Latest / philly has heART / Center City District + Mural Arts feat. Manuela Guillén, a'driane nieves, Amy Genda, Jane Golden

Transcript

Center City District + Mural Arts feat. Manuela Guillén, a'driane nieves, Amy Genda, Jane Golden · philly has heART

0:15
Hey, Lou. How are you? Happy Sunday. Happy Sunday.
0:19
How are you? Pretty good. Pretty good. You know,
0:23
it was a beautiful weekend. Be honest. No. Well,
0:27
I mean, it was a lot. It was a lot this week,
0:30
but still. I think I came up with the word for
0:33
it. Yeah. The ennui. The ennui. Do you just feel
0:38
like this past week has just been a little brutal?
0:43
There was shit in the air that was fucking with
0:45
my sinuses. Oh, right. Yeah. I wasn't able to
0:48
exercise as much as I wish I would have been
0:52
able to. I got my lady cycle this week. So it
0:55
was just one hit after another. Boom, boom, boom,
0:59
boom, boom. My endorphins were down. Yeah. Walk
1:02
us through the weekend. Okay. So Friday night,
1:06
we ended up going to Art Battle at Spin. how
1:09
was that we should do it again we should do it
1:13
as a fun team outing for the philly has heart
1:18
team that might just be me and you and our hype
1:21
woman yes it was actually a lot of fun The kids
1:27
were better than I expected. Nice. We had a corner
1:32
booth so we can like look down into like this
1:36
pit and see what was going on. Pit of art. Pit
1:40
of art. Then Petit Garçon found the Pong arcade
1:44
game. So that kept him occupied for a solid hour.
1:48
Bebe Du had my phone and was playing with apps.
1:52
I tried to get him to color. And for a moment,
1:55
a solid 10 minutes art battle was happening in
1:58
our booth. Next time we're buying early bird
2:01
tickets. Okay. Yesterday, Petit Garçon and I
2:05
went to Old City. We went to Curator Collective
2:08
Pie Gallery and Procession Gallery. Beautiful.
2:12
And then I took him for ice cream. What'd you
2:15
do? Did you get into anything? Yeah, hung out
2:18
with his grandmom Friday night. Super cute. Super
2:22
fun. Did you get her to subscribe? You know what?
2:27
I did not. I did not. I should have. I should
2:30
have downloaded the Spotify app. You know, 93
2:34
and still kicking. We had like a Burbs birthday
2:38
pool party thing yesterday. And then today we're
2:43
christening twins at an afternoon christening
2:47
party. What are you doing for their mom? Let's
2:50
talk about that. Exactly. She needs a break.
2:53
So I'm going to be making sure that she is indulging
2:58
in some libations. Good. Yeah. Yeah. She needs
3:02
it. She needs it. And I'll carry twins around
3:04
all day long. I mean, just give me the babies.
3:06
I'll take the babies. Yeah, for sure. Yeah. I
3:09
love that. Thank you so much, Robert, on behalf
3:13
of mothers everywhere. Anytime. Anytime. Glad
3:16
to take the hit. Remember how last week we were
3:20
talking about the shards at the beginning of
3:22
the episode? Okay, so it really makes me want
3:26
to watch Less Than Zero, which makes me want
3:28
to read Less Than Zero. Okay. Which makes me
3:30
want to read Glamorama, which takes place in
3:33
the Less Than Zero universe. Which makes me want
3:35
to watch Zoolander, which I am not convinced
3:38
was inspired by 1995's Glamorama, with the exception
3:42
of the torture scene of the Korean diplomat's
3:45
son. And you wonder why I don't read. Shall we
3:50
go to the conversation? This is a great one.
3:53
On to the conversation. Greetings. This is Robert
4:08
Marsh and you're listening to Philly Has Heart
4:10
Podcast. In this podcast, we sit down with the
4:12
artists, gallerists, educators, curators, and
4:15
other creatives who comprise the Philadelphia
4:17
art world to discuss upcoming performances, exhibits,
4:21
and other events and initiatives that are not
4:24
to be missed. The Philadelphia art scene is so
4:27
rich that it can seem daunting. Consider this
4:30
your weekend cultural recommendation. With me
4:33
always is my producer, Lucinda Daggerlin. Hey,
4:36
hey, hey! And today we have an amazing group
4:40
of people. Manuela Guillen. Adrienne Nieves.
4:46
Amy Genda. Correction, that is Amy Genda. Of
4:51
Center City District. And Jane Golden of Mural
4:54
Arts. Thank you all for coming in today. Thank
4:57
