East Market Windows
As part of a major initiative to enhance the Market Street East corridor ahead of the summer 2026 Semiquincentennial and World Cup celebrations in Philadelphia, Mural Arts is partnering with the City of Philadelphia and Center City District on a series of temporary art installations along Market Street. These installations, created exclusively by local artists, stretch across more than 5,500 square feet of frontage, bringing color, beauty, and vibrancy to the streetscape for Philadelphians and visitors to enjoy.
On April 2, Cuban-Salvadorian artist Manuela Guillén installed her pilot project, Philly, Cool People Live Here, the first of the series, on the exterior of the Fashion District Philadelphia, along the northwest corner of 10th and Market Streets. May 2026 will bring the full roll-out of the remaining projects, created by the following artists:
- Dora Cuenca (1132 Market Street)
- Isaac Tin Wei Lin (1128 Market Street)
- Ife Nii-Owoo (718 Market Street)
- a’driane nieves (821 Market Street)
- Maria Dumlao (900 Market Street, Northside)
- Gina Triplett (731 Market Street)
- Serena Saunders (618 Market Street)
These pop-up installations are part of a major investment from the City of Philadelphia in the Market Street East neighborhood, alongside eight temporary retail locations from businesses in the Greater Philadelphia area, open Wednesday to Sunday each week, starting this May. The result of this partnership between Center City District and Meantime will be a cross-section of the region’s creative and entrepreneurial communities, bringing renewed energy and foot traffic to the 900 block of Market Street and building on Center City District’s foundational work of keeping downtown clean, safe, and active. Space for these retailers is provided by Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment, Comcast and the Fashion District.
In addition to these programs, Center City District will replace and plant 42 new trees along the corridor, refurbish four transit head houses and 21 bus shelters, paint light and banner poles, and more, continuing Philadelphia’s renown as the Most Walkable City (10Best) and creating a positive downtown experience for pedestrians.
“This summer of celebrations and events will be a catalyzing spark in the engine of Market East’s revival,” said Mayor Cherelle L. Parker in a recent press release from Center City District. “We’re prepared to welcome 1.5 million visitors to Market East. We will greet them with a vibrant and welcoming Philadelphia experience that benefits guests and residents alike, and paves the way for planning Market East’s enduring revival.”
More About the East Market Windows Artists:
Manuela Guillén: Philly, Cool People Live Here
Window Location: 1001 Market Street
Manuela Guillén is a passionate Philadelphia–based artist, merging her Cuban and Salvadorian heritage into her work as a painter, muralist, and digital illustrator. Her art, inspired by plants, tropical colors, and her upbringing, focuses on promoting art education and addressing sociopolitical and environmental issues. Collaborating with organizations globally, her murals adorn spaces in the U.S. and Mexico. As an art teacher, she aims to inspire creativity and bring communities together through the power of art.
About the Artwork: “This mural is inspired by my connection to the Philadelphia community and the people who live here. I remember moving to Philadelphia after college, though the city was never unfamiliar to me. In high school, I moved from South Florida to South Philadelphia, and during those years, despite not knowing anyone, it was Philly that opened doors to the many communities that exist here. Just like the high school version of me was amazed, I still believe Philly has some of the coolest people. The mural features native flowers from the area, as well as people I know from the art, dance, and music scenes, and even the alley cats you’ll find throughout the city. Together, these elements represent the many charms that make Philly feel special to me. The native flowers reflect a community garden that welcomed me and taught me not only about plants, but how to be a community organizer. The people represented are those who are often told they don’t belong, yet continue to build beautiful culture. You’ll find figures inspired by people in my life, like my friend Grace, who is Black-Indonesian and part of Philly’s dance community, honoring her culture and South Asian traditions; my friend Jonathan, who is rediscovering himself through the underground alternative music scene; and my friend Caro, who traveled from Chile to pursue her dreams as an artist. This work explores themes of belonging, identity, and community. It highlights both real people and archetypes you’ll recognize in Philly; artists, athletes, bikers, dog lovers, salsa dancers, and the city’s excitement for soccer. There is a lot of joy that comes from living in Philly and building a community that accepts you as you are. I hope this mural invites Philadelphians to feel seen. Even with everything happening in the city this year, it’s important to celebrate the people who are already here. I hope viewers reflect on the contributions of this community; what Philly natives have given to those just passing through, and to those, like me, who chose to stay.”
