Symbols of Change

Symbols of Change by artist Donald Gensler was located on the side of the Philadelphia Fire Department Engine 43 & Ladder 9 fire house in the City Center neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Genseler in his artist statement said about the mural: “The impact that truancy has on our youth is most readily seen by the number of youth who begin as truant and end up as delinquent and incarcerated. Simply put, truancy is a stepping-stone for even greater problems. This mural project investigates truancy in our youth, positive symbols for change, and the social and legal structure that seeks to contain and manage this behavior.

“The mural design portrays students involved in truancy ’roundtable’ discussions. These students, selected as representatives for their neighborhood, participated in discussions about truancy and helped to develop dialogue about changing this trend in youth culture. They serve as symbols for change and are surrounded by symbols created by youth throughout Philadelphia. [I worked] with over 100 students from Intensive Delinquency Prevention Program sites in Philadelphia. Students designed and printed their own symbols of positive change. Selected symbols were incorporated into a screen, and meanings of the symbols were added to the [design’s] composition.

“From a distance the viewer sees only the large heads of some Philadelphia teenagers accented by thin lines of saturated color. I hope to engage the viewer to see the mural from different vantage points. Upon further investigation one notices the photographic images break down in resolution and the drawn symbols become more apparent. Through a screen of children’s prints the viewer looks into the thoughts and aspirations of many of today’s youth. Upon further inspection the viewer will notice phrases written by many of the students, describing the meaning of their symbol. While some symbols look toward the future others remind us of the difficulties many of these students face in the present.

“Through the design process students, parents, community members, teachers, judges, truancy police and social workers are involved in discussions about truancy. The mural is the visual product of these discussions and research…”

Location Note: Mural no longer on view at this location (painted out in 2014 and replaced by a new mural).