Philadelphia, PA

Some last minute plans took me to Philadelphia this weekend to see the viewing for the Modern & Contemporary Art sale at Freeman's auctioneers. Not really going to these types of things all that often since I am in no position to buy; it was really interesting see the great deal of work that goes into making it happen and how much things are selling for in the current market. The sale included work from the Lehman Brothers Collection as well as some beautiful Berenice Abbott prints which were roughly 8x10 inches each, sold as a set of 10 for $12,000.


© Berenice Abbott

To make the most of my short time in Philly I also stopped by a few shows on the great recommendations of Justin James Reed. One of the shows I particularly enjoyed was Personal Views: Contemporary Photographic Portraiture in Philadelphia, at Gallery 339. If you know me, it may not sound like a show I would like since my own work doesn't include people most of the time. I am frequently asked why that is and it really has nothing to do with me liking portraiture or not. I guess I would say that my interests seem to subconsciously shift toward the marks people make and the presence of people, rather than people themselves. However, some projects that are currently in the early stages (ie in my head) do include some people. So we will see how that plays out.

Personal Views runs through November 14 at Gallery 339, which has the friendliest staff that I think I have ever seen by the way - so check it out if you have the chance.


© Nadine Rovner


© Rita Bernstein


© Zoe Strauss