9/21/2008

Philadelphia murals...

One of my favorite things about Philadelphia is the huge number of murals that liven up the streetscape thanks to the Philadelphia Mural Arts program. I have many favorites, and so many I haven't yet encountered, but yesterday I happened to be parked just opposite "Crystal Snowscape," one of the seasons series by artist David Guinn. His "Spring" is my favorite, but I do like "Welcome to the Neighborhood," at the Center City end of the South Street Bridge, and "Early One Morning in the Twentieth Century," depicting the early cityscape in Welcome Park.



It's the pixelated nature, and that Seurat idea of using many small blocks of color to create a whole image, that I love. You can stand close and see the individual blocks, or stand at a distance and see the whole idea. And Mural Arts is excellent at pairing image, artist and environment. The winter images above include the rowhouses of the surrounding blocks. My favorite "Spring" extends the open space it stands next to with a group of trees beginning to bloom.



I love traveling through new parts of the city and meeting new murals. It encourages me to explore because of what new things I might find...

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

I don't know the names of my favorites but I've always been very partial to the dancers (on Pine?), the scene of the architect and construction workers (on 11th or 12th?) and another in the opposite direction on Pine (this is one of the pixellated ones you mention). One of these days I will take a mural tour...The first one you show in the blog looks like your apartment! Your old apartment, I mean.
--SA