Marion - July 28 - Blaze

I met Marion at our mutual friend's birthday dinner last winter. (hey Justin, we see you). The semester before, I would arrive to my 10 am, Friday recitation, hungover...or still drunk, with BUI's in hand, where I would marvel at Marion's fly style, that is, if she came to class. Her legend surpassed her as she is a member of my favorite Penn group, The Excelano Project, a troop of unbelievably talented spoken word artists.

Visiting from Denver this weekend, Marion crashed at my spot and I got the opportunity to hang with her for the second time. This girl is the shit. Her spirit blazes so fiercely that you can see it in the clothes she wears, the choices she makes, and the wisdom she spits. Luckily, a part of this chick's brain is accessible to the public on her blog.

I was lucky to have met some magnificent people during college and the beat goes on in Rittenhouse...

Ken & Zero - July 27 - Dance

Ken and his friends often roll through the square to break, do tricks, and have fun. His gravity-defying moves and clear physical strength beckoned to be caught in action yesterday. My friend Marion and I went on to meet a bunch of regulars of the square and proceeded to a Capoeira circle by the river. It was the beginning of a great day.

Zero.

Grace, Mark, and Leaticia - July 25 - Style

Apologies for my hiatus! The heat and work kept me away from the square these past few days. It reached 116 degrees (heat index factors in humidity) in Philly...hope you rode out the heatwave wherever you are!


Grace's lovely voice caught my attention today when she was singing along to her ukelele in the square. She is a local high schooler and folk singer/songwriter and goes by the stage name Dr. Erato, after the Greek muse of poetry and music. Check her out here! Not only is her voice older than her years but I think it's awesome that she has great, personal style at such a young age. Shoutouts to her friends Rider (center) and Addie (right).

Mark tributes his stately dress to the Philly charter schools that he attended as a youth, where he had to wear a coat and tie every day. Now his rule of dress is that the only time he doesn't wear a tie is if the temperature is higher than 95 degrees: there was definitely no tie last Friday. Cheers to this fellow Penn alum!

Words of wisdom: "Polyester was God's gift to man."


Leaticia is originally from the Congo but has called both South Africa and Philly home. Right now she is a hostess at Rouge on the square and is about to start her senior year at Villanova. Good luck Leaticia!

PS. She gave me permission to shoot candids of her in the future so look out for more pictures of this beautiful lady.

David - July 20 - Chill

For me, David represented the essence of why people go to Rittenhouse on a normal day: to chill. I saw him lying on the grass with his book and lollipops, smoking a cig and thought, That dude looks content. David said he is a regular to the square, and is in fact there probably a little too much.

Sioux - July 18 - Spirit

Sioux captured my attention because of her striking appearance, from the high bun to the red lipstick to the killer wedges. She asked me if taking pictures was spiritual for me and after considering her question for a few seconds, I had to say yes.

Gump - July 15 - Align

Today was the first time I didn't have to initiate a conversation because Gump was the one who hollered at me. Thus ensued an extended conversation that included his friends Dolfis (left) and Red Bones (middle). Gump is a practitioner and trainer of a synthesis of Eastern Warrior practices and modern body mechanics, incorporating philosophies of Tai Chi, Qi Gong and Kung Fu. Check him out here!

Personal resolution: sit up straight.

Jamie - July 14 - Trust

Usually Jamie, aka Tigre Bailando, is the one initiating conversation with people in the square. He supports Save the Children, an organization that connects you with a child in a country of need. The organization facilitates a pen pal program and uses your donation of $1 a day to help your child's community. I may very well be drinking the Kool-Aid of a college-grad, embracing the freedom-to-make-her-own-hippie-decisions mindset, but in short, I signed up to sponsor a girl. To validate this donation and prevent this from having a significant impact on my bank account, I have decided not to buy coffee anymore and make it at home.

Oh and why did I gravitate towards Tigre? I think the pictures speak for themselves.

Robert - July 13 - Illuminate

I find that we often forget how much work goes into maintaining our public spaces, from cleaning to gardening to fountain filtering. Robert comes to clean the security building in the center of the square about once a month and I had the pleasure of making his acquaintance today. Much appreciation Robert!

Julie - July 7 - Detail

I first noticed Julie because of her tan, T-strap character shoes. As a theater geek, I have learned to never underestimate the style and comfort of a good character shoe. Her earrings and clear, plastic umbrella show a clear attention to detail. Shoutout to her friend Dave, who was rocking argyle socks and a sick, red bike.

Noah Saint Amour - July 6 - Blow

Noah Saint Amour (what a beautiful name!) was playing today in the park around noon time. He's usually there on the weekends and plays any events where a bagpipe is needed. Check him out here!

Christian Nolan - July 5 - Persevere

I had the great pleasure of meeting artist Christian Nolan this afternoon when we shared a bench together in the square. We spoke of many things during our hour together and explored some pretty heavy topics: life and death, self-reflection, spirituality, hallucinogens and harmonica keys, to name a few. Check out his work here!

This conversation coincided with my desire to start a blog and it perfectly encapsulates what I want this blog to inspire, that is, new experiences through meeting people, engaging in conversation, and gaining new points of view, confined to Rittenhouse Square. I have limited the physical scope of this undertaking so it is feasible for me to post on the daily. This photo album will allow me to share my experiences in the square with you.

Thank you for joining me on this journey! I truly believe in the power of public spaces to bring people together that otherwise would never have crossed paths. This is a celebration of meeting new people, thinking about things in different ways, and capturing it all in photographs.