(upbeat music) - Next on "You Ought Know".

The search for the right drum sound leans to the creation of the Philadelphia Drum Company.

We look back as the automat makes a comeback in Philadelphia.

And the non-profit that's giving space to creativity and diversity through the arts.

(upbeat music) Welcome to the show, I'm Shirley Min.

Last week we introduced you to Re-Focus Then and Now, an exhibition re-exploring feminism.

This week we take you inside one of the participating exhibitors, Brandywine Workshop, which catalogs an ever-growing collection of art from diverse artists.

(gentle music) - We're standing in the OS lithography section of the workshop.

This is Brandywine Workshop and Archives.

It's a nonprofit that specializes in doing printmaking that was founded 1972 by Alan Edmonds right out of college.

He was 21 to 22 years old when he said, I'm gonna make an organization.

The reason why it's called Brandywine Workshop is because it used to be located on Brandywine Street in the Spring Garden section, and the first people that the organization worked with were Puerto Rican students that used to live in the neighborhood.

(gentle music) Where in the avenue of the arts.

This is one of the oldest organizations in continuous operation that specializes in fine art printmaking and working with artists in a collaborative process.

(gentle music) - [Michele] This is where our collection resides.

We protect them in these wonderful flat files.

This year is 52 years of Brandywine Workshops and Archives and next year we celebrate 50 years of the artist residency program that was created here at Brandywine.

You can only imagine how much work we have here from various artists, from diverse backgrounds, identities, heritage and cultures that have come through Brandywine through the Artist Residency program in creating wonderful works of art.

- Printmaking is the art of making multiples.

Most people are not familiar with any of the processes outside of hitting print on their computer and you know, having a piece of paper come up.

What we do at Brandywine Workshop and Archives is basically fine art printmaking, the primary methods for printmaking, you have relief, which is basically creating giant stamps with wood or other substrates like plastic.

You have etching, which is a metal plate, usually copper that gets etched with acid and then image is created on and then transferred to paper.

And then you get lithography, which originally started using limestones as the matrix to create the stamp to then transfer to paper.

And then the last method that people are familiar with is silkscreen, which is a frame with a mesh stretched over it and then a stencil applied.

Then that way you can make the prints.

Part of the job of Brandywine is to work with artists and master printers in order to facilitate fine art prints that stay fatefully to the vision that the artists are trying to convey through their artwork.

(gentle music) - [Ruth] This is called the Printed Image Gallery and it's on the second floor of Firehouse.

The exhibition is part of a citywide project called Ray Focus, which is celebrating the 50th anniversary of the 1974 project called Focus.

Michele and I discussed the idea of putting together a show of women artists Brandywine had worked with over the years to show the diversity of the workshop.

The exhibition is probably about 50% African American artists, but it also includes artists from Africa, from Cuba, native American artists and European American artists.

Many works have political overtones, but if you don't know the politics, you look at them, how you look at them.

It's always interesting to get opinions from diverse people on what a work of art means because you'll pretty much always get a different one from everybody.

It's one of the things that I think makes art wonderful.

There are many prints in this show that have collage elements and that's also an interesting aspect of printmaking to me, that you can start with a basic image and print 20 objects, but have 20 unique objects.

And it allows an artist to think about an image in a variety of ways, it's one of the things that's always interested me about printmaking.

- So this is a very interesting wall, how the artist is calling to you, the viewer, to respond to their story.

- Absolutely.

- Deborah Willis, she talks about when she was an art school here in Philadelphia, a professor actually said to her in a public setting that she was taking up space for a good man to be placed there.

She said she felt very embarrassed by that.

Years later, her son, Hank Willis Thomas, revered in the art field, found the contact sheet of her being pregnant with him.

So she did make space for a good man.

- Yes.

- By giving birth to a good man who is an artist.

Here we have Howardena Bendell.

- Yeah, she's listing all of the percentage of what DNA she has and it's called Pin bill DNA.

