Almost Live from Swap O Rama Rama

Here we are walking into the Urban Outfitters storage building for the Swap O Rama Rama!

What an amazing space: ferns, fish, native plant garden outside, giant crochet vases, fun.

Setting up supplies for the Handmade Philly table Monster Pins wokshop.

The fabric table. Wow.

The cafe!

Come join us from 12-5 pm today at the Navy Yard. Drive down Broad street till you see the Navy Yard sign past the last Broad Street Line stop. Keep driving straight until the river is straight ahaead and take a right! Minutes from downtown. Nice bike ride too.

Trouble the Water the Movie

Wow, what a powerful movie. I watched this last night and I was so amazed, not just by the fact that it's a true story, with actual first person video of the entire storm (Hurricane Katrina), but what really struck me was that it was from the point of view of a poor couple from the 9th ward who were struggling to survive before the storm but had the foresight to document the event and to seek out documentarians to get their story out there, never victims, but always strong and caring.

If I taught high school in the city, I would show this to my students in a heartbeat because it really gives voice to the voiceless and shows their experience is a shared experience and a valid experience, wherever you come from, you can be in charge of your choices and your future, no matter what life throws at you. The woman filmmaker, Kimberly Rivers Roberts decides to record her neighborhood and the storm, keeping her caring, sunny disposition throughout, later revealing a powerful rap persona, Black Kold Medina and we learn she has had a life no one would envy but has not let this keep her down.

Moving! (Not Far)

Yay sunlight!

Art Cards Artist Finds

Bushkill and Dingman's Falls

Bushkill Falls in the Pocono region of Pennsylvania is about a 2 hour drive north of Philadelphia and has some beautiful hiking trails and waterways to explore, including more waterfalls than you can count. Bushkill trails include many, many stairs and the red and blue routes are fairly challenging, like a hour on the stairmaster. You'll feel the burn. These pictures are from both Bushkill Falls (a series of falls along a 4 mile trail) and Dingman's Falls (two falls) only about a 20 minute ride apart from each other on route 209. If you keep traveling north on 209 you'll pass many other falls and lakes as you drive along the Delaware river. Bushkill is a tourist magnet, so get there early to avoid the crowds. They also have animal talks where you can see and learn about rescued animals from the region including owls, skunks, frogs, turtles, possums and more.

Visit to the Magic Gardens on South Street

Last Saturday I crossed into another world in Philadelphia at 1020 South Street. I've passed by the gates many times but never ventured inside. What I found was as transporting at the Penitentiary, a place where you can wander and forget you are in Philly at all. After passing my suggested donation fee to the very sleepy door monitor who gave me the robot spiel about the size of the building, I was able to venture up and down, inside and out of the house without interference and enjoy every minute detail and enormous mosaic.

I suggest going on a Sunday morning as you also get to enjoy the gospel singing from the church next door. It was the perfect background music for exploring the grotto paths in the outdoor courtyard, which the streetview only gives a glimmer of. The scale of the whole thing is hard to grasp and the artist, Isaiah Zagar is still at work on the art he began creating in 1994. He walked through the home while I was wandering around. You can also take a walking tour of his many other area mosaic facades including his former business the Eyes Gallery further up South St.

There are great details to enjoy like the ancient ratty laminated binder page of Frequently Asked Questions including "Can I take pictures? Yes. Can you take a picture of me? Yes."

As I left I realized it was a destination much like I would travel across the country to see (or across the ocean to Spain), but it was in my own city and I had never gone before.

Check out more at www.phillymagicgarders.org

New Mural In My Neighborhood

I love this new mural on Fairmount at 19th street:

New Painting Finished!

New Painting In Progress, Second Shot

New Painting In Progress, Second Shot, originally uploaded by freeduh2.

New Painting In Progress, Third Shot

New Painting In Progress, Third Shot, originally uploaded by freeduh2.

New Painting In Progress, First Shot

New Painting In Progress, First Shot, originally uploaded by freeduh2.

Etsy For My Fantasy Home

Someday when I own a home I can decorate it anyway I like and if I had a limitless amount of money or alot of time to build it myself, it might look somethig like this:

View Of Two Trees

View Of Two Trees, originally uploaded by freeduh2.

I got to visit the Japanese House this weekend and I was in love with the connection to nature from inside the house. I have a small apartment with no view of any nature and I miss it alot.

Red Poppy

Red Poppy, originally uploaded by freeduh2.

New gardern photos are on flickr and for sale in my etsy shop, www.allisonostertag.etsy.com. I had a blast taking pictures in the garden yesterday and I'm so excited I have strawberries!

Nature Narratives, Fairmount Arts Crawl, APRIL 25

Tomorrow is the big day and I'm psyched!

I'm calling it Nature Narratives and each piece is a series from one walk once in a place. The only piece that is a collage of different times and places is the grid wall hanging in the back with small 4 x 6" photos of color and chaos. The majority of the images are in wall border strips that wrap from one wall to another and are in sequence from the start of the trip to the end. I selected walks from Ocean City, Cape May, the Wissahickon trail here in Philly, Tigertail Beach in Florida and the Cherry Blossom Walk (21st Street between Parrish and Brown). Also in the show are a wall of quads, four images in a grid, of pictures from my hike in the Ashville, NC Blue Ridge Mountains, taken just last month.

I hung the show last night and it was really strange to not have any frames and trying to get everythig level and flush on the walls was a challenge, as was the huge wall in the back of the Beehive Hair Salon. I'm not a big fan of rickety ladders and heights, I just imagine stories of people breaking their backs or scenes from America's Funniest Home Videos of people doing stupid things, but all want well.

I'm not sure how poeple will respond to the images, since they are not just pretty pictures of flowers or waterfalls or something. Some are dark and wintery and have fungus and lichen and bare trees or pictures of birds partially obscured in tree branches, but I wanted to show the honest spaces, not just the edited pretty bits, the whole experience. I've been working on this problem since I was in college, and I think this is an exciting way to present a place and a time.

Let me know what you think.

I'll be there tomorrow from 2-6 pm selling quad prints of select images from the show and cards. Stop by, despite the rain. They'll be a band, food and drinks and hair demos going on! Beehive Hair Salon is closest to 23rd and Fairmount Streets, across from the CVS at 2323 Fairmount. Everything in the hood will be open for the Fairmont Arts Crawl with artists and free food and drinks.

Street Photos

On the street in Philly.

Write in Your Caption Below: What Are They Thinking?
The best caption wins a free card of the image and caption, so check back to see if you won!

Caption Contest: What Are They Thinking?

Write in Your Caption Below: What Are They Thinking?

The best caption wins a free card of the image and caption, so check back to see if you won!