEWITNESS, Features letters, diaries, photographs and audio and film recordings that document eyewitness perspectives of major events in American history. Notable highlights include the Christmas Eve broadcast by the crew of Apollo 8, a statement by Abraham Lincoln's doctor written the night of his assassination and the court testimony of John Lewis, one of the men beaten in the 1965 Selma voting rights march. Runs through Sept. 3. PHILADELPHIA TREASURES, Features artifacts related to historic local events. Items on display include an original copy of the Star Spangled Banner, the first written protest against slavery, Edgar Allan Poe's bankruptcy papers and minutes from one of the first Underground Railroad organizations. Runs through Sept. 3. FROM CONFLICT TO HARMONY, Features several exhibits designed to focus on the obstacle violence presents to liberty. Several are participatory and kid-friendly. Runs through Sept. 1.
• NATIONAL MUSEUM OF AMERICAN JEWISH HISTORY , Independence Mall, E. 55 N. 5th St., 215-923-3811. FORSHPEIS: A TASTE OF JEWISH AMERICANA, Features almost 10,000 items meant to capture the daily lives of American Jews from the 1880s to the present, with emphasis on food and food practices. Included are deli menus, matzo ball recipes and bar mitvah cake designs. Ongoing.
• NOYES MUSEUM OF ART , 733 Lily Lake Rd., Oceanville, NJ, 609-652-8848. SIGHTINGS, Features recent work by Doug and Mike Starn, which combines video, sculpture, painting and large-scale photos of natural resources to explore light and darkness. Runs through Aug. 7.
• PENN MUSEUM OF ARCHAEOLOGY AND ANTHROPOLOGY , 3260 South St., 215-898-4000. AMARNA, ANCIENT EGYPT'S PLACE IN THE SUN, Features artifacts from the era of King Tutankhamun including statues, jewelry and religious amulets. Runs through Oct. 15.
• PENNSYLVANIA ACADEMY OF THE FINE ARTS , 118-128 N. Broad St., 215-972-7600. WARP TRANCE, Features a three-channel video projection by Senga Nengudi, which uses sounds and images derived from industrial weaving mills to evoke ritual and trance. Created in collaboration with the Fabric Workshop. Runs through Aug. 26. TOWADS A 49TH STATE, Features prints, paintings, collage, text and drawings by Kip Deeds, who documents a historical and personal journey to Alaska. Runs through Aug. 23. INTIMATE ENVIRONMENTS, Features drawings, paintings, photography and video by Jessica Doyle, which document common and spectacular events in her life, memories and dreams. Runs through Aug. 23.
• PHILADELPHIA ATHENAEUM , 219 S. 6th St., 215-925-2688. ON THE BOARDS, Features photographs and drawings of the Jersey Shore's landmarks, structures, buildings and seaside homes designed by Philadelphia architects. Runs through Aug. 31.
• PHILADELPHIA FOLKLORE PROJECT , 735 S. 50th St., 215-726-1106. WE TRY TO BE STRONG: 28 YEARS OF HMONG TEXTILES IN PHILADELPHIA, Features textiles and needlework by more than 30 Hmong women, representing four generations of artists. Runs through Sept. 7.
