"We wanted to think big and show off the youth of Philadelphia, to showcase student-generated art that makes use of the latest technology, and to create something that has high impact," said Ellen Fishman-Johnson, director of new media at Springside Chestnut Hill Academy.
If a sensory explosion that is 10 stories high and 40 feet wide doesn't do it, it's hard to imagine what would.
Parts of the presentation are linear and straightforward, parts are psychedelic and stroboscopic, as though a merry band of cubists, Dadaists, and surrealists, with access to computers, decided to portray Philadelphia in a way that sizzles the synapses.
In recent years, the walls of city buildings have been enlivened with other projections, but "Mural in Motion" is the first student-produced spectacle. It's the fruit of a collaboration among nine young people - four students at SCH and five recent alumni of Mural Corps, a skills-development and fine-arts mentorship program for high school students sponsored by the City of Philadelphia Mural Arts Program.
"What makes this so interesting is that it has animation and text and a story line, and it's really the kids who have been involved in the entire process of creating this piece," said Jane Golden, executive director of the Mural Arts Program.
The animated mural is an example of "expanding muralism in the 21st century" by incorporating light, sound, and new technology, Golden said. It's also a model of the kind of collaborative exchange that breaks down social barriers and promotes creativity, innovation, and civic engagement.
"I'm proud I was part of something like this," said Ramik Accooe, 22, a graduate of Overbrook High School who burnished his artistic skills in the Mural Corps. "I'm happy with how we took our own styles of art and put them together. I hope people enjoy it."
