The Esther Klein Art Gallery (EKG) seeks to positively impact the cultural life of both our immediate neighborhood of West Philadelphia and the broader Philadelphia community. Through partnerships with professionals from the science and technology communities, EKG programming aims to engage the public and school children by using the creative arts as a platform to explore relationships between art
science and technology. EKG programming is designed to explore our range of art, science & technology exhibitions and includes gallery talks, panel discussions, and education programs. about
The Esther M. Klein Art Gallery, a nonprofit, self supporting branch of the University City Science Center (UCSC), the first urban, university related research park in the United States. EKG has been a strong and vital force in the Philadelphia art community for over 30 years. Dr. Randall Whaley, UCSC President in 1975, envisioned a gallery program that explored and promoted the relationship between art and science. The first Art & Science exhibit was a collaborative project involving the UCSC, the Philadelphia College of Textiles and Science and the Philadelphia Art Alliance. Three artists were selected for a week-long residency at the Philadelphia College of Textiles and Science and their work was exhibited at the Philadelphia Art Alliance. In 1981, F. Buckminster Fuller, a past UCSC World Fellow and Resident, was featured in an exhibition that included his early drawings, 4-D and dymaxion ideas and his last invention, the dymaxion bookcase. The success of these early exhibitions and the gallery’s strategic affiliation with the Science Center paved the way for what has become EKG’s primary focus on exploring the intersection between art, science and technology. EKG promotes two other exhibit initiatives, Art in Community and Emerging Artists Series that celebrate local talent and community organizations. To date, the Klein Gallery has supported well over 3500 regional artists through solo and group exhibitions and extends a dynamic programs and events calendar that is completely free and open to the public.
