After belonging to The Athenaeum for a decade, John Schmiechen and his husband Theodore Lewis decided to organize an art exhibition in the space. Schmiechen, an artist, works in oil on canvas and specializes in Philadelphia cityscapes.
The couple started last year by chairing a show featuring historic properties to celebrate the bicentennial of The Athenaeum, a scholarly society in Old City. This year, the theme is industry.
Fifty artists from the Philadelphia area were selected to exhibit their work — from photographs and paintings to prints and drawings — in the Dorothy W. & F. Otto Haas Gallery on the main floor.
An opening ceremony takes place from 2-4 p.m. Dec. 6. There will be wine and hors d’oeuvres. The exhibition runs through Jan. 2.
The jury includes Dr. Sandra L. Tatman, executive director of The Athenaeum; Dr. Danielle Rice, program director of museum leadership at Drexel University; and Cameron J. Mactavish, an architect and founder of Voith & Mactavish Architects. They chose works from more than 200 submissions. Rice and Mactavish will award top prizes and Tatman will cast the tie-breaking vote if needed.
Last year, $30,000 worth of art was sold, Schmiechen said. The money supports The Athenaeum and the artists.
“The artists really worked hard on interpreting the theme,” Lewis said, noting the variety of images, from trains and bridges to textiles.
“We had talked about the fact that a lot of industry has left the city,” Schmiechen said. “But then we noted there’s a lot of good going on too and we wanted to capitalize on that.”
The Navy Yard has experienced a renaissance over the last decade and Urban Outfitters, the site’s largest employer with eight buildings, has committed to renovating more warehouses over the next few years.
“I hope people take away a real appreciation of the past and present of this great city’s contribution to industry,” Schmiechen said.
Tatman said she laid out the artwork by its themes: trains and bridges, texture, ships, pure industry and women’s work (like sewing and lace-making). She said Jim Carroll, scanning technician at The Athenaeum, added a visual logic to the work in each theme.
For more information, visit www.philaathenaeum.org.