Women’s History Month: Celebrating Women through Public Art
Philadelphia is a city that embraces and honors its women in vibrant ways, especially in March, Women’s History Month. Throughout the city, numerous opportunities exist to recognize Women’s History Month. The National Constitution Center features an exhibit dedicated to the 19th Amendment, while the Barnes Foundation highlights women in music with a performance by jazz vocalist Denise King. From supporting women-owned small businesses to exploring museum exhibits focused on women’s contributions, Philadelphia makes it easy to celebrate the resilience and history of women.
Philadelphia, of course, is also a city defined by its murals. A mural in your honor is our unique way of saying, “We love you.” Across the city, you’ll find murals celebrating the countless contributions of women—honoring their impact in politics, science, music, literature, and the communities they’ve enriched. Through these vibrant works of art, Mural Arts not only commemorates women’s history but also inspires the future.
Here are a few great murals to check out in celebration of Women’s History Month!
Luminaries: The Coronation
Philadelphia High School for Girls | 1400 W Olney Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19141
https://www.publicartarchive.org/search/art/0442525e
Luminaries: The Coronation is located on the exterior of Philadelphia High School for Girls in the Logan neighborhood of Philadelphia. The mural honors the school’s distinguished alumnae, including the iconic GRAMMY Award-winning artist Jill Scott. Designed by renowned artist Patrick Dougher, this mural celebrates not only Ms. Scott’s remarkable legacy but all of the young women who have walked the halls of Girls’ High and gone on to change the world.
In the mural, Ms. Scott wears a golden crown and halo, representing the moon as feminine power and spirit. She passes crowns to a group of students, presented as silhouettes based on current students from the school who the artist met during a visit. All of the women wear richly patterned dresses as they celebrate themselves and proudly wear their golden crowns. A yellow tree, the emblem of the school, is visible against a white background, the school’s colors. Scott holds a banner that reads “vincit qui se vincit” which translates to “(s)he conquers who conquers (her)himself” – a motto that emphasizes self-mastery as the key to overcoming life’s challenges. The mural is rich in symbols that represent the legacy passed through the generations who have attended Philadelphia High School for Girls.
Pioneering Women A-Z
Philadelphia Department of Public Health | Health Center 4, 4400 Haverford Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19104
https://publicartarchive.org/search/art/f548471c
Pioneering Women A-Z pays homage to women activists, writers, singers, abolitionists, suffragettes, and activists throughout history. Bryn Mawr College, the first women’s college to offer graduate degrees, commissioned this mural to commemorate the 125th anniversary of the college. Artist Shira Walinsky combined photo transfer and free-hand portraits presented in an “A-to-Z” format that accentuates the range of accomplishments of the women honored on the wall. Various fonts are used, alluding to the past and present. The color spectrum provides the background for text that describes the accomplishments of these many notable women. Students at Parkway West High School participated in the creation of the mural, along with Bryn Mawr College students, faculty, and staff.
Taking Up Space: Going Beyond Boundaries with Women in Technology
1915 Arch Street, Philadelphia, PA 19103
https://www.publicartarchive.org/search/art/a7848015
Located outside of Russell Byers Charter School is a mural called Taking Up Space: Going Beyond Boundaries with Women in Technology by Serena Saunders. The mural pays homage to the women who are breaking boundaries in the fields of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM). It also serves as an inspiration to girls to explore these fields for themselves. The design utilizes the look and feel of what we know as space beyond our sky to emphasize the reach of what it is to follow your dreams, to have access to exploring space, and to literally and physically take up space as women in male-dominated fields of work and study. The Serpens Constellation, a mythological symbol of the healing arts, is included as an homage to the legacy of Irene Davis, the pioneering, longtime leader of the medical publishing company FA Davis.
Flight
1229 Spruce St. Philadelphia PA 19107
https://www.publicartarchive.org/art/Flight/abbc9427
The inspirational mural Flight by Tatyana Fazlalizadeh pictures what it would be like for Black people to rise off the ground into the sky, imagining “flying” as a metaphor for liberation, escape, and transformation. The Spruce Street iteration is the largest of a series of murals by the same name located around Center City Philadelphia.
An inscription at the bottom of the mural reads: “I let go of what has weighed me down. Light as a feather, I ride the wind. Like Black folks have always done. Flying free above the structures built to confine us.”
Flight was created in partnership with Kensington Health Sciences Academy, the African American Museum in Philadelphia, and the University of the Arts.
Philly Votes: Legacy In Bloom
5644 Walnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19139
https://www.publicartarchive.org/art/Philly-Votes-Legacy-In-Bloom/4bcb453f
Not only do murals remember the resilience of women in the past, but they can also give us hope for the future. Located at 5644 Walnut Street in West Philly is a recent mural titled Philly Votes: Legacy in Bloom by artist Tai Corrienté Bacoum.
Philadelphia’s first permanent voting-themed mural celebrates the generations of voices that fought for voting rights and urges today’s youth to be heard. The mural is a powerful symbol of democracy that aims to amplify community voices in shaping the future.
Dedicated to inspiring Philadelphians to civic participation by voting, the mural’s West Philadelphia location was identified as one of 10 districts with weakening voter turnout. The mural design references an iconic American symbol with a message about our responsibility to future generations. Three central figures passing the torch represent the passing of hard-fought progress to the next generation. With a skyline in the background, sitting in a body of water, and with winks of cabled bridges in the tattoos on the largest figure’s skin, the composition references the Statue of Liberty and all of its hopes and promises.
A Tribute to Sonia Sanchez
1418 West Diamond Street, Philadelphia, PA 19121
https://www.publicartarchive.org/art/A-Tribute-to-Sonia-Sanchez/c1aef586
A Tribute to Sonia Sanchez by artist James Dupree is in North Philadelphia. This beautiful mural is a tribute to local poet and advocate for civil rights Sonia Sanchez. Sanchez was born in Birmingham, Alabama, in 1934 and has become one of the most prominent poets and activists in the United States and beyond. Ms. Sanchez spent three decades in New York before moving to Philadelphia, where she taught English and Women’s Studies at Temple University. She has had an immense impact on the women poets of our city and beyond.
The mural features four images from Sonia Sanchez’s poetry and four images of the poet herself: one with her family (mother, father, and sister), one as a child, a current image, and one depicting her after death as an angel. The dedication for this mural included a full day of poetry readings and celebrations. Along with this mural, poetry and painting youth workshops were held at nearby arts organization Art Sanctuary. Their work was unveiled there, and a procession to the mural followed.
