Libby Rosa and Alex Jackson, "Grendel’s Lair (Facsimile of Original Sign and Reimagined Sign)," 2026. Acrylic, sign painting enamel, flashe, wood, 62 x 32 inches each

Libby Rosa and Alex Jackson, "Grendel’s Lair (Facsimile of Original Sign and Reimagined Sign)," 2026. Acrylic, sign painting enamel, flashe, wood, 62 x 32 inches each

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Mark Thomas Gibson, "Their Hate is My Spinach," 2024. Digital print on nylon, commissioned by DRWC for group flag exhibition "Commemorations" at Spruce Street Harbor Park, 10'x5'

Mark Thomas Gibson, "Their Hate is My Spinach," 2024. Digital print on nylon, commissioned by DRWC for group flag exhibition "Commemorations" at Spruce Street Harbor Park, 10'x5'

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Jacob Todd Broussard, "Relativity Clock 3," 2026. Acrylic and mixed media on watercolor paper, 22.5"x30.5"

Jacob Todd Broussard, "Relativity Clock 3," 2026. Acrylic and mixed media on watercolor paper, 22.5"x30.5"

Jacob Todd Broussard, "Relativity Clock 2," 2026. Acrylic and mixed media on watercolor paper, 22.5"x30.5"

Jacob Todd Broussard, "Relativity Clock 2," 2026. Acrylic and mixed media on watercolor paper, 22.5"x30.5"

Jacob Todd Broussard, "Relativity Clock 1," 2026. Acrylic and mixed media on watercolor paper, 22.5"x30.5"

Jacob Todd Broussard, "Relativity Clock 1," 2026. Acrylic and mixed media on watercolor paper, 22.5"x30.5"

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Cobi Moules, "Bubbles (It’s Alive, Exists, and Can Bear Under Full Phaser Power)," 2026. Oil on panel, 8"x12"x1 3/8"

Cobi Moules, "Bubbles (It’s Alive, Exists, and Can Bear Under Full Phaser Power)," 2026. Oil on panel, 8"x12"x1 3/8"

Cobi Moules, "Oh, Hello! (It’s Alive, Exists, and Can Bear Under Full Phaser Power)," 2026. Oil on panel, 5"x 5"x1 3/8"

Cobi Moules, "Oh, Hello! (It’s Alive, Exists, and Can Bear Under Full Phaser Power)," 2026. Oil on panel, 5"x 5"x1 3/8"

Cobi Moules, "Sending Out Signals (It’s Alive, Exists, and Can Bear Under Full Phaser Power)," 2026. Oil on panel, 7"x7 1/4"x1 3/8"

Cobi Moules, "Sending Out Signals (It’s Alive, Exists, and Can Bear Under Full Phaser Power)," 2026. Oil on panel, 7"x7 1/4"x1 3/8"

Cobi Moules, "Hotspot (It’s Alive, Exists, and Can Bear Under Full Phaser Power)," 2026. Oil on panel, 6"x9 1/4"x1 3/8"

Cobi Moules, "Hotspot (It’s Alive, Exists, and Can Bear Under Full Phaser Power)," 2026. Oil on panel, 6"x9 1/4"x1 3/8"

Cobi Moules, "Fuzzy When Wet II (It’s Alive, Exists, and Can Bear Under Full Phaser Power)," 2025. Silicone and flocking on paper-mache clay, 3"x2"x1 3/4"

Cobi Moules, "Fuzzy When Wet II (It’s Alive, Exists, and Can Bear Under Full Phaser Power)," 2025. Silicone and flocking on paper-mache clay, 3"x2"x1 3/4"

Cobi Moules, "Fuzzy When Wet I (It’s Alive, Exists, and Can Bear Under Full Phaser Power)," 2025. Silicone and flocking on paper-mache clay, 2 3/4"x3 1/2"x4 1/4"

Cobi Moules, "Fuzzy When Wet I (It’s Alive, Exists, and Can Bear Under Full Phaser Power)," 2025. Silicone and flocking on paper-mache clay, 2 3/4"x3 1/2"x4 1/4"

Cobi Moules, "Fuzzy When Wet III (It’s Alive, Exists, and Can Bear Under Full Phaser Power)," 2025. Silicone and flocking on paper-mache clay, 4"x8"x8"

Cobi Moules, "Fuzzy When Wet III (It’s Alive, Exists, and Can Bear Under Full Phaser Power)," 2025. Silicone and flocking on paper-mache clay, 4"x8"x8"

