Samuel S. Fleisher Art Memorial is a set of four buildings consisting of the former Church of the Evangelists and St. Martin's College for Indigent Boys. Previously an Episcopal church in the Bella Vista neighborhood of

South Philadelphia South Philadelphia, nicknamed South Philly, is the section of Philadelphia bounded by South Street to the north, the Delaware River to the east and south and the Schuylkill River to the west.campanile built in 1857, a basilica built 1884-1886, St. Martin's College built in 1906, and two rowhouses built in the 1850s. Since Fleisher's death in 1944, his trust, which owns the buildings, has been administered by the Philadelphia Museum of Art. The Art Memorial was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

in 1982 and is located at 711-721 Catharine St. in

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

Church of the Evangelists

The Church of the Evangelists was established as a mission church for the poor of Catherine Street in 1837, by Episcopalians named William Welsh and Horace Binney, among others. A church building was constructed in 1857 which includes the campanile which still stands. The church's viability became a concern by 1880, possibly because of the influx of non-Episcopal immigrants to the neighborhood. The Reverend Henry R. Percival, a well-known

high church The term ''high church'' refers to beliefs and practices of Christian ecclesiology, liturgy, and theology that emphasize formality and resistance to modernisation. Although used in connection with various Christian traditions, the term originate ...

Episcopal priest, revived the fortunes of the Church of the Evangelists when he was appointed rector in 1880. ''Note:'' This includes Unfinished ornament Fleisher

The well-connected Percival had traveled in Italy and had "a sensibility which combined Italian and

Anglo-Catholic Anglo-Catholicism comprises beliefs and practices that emphasise the Catholic heritage and identity of the various Anglican churches. The term was coined in the early 19th century, although movements emphasising the Catholic nature of Anglica ...

romanticisms." He wished to rebuild the church based on the Romanesque models of St. Mark's Basilica in Venice, the

Cathedral of Pisa Pisa Cathedral ( it, Cattedrale Metropolitana Primaziale di Santa Maria Assunta; Duomo di Pisa) is a medieval Roman Catholic cathedral dedicated to the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, in the Piazza dei Miracoli in Pisa, Italy, the oldest of the t ...

and the

Orvieto Cathedral Orvieto Cathedral ( it, Duomo di Orvieto; Cattedrale di Santa Maria Assunta) is a large 14th-century Roman Catholic cathedral dedicated to the Assumption of the Virgin Mary and situated in the town of Orvieto in Umbria, central Italy. Since 198 ...

. The 1884 design by the firm

Furness and Evans Furness & Evans was a Philadelphia architectural partnership, established in 1881, between architect Frank Furness and his former chief draftsman, Allen Evans. In 1886, other employees were made partners, and the firm became Furness, Evans & Company ...

was in actuality based on

San Zeno Maggiore The Basilica di San Zeno (also known as ''San Zeno Maggiore'' or ''San Zenone'') is a minor basilica of Verona, northern Italy constructed between 967 and 1398 AD. Its fame rests partly on its Romanesque architecture and partly upon the traditi ...

Verona Verona ( , ; vec, Verona or ) is a city on the Adige River in Veneto, Italy, with 258,031 inhabitants. It is one of the seven provincial capitals of the region. It is the largest city municipality in the region and the second largest in nor ...

. Frescos in the church were painted by

Robert Henri Robert Henri (; June 24, 1865 – July 12, 1929) was an American painter and teacher. As a young man, he studied in Paris, where he identified strongly with the Impressionists, and determined to lead an even more dramatic revolt against A ...

Nicola D'Ascenzo Nicola D'Ascenzo (September 25, 1871, Torricella Peligna, Italy – April 13, 1954, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) was an Italian-born American stained glass designer, painter and instructor. He is best known for creating stained glass windows fo ...

