Artist turns battle to save his art studio into art
Please note: This article is published as an archive copy from Philadelphia City Paper. My City Paper is not affiliated with Philadelphia City Paper. Philadelphia City Paper was an alternative weekly newspaper in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The last edition was published on October 8, 2015.
James Dupree has turned fighting eminent domain into a work of art.
Mantua-based artist James Dupree has turned fighting eminent domain into a work of art.
Called "Stolen Dreams In the Promise Zone: Mask of Despair and Uncertainty" — a title that cribs its name from Mantua's recent designation as a federal anti-poverty zone — the exhibition uses decorative masks to tell the story of Dupree's battles with depression as he labored to save his home/studio from being demolished to make way for a proposed supermarket. His story, and the political dealmaking behind the supermarket development, was first covered in the City Paper last year.
Dupree and his studio became well known after the artist transformed his home and work space, a converted garage at 36th Street and Haverford Avenue, into an education center for aspiring art students in the community.
If he survives the Philadelphia Redevelopment Authority's latest attempt to seize his land, he hopes to continue shaping his neighborhood.
"I moved to West Philadelphia in 1955 on Lancaster Avenue. I've come full circle. I'm back to revitalize the community. I'm the gentrification," Dupree told City Paper in November.
The show opens this Saturday at the artist's South Philly exhibition space, The Dupree Gallery.
Sat., March 1, 5-10 p.m., the artist will speak at 7 p.m. Dupree Gallery, 713 S. Sixth St., dupreestudiosinc.com.
