Exploring Civic Media Through Murals

For decades, citizens have protested societal issues through civic engagement. For many, they turned to traditional forms of civic action such as protesting, boycotting, sit-ins, and configuring print media such as pamphlets for their cause. However, as time as progressed, people have developed new, creative ways to civically engage with their communities. Civic media was developed as a way to engage a community and bring attention to a societal issue. MIT, who is one of the only universities to offer a course on civic media defines it as, “any use of a medium that empowers a community to engage within and beyond the people, places, and problems of their community.” While this is an abstract definition, it is accurate. Civic media is an idea that is difficult to define or place into one category. It encompasses many different aspects of civic engagement. Interestingly, the city of Philadelphia has used murals as a means of illustrating the community’s issues, resolutions, and mottos. The city’s murals are all forms of civic media.

The city of Philadelphia’s Mural Arts Program is responsible for the creation of thousands of murals in the city. The program’s founder and director, Jane Golden, was originally hired by the city of Philadelphia to extinguish the growing issue of graffiti art. Rather than reprimand the artists responsible for this graffiti, Golden convinced them to channel their abilities into something more creative, civically engaging, and positive: mural-making. Since this project, she has gotten many others involved in creating murals as a form of civic media. She has begun programs within prisons as a way of giving incarcerated individuals a chance to illustrate the issues that they face. Golden has also partnered with numerous art education programs and behavioral health programs to paint murals that illustrate their unique messages. I had the privilege of going on a mural tour of Philadelphia and I was able to see first-hand some of the incredible work that the Mural Arts Program has produced. Besides each mural being breathtaking, each contained an incredible amount of emotion.

Our City, Our Vets: Willis Humphrey and Phillip Adams. 4129 Woodland Ave

This was one of the first murals I fell in love with, “Our City, Our Vets” was created by the Mural Arts Program to bring the community together to support veterans returning to Philadelphia. The project partnered with numerous veteran organizations and held writing and art workshops as a means of preparation for the mural’s creation. The mural’s goal was to bring veterans into a conversation with their community to share their stories and create a network of support for returning troops. The mural itself is absolutely beautiful, it is almost magical. Magical in the sense that, it seems like it would be impossible to create something such as this and place it on a wall. The paintings of the soldiers are incredibly lifelike and the edges of the mural mirror the look of paper as if the mural was one long letter. I actually fell in love with the script of the mural. The project said that many of the soldiers involved with this mural wrote as a form of emotional release and their words were used in the actual painting. I believe that this murals civic meaning lies in the writing on the walls. While the images are incredible, the writing gives this mural its purpose. The reason for this mural’s creation, as I alluded to earlier, was to spark conversation between veterans and their community; to make them feel welcomed, and to create a system of support. I believe that the words of this mural are meant to mirror this message and develop its meaning.

Colorful Legacy: Willis Humphrey and Keir Johnston, 4008 Chestnut Street

This mural grabbed my attention unlike the rest. Its bold colors cannot be ignored. While one’s eye is directed to the mural’s center and the man’s face, one can easily become lost in the incredible hues, words, and images surrounding his head. This mural’s creation was inspired by President Obama’s “My Brother’s Keeper Community Challenge.” The Mural Arts Program developed a new initiative, “Building Brotherhood: Engaging Males of Color,” as a way to create conversation amongst men and boys of color. Besides merely creating the mural, this initiative included town hall meetings, theater performances, and debates which discussed the numerous challenges that men and boys of color must overcome. The mural was meant to create solidarity and show men/boys of color that they are not along in the difficult situations they face and they can be overcome, perhaps together. The idea for the mural along with its message was developed by the community and then illustrated by the artist. This form of civic media brought attention to a societal issue so evident and obvious, that it is often times ignored.

Peace Wall: Peter Pagast and Jane Golden, 29th and Wharton Streets

Though this mural is not as complex as some of the others I have discussed, its simplicity gives it so much power. The Mural Arts Program also created this mural. When racial violence in the Grays Ferry neighborhood was brought to national attention, Jane Golden, the director of the program, spoke with neighborhood members about creating a mural. After gathering support, residents chose the design of hands coming together in peace. Jane photographed numerous community member’s hands and then used those to create this mural. This wall, as Jane says, was meant to symbolize “the community’s commitment to ending racial division.” It is clearly evident how this mural acts as a form of civic media, besides merely illuminating an important issue, it brought a community together to collaborate and discuss ideas. Communication is the key to success for most societal issues and I believe that this is no exception.

A Father’s Love is a Child’s Treasure: Mural Arts Program, 5436 Woodland Avenue

I found this mural to be the most emotional. One knows before even approaching the mural that it is a discussion of children’s relationships with their fathers. While the images of the fathers and their children are simple, they illustrate an incredible amount of emotion. The Mural Arts Program partnered with the United Community Action Network at SCI Graterford along with the Fathers and Children Together (FACT) program to create a mural discussing the strain incarceration places on a father’s relationships with his children. FACT is a program designed to assist incarcerated fathers in reconnecting with their children. The program encourages the fathers to persuade their children to seek an education rather than a choice that could lead to incarceration. The outline of the mural includes paintings made by incarcerated fathers’ children during their visits. Besides merely creating an opportunity for fathers to bond with their children, this mural develops a societal issue. This form of civic media illustrates the undeniable struggles of a household broken apart by incarceration. I believe it also causes the audience to develop compassion for the incarcerated father and his child. While society usually depicts prisoners as horrible monsters, this mural illustrates their humanity.

Civic media while abstract and difficult to define, is incredibly real. The Mural Arts Program of Philadelphia is utilizing civic media (murals) in such an incredible way. These images are undeniable and cannot be ignored by one’s community. They cause their audience to think deeply about the societal issues that are being literally illustrated on the wall but also bring communities together. Since the majority of these murals were created through collaboration, the process of their creation promoted community change before their product could even do so. Through collaboration, groups of individuals who would never speak prior to such a project were able to engage with one another in a healthy way. Thus, I would deem this form of civic media as an incredible success.