- You see so many different connections there.

So trying to show this connection that we have also throughout the globe.

- Yeah.

- And then we have a wonderful artist, Camille Philips.

Hers is very interesting, it's called the KKK Boutique.

It's interesting how you see in this the depths of the colors, but also how she's also talking about a time in history that exists in America especially, and when you come in to view it, you have your own memories, your own experiences.

So now you're adding on to the story, and that's the beauty of the art process, but also of printmaking.

'Cause printmaking is a way of disseminating information and to enlighten you this exhibition that you curated is really showing the importance of female artists what they birth to the world through the works of paper.

(upbeat music) - Here's how you can learn more about other refocus exhibitors.

The popular PBS show, "Finding Your Roots" did something different for its 10th season.

It held a casting call for non-celebrity guests to be on the show.

Joyce Willis from Philadelphia was among those who applied and was chosen, and she joins us now to tell us about that experience.

Joyce, welcome to the show.

- Thank you, thank you for having me.

- This is exciting and I take it you're a huge fan of "Finding Your Roots".

- Yes, I am.

I have not missed an episode and I rewatch episodes daily, literally daily.

- Well, how did you learn that you had been chosen?

- Well, they initially with the application process was I sent in a video and we had to do an online application.

I just sent that in and a few months later I got an email that said that I was one of the finalists, but when it came down to the final decision, they surprised me.

They actually got me on on camera and they were like, "You know, we wanna have a final interview with our last producer, just hang on."

And the screen went blank for a minute and when it came back up it was Dr. Gates staring back.

- Oh, wow!

- And I'm like, "Is my hair in place?"

I mean, I was totally, totally taken aback in all the best ways, it was amazing.

- Prior to this experience, have you taken genealogy tests, those DNA kits before?

- Yes, I have actually.

I took Ancestry, I did them first, but I also did 23 and Me, I did my Heritage, I did Family Tree DNA, FTDNA.

I've done just about all of them and I also did African ancestry, so I'm pretty much, I'm out there.

(Shirley laughing) - And then based on what you learned there, describe now the whole process and the experience of meeting with Dr. Gates and the show's producers and I'm guessing they took some of that information from you.

- Yes, they, in the process of collecting the information that they needed to do for the reveal, they were able to access my information that was on Ancestry and then they used what they found there, compared it to I guess some of the other people that I matched and they were able to locate the answer to the question that I had and everything.

It was wonderful, they flew me out to Boston, they treated me very, very well.

And, you know, I went on set and everything and he just sat down at that beautiful big table and he explained it all to me and it just was like light bulbs going off.

- For such a big fan though, what is that like for you?

(Joyce whistling) You know, you are in the seat that you've seen so many others before you sitting in.

- It was surreal to be honest with you, because I'm a watcher of the show, I know what he's gonna do.

I know he is gonna tell them to turn the page and he's gonna give him this big beautiful family tree.

So to be on the receiving end of that, to be honest with you, it was incredible.

It was a wonderful experience, but I kept thinking, is this real?

Am I really the person that's in this seat?

Is this really me this time?

This is for me.

So it was humbling, but it was also, I couldn't find the words.

A lot of times some of the things that he was saying, "How do you feel I couldn't find the words.

It took me a while to really be able to digest the fact that I was the one having this experience that I'd seen so many other people, famous people, I'm not famous, to have that experience and something that I really, really wanted.

And here it is in my lap right now, it was wonderful.

- Well, you can't reveal the findings because the show that you are appearing in won't air until April 9th, but were you able to get some of the answers that you've been looking for?

- Yes, I was.

The question that I submitted for the audition had to do with my grandmother, my father's mother, and some information on her father's side we didn't know, because he didn't talk about his life, they were able to find the exact answers to those questions.

So now we don't have to wonder anymore.

We don't have to guess.

- That's such a gift.

- It is.

- Has the experience changed your life in any way, shape, or form?

