How Philly Moves, Philadelphia Mural Arts
How Philly Moves is an epic gateway mural on the façade of the parking garage of Philadelphia airport. To welcome visitors, artist J.J Tiziou photographed Philadelphians (from professional dancers to everyday residents) breaking their best dance moves. Bressi, working as a curatorial advisor to Mural Arts Philadelphia, led the early project development, securing permission from the City and the Airport, and coordinated the artist an concept selection process.
Date | 2011
Client | Philadelphia Mural Arts Program (Judy Hellman, Jon LAidecker)Director of Art Education, Philadelphia Mural Arts Program
Collaborators | J.J. Tiziou
When you drive to Philadelphia International Airport, you are greeted by an epic mural of people dancing that occupies the facades of two connected parking garages, nearly 80,000 s.f. in total. The dancers are featured in a mural called How Philly Moves, organized by Philadelphia’s Mural Arts Program and facilitated by Todd W. Bressi as part of MAP’s project to create gateway artworks throughout the city.
As a consultant to MAP, Bressi helped MAP and airport officials conceptualize the project and work through the implementation details. He facilitated a national call for artists that led to the selection of Philadelphia photographer J.J. Tiziou, who proposed the idea of welcoming people to the airport through a celebration of the city’s rich dance traditions.
Tiziou gathered imagery for his project through a series of open studios, inviting dancers and others to demonstrate their best moves, which he documented in an extensive photo series. He then selected and composed twenty images into the final mural design.
The artwork was painted on polytab, including a series of community painting workshops, then installed with the help of MAP’s muralists and crews. MAP’s Judy Hellman and artist Jon Laidecker managed the installation.
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