2013
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PEARLS

PEARLS by artist Ben Volta was an early action project for the Pearl Street creative placemaking initiative in the Callowhill neighborhood just north of Center City Philadelphia. The ground mural provided a backdrop for a community block party on September 28, 2013 to image possible futures for the street. Mural Arts Philadelphia organized the event.

The project was described by project manager Todd Bressi on the Artfulplaces.com blog:

Pearl Street dates from Philadelphia’s earliest days. Just four feet wide (plus sidewalks) it runs four blocks between 10th Street and Broad Street. Callowhill, just north of Chinatown, is a rapidly changing confluence of the expanding Chinatown community, young urban professionals, and the homeless. It is characterized by loft-style studio space, new infill apartments, and a smattering of long-standing bars and new restaurants tucked into tiny old buildings. It is threaded by an old railroad viaduct that community advocates hope can become a community park.

Pearl Street connects all of this.

Volta’s concept consisted of three parts. Before the block party, crews laid down a color field on the street. Then, Volta and his team painted a ribbon, whose design was inspired by the flow of music and of water, along the street, using a vinyl stencil technique. Finally, on the day of the block party, Volta organized a community event during which visitors took luminescent pearls, painted on various materials, and glued or wheatpasted them all around the alley.

Location Note: Mural no longer on view at this location (temporary project).