Cobi Moules, "Bubbles (It’s Alive, Exists, and Can Bear Under Full Phaser Power)," 2026. Oil on panel, 8"x12"x1 3/8"

Cobi Moules, "Bubbles (It’s Alive, Exists, and Can Bear Under Full Phaser Power)," 2026. Oil on panel, 8"x12"x1 3/8"

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Alex Jackson, "See Gate No. 23," 2025. Acrylic on Panel, 30 x 50 inches

Alex Jackson, "See Gate No. 23," 2025. Acrylic on Panel, 30 x 50 inches

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Kati Gegenheimer, "Cove Trim," 2026. Latex and chrome paint on cove moulding, Dimensions variable

Kati Gegenheimer, "Cove Trim," 2026. Latex and chrome paint on cove moulding, Dimensions variable

Kati Gegenheimer, "Make Your Own Luck: Night Sky Charm," 2026. Oil on horseshoe-shaped panel with silver nails, 10 ¾"x10 ¼"

Kati Gegenheimer, "Make Your Own Luck: Night Sky Charm," 2026. Oil on horseshoe-shaped panel with silver nails, 10 ¾"x10 ¼"

Katy Rosenthal Jackson, "Roy Ayers Ubiquity, “Searching,” Soul Train," 1976, 2026. Felted wool, 17 3/4"x15 1/2"x1"

Katy Rosenthal Jackson, "Roy Ayers Ubiquity, “Searching,” Soul Train," 1976, 2026. Felted wool, 17 3/4"x15 1/2"x1"

Katy Rosenthal Jackson, "Roy on the vibraphone," 2026. Felted wool, 13"x17 1/5"x1"

Katy Rosenthal Jackson, "Roy on the vibraphone," 2026. Felted wool, 13"x17 1/5"x1"

Katy Rosenthal Jackson, "Roy’s shirt," 2026. Felted wool, 21"x14"x1"

Katy Rosenthal Jackson, "Roy’s shirt," 2026. Felted wool, 21"x14"x1"

Image credits: Temple University Libraries, Urban Archive

Image credits: Temple University Libraries, Urban Archive

Photograph from the original Grendel's Lair, Disco Party, 1976

Photograph from the original Grendel's Lair, Disco Party, 1976

The Lair: Come on, Funk it Up!

Part of Collective Futures Programming

Location: Icebox Project Space,1400 N American St, Philadelphia, PA 19122 ‍

October 8 - November 12, 2026

Opening Reception: Thursday, October 8‍ ‍

‍

The Lair is a sensory revival of Grendel’s Lair, a legendary theatre and music venue created by Phil Roy that became one of Philadelphia’s premier cultural hubs on South Street from 1972 to 1987. Curated by Peep Projects director Libby Rosa, the exhibition draws from both the venue’s cultural history and Rosa’s personal connection to it. Rosa’s uncle, Larry Goldfarb, alongside his partner Gary Delfiner, organized concerts and disco dance parties at the club. The venue was also where Goldfarb met Rosa’s aunt, Mary Ellen, his wife of 47 years. He asked her to dance, and the rest became family history.

Grendel’s Lair was a space in constant motion, transforming from day to night into a variety of entertainment worlds. It operated as a cabaret theater, improvisational jazz venue featuring legends such as Dizzy Gillespie, McCoy Tyner, and Roy Ayers, and a stage for rock and punk acts including The Hooters, the Dead Boys, Buffy Sainte-Marie, and The Police. It also hosted the cosmic Afrofuturism of Sun Ra and the queer joy of musicals such as Let My People Come. The venue brought together disparate communities, genres, and forms of expression under one roof.

The Lair exhibition reimagines this history through a simplified architectural facade that suggests both interior and exterior space. Within it, Rosa invited a group of close artist friends to create work inspired by the club’s many identities and histories. The exhibition includes a Scopitone jukebox-inspired video installation, a reimagined Grendel’s Lair sign, Sun Ra-inspired architectural molding, and other works that transform fragments of the past into a new, collectively imagined environment.

Presented as part of the citywide Collective Futures project at the Icebox, The Lair is both a tribute and an act of reimagining. Echoing Larry Goldfarb’s invitation to “Come on, Funk it Up,” it celebrates the spaces that bring people together to create, connect, and express themselves freely. In a different time, the exhibition asks how we can keep that spirit of gathering, creativity, and shared humanity alive.

Participating Artists:

Alex Jackson
Katy Rosenthal Jackson
Mark Thomas Gibson
Kati Gegenheimer
Emily Wells
Samantha Nye
Cobi Moules
Jacob Todd Broussard