Before getting to 2nd St. let me recommend another juicy painter, Jan Baltzell, whose solo exhibit just opened at Mangel Gallery. Baltzell, who teaches at Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts (PAFA), is an established Philadelphia abstractionist known for her yummy, saturated colors and sensuous paint handling. In these new works she delivers a blast of color and feeling that’s positively celestial. These are paintings that Rubens might be making if he were here today — majestic, tumultuous and exhilarating. (both images are untitled oils on canvas) 
A short aside on the gallery. Mangel, located around the corner from the Art Alliance, is one of those small galleries that never seems particularly welcoming to the casual viewer. It’s been this way for years. Gird your loins and open the door and go in. It’s worth risking the chill air to see this hot work.
