“We can love a 200-year old farmhouse and a minimalist canvas equally. The marriage of these opposites can be unexpected and refreshing. Materials, textures, light, shadows, angles are all visual references that inform ‘what art wants to live where, and why.’ ”

Creating “spaces and places” for people and art, Curator-Collaborator-Innovator Eileen Tognini hosts the annual Gallery In the Garden from her rural Pennsylvania home. Attracting hundreds of visitors from the surrounding metropolitan areas of NYC, Philly, DC (and more), the oh-so-lovely Eileen focuses on works by local artists and artisans, reinventing her space each Fall. Stunning and insightful, disarmingly delightful, her home is certainly one of my faves…

1. The living space (left to right: Serena Perrone, woodcut on mylar and silverpoint. Jack Larimore, torched pine and felt bench (corner). Jed Morfitt, portraits on stilts- beeswax. Antonio Puri, mixed media)
2. This is always the fairy tale room- the room you only dream of. The silk screen/gouche pieces on the wall are Kyla Luedke, the ceramic pieces on the right are Pam Lethbridge, the light scultpures are by Michael Biello, and the installation of roots coming from the ceiling is by Brenna Murphy.
3. The outhouse “wallpaper” is actually a digitally-manipulated image of hair, bugs, and petals by Talis Greene. Tea stained and torn, they embellish the old worn walls.
4. Living room space. Large canvas, Kevin Cooper, window sill. Bronze by Todd Noe. B/W photos by Hiroshi Watanabe. Foreground is Bronze and marble by Pavel Efremoff.
5. A six foot bronze totem of cast bowls, plates, and ladles by Greg Nangle.

Artist inquiries and curatorial requests can be answered by Philadelphia’s one and only, Eileen Tognini.