Philly Photo Day 2014 & Exhibition

On October 10, 2014, Philadelphia Photo Art Center (PPAC) held its annual "Philly Photo Day" inviting anyone and everyone to...

POINT... a camera or cell phone anywhere in the City of Philadelphia.

CLICK... and capture one moment of one day... Friday, October 10th.

SEND...  the uploaded image to PPAC.

This year 1, 903 images were received, printed, and are now on exhibit at

The Crane Arts Building through December 28, 2014.

1400 N. American Street, Philadelphia, PA 19122

Hours: Tu-Th 9:30 AM-8 PM... Fri-Sat 9:30 AM- 6 PM... Sun 10 AM-2 PM

Phone: 215.232.5678... call for holiday hours.

Here are some views of the exhibition space and a selection of photographs from the show.

Photo: Vin Crescenzo

Photo: Shnaidine Cothiere

Photo: Geoffrey Margo

Photo: Sandy Greene

Photo: Victoria Skowronski

Photo: Sharlene Holliday

Photo: Rob Lybeck

Photo: Daniel Wilkinson

Photo: Andrea Poulsen

Photo: Greg Cohen

Photo: Laura Storck

Photo: Rory Schonning

Photo: Jodi Battershell

Photo: Meryl Silver

Photo: Kay Moon

Photo: Christina Fanelli

And here are our 2014 Philly Photo Day contributions. This one taken by my husband is a remnant of a sign located in the Lawndale section of Philadelphia.

Photo: Michael Titchnell

And mine... a group of signs spanning the rooftop of several commercial buildings bordering the neighborhoods of Castor and Rhawnhurst.

Photo: Dyan Titchnell

Philadelphia is the 5th largest city in the country and a city of neighborhoods, over 200 (currently used) named neighborhoods.

To see more images of the city, its people and neighborhoods, check out the entire 2014 Philly Photo day exhibition here. Also look for a selection of work from the show to be erected on billboards around the city and in an outdoor exhibition at Dilworth Park in the spring (April-May 2015).

One City, One Day... looking forward to next October's "Philly Photo Day".

PARK(ing) Day 2014 & Philadelphia

Parking is often a pain and rarely a pleasure...

unless it happens to be PARK(ing) Day, an annual event where activists, artists,  architects, and other citizens transform metered parking spaces into temporary pedestrian-friendly parks.

Then park(ing) can be fun!

Launched in 2005 by Rebar, a San Francisco art and design studio, to raise awareness of the need for open green space in urban environments after discovering that more than 70% of San Francisco's downtown outdoor space was dedicated to the movement and storage of private vehicles, with only a small percentage of that space designated for public interest.

It was on this day, November 16, nine years ago, when Rebar "leased" a parking space in downtown San Francisco by feeding coins into a two-hour meter and erected a PARK with sod, a bench, and a tree for humans to rest, relax, or do nothing... at least until the meter expired.

When time ran out, the sod was rolled up, the bench and tree packed away, the street swept, and Rebar left the area, but not without leaving a lasting impression. Today, PARK(ing) Day continues to be celebrated worldwide on the third Friday in September.

This year the city of Philadelphia allocated some 40-50 parking spots, each 170 square feet, at no cost to participants interested in creating mini-parks or "parklets" to be used for public relaxation and enjoyment during the hours of 9 AM - 5 PM with the following restrictions: that barriers tall enough for drivers to see be erected between parks and traffic lanes, only one park per block, and no parks situated near corners. Other than that... if you can park a car in it, you can have a park in it.

To avoid the hassle of parking, my husband Michael and I took a train into Center City's Jefferson Station, formerly Market East, less that a block from our first destination... a park sponsored by Philadelphia Center for Architecture at 12th and Arch Streets. The possible concept for this park: Design Can Be Fun.

Here's Michael attempting to design something precise using imprecise floppy foam blocks as two women formulate their own plan.

Next, 4 blocks south on Walnut Street, we spotted these parks:

This park by PHLe/ patrike design workshop, made from boxes left over from a recent move, allowing small children to play in the street while crawling through a cardboard maze.

