Philadelphia and the Countryside - Press Room

On the heels of Jay-Z’s announcement of the Labor Day weekend Budweiser Made in America festival, Philadelphia is gearing up for another musical bash—Black Music Month. Founded more than 30 years ago by the city’s famed songwriter and record producer Kenny Gamble and on-air personality Dyana Williams, the month-long celebration features different genres of music, including jazz, hip-hop and rap—all representing the influence of black performers and producers. A highlight of the festivities: The Roots Picnic, which takes place for two full days for the first time in its five-year run.

Black Music’s Roots In Philly:
Soul, R&B and

When the Barnes Foundation opens to the public on Saturday, May 19, 2012 (after the collection’s relocation from nearby Merion, Pennsylvania), the already-compelling cultural district along the Benjamin Franklin Parkway in Philadelphia will become the focus of the art world, and a new interactive website, visitphilly.com/withart, is launching on May 15 to help visitors curate their own plentiful art experiences.

To tell the whole story of the parkway and the city, a growing list of organizations have partnered for the city’s first-ever coordinated and sustained visual arts marketing campaign called With Art Philadelphia™. Led by the Greater Philadelphia Tourism

CAMPAIGN NAME: With Art Philadelphia™

TAGLINE: Curate Your Own Experience

CAMPAIGN OVERVIEW & CREATIVE CONCEPT: Philadelphia’s first-ever coordinated and sustained visual arts marketing initiative, With Art Philadelphia aims to position the city as a top arts destination and draw more visitors to see and explore the vast and varied arts scene.

The series of advertisements describes a variety of ideal art-focused days and nights in Philadelphia and encourages visitors to take advantage of the many art offerings available within close proximity of one another. Each ad poses the question: How do you curate the most artistic mile in the country?

Just in time for the opening of the Barnes Foundation’s Philadelphia campus on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, the City of Philadelphia, the Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation (GPTMC) and 14 other civic and cultural partners today launched the city’s first-ever coordinated and sustained visual arts marketing campaign called With Art Philadelphia™. The two-year, $2 million (to date) campaign aims to leverage the energy of the Barnes Foundation opening in order to generate sustained attention on one of the world’s great art destinations, draw new and engaged audiences and spur overnight stays from visitors worldwide. With Art encourages visitors to curate

The Calendar of Events is organized as follows:

May 2012
June 2012
July 2012
August 2012
September 2012
October 2012
November 2012
December 2012
January 2013
February 2013
March 2013
April 2013
Ongoing Activities

MAY 2012

Through May 1, 2012
THE PHILADELPHIA ANTIQUES SHOW. During this annual event, dealers from across the U.S. offer the finest examples of period furniture, folk and fine art, ceramics, porcelain, silver, jewelry and textiles at the Pennsylvania Convention Center. (610) 902-2109, philaantiques.com

Through May 6, 2012
VAN GOGH UP CLOSE. The Philadelphia Museum of Art presents some of the most daring and innovative works

The hub of Latino culture and life in Philadelphia, El Centro de Oro is home to several international non-profit organizations, many third- and fourth-generation family-owned businesses and residents descending from almost every Latino country across the globe. Visitors to this lively enclave—just a short cab ride from Center City Philadelphia—can feast on authentic Latin/Caribbean dishes at Isla Verde, get inspired by the work of Puerto Rican artists at Taller Puertorriqueño or feel their way through a flamenco dance lesson at Raíces Culturales Latinoamericanas. Here are some suggestions for those who want to get a taste of the Latin flavor in

For those visitors who like to stray off the beaten path, Philadelphia is bursting with attractions that pay homage to the unusual. The region boasts a slew of delightfully quirky spots, including a bench that seems to contradict the laws of sound, the country’s largest bug museum, an anatomical model made of a human nervous system and more. Here’s a look at some of the Philadelphia-area attractions that make the region just a little delightfully weird:

Collections Of A Natural Kind:

• There’s a reason an anatomical model outside the bookstore at Drexel University College of Medicine’s East Falls campus

Visitors to Philadelphia can choose from an assortment of options to explore the region, including those of the air, automotive, audio, culinary, self-guided and water-based varieties. And the sightseeing fun doesn’t stop when the sun goes down. Those who come out at night can join tours that feature behind-the-scenes action and even spirits from beyond. Here’s a selection of tours available throughout the region:

History Lessons By Day & Night:

• The Constitutional Walking Tour of Philadelphia – Visitors get an up-close look at history during this 75-minute walking tour to more than 20 sites. The tour runs daily from

May is going to be a monumental month on Philadelphia’s Benjamin Franklin Parkway, particularly during the time span that stretches from May 10 through May 19. What will the week bring? The opening of the Barnes Foundation and Sister Cities Park, the debut of one of the most comprehensive Dead Sea Scrolls exhibitions ever organized at The Franklin Institute and the running of two of Philadelphia’s most historic events: the Aberdeen Dad Vail Regatta and the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts’ Annual Student Exhibition. Here’s a look at what’s about to bloom on the city’s most culturally rich mile:

For the second year in a row, Philadelphia is officially joining Jazz Appreciation Month, begun in 2002 by the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History. As the birthplace or temporary home of such noted jazz figures as Billie Holiday, John Coltrane, Bessie Smith, Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie Parker, Philadelphia’s role in the history of the art form cannot be understated. Throughout April, dozens of venues will host events to engage the public in America’s only native musical genre. But the tribute doesn’t stop at the end of the month; in Philadelphia, jazz is a tune that’s played all year long.

