The time is creeping up for TAAF 2010!

If you're an EKNA member and interested in volunteering to help make next year's festival happen, please get in touch asap! I know it's only December, but the time is now to start planning!!

Email EKNAartsfest@gmail.com for more info on what needs to be done!

-----BY THE WAY-----

Did you know that 2010 will be our 5th festival!? That's a huge milestone, so the pressure is on to make the fest bigger and better than ever. "How you say; could it be better than before? It's the best fest ever!"

Oh, you'll see.

You'll see.

Zooid Vamoose - Tory Franklin @ FluxSpace

Two-year Trenton Ave artist, Tory Franklin, has a solo show opening this weekend at FluxSpace, Trenton Ave freshmen, in North Philly. It should be an amazing show.

Zooid Vamoose

By Tory Franklin

Exhibition Dates: August 14– September 13, 2009
Opening Reception: August 15, 2009, 7 – 10 pm
Gallery Hours: Saturdays 12 – 4 pm or by appointment
Artist Website: www.toryfranklin.com

FLUXspace is pleased to present Zooid Vamoose, a solo exhibition presenting the work of artist Tory Franklin (Philadelphia, PA) from August 14 – September 13, 2009. The opening reception for Franklin’s first solo Philadelphia exhibition will be held August 15, 2009 from 7-10 pm. A multi-media installation featuring electronically enhanced light conducting LED prints, drawings, and cut-vinyl pieces, Tory’s work utilizes our animal friends (and foes!) as reassuring stand-ins to pictorialize human dramas, fears, and flashes of joy.

Zooid Vamoose is a show full of animals, animated and anthropomorphized, that render human emotion into an element more tangible. For this show, Franklin’s feverishly patterned and decorative language expands to include the magic of electronics and light, allowing flocks of birds to truly dazzle and attract, and unseen voices to arise from otherwise static yet turbulent prints, as though a flattened museum diorama were to come to life. Through the use of sumptuously layered imagery and detail the work begs the viewer to come in close, whispering, “let’s feel this together”, until some unbeknownst twist sinisterly repels. Permeating the overall mood of the show is the feeling that someone has something to say, in a hectic, frenzied, persistent and pressing way. Although two dimensional, Franklin’s work escapes the gallery walls, winds its way up the railings, flashes and reflects your stark emotions into the back of your retinas and somehow lands on its own two feet, secured in reality and standing right next to you, trying to hold your hand.

Tory Franklin has exhibited her work in solo and group shows across the nation, chiefly concentrated in Seattle, Washington then spanning the states all the way over to our neighbor New Jersey and including institutions such as: CoCA and the Seattle Opera House, both in Seattle, WA and the ISE Foundation in New York City. Internationally her work has been shown in the Glas Moog Gallery in Koln Germany, as part of an exchange exhibition with Kunsthochscule für Medien. Franklin holds an MFA from Rutgers University and received her BFA from Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle, WA. She has slaved away to hone her self-taught printmaking skills, working in numerous screen shops and receiving first a printmaking residency at Old Dominion University in VA then an internship at the Singapore Tyler Print Institute in Singapore. Franklin lives and works in Philadelphia, PA where she continues work on new large-scale installations, along with smaller prints in what seems to be a manic fashion and is currently researching ways to incorporate print and technology, the first large-scale version of such to be exhibited at FLUXspace.

Installation Gallery: The below image is one of Tory's LED prints partially lit up during one of the many tests involved in the production of her prints. This piece will accompany a multitude of other work as well that will brighten up FLUX for the month of August and September.

FLUXspace is a Philadelphia based 501(c)(3) contemporary arts space which provides artists, curators, and instigators the opportunity for unrestricted and uncensored experimentation, professional presentation, and critical dialogue for the purpose of exploring and creating new art practices and media. FLUX consists of an exhibition space, artist residency program, as well as public programming including artist lectures, panel discussions, workshops, movie nights and performances.

Philly Art at Cornerstone Market!

Cornerstone Market, if you haven't heard, will be hosting its inaugural art exhibit next week! Cornerstone was a first time food vendor at the arts festival this year, and we hope to have them again next year! If you haven't been, there on the north side of Girard Ave, right between Front and Frankford. A nice place to stop and grab food for dinner just after you've gotten off of the El.

The juice:

Cornerstone Market & Produce presents its

Inaugural

Food & Art Event

Friday, June 19, 2009

6 PM to close

19 W. Girard Ave., Phila., PA 19123

Featuring local artist Hannah Taylor and her exhibition – No Pretty Girls Allowed. Join us for an evening of gourmet food, kickass art and discount shopping!!

Hannah’s current assemblage of work is an exploration in humanity’s grim determination to outmode itself. Mass media and the silent majority have set standards we can no longer keep up with and “reality,” what is supposedly being portrayed, has to take the slack for its failure. The dumbed-down qualities inherent in mass media have led us to believe in stock characters, stereotype, and most of all, the false belief that these generalizations are true.

