The city of brotherly love and sisterly affection is ready to greet art lovers with a heated exhibition season that not only raises questions but answers them, too. How do archaeologists preserve ancient Assyrian artifacts in the current conflict and destruction? Find out at the Penn Museum. How did two paintings by Paul Cézanne, in the collections of the Barnes Foundation and the Philadelphia Museum of Art, cause a huge media kerfuffle? How do contemporary artists turn fabrics and recycled everyday materials into large installation art? How did Asian American artists and activists use art to voice their resilience? We at Observer are a curious bunch, and the following art exhibitions in Philadelphia did much to slake our thirst for knowledge.
“Kelly Kozma: Watch Me Backflip”
Paradigm Gallery + Studio, through June 1, 2025
“Watch Me Backflip” is a solo exhibition featuring the work of mixed-media and fiber artist Kelly Kozma. It uses repurposed material to show the significance and interconnectedness of small interactions within the broader environment. The artist has created a massive 22-foot circumference installation of 35,000 hand-stitched circles—a cosmic work titled Iguana & Myrrh, Magma & Reef. Objects like greeting cards, packages, clothing and threads become part of large-scale, colorful patterns. Engaged in minimal-waste practice, Kozma also utilizes materials like paper scraps and loose threads for the works in the show, which displays more than twenty mixed media works as a large assemblage. Here, her stitches create threads between the people in her life and the objects she interacts with to remind audiences of the dangers of overconsumption and emotional apathy.
“Soft/Cover”
The Fabric Workshop and Museum, through August 17, 2025
“Soft/Cover” explores how artists utilize fabric and screenprinting to create objects whose significance lies in their relation to the human body. Drawing on the connection between textiles and other disciplines, such as fashion and architecture, the exhibition shows new and rarely displayed works from The Fabric Workshop and Museum’s collection—each created by artists-in-residence in collaboration with FWM’s Studio team. Inspired by some of FWM’s earliest residencies in the late 1970s and early 1980s, “Soft/Cover” celebrates artists who have created everything from everyday workwear to costumes but also expanded beyond garments to design bedding, umbrellas, furniture and large-scale installations. Eight new resident artists were commissioned for the exhibition to further expand the Workshop’s history and mission: to open pathways for these artists’ ideas, introducing new materials and forms to their evolving practices.
“Preserving Assyria”
Penn Museum, through February 2026
As one of the world’s first empires, Assyria, as an ancient civilization, is unique in that it still has a profound influence on Iraq’s cultural identity. While ISIS (the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria) actively attempts to erase and distort this part of history, this exhibition shows how Iraqi archaeologists, with support from Penn archaeologists and international partners, are reclaiming and protecting their cultural and artistic heritage during and after conflict. Centered on the recently excavated Mashki Gate in Nineveh, Iraq—a monumental Assyrian site destroyed in 2016—the exhibition highlights touchable 3D replicas of Assyrian reliefs on view alongside sixteen artifacts from the Penn Museum’s Near East collection. “Preserving Assyria” is on view in the Merle-Smith Galleries on the Lower Level, in harmony with the museum’s permanent Middle Eastern collection.
“The Battle of the Bathers”
Barnes Foundation, through September 15, 2025
Dr. Albert C. Barnes, whose collection forms the basis of the Barnes Foundation, purchased The Large Bathers in 1933. This masterpiece is the crown jewel of his collection of more than 50 paintings by the French painter Paul Cézanne. Four years after the purchase, however, a public feud erupted when the Philadelphia Museum of Art acquired another version of the Bathers. The quality of each work was scrutinized while the press hurled itself into the controversy. “The Battle of the Bathers,” which features archival letters, clippings and photographs, traces Dr. Barnes’ purchase of his Large Bathers to explore its clash with the PMA in the media and expose the heated tensions that gave rise to the strife.
“The Quest for Truth in the Idea of the Garden”
The Charles Addams Fine Arts Gallery, University of Pennsylvania, through June 8, 2025
Co-curated by professor and artist Ken Lum and scholar Xianghua Liu, this international touring exhibition showcases contemporary artworks rooted in the transformation of traditional garden culture. Featuring contributions from thirty renowned contemporary artists as well as faculty and students from Minzu University of China—the nation’s leading institution for minority groups—the exhibition celebrates artistic innovation and the pursuit of knowledge. The selected works explore how minority cultures creatively respond to the environmental challenges of the modern world. Despite its somewhat unwieldy title, “The Quest for Truth in the Idea of the Garden: China Garden Cultural Contemporary Art International Tour Exhibition” aptly draws from both Eastern and Western religious traditions and philosophical views of nature to showcase the deep interconnection between eternal concepts, the cosmos, the Earth and human culture.
The 124th Annual Student Exhibition
Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, through June 1, 2025
Experience the creative energy of the next generation of artists in the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts’ 124th Annual Student Exhibition—a showcase of work by graduating MFA, post-baccalaureate, certificate and BFA students. The ASE is more than just an exhibition—it represents a milestone in these artists’ journeys as they step into professional practice and contribute to Philadelphia’s vibrant cultural landscape. For collectors, art lovers and first-time buyers, it offers a unique opportunity to discover and acquire original works by some of the most promising emerging talents. Featuring hundreds of works across painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture and illustration, the exhibition is entirely curated, installed and managed by the students themselves and reflects the institution’s deep commitment to equipping students with the artistic and professional skills needed to thrive. One look and it’s clear these young artists are ready to leave their mark on the art world.
“Crescendo: How Art Makes Movements (1981-1999)”
Asian Arts Initiative, through June 28, 2025
“Crescendo: How Art Makes Movements (1981-1999)” is a historical survey of multidisciplinary art projects that intersected with Asian American social movements between 1981 and 1999. Drawing inspiration from jazz and improvised music from the Black Arts Movement, the show attempts to redefine the presence of Asian Americans beyond the politics of representation. The exhibition’s title is a metaphor for the growing sociopolitical activism of the ’80s and ’90s, when Asian American artists thrived with major achievements in the creative arts through collaborative explorations, and the show has three sections focused on different collective projects: Asian Improv aRts/Records, the Afro Asian Music Ensemble and the East Side Band.
“Boom: Art and Design in the 1940s”
Philadelphia Museum of Art, through September 1, 2025
Philadelphia Museum of Art’s newest exhibition dives deep into the art and design of the World War II and post-war years, when major changes in politics, science, economics, industry and arts and culture occurred in the wake of global catastrophe. In this period of turmoil, artists brought new ideas to their work across media—from fashion and textiles, craft and design to printmaking, drawing, photography, painting and sculpture. “Boom: Art and Design in the 1940s” is a testament to the creative spirit that flourished despite the restrictions and adversity of the era and showcases art from across the decade, with works drawn entirely from the museum’s permanent collection.
“The Shape of Light: Form and Shadow in Motion”
Stanek Gallery Philadelphia, through June 28, 2025
“The Shape of Light: Form and Shadow in Motion” invites viewers to experience the dynamic interplay between form and light. Featuring works by Roger Chavez, Barbara Fisher, Leah Kaplan and Michael Quadland, the show brings together a diverse range of media to examine how light both animates and alters our perception of form. Through themes of transformation and transition, the artists explore the dramatic tension between light’s illuminating force and shadow’s defining absence.
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