And this one designed by Bohlin Cywinski Jackson Architects with grass, plants, benches, and a handcrafted circular rocking chair for relaxing and conversing with drivers in the traffic lane.

Next by JKR Partners, LLC, a place to enjoy the comforts of home while outdoors with curtains, table, chairs, framed artwork, and a mounted deer.

Watching these people enjoy lunch in their own park, made us hungry.

We decided to head over to Little Nonna's, an Italian restaurant one block away, at 12th and Locust Streets, and dine in their outdoor garden, which is no bigger than two parking spaces, and resembles a mini-park with hanging laundry.

Exiting the restaurant, we met K & T, two landscape design students. Their park, on south Syndenham Street, explores creativity by offering a variety of art materials for adults to draw, write, or color onto stretched plastic film... hopefully, rekindling a creative spirit that may have been lost after childhood.

From here we walked a bit and found ourselves at 11th and Chestnut Streets in front of a park belonging to PLCMKR (PlaceMaker, an urban organization connecting people and place). The park was titled: Be Heard... a place to voice your opinions, likes, dislikes, as well as offer suggestions and solutions. After writing down your statement, a photo was taken and attached to a wooden crate for others to see. Here's Michael and one of his pet peeves.

And for my favorite parking spot... Selfie Park, constructed by Langan Engineering at 17th and Chestnut Streets, allowing people to choose between two photo backdrops, a beach or pastoral scene, and have their picture taken with props. These two adorable girls were framed and Michael hanged.

The Langan group chose this location not only for convenience, next to their company office, but also because it faced one of Philadelphia's best kept secrets, until now... John F. Collins Park at 1707 Chestnut Street.

I can't believe I've walked past this little gem many times and never knew it existed. And while Selfie Park and the other "parklets" created for this event are temporary, dismantled at the end of the day, John F. Collins Park, approximately the size of a half-dozen parking spaces, is open year round.

We're so looking forward to PARK(ing) Day 2015 and seeing even more parks than we did this year. Maybe we'll even consider creating a "parklet" of our own.

Any ideas?

Bermuda Shorts & Pop Up Parks

Bermuda Shorts... shorts, a reference to my summer posts of few words, mostly images, and Bermuda, a place of relaxation.

I've never been to Bermuda... or found basking in the sun and having bits of sand trapped inside my clothing pleasurable or relaxing.

Waves are nice, but cities nicer, especially Philadelphia, where I don't have to pack or travel far from home to enjoy its sites, cultural activities, great restaurants, views of water and this summer's two pop up parks: Spruce Street Harbor, a floating park, and The Oval, both quiet places to unwind.

Here's a glimpse of Spruce Street Harbor Park on a lovely Monday afternoon.

Places to sit.

Places to lounge.

Views of water, and with some arm-twisting, my husband in a giant adirondack chair. 

Before heading home, we decided to check out The Oval. Unfortunately, the park was closed, only open Wednesdays through Sundays. Still... here's a bit of what we saw.

 A peek of the Art Museum looking out from The Oval.

And two views of the park when it isn't closed, courtesy of Marisa Fischetti for Visit Philadelphia.  

Can't wait to see what Philly has planned for next year's Pop Ups!

Cargo Shorts & The Graffiti Pier

My head said "Yes" but my gut said "No".

I knew it wouldn't be easy finding the Graffiti Pier in Port Richmond, that there'd be hiking involved and only one street to get us close to where we wanted to be.

But Beach Street was impossible to find and the area was not what I expected.

I expected some sand, maybe a boardwalk, possibly remnants of an amusement park and a low concrete structure covered with colorful marks made by street artists... all the makings of a pleasant outing.

I hadn't realized we'd be searching for an abandoned spot along the Delaware River where ships once docked and carried coal, not an ocean or former resort.

Instead we found a remote region surrounded by litter and broken glass, without a river or pier in sight... Beach Street... the start of our destination.

But now I was hesitant about leaving the car... it parked and me from its protective metal exterior.

I worried about being mugged, having our car (a rental) stolen or vandalized... jacked on all fours, its tires, battery and radio gone, with the words... "Welcome To Philadelphia" spray-painted in neon across the hood.

An active mind perhaps, but also determined.

