The annual May Fair organized by the Spruce Hill Community Association (SHCA) is one of the year’s highlights in the neighborhood. This year, the event will mark the 56th anniversary! The date is set for Saturday, May 10.

As always, the SHCA is inviting individuals and groups to have a table at the event. Especially invited are crafts people and artisans from West Philadelphia, and local groups and organizations that would like to promote the work they are involved in. Local businesses may also take part, according to SHCA’s executive board member Mark Wagenveld.

The cost of a table for the day is $30 for non-profit groups and $40 for individuals and groups who are selling things. The SHCA will provide vendors with tables and chairs.

The fair runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in Clark Park (43rd & Chester Ave) and will also feature live music, food, games for children, a used book sale and a raffle with prizes offered by local merchants.

If you are interested in becoming a vendor please call 215-349-7825 and leave a message with your name and contact information. A form will be mailed out to you. Space is limited and all requests for a table must be in by April 25.

4224 Baltimore Avenue site. (Archived photo/ West Philly Local)

There’s a new date for the first community zoning meeting for the apartment complex proposed at 4224 Baltimore Avenue. The meeting, which was postponed due to snow, will take place at 6:30-8:00 p.m. on Wednesday, March 26 at University of the Sciences, Rosenberger Hall (43rd Street between Regent Sq and Woodland Ave), Room 101. Community members are invited to provide their feedback on the project.

And here’s what to expect at the meeting, according to Spruce Hill Zoning Chair Barry Grossbach:

“The developers will present their plans on massing and design for the site reflecting ideas emanating from the three community meetings held during 2013, as well as the current assessment on  the economics of the project. We will also receive details on the nature of the variances that the project will require should it reach the city’s Zoning Board of Adjustment. We urge all interested parties to attend and take the opportunity to ask questions and offer comments.”

Photo courtesy University City District.

The spring has officially begun today and the University City District has announced an exciting spring program for The Porch, a cool public space near 30th Street Station. The spring programming will begin April 1 and will include a variety of FREE events and activities, featuring music, food, fitness, and fun. Here are some more details on what to expect at The Porch next month.

FOOD

Gourmet Food Trucks – Mon, Wed, Fri (11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m.); Tue & Thu  (7:30 a.m.-2 p.m.)

MUSIC

WXPN Local Wednesdays
Noon on the first Wednesday of the month
Live music from Philly’s rising stars.

Ginger Coyle: April 2

You hear Ginger Coyle’s vintage vocals grace your ears, you undoubtedly feel as if you’ve encountered an old soul. The South Jersey singer-songwriter-pianist-guitarist first caught XPN’s attention with the bluesy “Silver Lining” from her 2012 EP Homeward Bound and is currently working on her full length to be released in 2014.

Lunchtime Accordion Serenade

Tuesdays, Noon – 1 p.m.

Enjoy live accordion music while you relax and have lunch or take a break from the daily grind.

FITNESS 

Put your lunch break to work for you with fitness programming from BodyRock Boot Camp.

Thursdays, 6 p.m.

Zumba: April 3 & 24

Bokwa: April 10

Bootcamp: April 17  Continue Reading

West Philly artist Nile Livingston with some works from the “Baltimore Avenue Series” (Photo by Annamarya Scaccia / West Philly Local)

Nile Livingston’s presence is calming.

We’re seated at the back corner table in Green Line Café on Baltimore Avenue. Livingston is sitting across from me, every once in a while dodging the sunlight coming through the window. As she answers my questions about her art, she’s composed and soft-spoken—her responses brief, but with a relaxed kindness.

Which is completely opposite of her work. As West Philly Local wrote about nearly two years ago, Livingston is the visual artist behind the “Baltimore Avenue Series,” which chronicles life on the corridor through colorful line drawings. (The series was displayed in Gold Standard Café’s dining room in 2012.) For the series, Livingston took scenes of everyday Baltimore Avenue life and put them down on stark white paper, first creating contour lines and then adding vibrant dabs and streaks of color Sharpie paint markers to bring them to life.

The “Baltimore Avenue Series” was inspired by “the day-to-day pedestrian archetype” she’d often see after moving back to West Philly following her graduation from Kutztown University, where she earned a B.F.A in large metal fabrication and sculpture. As she notes on her website, the series “captures the fleeting moods” of the community as “it’s transformed by the influx of growing businesses, new residents, petty crimes, and trope characters.”

And all of the characters that compose the new West Philly are there: the jogger, the coffee shop writer, the dog walker, the artist, the neighborhood kids, and the parents with their children. Her favorite image from the series, titled “The Museum of Momma Art: Affordable Gifts for Mother,” is of a woman pushing a stroller down the street.

