Symbols and Sources: Tacony Banner Project
Symbols and Sources is a series of 45 street banners currently installed along Torresdale Avenue in Tacony in Northeast Philadelphia. The banners were developed from paintings created during a 12-week civic-improvement focused artist residency that involved community engagement and outreach at the Tacony Library and Arts Building (LAB) in 2017.
The banners include the actual mark-making of community members who were invited to paint during free workshops and open sessions in the studio at the LAB. The shapes, symbols, and other imagery for the paintings were abstracted from historical, architectural, and cultural elements familiar to the community. They are presented in a new and unfamiliar way, which creates a sense of intrigue, and tells the story of Tacony by tying the past and the future together.
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Co-hosted by Mural Arts Philadelphia and Councilman Bobby Henon’s Office in collaboration with the Tacony Community Development Corporation and the Tacony Branch of the Free Library of Philadelphia.
Image of the Studio
After the project, we opened the studio to the public for a free gallery reception, and invited the members of the community to take a piece home with them.
