Empty storefronts along South Street offered to artists to serve as temporary exhibition spaces. And we’ve got one of them. That’s right. The Philadelphia Dumpster Divers, of which I am a proud member, along with Betsy, have set up what is being called Diver Central at 734 South Street in Philadelphia. The Divers have packed it full of amazing art made from trash and found objects. (Click thumbnails to view larger images.)
So, come on in and check it out. For the next two months (March – April), and longer if the spaces haven’t rented by then, we’ll be open to the public every Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday from 3 – 8 pm.
Works by myself and Betsy, as well as Alden Cole, Neil Benson, Ellen Sall, John Lindsay, Joel Spivak, Diane Keller, Randy Dalton, Toni Nash, Ellen Benson, and many others adorn the walls and floor. And just about everything is for sale.
The Inquirer ran an article on us and the storefronts project. Perhaps you saw it. If not, here’s a link to it online and a link to a PDF if you’d like to download it. One way of the other, we hope you will take the time to drop by and say hello and buy some art from the Philadelphia Dumpster Divers.
Been following your blogs and the store fronts I have confronted have been really concerned about liability and damage done to walls from hanging and also the fact that those that work would only be able to be on site on weekends and we are traveling to the resort areas in order to get the exposure. Most really want to charge a fee regardless. Thanks for any advice you can give.
This is a hot topic for the arts right now because of the economic hardships on commercial stores. Artists fill in the void as people see from the history of SoHo, Chelsea as well as DUMBO and Williumsburg in Brooklyn. The real issue these spaces have is the liability and since artists are not a business entity and have no liability coverage, it falls on the landlord(s) which they generally don’t want to do because they are already offering the space at no charge (because the artists meet the costs). Is there some way for the artists to pay a portion of the land-lords liability for the year equal to however long they stay in the store front?