PECO Honors Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. with Weekend Celebration at Philadelphia Museum of Art

Sponsorship increases community access to new African-American art exhibit

PECO and the Philadelphia Museum of Art are presenting a weekend of events to honor the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and celebrate diversity throughout the Greater Philadelphia region. This four-day celebration also provides the community with more opportunities to see the museum’s new exhibition, “Represent: 200 Years of African American Art,” proudly sponsored by PECO.

“Represent,” on exhibition now through April 5, 2015, features works by more than 50 artists, including Henry Ossawa Tanner and Horace Pippin. The exhibit offers a broad range of stories, subjects, styles, mediums and traditions. For more information, visit philamuseum.org.

In addition to the exhibit, PECO also is sponsoring the following weekend:

• Art After 5 (5 p.m. to midnight, January 16) – This weekly event engages diverse communities in an evening celebration of art, entertainment and guided exhibition tours. Sound Reformation, led by Darryl Yokley and inspired by “Represent” presents “Pictures at an African American Exhibition.” At 8:45 p.m., the vibe switches to a dance party with celebrity guest DJ Rob Base.
• Benefit Gala & Recognition Dinner (6 p.m. to 10 p.m., January 17) – The museum hosts a fundraising gala in honor of Dr. Constance E. Clayton. Funds raised by the gala will be dedicated to the training of African-American scholars in the areas of art conservation and education, and curatorial practices.
• Family Celebration (10 a.m. to 5 p.m., January 18) – The museum offers family-friendly exhibition tours, educator-led art projects, performances by the St. Thomas Gospel Choir (1 p.m.) and special dining offerings throughout the day. The museum has collaborated with several faith-based organizations in the region to offer free admission to their church groups.
• Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service (10 a.m. to 5 p.m., January 19) – Pay-What-You-Wish to visit the museum and see “Represent” for free. The day will include performances by Danco2 with an emphasis on diversity. Visitors who would like to celebrate the Martin Luther King Day of Service are invited to use inspiration from the art exhibits to design greeting cards. These cards will distributed by MANNA to terminally ill patients in our community.

Based in Philadelphia, PECO is an electric and natural gas utility subsidiary of Exelon Corporation (NYSE: EXC). PECO serves 1.6 million electric and more than 500,000 natural gas customers in southeastern Pennsylvania and employs about 2,400 people in the region. PECO delivered 85.7 billion cubic feet of natural gas and 37.8 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity in 2013. Founded in 1881, PECO is one of the Greater Philadelphia Region's most active corporate citizens, providing leadership, volunteer and financial support to numerous arts and culture, education, environmental, economic development and community programs and organizations. For more information visit PECO.com, and connect with the company on Facebook and Twitter.

PECODebra Yemenijian215-841-5091 or [e-mail]