With the car behind us and this ominous sign in front of us, we made our way past the gate, hoping to sidestep trash, puddles, predators and police waiting to arrest us for trespassing.

Eventually we hit concrete... Coal Pier 18, the Graffiti Pier, in Port Richmond.

And these...

 Some rooms within the pier and my husband Michael...

The exterior of a room, and the skyline of Philadelphia from the edge of the pier... 

  

And our rental car... exactly as we left it.

For some harmless graffiti fun go here and here.

Pedal Pushers & Automobiles

I'm sitting, waiting...

inside our Chevy Van named 'Handsome Bruce', a.k.a. Bruce or H.B. for short, after the Scottish King, 'Robert the Bruce', portrayed in the award winning movie 'Braveheart', who led his men into battle with his passionate cry... "You've bled with Wallace; now bleed with me."

Thankfully, in the seventeen years we've owned Bruce, no battles were fought, or blood shed, though he was wounded, when a pumpkin hurled at him last October, slightly dented his hood, making him now distinctive and handsome.

More handsome than our previous vehicles named Bruce:

a Chevy Nova Hatchback purchased used in '75, whose teeth-like grille and hood when opened resembled the mechanical shark in the summer blockbuster film 'Jaws', nicknamed Bruce by the crew after Steven Spielberg's lawyer, Bruce Ramer.

and a brand new metallic red-orange '84 Chevy Van, similar in color to the Nova, calling this newer in'car'nate, Bruce 2.

Three automobiles in thirty-nine years: all Chevrolets, all named Bruce. There must be some truth to GM's slogan, "Built to Last," but in actuality, it's my husband's work ethic and high quality standards that have kept our automobiles on the road for so long.

So now I'm sitting, waiting, relaxing...

inside our van, while my husband Michael is inside Giant, our local supermarket, picking up a 4-pack of muffins... probably a double chocolate chip, lemon poppy, blueberry, and either cranberry-orange, cinnamon, or plain chocolate chip. I don't usually like surprises, but with breakfast pastries, I don't mind.

I also don't mind: sitting, waiting, relaxing, and now watching...

people: locking and unlocking car doors, walking towards the market, and others exiting the store pushing carts, or carrying plastic bags filled with groceries, a few shopping solo, most with children, spouses or friends. No one is hurrying, while many seem distracted, even attracted to something up ahead...

to a car with a flowering tree sticking out of its trunk.

But now I see the flowering tree is artificial and not protruding from the trunk at all, but stuck to the roof of the car as a permanent fixture.

Curious! Who would do such a thing?

Perhaps someone like me, who names their vehicles and believes inanimate objects have personalities all their own, or just someone with a good sense of humor and a vanity plate that reads... "Deir Me".

"Everybody's a walking museum of where they've been," said Colson Whitehead in his book, The Noble Hustle: Poker, Beef Jerky, and Death, and who may have taken car decorating a step further when during his college days, he and two friends, traveled out west to Las Vegas collecting souvenirs from places along the way, and epoxying them to the hood of their 'jalopy'.

"Two Sears Towers sticking up over the engine, a row of turquoise stones on the roof above the windshield, toy buffalo stampeding across the great brown plain over the engine. Bull's horns from Arizona, in case we needed to gorge someone at ramming speed, you never know, and four refrigerator magnets with Elvis's face in the front grille to repel ghosts... and dozens of plastic slot machines in pink, red and lime-green"...

Possibly looking like this had they traveled a bit longer.

Photo by Yewco Kootnikoff of Canadian Poet Susan Musgrave's car

Well here comes the 'muffin man'.

Let me see... peeking into the plastic grocery bag he's holding marked: "Recycle This Bag For a Better Tomorrow." And today's mystery muffin is... plain chocolate chip!

Wait! There's more... some Stonyfield Organic Yogurt: blueberry and strawberry banana, and two bottles of Gold Peak Tea: sweetened and unsweetened.

Who goes into a supermarket and comes out with only one thing?... apparently, not my husband.

With the key in the ignition and the pedal to the metal, it's... "Home Bruce!"

For Handsome Bruce's namesake, watch the ending of 'Braveheart' here.

For more decorated vehicles, watch Houston's Art Car Parade here.