World Cafe Live And The Pennsylvania Academy Of The Fine Arts Present MULTITUDES

World Cafe Live, the nonprofit independent venue dedicated to live music, education, and community, and the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts (PAFA), the first art school and museum in the United States, have announced a new multisensory event series that celebrates women artists, LGBTQIA+ artists, and artists of color.

Multitudes will feature world premiere works from some of Philadelphia's top performers commissioned by World Cafe Live, all inspired by PAFA's current exhibition, Making American Artists. The performances will take place through four curated evenings that take place at both World Cafe Live and PAFA from February 4 through March 18, 2023.

Multitudes asks five musicians and three poets to share their individual reflections of the artwork featured in PAFA's Making American Artists exhibition, presenting new narratives in American art history by spotlighting stories about women artists, LGBTQIA+ artists, and artists of color. The result is a highly personal and powerful illumination of what it means to be an American and an American artist today. The Making American Artists exhibit, which features over one hundred of the most acclaimed and iconic pieces in American art, poses central questions about the artist's experience: what did it mean to be an American artist when the nation was founded? How had that changed by the late-twentieth century?

Organized by theme-portraiture, history painting, still life, genre scenes, and landscape-and not chronology, the exhibition affords the opportunity to enjoy familiar works in a new light and find new favorites. The Multitudes concert series will provide audiences a unique opportunity to experience both the incredible exhibition at PAFA alongside performances live at PAFA, along with the chance to enjoy world premiere works at World Cafe Live that explore the performing artists' personal connection and reflection to the artwork.

Artists include Kendrah Butler-Waters, Ill Doots, Kingsley Ibeneche, Salina Kuo, Raina Leon, Devi Majeske, Jaylene Clark Owens, and Kirwyn Sutherland. The lineup of live programs includes: February 4, 2023 at PAFA (118-128 North Broad Street): Raina Leon, Salina Kuo, Kendrah Butler Waters, Kirwyn Sutherland, Ill Doots in a streaming performance, and Devi Majeske ($20; $15 for PAFA members; includes Museum admission) February 16, 2023 at World Cafe Live (3025 Walnut Street): Raina Leon, Kingsley Ibeneche, Jaylene Clark Owens, Devi Majeske, and Ill Doots in a streaming performance ($20) March 8, 2023 at World Cafe Live (3025 Walnut Street): Salina Kuo, Kirwyn Sutherland, Kendrah Butler Waters, and Ill Doots in a streaming performance ($20) March 18, 2023 at PAFA (118-128 North Broad Street): Salina Kuo, Kendrah Butler Waters, Ill Doots, Kirwyn Sutherland, and Jaylene Clark Owens ($20; $15 for PAFA members; includes Museum admission) Tickets for events are available at https://www.pafa.org/multitudes.

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