Samuel S. Fleisher Art Memorial facts for kids
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Fleisher, Samuel S., Art Memorial
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 Location in Philadelphia
Location in Pennsylvania
Location in the United States
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| Location | 711-721 Catharine St., Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
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| Area | 0.3 acres (0.12 ha) |
| Built | 1857 |
| Architect | Baker, L. C.; Dallett, E. J. |
| Architectural style | Italianate, Romanesque |
| NRHP reference No. | 82001547 |
Quick facts for kids Significant dates |
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| Added to NRHP | November 14, 1982 |
The Samuel S. Fleisher Art Memorial is a special place in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It's made up of four buildings that used to be a church and a college. Today, it's famous for offering art classes to kids and adults. These classes are often free or cost very little.
The Fleisher Art Memorial believes that everyone should have the chance to learn about art. It doesn't matter how much money you have, where you come from, or if you've ever made art before. This place helps people explore their creative side. The buildings include an old bell tower from 1857 and a large church building from the 1880s. There's also St. Martin's College, built in 1906, and two older houses.
Since 1944, the Philadelphia Museum of Art has helped manage the Fleisher Art Memorial. The buildings were added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1982. You can find them at 711-721 Catharine Street in Philadelphia.
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History of the Church Buildings
The main building of the Fleisher Art Memorial was once called the Church of the Evangelists. It started in 1837 as a mission church. This means it was built to help the poor people living on Catherine Street. Important church members like William Welsh and Horace Binney helped start it.
The first church building, including its tall bell tower, was finished in 1857. By 1880, the church faced challenges. Many new people moved into the neighborhood who were not part of the Episcopal Church.
A New Beginning for the Church
In 1880, a priest named Henry R. Percival became the new leader of the church. He was well-known and had traveled a lot in Italy. He wanted to rebuild the church to look like the grand old churches in Italy.
The new design for the church was created in 1884. It was inspired by famous Romanesque churches like San Zeno Maggiore in Italy. Inside, artists like Robert Henri and Nicola D'Ascenzo painted beautiful pictures called frescoes. Some of the decorations inside were never fully finished.
The church still has its original Wurlitzer pipe organ. It's the only one of its kind still installed in a Philadelphia church! After Percival retired in the 1890s, the church started to struggle again. St. Martin's College for Indigent Boys was built in 1906. This was perhaps an effort to connect better with the neighborhood.
Samuel S. Fleisher and the Graphic Sketch Club
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Samuel S. Fleisher was a kind and caring person. He was the son of German Jewish immigrants. After college, he became a leader in his family's business, the Fleisher Yarn Company. This company made a lot of yarn and fabric.
Samuel Fleisher cared deeply about the people who worked for his company. He also cared about their children and other people in the neighborhood. He believed that everyone, especially young people, needed a place to be creative. He wanted to offer them "playgrounds for the soul."
Thousands of young people toil during the day whose lives are unavoidably cast upon a background of routine and sameness—the world's work must be done—to them should be offered pastures where beauty and inspiration may be gathered, places where rich and poor alike may give expression to their finer emotions—playgrounds for the soul.
The Start of Free Art Classes
Fleisher started offering free art classes in 1898. They began in a building on Bainbridge Street. This art program later became known as the Graphic Sketch Club. It offered free, friendly classes to both children and adults. Everyone was welcome, no matter their background or where they came from.
The club moved to a bigger building in 1906. Then, in 1916, it moved again to the St. Martin's College building. In 1922, Fleisher bought the old Church of the Evangelists and turned it into an art gallery.
When Samuel Fleisher passed away in 1944, he left his property to the Philadelphia Museum of Art. He wanted them to keep the Graphic Sketch Club going. It was then renamed the Samuel S. Fleisher Art Memorial. In 1983, it became its own non-profit organization. However, it is still managed by the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
Fleisher Art Memorial Today
Today, the Fleisher Art Memorial still offers many free and low-cost classes. You can learn drawing, painting, sculpture, pottery, photography, and even dance! Since 1997, they have also had a program called "Community Partnership in the Arts." This program sends artists into public school classrooms in South Philadelphia. These artists teach students for about 90 minutes, twice a week, for several weeks.
The art gallery at Fleisher has many interesting pieces. You can see art by Violet Oakley and tiles by Henry Chapman Mercer. There's also old Portuguese art and religious art from the original church. The gallery has beautiful stained glass windows, some made in the 18th century. You can visit the gallery for free from Monday to Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and with shorter hours on Saturdays.
Every year since 2013, the Fleisher Art Memorial helps organize a special neighborhood event. It's called the Día de los Muertos Altar Celebration and Procession. It's a colorful and meaningful way to celebrate.
