Each fall the Philadelphia Open Studio Tours (POST) provide a unique opportunity to meet local artists and learn more about their work. Artists who live and work west of the Schuylkill will open their homes and studios for POST tours this weekend (Oct. 17 & 18), and everyone is welcome to visit them. There will be exhibitions and special demonstrations.

Here are this year’s participating studios and artists:

University City Arts League
4226 Spruce Street
Open all day Saturday and Sunday
Artists: Marie Alarcon – The opening reception for her Scientism, Divination, and the State exhibit will be held on Saturday at 6 p.m.

The Cedar Works
4919 Pentridge Street
Artists:
Deena Ball – Demonstration of unique textured watercolor process – 3 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 17.
Ken Beidler – Demonstration of how to make a pitcher – Saturday afternoon between 2:30-3:00 p.m.
Melinda Steffy – Translating music into abstract color patterns
Stefani Threet – Colorful handbuilt functional pottery by Threet Ceramics

40th Street AIR
4007 and 4013 Chestnut Street
Artists:
Jeane Cohen – Artist Books and Portrait Oil Paintings
Lori Waselchuk – BLOCK PARTY! A multimedia exhibit about community, neighbors, and friends
Erin Bernard
Dre Grigorpol
Quinha Faria
Genesis Crespo  Continue Reading

Dear West Philly Local readers,

We’re happy to announce our 5th Annual Pumpkin Carving Contest. Starting today (Oct 15) and through October 31, we’re accepting snapshots of your carved pumpkins at: contest@westphillylocal.com (one entry per person). As always, we’ll have some awesome prizes from local businesses.

Winners will be selected in the following categories:

• Scariest
• Funniest
• Kids (12 and under)
• Best Philly-themed
• Readers’ Choice (grand prize)

The entry deadline is 6 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 31.

Visit the Pumpkin Carving Contest page for more details on how to submit your entry. Happy carving!

Samuel Powel School (photo from greatphillyschools.org).

Great news for a small Powelton Village elementary school students, parents and staff. According to a recently released 2013-2014 Philadelphia school progress report, which measured school performance throughout the year across various dimensions, such as student progress, achievement and school climate, Samuel Powel is ranked the second best elementary school in the district. Anne Frank elementary located in Northeast Philadelphia is the leader among the city’s 61 K-4 schools. Powel School, which is located near 36th and Pearl streets and is led by principal Kimberly Ellerbee, enrolls about 260 students. Check out a recent piece about the school on Philly.com.

As concerns K-8 schools, here are the rankings of some West Philly schools (there are 126 K-8 schools in Philadelphia): Penn Alexander School (43rd and Locust) – 6th; Alain Locke (4550 Haverford Ave.) – 88th; Henry C. Lea (4700 Locust St.) – 70th; Samuel B. Huey (5200 Pine St.) – 97th. The city leader in this category is Folks Arts Cultural Treasures Charter School located at 1023 Callowhill St.

To download the reports, visit the Philadelphia School District website.

This is a reminder that monthly community meetings with the 18th Police District officers will take place on Thursday, Oct. 15, at 6 p.m. Residents are invited to bring their questions and concerns about crime in their area. There are three units in the 18th Police District, and each unit has its own meeting scheduled:

• Lt. Brian McBride of the University City Division of the 18th Police District and representatives of University City District will meet with community members at the Calvary Center for Culture and Community (48th and Baltimore).
• The community meeting for the PSA 2 area residents (see map) will be held at the 18th Police District headquarters at 5510 Pine St.
• Lt. Sean Cobette will meet with residents of the PSA 1 area at the Christian Compassion Hall located at 6130 Cedar Ave.  Continue Reading

                   Jasmine Wright

The handyman accused of killing 27-year-old Jasmine Wright in her apartment near 50th and Locust has been held for trial.

James Harris, 56, faces murder and rape charges in the death of Wright, who had recently graduated from a Drexel University graduate program. She had been raped and strangled, according to police. Her body was found on July 15, about 24 hours after she was murdered.

Harris worked in the building but was fired about a week earlier, according to reports. Police say he still had a set of keys to the building, and his fingerprints and DNA were found on the scene.

Harris had 31 prior arrests, police said, including sexual assaults. He was also convicted in 1982 for the murder of his own father. He had been in custody since July 19, when he was detained on suspicion of robbery and trespassing for re-entering the building.

Well-known West Philly based photographer Lori Waselchuk has spent the last couple of years hanging out with block captains, attending block parties and photographing the people that hold streets and neighborhoods together.

You can get an intimate look at the results of that work at two exhibitions that open this Friday. Block Party is an exhibition of Waselchuk’s newest work connected with her multimedia project Them That Do.

West Philly block captain Lisa Barkley (Photo by Lori Waselchuk).

For Windowishes, Waselchuk teamed up with six block captains for an installation in the storefront display windows on the west side of South 40th Street between Chestnut and Ludlow. Waselchuk and her collaborators – block leaders and captains Lisa Barkely, Mary Campbell, Carol Dubie, Freda Egnal, Elizabeth Waring, and Renée McBride-Williams – installed “a small environment in each of the bay windows inspired by their community stewardship and neighborhood histories,” according to Waselchuk.

The result is seven stand-alone exhibits that invite us into the life of a single block. For example, the children of Dubie’s block on South 46^th Street made flags for her display, “Legends of the Block.” Teens from Waring’s block of Powelton Avenue helped design and construct a four-foot tree for her display, “Our Trees.”

A whole bunch of community organizations came together for this one. Local cabinet maker and carpenter Gordon Richardson of Oberholtzer Custom Cabinetry donated labor, materials and expertise. Community organizations such as the University City Arts League and the Spruce Hill Community Association also supported the project.

So come have a look and celebrate the launch of both exhibits on Friday, Oct. 16 from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the AIRSpace Gallery (4007 Chestnut St.).