art

Second Season Arts: Visual Art

What's new at PAFA, the PMA, Vox Populi and more. 

Barbara Kasten, "Architectural Site 17"
Barbara Kasten for ICA

Surf Club

An Internet “surf club” or “surfing club” is a group website where artists link to interesting — “surfable” — items online, and also contribute their own artistic work to the conversation. In this way, each piece is part of the larger artistic practice. This exhibition is inspired by the practice, and has been curated through the digital image sharing of 26 Vox Populi artists. The exhibition is split up into “four distinct sub exhibitions,” and even the work of a UPenn astrophysicist is in the mix. Through Feb. 1, Vox Populi, 319 N. 11th St., third floor, voxpopuligallery.org.

Ellen Harvey and Ena Swansea: Sight Unseen

Both artists here have imaginative and unique styles — Harvey works in engraved mirrored-plexiglass and installation; Swansea paints oil on graphite. Locks says the exhibition will “toy with our perception through unusual material experimentation.” Through Feb. 21, Locks Gallery, 600 S. Washington Square, locksgallery.com.

Represent: 200 Years of African American Art

In 1899, the PMA acquired the painting The Annunciation by Henry Ossawa Tanner, regarded as the first Black painter to gain acclaim throughout the world. Since, the museum has only continued to beef up its collection of African-American art. This exhibition features paintings, sculpture and other works — even from enslaved artists in the 1800s — that explore Black identity in terms of politics, race and culture. Through April 5, Philadelphia Museum of Art, 2600 Benjamin Franklin Pkwy., philamuseum.org.

Peter Blume: Nature and Metamorphosis

The first retrospective since 1976 of modernist painter Peter Blume, this PAFA exhibition includes nearly 160 works, each in keeping with Blume’s signature style — dreamlike imagery and large-scale paintings reflecting on 20th-century themes and concerns. His paintings, like Tasso’s Oak, are pre-cise and vibrant, filtered through a lens of great imagination. Through April 5, PAFA, 118 N. Broad St., pafa.org.

The City Real & Imagined: Urbanism, Identity and Identification

Six artists have drawn inspiration from the urban landscape in this show — presented by InLiquid, each piece speaks to issues of social consciousness. Part of the Art for Action program, which “uses art exhibitions as a platform for dialogue, community events and social awareness efforts,” the show offers another way to perceive our city. Jan. 23-March 7, Painted Bride Art Center, 230 Vine St, paintedbride.org.

Paul Oberst: Illuminations, Jogged Perspective and Banded Measure

This is Oberst’s fourth solo exhibition, during which the gallery will be split into three parts: For the “Illuminations” series, one section will become a library, filled floor-to-ceiling with photographs. For “Jogged Perspective,” viewers will enjoy an installation of more then 100 panels. For “Banded Measure,” Oberst offers a video piece made in collaboration with Boston filmmaker Simone Hnilicka. Feb. 4-28, Bridgette Mayer Gallery, 709 Walnut St., bridgettemayergallery.com.

Barbara Kasten: Stages

The artist Barbara Kasten is a sort of jack-of-all-trades — she’s worked in mediums like installation, painting, sculpture and textile, always focused on the relationship between 2-D and 3-D forms. Kasten is a master of the prop, and photographs show her in her 1980s studio staging a piece like it’s a theater presentation or magazine shoot. She offers a bold look at abstraction you won’t want to miss. Feb. 4-Aug. 16, ICA, 118 S. 36th St., icaphila.org. 

Keeping It Real: Recent Acquisitions of Narrative and Realist Art

Since 2012, Wood-mere’s been adding to its collection of realist and narrative art, that is, art that shows observed and recognizable subjects and realities. This exhibition showcases work from the late 19th century to the present, and includes pieces showing views of still life, portraits, cityscapes and many aspects of mod-ern — and real — life. Feb. 14-June 7, Woodmere Art Museum, 9201 Germantown Ave., woodmereartmuseum.org.

More from the Second Season Arts Guide:

Saxophonist Darryl Yokley composes a jazz symphony inspired by the PMA’s new African-American art exhibition.  |  Soundtrack of a sarcophagus: Relâche plays music for mummies. | Plus our experts highlight the upcoming season in: Classical/Opera  |  Roots  |  Jazz  |  Rock/Pop  |  Dance  |  Theater