Reimaging Public Art

Imagine a Safe, Clean, and Green city where Art is proliferated by economically thriving artists whose creativity supports both the quality of life of city residents and encourages civic engagement, social, economic, and community development. Further, imagine this Safe, Clean, Green, Art-filled city becomes a model for other communities around the world who are inspired by how the city tangibly uses public art to address and dismantle some of its seemingly intractable problems, including violence, especially among the youth, poor educational outcomes, unemployment, litter, anemic civic engagement, pallid economic activity, lack of green spaces, and the list goes on. I recall saying some version of the above to a small group of folks and heard the retort, “Yeah… keep dreaming!”

I enjoy dreaming. I enjoy “blue-sky” dreaming. According to the Internet, “blue-sky thinking is a creative and open-minded approach to problem-solving and idea generation in business.” I really enjoy witnessing blue-sky dreams become everyday realities.  Mural Arts is a prime example of a previously blue-sky dream turned into a worldwide cultural reality. In fact, if you go back to the opening sentences of this essay and swap out the word “imagine” and replace it with “Mural Arts creates a,” you may find yourself nodding in agreement with the statements. In other words, Mural Arts is our proof of concept for how public art can transform a city.

During last year’s mayoral campaign, the arts and culture sector clearly articulated to all of the candidates that it was time for arts and culture to have a seat at the table in order for our collective interests to be better represented in city government. In the months between winning the election and taking office, Mayor Cherelle Parker assembled a set of transition subcommittees, including one on arts and culture. Nearly 50 arts and culture leaders, practitioners, patrons, and citizens served on the subcommittee and made recommendations to the incoming mayor about the arts and culture sector. Arguably, the first goal was for Mayor Parker to keep her campaign promise and appoint the chief cultural officer to her Cabinet, the first such appointment in the Office of Arts and Culture’s 40-year history.  I was honored to have been selected to represent our sector and to lead the effort to “overlay” arts and culture onto all aspects of local government and align with the Parker administration’s vision for a Safer, Cleaner, Greener Philadelphia, with economic opportunity for all, in a meaningful and substantive way.  Another important alignment has also been established: Mural Arts and the Office of Arts and Culture, now called Creative Philadelphia. At the writing of this essay, we are still defining the organizational alliance between Creative Philadelphia and Mural Arts, and I am heartened by our synergistic energy. Ultimately, our overarching goal is to collaborate with a myriad of public and private agencies and organizations to grow the cultural economy and to expand access to the arts to all of the citizens and neighborhoods of Philadelphia.

We all know that Philadelphia is a city made up of neighborhoods. There are many ways to understand a neighborhood’s identity: By its landscape of shops and restaurants, its locals who know the area like the back of their hand, and by the public art that illuminates the streets.

Public art has a profound impact on our sense of community and identity in our neighborhoods. As a native Philadelphian, I know firsthand that art has not been distributed evenly across all neighborhoods. (But thank goodness for Mural Arts, for without them, many neighborhoods would be bereft of visual art.)  As a former banker (wealth management), I know firsthand that sustainable economic opportunities are not accessible in all neighborhoods. As an entrepreneur, I know firsthand how precarious the early years of a new endeavor can be, and the potential for failure is high. And as a practicing artist, I know firsthand that the general societal bent toward not paying artists sustainable fees and wages often creates a state of financial vulnerability for the artists. Heretofore, public art hasn’t really addressed these issues, well, publicly, but we must address all barriers to reaching our blue-sky goals and develop ways to mitigate our issues. For example, many of our amazing native Philadelphian artists have not been formally trained, but they contain prodigious talent and potential. We will expand our professional development classes to help make our artists more marketable and to widen their skill sets and, therefore, their ability to grow, both artistically and economically.

Expanding access to arts in all neighborhoods is a key focus for Creative Philadelphia. Beginning Fall 2024, we will embark on a set of town hall-styled listening tours, through which we plan to engage residents from every corner of Philadelphia, including artists and cultural workers, and from which we will design pilot programs and advocacy for increased arts funding.

There are over 1,000 public art pieces (including monuments, statues, and murals) under Creative Philadelphia’s management. When you add the over 4,000 murals created by Mural Arts, we have over 5,000 ways to connect with our communities, and we’re just getting started. Public art must always evolve to reflect the communities it serves. By encouraging diverse artists through professional development resources, we are paving the way for a more inclusive and representative public art landscape. With Mural Arts at the forefront of this movement, we dream of a future where public art truly reflects the diversity and richness of our city.

Can you see the blue sky above us?