Website: manuelaguillen.com
Instagram: @lazybeamarte
Dora Cuenca: Joy Resonance
Window Location: 1132 Market Street
Dora Cuenca is a Costa Rican artist based in Philadelphia whose research-driven practice builds a visual language rooted in the natural world and how we experience it, rendered in fluid organic lines and deeply intentional color. Her work spans public art, private commissions, and surface design, with collaborations including Mural Arts Philadelphia, the City of Philadelphia, Madewell, Starbucks, Triple Bottom Brewery and Mission Taqueria.
About the Artwork: “This window mural was crafted to meet your joy halfway. A visual symphony composed in the language your brain reads before you do: color, curve, rhythm, warmth. It sets the conditions. You complete it.”
Website: bio.site/doracuenca
Instagram: @dora_cuenca
Isaac Tin Wei Lin: Through the Veil
Window Location: 1128 Market Street
Isaac Tin Wei Lin explores the realm where representation and buzzing abstraction meet. His surfaces are often densely covered in calligraphic, brushed, and hand-drawn patterns that express both the logic and complexity of written language. Lin’s dense calligraphy—a kind of graffiti in which comprehensible lettering gives way to pure form—evoke patterns and structures found in nature. His abstraction brings to mind single cell organisms, entangling kudzu vines, DNA helices, and pulsating constellations all rendered in effervescing colors. Working across painting, screenprinting, collage, installation, and mural-making, Lin also collaborates with other artists and photographers in creating hybrid works.
About the Artwork: “Taking up the challenge of activating multiple window spaces, I used close-up, cropped images of my paintings for this project. The title is in reference to having an obscured view, limited perspective, reading between the lines and a movement from unseen to the seen. My calligraphic abstract marks allude to the written word, taking a form of writing and doing the opposite of direct communication. The use of gradient backgrounds is taken from natural phenomenons like Northern Lights, sunsets or autumn leaves.”
Website: isaactinweilin.com
Instagram: @isaactinweilin
Ife Nii-Owoo: Declaration of Freedom
Window Location: 718 Market Street
Ife Nii-Owoo is a visual artist, graphic designer, and educator. She studied African Visual Arts at the Institute of African Studies in Accra, Ghana, and lived in London, England and Africa for nine years. She holds a BFA from Syracuse University and a Post Graduate Certificate in Design from the London School of Communications (England). In 1978 she was a candidate for a Masters of African Visual Arts at the Institute of African Studies in Accra, Ghana. Born and raised in Philadelphia, to which she returned in 1981, she has been part of a ground-breaking generation of African American women artists and designers pushing through barriers, part of and influenced by the nation’s Black Arts and AfroFuturists movements.
About the Artwork: “The mural is located on Market Street, just a short distance from the corner of 7th Street, a few doors from Declaration House, where Thomas Jefferson drafted the United States Declaration of Independence. The site sits within a historically rich corridor that includes Independence National Historical Park and faces the iconic Lit Brothers Building, now part of the Fashion District. This mural celebrates both the past and present of the area. It draws on colors and patterns inspired by fabric, fashion, and personal style, reflecting the neighborhood’s evolving cultural identity. Symbolic elements woven throughout the composition include the Liberty Bell, the President’s House Site, Jewelers’ Row, African American Museum in Philadelphia, the Federal Reserve Bank, and Independence Hall—all brought together to express a layered narrative of freedom, history, and creative expression.”
