Photographer Tony Rocco grew up in South Philly, but his heart is a nomad. He's found inspiration for his work close to home, shooting intimate portraits of family members and catching his students clowning around at Julia de Burgos Elementary School. But Rocco can't seem to shake his interest in the other part of his heritage, his mother's homeland of Colombia, which he's visited several times. This month, he's showing 12 years' worth of photography that chronicles his many passions. While his most powerful portraits are those of his father and elderly uncles, Rocco also succeeds with pictures of children. One particularly riveting image is of a 3-year-old at her own birthday party: The center of attention, a huge birthday cake gleaming in front of her, the serious little girl sits contemplatively with her face cradled in her hands. Rocco has shot South Street on the Day of the Dead festival (there were many "Fridas for A Day," and he caught one), street parties in North Philly, the cultural fusion that is the Italian Market and his relatives in Colombia. All compositions are striking, and all people shine. Look for a future exhibit stemming from an ethnographic project launched by the Historical Society of Pennsylvania studying Latinos in Philadelphia; Rocco served as a photographic documentarian for the project.

Reception Fri., April 4, 5-9 p.m. Exhibition runs through April 27. 58 N. Second St., 215-625-0993.

Painted Bride

On March 22, almost a dozen families converged on the Painted Bride. Their charge? To create a work of art that symbolized family, specifically their own. Shadowboxes, along with whatever trinkets the families brought, were the media. So besides the Bride-provided glitter, sequins and the usual artsy-craftsy materials, the boxes house more intimate objects that capture personalities and relationships. One family's box contains a computer mouse and an Allen wrench (mom's a programmer and dad's an IKEA employee). Other boxes have ticket stubs, Horticultural Society prize ribbons, photo-booth strips, seeds, dog bones, fabric, a subway map from Athens, Greece. The Bride's Lisa Nelson-Haynes says it was important that the exhibit reflect the process of the workshop, not just the finished product. Pew fellow Lonnie Graham photographed the families, and the pictures will accompany the exhibit. Artist John Horace Stone has created an installation with mantelpieces to facilitate the shadowboxes, what Nelson-Haynes calls "a warm, homey set-up" appropriate to the subject matter. The families will be the guests of honor at the First Friday reception.

Reception Fri., April 4, 5-7 p.m. Exhibition runs through May 25. 230 Vine St., 215-925-9914.

Temple Gallery and University of the Arts

Thesis season has begun. Temple Gallery and University of the Arts boast some great student work. MFA candidate Anne Gant has created a wildly original and impressive process in which she takes still-hot glass she has sculpted and presses it onto wet paper. The glass burns the paper, leaving a ghostly impression in blacks, browns and yellows of the Roman vessel-inspired glass shapes. The glasswork is destroyed in the process, making the one-time-only imprint left on the paper even more intriguing. Fiber artist Lorraine Glessner and glass-and-steel sculptor Michael Gnad accompany Gant in the first round of shows. Exhibits featuring the work of other Temple MFA students will have four-day runs throughout the month. Gallery Siano plays host to the work of four UArts MFA students: the bold, provocative blend of candy, plaster and concrete from the hands of Natalie Atherton; Carla Falb's painterly rattle-your-brains ride through the tracks of roller coasters; Sumi Maeshima's ceramics adorned with nails arranged in decorative patterns; and Karen Kiick's digital photos dealing with nervous habits and unseemly personal traits.

Temple exhibits: reception Fri., April 4, 6-9 p.m. On view April 2-5. 45 N. Second St., 215-925-7379. UArts exhibits at Gallery Siano: reception Fri., April 4, 6-9 p.m. Through April 11. 309 Arch St., 215-629-2940.

And Then There’s …

911 Gallery launches an exhibit called "From A Woman's Perspective." Reception Fri., April 4, 5-8 p.m. Exhibition runs through April 30. 911 Arch St., 215-922-5583. Painter John Suplee's vision of West Chester in 30 works takes over the Chester County Art Association this month, but he throws in some views of Paris and Madrid for comparative good measure. Reception Fri., April 4, 6-8 p.m. Gallery talk with Suplee, Sun., April 13, 2 p.m. Exhibition runs through May 3. 100 N. Bradford Ave., West Chester, 215-696-5600.