Manayunk Art Center

     It was when searching out Janet McShain's last name for another post that I ran into a dear old friend - Manayunk Art Center. I posed there for many a Friday night for an open drawing session during my time in Philadelphia - and, if I'm not mistaken, I actually started working there when I was still in Delaware. That was one congenial group of people! Usually they would retire to the Adobe Cafe nearby after the session (which ran from 7-10pm) for snacks, beer and margaritas. My favorite there was ranch wings with Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, which I think is the perfect accompaniment to wings done with a sweet hot sauce. (I like Buffalo Wings, too, don't get me wrong, but I also like sweet wings, as long as they are hot - preferably with habanero peppers.) 

     Manayunk also holds another very special distinction in my memory: it was the first place my wife agreed to join the other artists in drawing me while I posed. We had many an argument about that! With the exception of a female model I posed with at PAFA the morning after our first Manyunk session, I think I remain the only nude model she has ever drawn or painted. Here is a link to Manayunk's website: http://mrartcenter.org/ The drawings above and below were done at Manayunk. The one above is by Ted Conner, and the other by David Young. David was a switch-hitter, who worked both sides of the easel, both an excellent model and a talented artist, as you can see from his rendition of me posing for "The Crucifixion of St Peter." David and I were both in two performance events devised by Gabriel Martinez, one of which, A Spectacle, I have already told about.