Located just next to Independence Mall, where the country’s Founding Fathers declared liberty and built a free nation, Old City still boasts charming cobblestoned streets and plenty of 18^th-century charm—along with an independent streak that’s evident in everything from its owner-operated shops to its edgy art scene. People love the neighborhood for its fashionable boutiques, great restaurants, eclectic galleries and theaters and vibrant nightlife. Its proximity to the Liberty Bell, Penn’s Landing and the Ben Franklin Bridge make Old City a favorite for out-of-towners as much as for the residents who call it home.

Restaurants & Bars:

Historical Sites & Attractions:

• Wannabe sailors can spend the night in the nation’s most decorated battleship, the Battleship New Jersey, and take tours of the officers’ and crew’s mess halls, communications center and high-tech command center. 62 Battleship Place, Camden, (856) 966-1652, battleshipnewjersey.org
• America’s most famous flag maker greets guests in her interactive 18^th-century upholstery shop at the Betsy Ross House. Visitors learn about Betsy’s life and legend from the lady herself. Summer brings a free Once Upon A Nation storytelling bench in the courtyard and the annual Flag Festival. Also, every morning at 10:00 a.m. in

Savvy shoppers find creative inspiration when they pop by the excellent museum stores of Philadelphia and The Countryside®. Vendors from Center City to Bucks County to the Brandywine Valley offer artisan-made jewelry and ceramics, classic kids’ toys, humorous gifts, historic tomes, fair-trade crafts, silk scarves, signature home accessories and Philadelphia-themed treasures—and support the venues that host them. Most museums also promote great seasonal deals on annual memberships that score members free admission throughout the year—and discounts in their shops. Here, find some museums that make shopping part of the cultural experience:

Artistic Inspiration:

• Brandywine River Museum: Walking through this

Spanning from Broad to 10^th Streets and from Market to Pine Streets, Midtown Village is the lively center of downtown Philadelphia. Other neighborhoods converge here, but Midtown Village—a new but buzzing city enclave—maintains a distinct personality thanks to a business boom that includes independent shops and restaurants, small cafes, alfresco tables along every sidewalk and a rainbow street sign-lined Gayborhood. On the neighborhood’s western border lies a district appropriately named for its place as Philadelphia’s performance hub: the Avenue of the Arts, which runs along Broad Street from City Hall to Lombard Street. The wide stretch is home to

New Museums Add Even More Cultural Cred
This summer, the Barnes Foundation’s Philadelphia campus marks its first full season on the culturally rich Benjamin Franklin Parkway. Home to one of the world’s greatest collections of Impressionist, Post-Impressionist and early Modern paintings, the Barnes Foundation’s new building combines the vision of original owner Dr. Albert Barnes with a contemporary and green execution. In view of the Barnes, the Rodin Museum will reopen this summer after a major renovation and welcome visitors to stand in awe of The Thinker, The Kiss and The Gates of Hell, plus wander around the beautiful outdoor

Much Ado About Arboretums
In part because the Quakers who settled in Pennsylvania were meticulous about identifying and cataloguing the forms of natural life they discovered here, the Philadelphia region is internationally recognized for its wealth of arboretums. Chestnut Hill’s Morris Arboretum of the University of Pennsylvania is the official arboretum of Pennsylvania and boasts the only fernery in North America. Its award-winning permanent exhibit, Out on a Limb – a Tree Adventure, transports visitors 50 feet high into the treetops on a canopy walk that requires no climbing. Showcasing the arboretum’s commitment to sustainability, the Horticulture Center Complex has

Throughout Philadelphia and The Countryside®, museums, gardens and performing arts centers are serving visitors enticing meals, from delicate French cuisine to juicy burgers to kosher snacks. Here’s a look at a few of the region’s best bets for a complete cultural day (or night) out:

• Inside the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Stephen Starr’s contemporary French eatery Granite Hill dishes up museum-quality plates of olive oil-poached tuna with a white bean purée and marinated grape tomatoes, and roasted branzino meunière with capers and lemon brown butter. The restaurant is open for lunch Tuesday through Saturday, for dinner on Friday and for

It may still be winter, but Philadelphia is set to bloom a little early this year thanks to a blockbuster Van Gogh exhibition that pays special attention to the artist’s floral works, the largest indoor flower show in the world and the American debut of Bruce Munro’s imaginative garden light display. Here’s a look at what’s flourishing in Philadelphia even before spring has sprung:

• 2012 promises to be a banner year for the Philadelphia Museum of Art, hosting the sure-to-be blockbuster Van Gogh Up Close, running from February 1-May 6. The exhibit explores the painter’s deep immersion into nature, including