Resilience

Resilience by artist Parris Stancell is located in the Kensington neighborhood in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The design for Resilience was developed out of workshops held at Mural Arts Philadelphia’s Porch Light program’s Kensington Storefront and elsewhere in the neighborhood.

On the left side of the mural there are three childlike figures, who represent hope and potential. The largest of the three has a beseeching expression as he reaches for the main figure.These figures represent the role of family and children; they offer and require support from the community, even when it is in crisis. On the right side of the mural, a standing woman offers support and love to the main figure, representing the power and support of community. The two men at the bottom right of the mural have a complex relationship that represents the individual experience of addiction. One is breaking the chains of addiction, and appears to be taking hope from the music the
other man plays. However, the man breaking his chains still wears a mask, and the musician could be interpreted as a pied piper.

Stancell dedicated this mural to “the woman who, even in her suffering, can bring light into other people’s lives.” He observed that in communities in crisis, women bear the burden of keeping the community and families together, but that they also show incredible strength and love in doing so.

As a whole, the mural represents both the struggle of addiction, the community’s crisis point, and the strength and love that will serve as a foundation for a healthier city.