Song of the Kites

Song of the Kites by artist Jimmy Liu was located in the Poplar neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Liu used neighborhood children as models for this mural. He positioned them in the design so that the real trees in the adjacent lot will appear to be a part of the mural when they are in bloom. Celebrating youth, the mural’s background of gold squares simulates the gold leafing traditionally used in Chinese and Japanese painting. “You can think of it as decorative color or as sky. The gold is symbolic, meant to represent prosperity, hope and the richness of culture,” Liu explains. The patterned kites including 2 dragons, 2 phoenixes and a sun kite also represent hopes or dreams. Liu added a Superman kite as an American icon linked to the value of work.

Location Note: Mural no longer on view at this location (covered by construction in 2015).