• PHILADELPHIA MUSEUM OF ART , 26th St. & the Parkway, 215-763-8100. ROOM FOR REVOLUTION: GEORGE WASHINGTON AND HIS PHILADELPHIA FRIENDS, Features Charles Willson Peale's famous portrait of George Washington and the Powel House parlor, a period room from an 18th-century home where Washington was frequently entertained. Runs through Aug. 30. PARTICULARS OF PLACE: PHOTO PORTFOLIOS FROM THE PERMANENT COLLECTION, Features images from the portfolios of Paul Caponigro, Paul Strand, John Divola, Laurie Brown, Alen MacWeeney and James Fee. Runs through Nov. 4. WILLIAM H. JOHNSON'S WORLD ON PAPER, Features the prints, drawings and watercolors of the early 20th-century American artist, who focused on the African experience in the rural South and urban North. Runs through Aug. 12. TIBETAN RITUAL ARTS, Features Tibetan-Buddhist ritual images and implements drawn from the museum's collection of Himalayan art, including a domestic alter. Runs through Nov. 20. PARIS / NEW YORK, Features paintings by Ellsworth Kelly from the ten years over which he abandoned traditional painterly methods and began experimenting with the color field minimalism that came to define his career. Runs through Feb. 24. JAPANESE LITERATI CULTURE IN THE EDO PERIOD, Features calligraphies and drawings from 17th-century Japan, during which an experimental and prolific artistic culture emerged and flourished. Runs through Aug. 30. BOSCH AND BRUEGEL, Features detailed, colorful paintings by Rennaisance painters Hieronymus Bosch, Pieter Breugel and their followers. Runs through Nov. 23. FORGING AN AMERICAN IDENTITY, Features more than 60 paintings and drawings by William Ranney, a 19th-century painter best known for his rural and hunting scenes. His paintings, wildly popular in their time, provide insight into how Americans viewed their history, present and expanding future. Runs through Aug. 19. CELEBRATING AMERICAN CRAFT, Features pieces from the museum's collection of contemporary American crafts. Runs through Sept. 30. PORTRAIT OF A PROFESSOR, Features the first in Thomas Eakins' series of portraits of physicians and scientists. which shows Jefferson Medical College professor Benjamin Rand immersed in work in his home office. The painting is displayed alongside related works by Eakins and his contemporaries.Runs through May 31. NOTATIONS, Features paintings by three notable post-war German artists: Anselm Kiefer, Sigmar Polke and Gerhart Richter. Each of these three struggled with questions of how to go about life and art in the wake of Germany's war crimes, and in doing so produced large bodies of work defined equally by conceptual complexity and technical mastery. Runs through Nov. 25.
• PHILADELPHIA MUSEUM OF JEWISH ART , Congregation Rodeph Shalom, 615 N. Broad St., 215-627-6747. IN THE BEGINNING: Features paintings by Joshua Meyer, who seeks to involve the viewer by showing the raw processes of his creation, with thickly layered paint giving way to patches of blank canvas. Runs through Aug. 10.
• PHILIP & MURIEL BERMAN MUSEUM OF ART , Ursinus College, 601 E. Main St., Collegeville, 610-409-3500. PRESENCE PASSING: PHOTOGRAPHS BY ANDREA BALDECK, Features black-and-white photography by Andrea Baldeck, whose work invokes the mystery of empty rooms, gardens and other spaces. Runs through Aug. 17.
• PRINT CENTER , 1614 Latimer St., 215-735-6090. TIME AFTER TIME, Features photographs by students from Benjamin Franklin, West Philadelphia, Frankford and William Penn high schools. The work explores issues of identity and self-representation through self-portraits by using the camera obscura or pinhole cameras. Runs through Aug. 18.
• ROCKWOOD MUSEUM , 610 Shipley Rd., Wilmington, DE, 302-571-7776. REFLECTIONS FROM ANTIQUITY, Features interactive exhibits designed to convey a sense of what life in the 1930s was like for Wilmington's Bringhurst family. Included are documents, paintings, stone etchings, photographs and three-dimensional simulations. Runs through Dec. 30.
• ROSENBACH MUSEUM & LIBRARY , 2008-2010 Delancey Pl., 215-732-1600. CHOSEN: PHILADELPHIA'S GREAT HEBRAICA, Features Hebrew texts, scrolls and objects, which offer a rich insight into the literary and artistic culture of their time. Runs through Aug. 26. DON'T KILL THE WEATHERMAN! Features two animated films by Martha Colburn. Both draw inspiration from contemporary environmental catastrophes, trends in American culture and a 15th-century French manuscript titled "The Three Pilgrimages."Runs through Sept. 16.
• SCHUYLKILL CENTER FOR ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION , 8480 Hagy's Mill Rd., 215-482-7300. GREEN MACHINE, Features site-specific works exploring the relationship between art, nature and technology. Included is Chris Vecchio's Supplemental Shrubbery Sounds Source in which motion-sensitive modules are placed along the path and emit both "natural" and "man-made" sounds, altering the forest's atmosphere and encouraging questions about nature and technology. Runs through Oct. 30.
• WINTERTHUR MUSEUM & COUNTY ESTATE , 5105 Kennet Pike, Winterthur, DE, 800-448-4907. QUILTS IN A MATERIAL WORLD, Features more than 40 quilts that highlight the lives of American quiltmakers. Runs through Sept. 16.
• WOODMERE ART MUSEUM , 9201 Germantown Ave., 215-247-0476. BIENNIAL EXHIBITION, Features paintings by Alan Goldstein, Mildred Hurwitz and Mili Dunn Weis and sculpture by Suzanne Reese Horvitz, Dennis Will and Robert Jackson. Runs through Sept. 2.