A Sticky Muse:
Mark Khaisman’s muse is his medium.
The artist who has proven that duct tape can be as versatile and beautiful as it is useful as a packing agent is showing this January at Shipley’s Speer Gallery in Bryn Mawr.

Friday was ‘First Friday’ in Old City and other Philadelphia art havens. City Paper’s Holly Otterbein recommended stopping at the Asian Arts Initiative.

EXHIBITION OF ART ON PAPER CELEBRATES CITY’S ARTISTIC DIVERSITY
Here and Now: Prints, Drawings, and Photographs by Ten Philadelphia Artists
(September 10 – December 4, 2011)

Members of Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts’ Women’s Board met last week to conclude a series of note-writing and invitation addressing events over the last month. 

Bridgette Mayer Gallery, on hiatus from Philadelphia due to extensive renovations and expansion of its Walnut Street location, continues to promote a stable of artists that keep the gallery and this city on the destination lists of contemporary art types.

The Young Friends of the Charity Ball held their first ever art show and sale, titled ArtMarch, at the beautifully renovated carriage house of architect Frederic L. Bissinger and his wife Nancy Drexel Bissinger.  Artwork included came from past Ball participants or ‘extended family’ of the Charity Ball, and sales will benefit the Ball’s 2010 beneficiary, Gesu School.

The Young Friends of the Philadelphia Museum of Art hosted another fabulously well-attended event last Saturday.  The annual Winter Gala was entitled Midnight Masquerade, and gave Young Friends and guests the opportunity to exercise their artistic senses from toe to head, literally.

Curtis Institute and the Curtis Symphony Orchestra held their annual Season Premier Gala to benefit the Student Assistance Fund, with a lovely preconcert cocktail & dinner party held at the Bellevue followed by a performance at the Kimmel Center.

The Pennsylvania Ballet held its annual Opening Night Gala at the Ballroom at the Bellevue.  The evening began with a performance at the Academy of Music; George Balanchine’s Theme and Variations and Matthew Neenan’s new work, At the Border, were met with delight.  Guests reconvened for cocktails, dinner, and dancing at the Bellevue.

The Young Friends of the Philadelphia Museum of Art hold an annual Fall Garden Party at the Rodin Museum on the Parkway.  This year, due to the myriad of (some controversial) construction projects on the Parkway, specifically the revamping of the Rodin Museum, the party was relocated to the Perelman Wing of the Museum.