Mural Once Hidden Is Seen

Albeit for only a few weeks, a mural that was once hidden inside on the second floor of this building became visible to the public as the owner began tearing the building down to make room for new residences. The mural, painted by Shira Walinsky and Adam Carrigan, was an interactive map of Philadelphia. During a Design Philadelphia workshop hosted by Philly Works, viewers could use sticky notes to stamp symbols on, and then stick it to the wall, pointing out certain issues in their neighborhoods that they care about or want to see resolved. When you think of buildings being torn down, it usually is accompanied by a feeling of negativity. Suddenly revealed to the public, the mural created a positive buzz around the community and for the passersby. It also received some attention on a local Philly blog, Naked Philly. This gave us an idea to do more murals inside vacant buildings, in hopes of creating a resurgence of activity in underutilized spaces. Perhaps we could even plan to do these murals spontaneously in places where we know buildings are coming down sometime soon... Feel free to share your thoughts!