INSIDE OUT: Art Masterpieces On Exhibit in Philadelphia Neighborhoods

Mont Sante-Victoire, 1902-04 by Paul Cezanne at the Philly Tour Hub

The Philadelphia Museum of Art is sharing its art in a program called Inside/Out. This summer and fall (see schedule below), sixty high-quality replicas of Museum masterpieces have found their way into communities around the region. Each participating neighborhood features about ten artworks within a short distance of each other.
I was in Philadelphia recently and decided it would be fun to take a tour of one of these art installations. The closest was in Old City, Philadelphia, not far from many of the city’s famous historic sites such as the Liberty Bell, Independence Hall, Christ Church and Betsy Ross’s house. So, I downloaded a map of the locations and set out on my walk. The fascinating thing about exhibiting art in this way is how putting a painting in the real world instead of hanging it on a museum wall changes how it is viewed–it becomes one more part of the landscape. Art objects were clearly chosen to have some connection to the location in which they are displayed. Here are some of the fifteen pieces of art that I saw that are featured in the Old City group.

Interior of Sant Bavo, Haarlem, 1631 by Pieter Jansz. Saenredam at Market and N. 2nd (Christ Church behind)

Disks of Newton, 1912 by Frantisek Kupka at the Chemical Heritage Foundation

Carnival Evening 1886 by Henri Rousseau at the Arden Theater Company

Portrait of Mademoiselle Legrand, 1875 by Auguste Renoir at the Hamilton Family Arts Center

Bowl, 1969 by Rudolf Staffel at Cut It Out Hair Salon

Sugar Cane, 1931 by Diego Rivera in OCD lot

Inside Out will be presented in two cycles.

April 15–July 15, 2016

(To see what artwork is featured in each community, go to the Inside Out website and download the maps. You can also find links to more information about many of the art pieces. And you can download an app for your phone to use as you tour.)

    Coatesville, Chester County, PA   Download map >>
    Doylestown, Bucks County, PA   Download map >>
    Lansdowne, Delaware County, PA   Download map >>
    Narberth, Montgomery County, PA   Download map >>
    Old City, Philadelphia* (on view through July 28)   Download map >>
    Tacony, Philadelphia   Download map >>


August 1–November 1, 2016

    Brewerytown, Philadelphia
    Bristol, Bucks County, PA
    Conshohocken, Montgomery County, PA
    Jenkintown, Montgomery County,PA
    Phoenixville, Chester County, PA
    Upper Darby, Delaware County, PA