, local parishioners. Much of the interior decorative work was left unfinished. The influences on the architecture include "Italy, Ruskin, the ecclesiological movement, and the pageantry of medieval Christianity." James van Trump is more critical, stating that "a rather self-conscious coterie of late nineteenth century Philadelphia haute bourgeoisie, 'engaged', one might say in being 'Catholic', cultivated, and artistic." The Sanctuary still has the church's original

Wurlitzer The Rudolph Wurlitzer Company, usually referred to as simply Wurlitzer, is an American company started in Cincinnati in 1853 by German immigrant (Franz) Rudolph Wurlitzer. The company initially imported stringed, woodwind and brass instruments ...

pipe organ and is the last such factory-installed organ in Philadelphia. After Percival retired on account of illness in the 1890s, the church's fortunes declined. St. Martin's College for Indigent Boys was built in 1906, perhaps in an effort to fight the decline and better connect with the non-Episcopalian neighborhood.

Graphic Sketch Club

Samuel Stewart Fleisher, the son of German Jewish immigrants, became vice-president of the family business after graduating from

the Wharton School The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania ( ; also known as Wharton Business School, the Wharton School, Penn Wharton, and Wharton) is the business school of the University of Pennsylvania, a private Ivy League research university in P ...

. By that time the family business, the Fleisher Yarn Company, was a major manufacturer of hand-knitting yarns and worsted fabric. Fleisher was extraordinarily concerned for the welfare of the company's workers, their children, and others who lived in the neighborhood. Fleisher started offering free art classes to children in 1898 in the Jewish Union building at 422 Bainbridge Street. Later known as the Graphic Sketch Club, the institution gave free, non-competitive, collaborative classes to both children and adults without discrimination by race or nationality. In 1906 it moved to a larger building at 740 Catharine Street, then in 1916 it moved across the street to Saint Martin's College for Indigent Boys. The church was purchased and converted into an art gallery in 1922.History of Fleisher
, accessed May 14, 2012. In 1944, Fleisher died and left his estate in trust to the Philadelphia Museum of Art to continue the Graphic Sketch Club, which was renamed the Samuel S. Fleisher Art Memorial. In 1983 it became a formally independent non-profit corporation with a separate board of trustees, but it is still managed by the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

Fleisher Art Memorial Today

The Fleisher Memorial continues to offer free and low-cost classes and workshops to both children and adults, in subjects such as drawing, painting, sculpture, ceramics, photography, and dance. Since 1997 they have also offered the "Community Partnership in the Arts" program which places artists in public school classrooms in South Philadelphia. Artists teach students for 90-minute classes twice a week for 6–10 weeks. Ceramist Winnie Owens-Hart is among the artists who have worked at the Memorial. The gallery contains art by

Violet Oakley Violet Oakley (June 10, 1874 – February 25, 1961) was an American artist. She was the first American woman to receive a public mural commission. During the first quarter of the twentieth century, she was renowned as a pathbreaker in mural dec ...

, tiles by Henry Chapman Mercer, 18th-century Portuguese art, and primitive European art, as well as the religious art from the original church. There are six early stained glass windows made by

Lavers, Barraud and Westlake Lavers, Barraud and Westlake were an English firm that produced stained glass windows from 1855 until 1921. They were part of the 19th-century Gothic Revival movement that had a significant influence on English civic, ecclesiastical and domestic ...

, and one later window, designed by

John LaFarge John La Farge (March 31, 1835 – November 14, 1910) was an American artist whose career spanned illustration, murals, interior design, painting, and popular books on his Asian travels and other art-related topics. La Farge is best known for ...

. Entrance to the gallery is free, Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. with reduced hours on Saturdays. Every year since 2013, La Calaca Flaca and Fleisher have organized and presented a neighborhood Día de los Muertos Altar Celebration and Procession.

References

External links

Fleisher Art Memorial
- official site
History of Fleisher
{{Authority control Buildings and structures on the National Register of Historic Places in Pennsylvania Italianate architecture in Pennsylvania Romanesque Revival architecture in Pennsylvania Religious buildings and structures completed in 1886 Towers completed in 1857 Buildings and structures in Philadelphia Jews and Judaism in Philadelphia Culture of Philadelphia Pennsylvania state historical marker significations South Philadelphia Monuments and memorials in Philadelphia Art museums and galleries in Philadelphia National Register of Historic Places in Philadelphia 1857 establishments in Pennsylvania