Arts & Culture

Pioneering 20th-century sculptor and furniture maker Wharton Esherick  lived and worked in Philadelphia and the surrounding countryside, where his onetime studio and home is now a museum.

WRTI’s Susan Lewis considers the life and influences of this artist who practiced a variety of artistic disciplines before achieving fame for his  curvilinear free-form sculpture.

Inspired by Edinburgh’s renowned Fringe Festival, Philadelphia’s version took root in 1997.  Over the next several weeks,  galleries, bars, and public plazas will be among the ordinary spaces turned into venues for experimental performing arts.  Some people are also transforming - stepping away from their day jobs and out of their comfort zones. 

WRTI’s Susan Lewis takes a broad look at the festival and a close up on how one Live Arts show is turning ordinary people into dancers.

WRTI's Susan Lewis take you to the Philadelphia Museum of Art's exhibition that explores how the idea of utopia captivated the imaginations of early 20th-century artists. Visions of Arcadia runs through September 3rd.

Philadelphia’s Mütter Museum is not a typical tourist stop displaying  artwork, or artifacts of culture, history or science - although it has some of all of these. The museum is popularly known today for its human specimens of medical anomalies, such as the tallest skeleton in North America and its plaster cast of conjoined twins - but its mission extends beyond entertaining the curious public.   

Temple University has announced the name of its 10th president. WRTI's Jim Cotter speaks with Neil Theobald, whose tenure begins in January, 2013.