Museums

Folk artist Howard Finster was born in 1916, but did not start painting until 1976 when he had a vision that told him to devote his life to making sacred art. Finster has been working as a preacher since the age of 16. Finster has spent 20 years working on "Paradise Garden," a two-and-a-half acre mixture of sculpture, painting, vines, vegetables, and discarded objects. "Howard Finster, Man of Visions: The Garden and Other Creations: A One Person Show" is opening at the Philadelphia Art Alliance.

Emile De Antonio is regarded as one of the most important political filmmakers of the American Left. His films include "Point of Order," about the McCarthy hearings; "Rush to Judgement," about the Warren Report; "In the Year of the Pig," about the history of Vietnam, and "Underground," where he interviewed members of the Weather Underground. One of De Antonio's biggest influences is John Cage.

After relocating to England and publishing a book documenting Chinese life, Eve Arnold returned to her home country to capture different facets of the American experience, including Native Americans, biker gangs, Jerry Falwell, and the Ku Klux Klan,

Mark Alan Stamaty's new anthology of his nationally-distributed cartoon, which follows the misadventures of the fictional congressman Bob Forehead, satirizes the world of policymakers, lobbyists and the White House.

New York-based artist and musician Laurie Audience's work initially catered mostly to her fellow artists. Now signed to the Warner record label, she is beginning to develop a broader fan base.

George Nelson conceived of a new exhibition at the Philadelphia Museum of Art that features furniture, appliances, and other functional objects. Nelson is best known for his work with the Herman Miller firm and his innovation of the pedestrian mall.

Michael Graves sees his design aesthetic as one that moves away from the abstraction of steel and glass, instead finding continuity in the figurative language of past architectural styles. His approach and use of color continue to polarize critics.

Philadelphia Inquirer editorial cartoonist Tony Auth recently illustrated a children's book called That Game from Outer Space. He sees both media as effective ways of deploying political messages.

Stanley Tigerman is a Chicago-based architect known as the "enfant terrible" of midwestern architecture. Although he studied with Ludwig Mies Van der Rohe, but in 1976 he decided to break with the Chicago School of architecture and declared he had done his last serious piece. In the same year, he was part of the "Chicago 7," a group of architects who organized a "guerrilla" alternative to the "100 Years of Chicago Architecture" show. Since then, Tigerman has incorporated wit in humor in his work.

Stan Mack's cartoon strip "Stan Mack's Real Life Funnies," has run in the Village Voice since 1974. The strip comes with the guarantee "all dialogue reported verbatim," and consists of absurd conversations overheard by Mack. Mack began his career as an art director at The New York Tribune and The New York Times. Mack's new book "In Search of the G Spot" is a collection of "sex spoof jokes."

Alice Neel is a painter known for her portraits and nudes. Neel was born in 1900 in the Main Line and studied at the Philadelphia School for Design for Women, later Moore College of Art. Neel's work is featured in an exhibit at the Philadelphia College of Art, [later University of the Arts] focusing on women artists whose work appears in the archives of the Women's Interart Center in New York. She discusses her life and career as a woman artist.

Peter Max is an artists whose "psychedelic" posters and graphics were popular in the 1960s and early 1970s, and he designed the appearance of the film "Yellow Submarine." He switched to painting in the mid-1970s, and his recent paintings of the Statue of Liberty were featured in Reagan's White House. A retrospective of his paintings, drawings, lithographs and etchings will open at the Hallowell Gallery in Conshohocken.

Mimi Pond is the author and illustrator of the new book "The Valley Girls' Guide to Life," which she researched by spending time in the mall with Californian junior high students. Pond is a cartoonist whose strip "Mimi Pond's Famous Waitress School" appears regularly in The National Lampoon.

Fresh Air arts critic Judy Stein shares upcoming arts events in Philadelphia and reviews the New Expressionist show of painting and photography, "The Raw Edge," at the Cheltenham Arts Center, as well the show of Post-Modern prints, "The New Image" at the Association of American Artists Gallery.

Jules Feiffer is a cartoonist known for satirizing the middle class, politicians, and sexual attitudes in his comic strip "Feiffer.". He began his career at The Village Voice and is now syndicated nationally. Feiffer has also written several screenplays, including "Little Murders." A new collection of his work "Jules Feiffer's America: From Eisenhower to Reagan."

Painter Neil Welliver is known as "neoimpressionist" and for his landscapes of the Maine countryside. He divides his time between Maine and Philadelphia where he works at the University of Pennsylvania. The Institute of Contemporary Art at the University is hosting a exhibition of his work, "Neil Welliver: Painting 1966-1980."

John Cage is an avant-garde musician known for his "chance compositions," which use "found" sounds. His music mixes Eastern philosophy with Western high-technology. Cage is also an expert on mushrooms. In celebration of his birthday, the Philadelphia Museum of Art is putting on an exhibition of his scores, "John Cage: Scores & Prints." Cage joins the show to discuss his art and philosophy.

The artist was commissioned to create a piece for the city, which he titled Philadelphia Cornucopia. The installation features whimsical portrayals of historical figures from early American history. His public art has also been featured in New York and Minneapolis.

In addition to being an in-demand bass player, Milt Hinton is an accomplished photographer. His portraits offer a candid look into the lives of famous jazz musicians. He and Fresh Air host Terry Gross talk about the experience of black musicians touring the segregated South and listen to highlights from Hinton's recording career.

Philadelphia-based artist Raphael Ferrer gave up a career in jazz to become a visual artist. He has just completed a sculpture in Fairhill Square Park. He tell Terry Gross about his unique aesthetic and his particular investment in vibrant Latino neighborhoods thriving in blighted areas of the Bronx and Philadelphia.