Doll by Jessie Schwarz.

University City Arts League is holding its annual Holiday Craft Show and Sale from December 7 to 21 and inviting everyone to the opening reception this Saturday, 6:00-8:00 p.m. (members-only opening reception is on Friday, 6:00 to 8:00 p.m.). Over 50 artists will present their work at this year’s show, including ceramics, dolls, drawings, felted animals, hand woven bags, glass, illustrations, jewelry, note cards, paintings, prints, purses, scarves, table linens, wallets and more!

The show hours are:

Monday – Friday, 3:00 – 8:00 p.m.
Saturday and Sunday, noon – 6:00 p.m.

For more information, visit www.ucartsleague.org.

Penn Museum (3260 South St.) is celebrating the 125th anniversary of their founding on Thursday, Dec. 6 with a 12-hour free Community Open House. The Open House runs from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m., with opportunities for behind the scenes tours, talks, informal meetings with the museum curators and collections staff, and more.

Full details of tomorrow’s activities are available here. And here‘s a story about Penn Museum in today’s The New York Times.

A temporary “no parking” sign near 49th and Larchwood.

Here’s the good news: Crews will be filming part of an episode of a new NBC drama in West Philly tomorrow. Kind of cool. The bad news is that if you live within a few blocks of 49th and Larchwood, there’s a good chance that you will need to find a new place to park until Friday. And if you live a few more blocks away, your favorite spot might be gone by the time you read this.

The filming of Do No Harm, a modern-day “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” focusing on a neurosurgeon with a secret, starts filming on Thursday morning. But a ban on parking on streets near 49th and Larchwood begins this evening (Wednesday) at 6 p.m. and ends Friday morning at 1 a.m.

The streets reportedly run from 47th to 50th and Larchwood to as far south as Catharine. Neighbors on the impacted blocks (about seven blocks in all) should have received a flyer notifying them of the parking prohibitions (a reader named Renee tipped us off to this whole thing) and it looks like the streets have been posted. The production company has the proper permits from the City.

If you have any questions about the filming, call the production company’s local office at 215-977-2897 (see the flyer below).

In case you are wondering, Do No Harm premiers on Jan. 31, 2013 after the finale of 30 Rock.

The flyer sent to residents. Thanks to reader Renee.

Reuben Mitchell.

Reuben Mitchell, an inspiring 31-year-old actor, was riding his motorcycle on the 3900 block of Woodland Avenue shortly after 7 a.m. on November 12 when he struck a car that was making a u-turn. He died later that evening from the injuries sustained in the accident (source: Philly.com). Reuben was cast to play the role of Magnus in an upcoming Curio Theatre show, Tom Stoppard’s The Real Inspector Hound.

Mourning Reuben’s death and after some difficult decisions, the theatre administration decided to cancel the first weekend of previews scheduled for November 29 – December 1 but to go on with the main production run. Josh Browns who knew Reuben well will be filling the role.

“It’s been a real tragedy for the entire Philadelphia theatre community,” says Curio’s Managing Director Gay Carducci. “Though, we have known Reuben for quite some time, The Real Inspector Hound was going to be the first show that Reuben would have done with us. After much thought we decided to continue on with the show, as we believe Reuben would have wanted us to do.”

The December 5 performance will be held in honor of Reuben, and all of the proceeds that evening will go to his family in an “effort to help them during this trying time.”

VIX Emporium, the popular everything-cool-and-artsy shop, opened its doors five years ago this month and now the shop owners, Emily and Sean Dorn, need your help to celebrate the 5th anniversary. This Saturday, Nov. 17, all are welcome to the AnniVIXary V party at the shop near 50th and Baltimore. The party runs from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.

The party will include festive refreshments, merriment and music by Philly blues legend Shakey Lyman (Facebook page), who will be playing his 1938 National steel guitar from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. Shakey also played VIX’s grand opening. VIX’s own Sean Dorn will be on upright bass.

This will also be a good chance to scope out some holiday gifts. Fiber Artist Elissa Kara, the owner of Nice Things Handmade (Facebook page), will be on hand to talk about her crocheted wooly hats, which she has been making for more than a decade. Kara was the featured artist at the very first VIX holiday party back in 2007. Kara will also debut an assortment of pouches and purses in vintage fabrics. These were made from a collection of donated fabrics with wacky 1950s and 60s patterns mysteriously left on VIX’s doorstep a few years ago. A note was attached to the fabrics that read “for a deserving crafter.”

A small section of the new mural near 42nd and Woodland depicts a soccer game in the Clark Park bowl. The mural, “Communion Between a Rock and a Hard Place,” illustrates the transition returning vets are making.

West Philly’s newest mural is a tribute to returning vets and a depiction of their journey from the war zone to a life back home.

Flanking a parking lot near 42nd and Woodland, the mural also contains verse from members of the Warrior Writers group, a non-profit that helps veterans convey their experiences through artistic expression. Phillip Adams and Willis Humphrey designed and installed the mural, which is entitled “Communion Between a Rock and a Hard Place.”

One side of the two-mural installation depicts soldiers on duty. The other includes a scene of Clark Park. Together they represent the two worlds that many returning vets are trying to reconcile.

The mural was financed in part through state and local grants and the city’s Mural Arts Program. Organizers hope the mural will help people better understand the transition to civilian life that many vets are experiencing. Read more about the mural here.

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