What to do during DesignPhiladelphia

Whether your expertise and interest lie in urban planning, architecture, or industrial or graphic design, there's a little something for every niche at DesignPhiladelphia, a citywide showcase of creative design. Running from Thursday, Oct. 8 through Friday, Oct. 16, the festival offers events and programming geared toward everyone, from the experts, to the enthusiasts to children.

Poking fun at the über trendy pop-up beer gardens, local design firm MIO and the Trestle Inn (11th and Callowhill Streets) will create an outdoor installation using recycled Old Forge Brewing Co. cans. So after you drink your beer, your can will be transformed into a planter, with greenery courtesy of South Philly's hydro+pose studio, and added to the continually growing installation. "WE CAN" will be open from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 8 and Friday, Oct. 9, noon to 8 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 10 and noon to 5 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 11.

"WE CAN," in addition to ten other installations, is a part of a larger project dubbed the Pearl Street Passage, where the 1100 Block of Pearl Street will be filled with interactive and innovative outdoor projects created by local architects, designers and artists. Meander through between 10 a.m. and 10 p.m. from Thursday, Oct. 8 through Saturday, Oct. 10 and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 11.

(Rendering courtesy of Groundswell Group)

Regardless of your technical knowhow, you can be a robot designer. Materials will be supplied by Tyler School of Art (2001 N. 13th St.) for you to create your own "wobblebot," a dancing little 'bot. The all-ages session lasts from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 9. Make an evening out of it by swinging by Tyler a little earlier to check out their Art Market (running from noon to 8 p.m.) featuring local vendors and craft brews during the 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. happy hour.

A good old-fashioned block party will bring the sights and sounds of the Chinatown North neighborhood to the 1200 block of Pearl Street on Saturday, Oct. 10. Live music, activities, artist exhibitions and more will take over the block from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m., followed by a community feast.

Hear and see the vision of the three-mile recreation path, Rail Park — whose initial phase is underway — on a few walking tours over 1.5 miles of the proposed path. Tours depart at 10 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 10, 3 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 11 and 5 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 14, Thursday, Oct. 15 and Friday, Oct. 16. Meet at 21st Street and Pennsylvania Avenue; tours wrap up at 12th and Noble Streets.

Through her internship at the Philadelphia Jewish Film Festival, Moore College of Art senior Kathleen Kazmier created 24 movie posters for the films showing at this year's festival. See them all at Gershman Y (401 S. Broad St.) from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 12.

Freeman's Auction House (1808 Chestnut St.) prepares for its 10th anniversary sale with a preview on Tuesday, Oct. 13 showcasing over 300 years of furniture and decorative objects made in the area. The wine reception kicks off at 5:30 p.m. and the preview runs until 8 p.m.

Moore College of Art (20th Street and the Parkway) is throwing a party on Wednesday, Oct. 14 featuring both student and faculty art, music from Jarana Beat and more from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Close out the festivities on Friday, Oct. 16 with a "design crawl," taking you into showrooms to see installations and to meet artists and owners. You'll start at The Center for Art in Wood (141 N. 3rd St.) at 6 p.m. where you'll see the Design Showcase, featuring room designs, and hear from the curators. From there, you'll step over to Millesime & Ligne Roset (33 N. 2nd St.) to see their new space, see interactive art pieces and sip on cocktails.

Check out the full DesignPhiladelphia event lineup here.

For more Things to Do, check out our calendar for the most up-to-date happenings.