- Well, you know, I haven't changed as a person.

I'm still the same me, but I'm me with deeper roots.

I have an understanding now of the path that led to who I am.

And so now I have a way to express that to my daughter, and if she has children, they don't have to ask those questions anymore because we already have the answers.

- I love this.

I love this for you.

Joyce, thank you so much for being here.

We will all be watching on April 9th to learn about your family lineage.

"Finding Your Roots" airs right here on WHYY TV12 on Tuesdays at 8:00 p.m or you can stream it on Passport.

We head to Germantown now where the bell tolls from one of the oldest carillons in the United States, and it's the job of one woman to play the beautiful music that emanates from the miraculous metal shrine Carillon Tower.

(bells chiming) - [Timothy] I grew up here in Germantown, and the bells were always a big part of the sound of Germantown.

It creates a lot of joy.

(bells chiming) Monday night we came here and the air was filled with that sound, so there was kind of an excitement that went with the bells that you didn't think a whole lot about it or what song or hymn they're playing, but it was just like the air full of the sound of the bells.

(bells chiming) (gentle music) - I'm Janet Tebbel.

We are here in the Bell Tower of the Basilica Shrine of Our Lady of the Miraculous Metal in Germantown.

(upbeat music) This is a Vincentian seminary and chapel and shrine and St. Vincent's birthplace is in Pouy, France.

A seminarian from Vincentian Seminary went to visit St. Vincent's birthplace and herd those bells and wanted them for Germantown.

(upbeat music) This was installed and dedicated in 1900.

It's a beautiful tower, and with our Mary on top it shines bright.

(upbeat music) This is a Carillon.

We have 47 bells and these are arranged like piano keys, white and black.

The bells are above my head up in the tower.

When Arthur Bigelow put in the proposal to reconstruct this carillon using most of the original 26 bells and adding a bunch up top here, he knew that in order to have this kind of keyboard, he built this keyboard, we needed to be closer to the bells.

So he built this platform so that these trackers, these are called trackers, would not have quite so much chance to flap or play around.

(bells chiming) And as the key descends, it pulls a wire which is pulling a clapper against the side of the bells.

The bells do not move.

The clapper is suspended close to the edge and hits like this, and that's what gives us the control.

So I can go.

(bells chiming) I'm chattering the clapper against the bell.

Our lowest bell here is 3,300 pounds, (bells chiming) which in the world of bells is not huge, but it's very nice.

And the highest up here is probably about 12 pounds.

So that's a well constructed instrument.

(bells chiming) The best place to listen to bells is far enough away from the tower that you can look up and see the bells, and that means that the sound will come down to you.

(bells chiming) I like the richness of the sound of the bells.

When you play an organ, when you play a key, it sounds the same loudness.

No matter how hard you hit the key on the carillon, you can change the dynamic.

You can make it louder and softer.

So it's an expressive instrument.

(bells chiming) - I think if one were to do a visitor's guide for Germantown, one should include the cathedral with the carillon playing.

They are worthwhile listening to.

And there are the slats in the tower from where you can see the neighborhood.

It's fun to go up there and see my house from up there.

I hope the bells stay in good repair.

I hope that they will always have access to the knowledgeable and enthusiastic carilloner and that the neighborhood can enjoy it.

(bells chiming) - Professional drummer Ethan Feinstein was on a mission to find his perfect drum sound while on tour.

His quest inspired him to open a sustainable drum building company in the heart of Philadelphia.

(instrumental music) - I've been playing drums for about 15 years.

My name is Ethan Feinstein and I am the owner and drum builder at Philadelphia Drum Co. (instrumental music) As a drummer, I was always looking for new sounds that inspired me.

I tried to start building them as a way to find new sounds and get a kit that really spoke to me.

(machine grinding) I started this company just as a hobby.

I started it in my garage.

A close friend of mine approached me about starting this as a business and in the end of 2019 we started Philadelphia Drum Company.