Website: ifestudio3.com
Instagram: @ifestudio13
a’driane nieves: a star reborn
Window Location: 821 Market Street
a’driane nieves (b. 1982, San Antonio, Texas) is a visual artist and writer whose interdisciplinary practice explores the interior landscapes of the self. A self-taught painter, she began painting in 2011 as a form of art therapy during recovery from postpartum depression and a bipolar disorder diagnosis. What began as personal healing evolved into a deeper investigation of emotional suppression and memory. Influenced by artists such as Joan Mitchell, Cy Twombly, Bernice Bing, Alma Thomas, and Mary Lovelace O’Neal, nieves works across painting, writing, soft sculpture, and text-based media. Her abstract expressionist approach embraces vulnerability, healing, and nonlinear narratives. Text often appears in her work as fragments—sometimes legible, sometimes obscured—reflecting the complexity of self-expression. As a Black, queer, neurodivergent woman, nieves uses her practice to assert presence and agency, offering space for others to do the same. She is also the founder of an arts nonprofit and magazine focused on creative access and community-building.
About the Artwork:
“This piece, from a larger body of work called Black Lilith Rising, is inspired and formed by my reactions to lines in two poems by Sonia Sanchez, titled ‘Set No.1’ and ‘Present.’ It’s a visual response to the impact each of these literary works have had on me personally over the last few years and a celebration of the mark Sanchez’s artistry and brilliance continues to have in the arts, across disciplines.
“In ‘Set No.1,’ specifically, she repeatedly states the line ‘i shall become a collector of me.’
I shall become a collector of me
ishallbecomeacollectorofme.
i Shall become a collector of me.
i shall BECOME a collector of me.
I Shall Become A COLLECTOR of me.
I SHALL BECOME A COLLECTOR OF ME.
ISHALLBECOMEACOLLECTOROFME.
AND PUT MEAT ON MY SOUL.
(Shake Loose My Skin, New and Collected Poems, 1999, Beacon Press Books)
“In ‘Present,’ she states:
there is no place for a soft/black/woman.
there is no smile green enough or summertime words warm enough to allow my growth…
…and i dance my creation and my grandmothers gathering
from my bones like great wooden birds
spread their wings
while their long/legged/laughter
stretches the night.
and i taste the seasons of my birth. mangoes.papayas.
drink my woman/coconut/milks
stalk the ancient grandfathers
sipping on proud afternoons
walk with a song round my waist
tremble like a new/born/child troubled
with new breaths
and my singing
becomes the only sound of a blue/black/magical/woman. walking.
womb ripe. walking. loud with mornings. walking.
making pilgrimage to herself. walking.
(Shake Loose My Skin, New and Collected Poems, 1999, Beacon Press Books)
“Sanchez, a poetic luminary and a longtime Germantown, Philadelphia resident, has much to teach us about reclamation of self, of agency, of identity, of power, of magic, and of sensuality.
“Originally titled much like a perennial stretches its way through the darkness of slowly warming earth to break through surfaces hardened by winter, i have finally emerged from yet another subterranean wilderness, fuller and more tender from the bruising and abrasions of my own evolution. having chosen liberation over longing, i now stand bolder in the still of my own sun, a star reborn, this work embodies the full emotional and spiritual range of women, femmes, and divine feminine archetypes across time. Inanna. Lilith. Ezili Dantor. Iyami Aje. Kali. Oya. The unnamed women in my own lineage. Black feminist writers and thinkers whose words have served as maps and mirrors for many, myself included. These figures are not simply references; they are interlocutors. Through them, I explore how power is claimed, policed, distorted, surrendered, reclaimed, and embodied.
“We must remember: alongside surrender is reclamation. Sonia Sanchez’s words embody the opposite yet equally necessary movement: gathering, rebuilding, ancestral remembering, and loving oneself fiercely in spite of societal expectation, the weight of oppression, and even after personal betrayal and loss.
“Materially, this shift is visible. For years, I relied on solid, monochromatic grounds. In this painting specifically, the colors, marks, and gestures emerge from layered washes of heavy-body and fluid acrylics applied with soft Hake brushes, building (evoking?) both a subterranean atmosphere and horizons in the world and futures that will be our making. The yellows and pinks move between the womb and viscera—cosmic interior and belly of the underworld. The blues, purples, and blacks hold depth, suspension, and even tinges of grief. The greens speak of rebirth and renewal, both within us and the material world around us, calling us forward. These layered grounds reject flatness; they insist on dimensionality, complexity, and immersion.
