Dates

April 8th 2026

 

Exhibiting Artists

Katie Strachan

 

Exhibiting location

One of the largest public library special collections in the United States, the Rare Book Department at the Free Library of Philadelphia stewards a world-class collection covering 6,000 years of human history, from cuneiform tablets to contemporary works. Since its official founding in 1949, the Department has offered free daily tours, rotating exhibitions, and a reading room available for use by scholars and the public alike.

The Rare Book Department is part of the Free Library of Philadelphia’s Special Collections Division. Special Collections has long been an important part of the Free Library, inspiring curiosity and promoting engagement with historic materials since that first donation over 125 years ago.

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Dollars to Donuts

Dollars to Donuts explores the contradictions of the American Dream through ceramic works inspired by historic handwritten and devotional manuscript traditions, especially Pennsylvania German Fraktur. Drawing from research in rare book and archival collections, the exhibition considers how ideals such as virtue, equality, faith, and belonging are preserved, translated, and unsettled across time.

kate strachan

About the artist

Katie Strachan

Katie Strachan is a multidisciplinary artist, who divides her time between Asia and the US.  Her clay work integrates various materials such as wax, wood and fiber to form manuscripts, sculpture, installation, and video art. The doctrine of her Pennsylvania Dutch roots forms a basis in which layers of femininity, dark humor and questioning are all orchestrated together.  Kate's work is viewed as a collection of both relics and texts conveying and preserving the routine of action, sexuality and silence. ​

Artist website

artwork featured

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fraktur trust

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Research Location

Winterthur Museum, Gardens, and Library

Winterthur Museum, Garden & Library is a historic mansion featuring one of the most significant collections of American decorative arts in the world. These objects and our library collections help us broadly understand the artistic, cultural, social, and intellectual history of the Americas and everyday Americans in a global context from the 17th to the 20th centuries. As part of the Radical Americana initiative, Winterthur offers an experience to inform or inspire your own creative process, to provide respite and an opportunity to observe the natural world, and to encourage historical research that enhances the contemporary meaning of current work.

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Research Location

William Way LGBT Community Center

The William Way LGBT Community Center serves the LGBT community of Philadelphia and its allies 365 days a year. From social groups, networking events, and counseling and support services to art exhibitions and cultural experiences, the Center consistently strives to provide new and innovative programs for the LGBT communities of Philadelphia.

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Exhibiting partner

Radical Americana

For the Semiquincentennial, The Clay Studio is leading Radical Americana, a series of exhibitions organized by a consortium of Philadelphia’s arts and cultural institutions. Each celebrates how artists today are continuing the city’s robust legacy as a center for art, skill, and civic engagement. The 45 artists researched and were inspired by the art and history of Philadelphia in 1776, and the subsequent commemorations in 1876, 1926, and 1976. The artists' new work will add their voices to current dialogue about our nation’s present and future, inspire civil dialogue, celebrate Philadelphia's diversity, and continue the rich tradition of creativity in our city.

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