It's really about finding a sound that inspires you to play drums.

(instrumental music) I like to think that when you hit a drum, it should give you a musical idea that you can follow and that it comes kind of a conversation with the instrument.

(instrumental music) Any sound that inspires you to play is your perfect drum sound.

(bright music) Handmade instruments allow for an attention to detail that you can't get with factory made drum sets.

Elements that we can personalize to make the drum speak to the individual and which also brings out a more refined sound from the instrument as well.

Our most popular drum is actually what I like to call the Philly special.

It's made from three different woods, maple, cherry, and walnut.

It is a very special drum set to us.

To actually be a part of the drumming and music community, helps us connect with what drummers want and what's actually going on in the Philadelphia music scene right now.

- I love these drums.

They're solid, I love bass drum sound, nice solid sound.

And these drums bring the best at it.

(instrumental music) - We primarily focus with local lumber sourced from Lancaster and other parts of Pennsylvania.

We primarily focus in maple, cherry, walnut, birch, and a few other local varieties.

That carries a story in itself because the drums are made out of wood, so it has kind of a life of its own before it becomes a drum.

And the relationship between the tree, the wood, and the sound is a very important one.

We start with roughs on lumber.

We cut them into staves and we put a particular angle on them which allows us to glue it into a circle.

(drum rolls) From there, we carve the drum by hand on the outside and inside to get it to the finished dimensions and to get it into a perfect circle.

(instrumental music) We add bearing edges, which is where the drum heads actually sit.

We add a finish coat, which protects the drums and gives them a shine.

We add the hardware, drill all the holes, assemble it by hand, tune it up, and then put the final touches with the badge and any customized elements that the drummer asked for.

(instrumental music) Ultimately, that is really what drives us, connecting each drummer with a drum that they really love and that inspires them, is what we try to do here every day.

(instrumental music) - A new dumpling shop on South Street uses an automat to serve its food.

It's a fresh take on old technology that started right here in Philadelphia.

(upbeat music) - [Shirley] Brooklyn Dumpling Shop PHL is where dumplings are reimagined.

- It's non-traditional dumplings, so we call them two ounce sandwiches.

We have lamb gyro, mac and cheese, bacon cheeseburger, cheese steak, yeah.

(upbeat music) - [Shirley] The dumplings aren't the only things that are non-traditional here.

(upbeat music) This locker system with windows and doors is called an automat, it's like a high tech vending machine.

(upbeat music) - You order on a kiosk or you can do it online on your phone.

Your orders them made fresh and stored in the heated and cooled lockers.

(bright music) When your order's ready, you'll get a text and on the board it'll prompt you.

You go to the automat, scan your barcode and your door automatically opens and closes.

You can take your food.

(upbeat music) We think it's a new concept.

People get excited by that.

People like to use the lockers and take videos of it.

It's great for social media.

We found people really enjoy that.

- [Shirley] But the auto mat is not new.

It was invented in the late 1800s in Germany.

Joseph Horn and Frank Hardart are the first to bring the concept to the United States in 1902, right here in Philadelphia.

- The automat, as we know it, as our grandparents would sort of wistfully describe is their invention.

(upbeat music) The first thing you would do is make sure you had enough nickels and you would pick what you wanted to eat, put in a nickel, maybe two nickels for an entree, turn the knob, and on a plate would be your salsbury steak.

would be your apple pie.

You would pull those out, put them on your tray, take your tray back to your table, and if you didn't have enough to eat or you wanted more dessert, or if you wanted coffee, you would take your nickel back up to the line of machines and get the next thing that you wanted.

(bright music) Just imagine, right?

You were eight, nine, and you got to go to this store.

Your parents would give you five or six nickels.

You were making these like choices, right?

But then you gotta save for dessert, right?

And I can't imagine it wasn't fun.

The consumption was meant to be a restaurant experience.

