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The Welcome House



Was able to pop in on the opening celebration of Design Philadelphia at Love Park last night. It was also the opening of The Welcome House, a very cool temporary art installation by artist Marianne Bernstein, and a project of First Person Arts in partnership with InLiquid. First Person Arts is an organization that for the past three years has been using the arts for public engagement. This is exactly the sort of project I would like to see much more of throughout the City. It is art that is temporary, of the highest quality, wakes people up and confronts/engages/delights them in the course of their daily routine. Last night's celebration of Design Philadelphia was also remarkable - a party whose participants ran the gamut from hipsters to the homeless. Minima, the gallery in Old City which specializes in contemporary furniture design, was able to arrange for the installation of an array of very sleek white outdoor furniture in the park, so for the run of this installation the park will each become Philadelphia's newest open air lounge. The First Person Arts annual festival will take place November 3-8 at the Painted Bride.

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