Cultural satire, irony and contempt for mainstream ideals of beauty are rampant themes, with a strong emphasis placed on the grotesque and the dehumanization of women as a result from said ideals. What will be the ramifications these mass portrayals of women will have on the lowest common denominator standard? She likes to think of herself as a world-gone-wrong artist.

Hannah will be receiving her BFA in Painting from the University of the Arts in December 2009. Her work has been in several group shows from Philadelphia to Ireland. She aspires to become a professional portrait painter for corporate CEOs and other rich-types, because there is a hilarious irony in painting someone’s portrait for cash in the age of the photograph. She will most likely end up working for the Postal Service and spend her remaining hours in her studio wondering what will become of us all.

Summer Craft Fair at the Memphis Taproom

July 25th, 2009 10am-3pm
Memphis Taproom yard and sidewalk
NE corner of Memphis and Cumberland, Philadelphia, PA

I'll actually be vending at this little market, which is in it's second year. If you only know me as the coordinator for your favorite Fishtown-area arts festival, know that I am also an artist! At the Handmade Market, I'll be donning a thick book of etchings, woodblocks, and mixed media prints and works on paper, etched vintage stock lockets and other brassy and coppery jewelry from recycled parts, and probably some other lovely small sculptures. If you're ever interested in a studio visit, so we can get more acquainted, just let me know!

It's free to vend at this little fest, and is functioning in a first come first serve fashion. Last year, the weather was a bit iffy, so all the participants fit nicely in their side yard. This year, they'll be expanding out onto the sidewalk, since yard space is extremely limited, and we're hoping for picture-perfect weather. Cumberland Street is also a great place to go yard-sale hunting in the summertime, as it's a wide sidewalk street and there are usually sidewalk sales every weekend! It'll be a destination!

If you haven't been to Memphis Taproom already, it's worth the trip to this side of town! Great food, good folks, and a superb beer list. Plus, on the weekends, they usually tap a firkin; how excellent! Memphis is one of Trenton Avenue Arts Fest's new favorite food vendors, too. This was their second year vending at the fest (and their second year in existence!). Kudos to them.

If you want to inquire about vending, email leigh@memphistaproom.com. I'm not sure how many vendors they're accepting.

A Few photos.

Just a few photos from the festival.....more can be seen here! One of our vendors has started a Flickr group for photos of the arts festival. If you have any, please join us and add them!

Who, What. When. Where. How. Why.....TAAF 2009 is here!

Who: East Kensington Neighbors Association has invited, recruited, and is honored to host the artists, musicians, foodies, and creative-minded folks on East Kensington and beyond to participate in this year's Trenton Avenue Arts Festival.

What: The TAAF is the neighborhood's premier arts festival, craft fair, outdoor music show, and local food featurette. Also, NKCDC's Kensington Kinetic Sculpture Derby is an integral part of the festival.

When: The 4th annual Trenton Ave Arts Festival will be held this year on Saturday, May 16th from noon-5pm. The severe weather date is Sunday, May 17th, same time.

Where: Trenton Avenue! We will gather on the sunny 2000-2300 blocks of Trenton Avenue. That's the border of Fishtown and East Kensington. You can see it on a map here. The center of the festival is Susquehanne Street, but we span from Norris Street to Dauphin, and the Derby takes over Dauphin to York!

How: Take the El! Walk! Bike! Drive! Luckily, East Kensington is a friendly destination for travelers of all methods!

*Take the Berks stop from the Market-Frankford El, walk North on Front Street one block, to Norris St. Make a right, then a left onto Trenton Ave!
*Walk! If you need walking directions from your home, visit Google maps!
*Bike! Check google maps if you need specific directions, but biking is the way to go! Bike up (or down) Front St, Frankford Ave, along Girard, York, Lehigh...whatever your route, end it on Trenton Avenue. Free Valet Bike Parking at Trenton and Dauphin, compliments of Neighborhood Bike Works.
*Drive! You out-of-towners that are dedicated to our festival, and our neighborhood, we love you! If you're driving, take the Girard-Lehigh Exit from I-95. Follow to Aramingo Avenue, Make a left onto York Street, follow to Frankford. Here, I recommend turning right and parking on the north-side of Trenton Avenue, and walking down to the festival. Car Parking: There is no designated parking area for festival visitors or participants. However, there is plenty of free street parking available! Trenton Avenue, north of York is a plentitude of parking...and all of the secondary streets usually have lots of parking available.

Why: Because 'Everyone Comes Out!' My unofficial slogan for last year's fest, that I hope to carry over this year! Seriously, proceeds from this festival fund EKNA's annual budget, which we use to cleanup our neighborhood, host, educational workshops and playground activities for kids, and hopefully, someday, provide a new sculpture garden and playground for the residents of the neighborhood! EKNA wants to make East Kensington as beautiful and safe as we can, and you can help us, by enjoying our pride and joy, the Trenton Avenue Arts Festival.

And in the end...

