When Dan Wallace, Derek Frech, and Joe Lacina started Extra Extra in 2009, they had relocated to Philadelphia and were discovering the city’s growing art scene. The three initially met at the Maryland Institute College of Art and planned to eventually open an art space.
“Initially, a lot of people were interested [in starting a space], but then it just dwindled down to the few that were actually devoted to it,” Wallace says. “So we moved to Philadelphia with the intention of starting a space.”
Extra Extra is one of a handful of artist-run spaces in Philadelphia. Wallace, Frech, and Lacina wanted the space to provide a platform that would allow artists to create work that could challenge the traditional notions of what art, an artist, or a gallery could be.
One of the ways that Extra Extra pushes artistic and geographical boundaries is by showcasing interactive Web-based projects by digital artists, which allows viewers to connect with the work from anywhere.
The guys recently launched their first downloadable project, BNJP.exe, which was created by Jon Rafman and Tabor Robak and takes viewers on a journey through a virtual labyrinth. “What this enables us to do is really show the work in the space that it was meant to be seen,” Wallace says. “This provides a Web interface for this project to take off.”
Throughout April, Extra Extra will be featuring Common Place, a transformative sculpture installation created by Beth Brandon, Samantha Margherita, and Luren Jenison. The collaboration between the three artists focuses on the ever-shifting definition of domestic life and the role that organic design plays in our increasingly tech-driven, secluded lives.
Philadelphia’s creative community has become pretty tight-knit, and commercial interests have not over-saturated the city’s gallery scene, which enables DIY venues and emerging artists to have complete creative license in developing unique ideas. There also have been a number of art spaces sprouting up throughout town, exemplifying how the city’s art scene has grown considerably over the past few years.
“Within a month of us opening up, we’ve had three other spaces open, which is kind of big for Philadelphia,” Frech says. “In Philly, there are just a handful of galleries, so three new spaces — it’s kind of a huge deal.”