One World, A Monument to the Diaspora
In 2001, Philadelphia painter Ann Northrup undertook the large-scale painting of murals with Mural Arts Philadelphia, then called Philadelphia Mural Arts Program. Her projects were conceived in creative discourse with community groups in the spirit of participatory public artwork. As a drawing and design teacher at several colleges and universities, Northrup has instructed students ranging from youth, prison inmates, ex-offenders, troubled teens, and retired seniors. She even served as director of the Foundation Design Program at Philadelphia University from 1998 through 2005.
According to her official website, Northrup’s art creates “harmony through a synthesis of real-world problems and her own aesthetic.” One of those problems is the perishable and transitory nature of meaningful public artwork. The reasons for this problem vary. Sometimes the artwork goes away because it is old and has had its share of natural deterioration. Alternatively, it can become obscured due to real estate development. Mural Arts Founder and Executive Director Jane Golden once said, “I understand that cities grow and evolve; things are always moving. And that some works of outdoor art will go away, as well. We cannot stop development — but we can and should work together to create a city that speaks to everyone and respects everyone’s desire to be seen and heard.”
In 2010, Mural Arts dedicated Northrup’s 49-foot high and 34-foot wide impressionist mural One World at the Independence Charter School, located at 16th and Lombard Streets. The mural depicted an international marketplace in diverse ecosystems, with vignettes of people from countries including Nigeria, Bangladesh, and Mexico. The idea was inspired by a fruit market that students from the nearby Independence Charter School were operating at the time. Under Northrup’s leadership, painting began two years earlier, with the help of charter school students, Philadelphians who were incarcerated or recently released, interns, and volunteers. Later, expansion of the charter school caused the mural to be obscured.