“Let us explore what must die, what must be reclaimed, and how we might rise—not purified, but fuller.
“Let us, too, honor Sanchez’s brilliance and the impact that her work has had on us all, especially those of us Black women artists fortunate enough to have her shoulders to stand on. Her contributions to culture are too many to count, and Philadelphia is lucky to call her one of us.”
Website: addyeb.com
Instagram: @addyebstudio
Maria Dumlao: Philly Locals
Window Location: 900 Block of Market Street
Maria Dumlao is a visual artist born in the Philippines who has called Philadelphia home for decades. She creates photographs, videos, and installations that layer history, mythology, and pop culture to tell stories that often get left out of the official record—especially Filipino stories. Her work invites you to look twice. Colors shift, images overlap, and familiar things appear in unexpected places. She wants us to question what we think we know about history and who gets to tell it. Dumlao studied art at Rutgers University and Hunter College, and she teaches art at Bucks County Community College. Her work has been shown in museums and galleries around the world, and right here in Philadelphia, the city she calls home.
About the Artwork: “Raccoons, squirrels, pigeons, red foxes, red turtles, and opossums are some of the residents that have made Philly their home long before many of us arrived—and still today, they live alongside us every day. In Philly Locals, I present portraits of these neighbors, as a reminder that many roles are in play in our shared urban ecosystem—scavengers, pollinators, seed-spreaders, and quiet observers of city life. The imagery is rendered in the tradition of block printing and batik, a textile art form with deep roots in Filipino and Southeast Asian culture. Like batik, this mural is built from layers—of pattern, of color, of lives woven together in one place.”
Website: mariadumlao.com
Instagram: @madumlao
Gina Triplett: Together, Brightly
Window Location: 731 Market Street
Gina Triplett is a Philadelphia–based artist and illustrator whose work bridges the space between personal narrative and commercial collaboration. Drawing on a love of nature, textiles, and storytelling, her paintings and illustrations combine intricate line work with expressive color and texture. Triplett’s imagery has appeared in galleries, on packaging, apparel, books, and murals for clients such as Converse, United States Postal Service and the New York City MTA. Her studio practice, which she shares with her partner Matt Curtius, blends independent and collaborative work across fine art and design.
About the Artwork: “This stretch of Market Street sees a constant flow of people coming and going. It reminds me that I’m connected to everyone passing through, even if we never meet or speak. We’re all doing our own thing as individuals, but together as Philadelphians, we’re this big, beautiful, bright force that I’m happy to be a part of.”
Website: ginatriplett.studio
Instagram: @ginatriplett
Serena Saunders: Love Through
Window Location: 600 Block of Market Street
Philadelphia-bred painter Serena Saunders is a mixed-media artist. Though her concentration is in portraiture, Saunders also has meaningful work in the areas of sculpture and writing. With a fresh, color-strong perspective her art speaks to our human condition, most notably that of our society’s youth and women. Her often large-scale, abstractly bold and poetically composed paintings offer layers of narrative—almost as if the poet and the painter in her are collaborating. With a color palette that gives her intricate prints a world of their own, Saunders works to intrigue the imagination, documenting the truth of the present but also speaking to what’s possible in the spirit. This can most recently be seen in her mural work. Being able to directly serve her community with her art in this new way has inspired a pivotal point in her studio practice as she leans into working larger.
About the Artwork: “Love Through is a call to action. The greatest commission was to love one another. It’s the perfect ask for my city, of brotherly love and sisterly affection—to lead with love. To lead with love as we navigate building an even stronger community while we continue to make history. To use that same light to introduce others to our gem, our place of grit and shine, that has love flowing through its streets, like blood pumping through a heart. Our passion is undeniable. We love to get through.”
Website: mspassionart.com
Instagram: @mspassionart