Well, it's been a long and grueling process, but registration for artists is officially closed for the Trenton Avenue Arts Festival. I am so excited because we've exceeded our goal of 120 vendors this year! It's the biggest fest yet, and I'm so pleased with the huge variety of vendors. There are plenty of veteran faces, but SO MANY newbies signed up, that I"m not sure I'll be able to remember everyone's names this time!

We've got several artists crossing the Mason-Dixon line, coming in from Baltimore, Silver Spring, and other towns in the Baltimore-D.C. area.

We're honored to have an artist from Toronto, Canada include the Trenton Avenue Arts Festival in a mini craft fair tour! Aside from buttons, illustrations, crochet items, etc; this artist-couple will be doing "unflattering portraits" on site!

For those of you with a sweet tooth, we'll be hosting a Gelato vendor from North Philly, and Cornerstone Market will be making Fruit-kabobs! Yum!

100 and counting....

Congratulations to Jean Baptiste Regnard of Squidfire Inc for being out 100th registered vendor! Squidfire will be commuting up from Baltimore, MD for the festival, and it'll be their first time on Trenton Avenue!

Hitting 100 vendors has always been our goal, last year we made it to 90, and this year we hit 100 and kept running! I'm so excited for what this year's festival will bring.

Registration is open for 4 more days, so if you've been procrastinating, get your forms in today!

For all registered vendors: watch your email boxes early this week for a .pdf of our event poster; everyone should email their lists of friends, family, and customers and invite them to the fest!

Lastly, if you're on Facebook, we have an event listing up for TAAF, so RSVP! I want to see how many people we can get connected before the event via my favorite networking (not socializing) tool, Facebook! Plus, since I am the creator of the event, all mystery veils will come down and you can meet me (via the ethernet) ahead of the game! You'll know who to look for when you arrive in the morning!

One month left to register as a vendor!

Thanks to everyone who took advantage of this year's early registration! We got a whopping 70 artists registered already! Glad to see all the newbies, as well as welcomed vets.

Registration is still open, and will be until May 1st. Vendor registration forms can be found in the post below, and the fee is $40.

Thanks again! The festival is going to be great because of all of you!

April Fools'

Today is April 1, 2009, the early registration deadline for this year's artist vendors. Get your forms postmarked today to keep the fees at $35. Tomorrow, they're $40 (still a bangin' deal.)

So where's that virus everyone was talking about yesterday?

this year's vendors on Etsy!

Hi there. I've noticed that I can't feature everyone on the cool Etsy mini feature on the sidebar, so I'm hoping that this post can be another way to link to all the Etsy shops!

Etsy Buy Handmade kvanvliet

Only 10 days left for Discounted Fees!

Hey all curious artists, crafter, and creative folks:

April 1st marks the deadline for this year's Early Registration for artists....that means, if your registration is postmarked for April 2 or after, the fees are $40!! Take advantage of the discounted rate ($35) and register today!

Email me for more information! EKNAartsfest@gmail.com

a favorite: Ken Milano has a book-signing

Trenton Ave's favorite local historian is having a book-signing this Saturday night at one of our other favorite spots, BrickBat Books. The recent incarnation of Big Jar Books, now rests on South 4th Street, just below Bainbridge. If you're in the neighborhood, do stop by to say 'Hi' to Ken and BrickBat's fab owner, Patrick.

Ken will be signing all three of his recent books at the Trenton Avenue Arts Festival this year, too!

March 14th at 4PM:

Historian Kenneth Milano:

The History of the Kensington Soup Society

The History of the Kensington Soup Society, 1844-2008

“Kensington Soup House. - This building, located in Allen Street, Eighteenth Ward, daily presents a scene of interest to all who concern themselves about the alleviation of human suffering. The society is now busy in dispensing its charities, and many a crushed spirit is the recipient of its bounty. Every morning hundreds of the poorest residents of the vicinity vie to the spot to have their kettles filled with soup, which is received with an eagerness which shows that want and hunger is pinching. The applicants are of all ages and of both sexes and colors. Ragged children come from squalid homes, but there are also some attired with comparative neatness, who show by their demeanor that their position is strange and unpleasant. Women approach at times timidly, obtain the relief and depart quickly, but with eyes that speak gratitude. Old men bowed with age and sorrow also come, and tearfully thank the dispensers of the nourishment which is to prolong their days of sadness. There is much distress in the vicinity of the Soup House, and the society well deserves the aid and co-operation of the benevolent in their good work.” - 2 Feb 1861 Philadelphia Inquirer

Books by Kenneth Milano:
History of the Kensington Soup Society
History of Penn Treaty Park
Remembering Fishtown & Kensington

Attn: Etsy Artists

This is a special perk for registered festival artists who also sell their wares on Etsy. I'm now linking to them on this blog (see right), so if you register please send your Etsy shop to me also and I can add you to the feature!

Best to all!

-Katie

2009 Food Vendor Information

Because of the special organizing that goes into our food vendors each festival, information can be attained on an as requested basis. Please email us at EKNAartsfest@gmail.com to inquire about being a food vendor this year!