The final images, she said, are based both on observation and imagination.

“I tried to take these archetypes and leave it open to a story,” said Livingston, 26, who also designed the Cecil B. Moore playground mural at 22^nd Street and Lehigh Avenue. “I don’t know what their lives are about, so I draw people that are kind of similar to them. These aren’t people I know necessarily. These are all strangers.” Continue Reading

From left to right:  Hunter Gatherer shop manager Dominick Caswell and tattoo artists Josh Anderson, Zack Traum and Mike Munter (Photo by Mike Lyons/West Philly Local).

In November, we reported that plans to bring a tattoo studio to 4510 Walnut Street were in the works, becoming the latest business to occupy the revolving storefront.

Well, readers, turns out those plans become a reality two weeks ago, when Hunter Gatherer Tattoo (Facebook page) open its doors. Co-owned by tattoo artist Josh Anderson and Falls Taproom owner Marvin Graaf, Hunter Gatherer Tattoo becomes the third tattoo shop to operate in West Philly.

Hunter Gatherer, which is open seven days a week, specializes in traditional and neo-traditional designs with an illustrative focus, said Anderson. Anderson, 33, serves as the shop’s main artist, working every day to get Hunter Gatherer “off the ground and going.” Tattoo artists Mike Munter and Zack Traum also work out of the studio on a rotating schedule, with Dominick Caswell acting as shop manager.

So far, business has been good and “super positive” for the tattoo studio, with the community showing “nothing but great support,” Anderson said. Once the weather breaks, the owners plan to host a grand opening party with an art show featuring local artists, a private DJ, and food and drinks.

Hunter Gatherer Tattoo (Photo by Annamarya Scaccia / West Philly Local)

With Hunter Gatherer, Anderson said he wants to set it apart from the studios typical of South Street or in Brooklyn — two “touristy” places he’s worked where customers are rarely repeat. Instead, he prefers a relaxed atmosphere where he can make “all the artists happy and all the clientele happy.”

Much of the woodwork in the shop—a space that has been many things over the years and most recently an art gallery—was made from reclaimed wood pallets that Anderson and others cut and fitted together. The repurposing of materials, as well as Graaf and Anderson’s childhoods in big hunting and fishing towns, are much of why the shop is named Hunter Gatherer, Anderson said.

“I was getting sick of just having that whole hustle, bustle, not really get to know anyone. My clientele there, you never really saw them again,” Anderson, who’s worked as a tattooist for over a decade, told West Philly Local. “I’d like to develop a relationship with my clientele.

“We’re just trying to create a nice space for everybody to come and see, and get tattooed, that has a good vibe and environment.”

Hunter Gatherer Tattoo is open Mondays to Thursdays from 12 p.m. to 10 p.m., Fridays & Saturdays from 12 p.m. to 11 p.m., and Sundays from 12 p.m. to 8 p.m. Walk-ins and appointments available. For more information, call 267-233-7015.

-Annamarya Scaccia

Correction: An earlier version of this article incorrectly stated that Dominick Caswell is a tattoo artist. He is the shop manager. We regret the error.

Photos by Annamarya Scaccia / West Philly Local

When I first met Lola Reed a few weeks ago, I was struck by her style.

It’s a brisk Saturday in February, and Reed is meeting me for a mid-morning interview at her new store, HALO Foundation Boutique. She’s wrapped in a chic tan coat and sporting killer heels that make her hike over the mound of snow she’s crossing a bit shaky. As we make small talk during her walk over, Reed has a warm smile on her face.

Reed, 28, opened HALO Foundation Boutique at 4616 Baltimore Avenue during the holidays, taking over the space from a short-lived clothing store. It’s a small two-level shop with oversized front windows, decked out mannequins, and an intimate atmosphere. A cozy nook notches out the ground floor, where high-end and designer clothing, jewelry, and accessories are placed on display.

To the right, wooden stairs lead up to a nearly empty loft space. A cozy loveseat and cluttered table are pushed against the back wall, which is plastered with a large collage of fashion editorials and photos of runway models cut from magazines.

This is where we find ourselves after we’ve made our way inside. As we sink into the couch, Reed, dressed in all black, begins to chat with affection about the boutique and its backstory. The air is filled with faith music playing from a portable stereo/CD player on the floor. Light from the morning sun bathes the space.

In a way, it’s a scene that perfectly encapsulates Reed’s mission, of which the boutique is only a part. Continue Reading