You were welcome to stay as long as you wanted.

The majority of the men would be wearing jackets and ties.

It was food that was produced in bulk and waiting for you, but it wasn't asking you to consume it rapidly.

There aren't many truly public institutions in the United States, there's not many places where everybody's welcome.

The automat was one of them.

It was one of these places where wealthy business people would come.

The head, I'm sure the Philadelphia Stock Exchange when it still existed, but so would a house cleaner.

It was to an extent racially integrated.

It was a place again that immigrants would go to because it didn't require any conversation and there was no tipping.

They could just put their nickels in and see what they were getting.

- [Shirley] Even by the standards of mid-Century America, a nickel is really cheap and prices held steady for a while.

But dealing with inflation becomes a real problem for Horn and Hardart who are forced to raise prices to a dime in the late 1970s.

It's the beginning of the end for the automat.

Not only did prices go up, but more people leave the city for the suburbs.

Now Horn and Hardart's scaled up model is no longer sustainable.

(orchestral music) - The original store in Philly closes in 1968.

- [Shirley] And all that remains here at 818 Chestnut Street is this sign cementing the automat in Philly's identity forever.

(orchestral music) You may have seen them around the city.

The men in blue of Ready, Willing, and Able who helped spruce up the city all while rebuilding their lives.

(upbeat music) - Ready, Willing, and Able Started in 2001 as a homeless shelter and a transitional housing program for men in Philadelphia.

In 2018, we became part of the Urban Affairs Coalition.

And then in 2020 we partnered with the City's Office of Addiction Services to become a recovery house.

We have up to 50 men at a time who stay with us for six to nine months on average, just depending on how they're progressing in their recovery and getting back to their life.

While they're with us, we have a work program which they're paid for doing sidewalk cleaning throughout our neighborhoods.

The work component of our program helps men get into a regular routine again because many of our men have been living on the street for years, some have been incarcerated.

And part of recovery is replacing former behaviors with newer, productive behaviors and the work is an important part of that.

(upbeat music) The core of our program is an individuals recovery.

Without recovery from substance use disorder, whether it's alcoholism or other substances, nothing else is sustainable.

So along with taking care of ourselves and recovering ourselves is serving the community and serving the greater good.

So that selflessness, it comes with being representatives of the program and of a sober lifestyle out in the world.

That's why our men wear uniforms.

Often the men are doing work projects in communities where they were actively using, demonstrating to themselves that they can be anywhere and stay clean and sober.

(upbeat music) - I came to this program after having some problems with addiction.

I actually worked in the field of human services, behavior health.

When I left the program, get a call from Ready, Willing, and Able saying, "Hey, didn't you go to school for case management?"

And it was on from there.

It's one-on-ones daily with the men and help give them that guidance and assistance that they need.

They don't just look at me as, "Okay, he's just another staff member."

But this is a person that identifies with me and my wellness is in his regard.

- I needed so much help before Ready, Willing, and Able.

And when I came into the program, they assisted me with building my relationships back up with my family, and I started to help others and share all my story with the new guys.

Coming in and just being able to give back is very important to me.

And I'm not an employee and I've never would thought that would happen.

It's a wonderful story.

- It's like a brotherhood in here.

You know, we all help each other.

It's a program of camaraderie.

We all talk about our problems.

The people here give you support.

'Cause even though I'm not a active user, it doesn't mean life is gonna be all pretty.

So slowly I start learning certain triggers that I might have and to help me with that, to identify those things, to ask for help.

This cannot be done by yourself.

I'm so grateful that my life is where it is right now.

God put people in my life that are making me successful today.

- What we see in Ready, Willing, and Able is that recovery is possible even in some of what looked like the worst cases of addiction.

And that's what we're here for and that's what we help men do every day.

(gentle music) - The next time you see the Men in Blue, let them know you appreciate the work they do.

Well that is our show and now you are in the Know.

Goodnight everyone.

(upbeat music)