you. Thank you for having us. So let me get this
5:00
out of the way. Jane is one of our Pie in the
5:04
Sky wishlist guests for 2026. So thank you, Jane,
5:08
for joining us today. I'm so happy to be here.
5:11
Thank you. And Amy, thank you for setting this
5:13
up with Center City District. If everyone could
5:16
say their name and we'll go around the table
5:18
so that our listeners can connect your voices.
5:22
Manuela Guillen. Amy Janda. Adrienne Nieves.
5:27
Jane Golden. Excellent. Thank you. Before we
5:31
get into our artist practices, Amy and Jane,
5:34
this question is for you. What are your origin
5:38
stories that got you into public art, community
5:42
organizing, and neighborhood enhancement programs?
5:46
Should we go first? Go ahead. Jane, why don't
5:48
you go? Okay. Well, when I was in college, I
5:51
was an artist who thought I'd be a lawyer. And
5:53
when I graduated, I moved to L .A. And I was
5:56
painting really large, and I thought, theoretically,
6:00
that murals were important because... They brought
6:03
art to people. And when I moved to L .A., L .A.
6:05
at the time was the center of the mural universe.
6:07
And so I thought to myself, I want to do a mural.
6:10
So I read about this mural organization, sort
6:13
of like Mural Arts. And I called them up and
6:15
I said, I'd like to do a mural. I'm new in town,
6:16
and that's what I want to do. And they're like,
6:18
well, congratulations, you're past the deadline.
6:20
Come back next year. So I said, well, what if
6:22
I wasn't? They said, oh, you have to get a wall,
6:24
hire people from your neighborhood. You know,
6:26
you have to do a design related to a community
6:28
issue. So I was like, okay, thank you. So then
6:30
I went and I did everything. they told me to
6:32
do. I found this great wall. I knocked on the
6:35
door and the person answers it. And I said, oh,
6:37
hello, I'd like to do a mural on your wall. And
6:38
he's like, fine. And I was like, what? LA is
6:41
so friendly. Trust me. We don't know each other.
6:45
And then I did a design based on this pier the
6:47
city tore down. Then I went around my neighborhood
6:49
and introduced myself. And then I called back
6:52
the city of LA. I said, I'm ready. And they said,
6:54
you're past the deadline. Like, it's only been
6:56
three weeks and you're still past the deadline.
6:58
I mean, just like you were three weeks ago. So
7:00
then I said, okay. Oh, too bad. So I drove downtown,
7:03
dropped off my application. I called them every
7:04
day for three months. Every day for three months
7:06
at 3 o 'clock, I called them. Finally, in December,
7:08
I get a call. Someone says, may I speak with
7:10
Jane Golden? I'm like, this is she. They said,
7:12
this is serious. We hope we never hear from you
7:14
again. So I said, oh, wow, such hostility. And
7:18
they said, but you have the grant. I'm like,
7:19
oh, my God. The grant was $300 to do a wall 20
7:22
feet high, 100 feet long. And I'm like, oh, my
7:25
God, I've never done a mural. I had been, like,
7:27
disingenuous on my application. I said I did
7:29
murals all over Stanford University campus. I
7:31
had not. So then I researched, how to do a mural,
7:34
panicking, panicking. And then I figured out
7:37
someone sends me, like, a pamphlet. I'm, like,
7:39
studying it. And then I get out there and do
7:42
this first mural, and it was so awesome and wonderful.
7:44
People are talking to me, strangers, you know,
7:46
elected officials, neighbors, like, all about
7:48
community concerns and politics. I'm like, I
7:50
love this. And then when it was almost over,
7:52
people are like, you should dedicate this mural.
7:54
I'm like, right. They said you should get someone.
7:56
famous to dedicate it I'm like I am 22 from New
7:58
Jersey I don't know anybody famous they're like
8:00
Jane Fonda lives up the street so I go up the
8:02
street to her house I'm covered in paint I knock
8:04
on her door she answers And I said, oh, my God,
8:07
Jane Fonda. I'm Jane Golden. She goes, I know
8:09
who you are. I'm like, you do? And I was, like,
8:11
so shocked. So she said, what can I do for you?
8:13
I'm like, would you cut the ribbon in our mural
8:14
dedication? So she goes, of course. And she goes,
8:16
what else can I do? And I was like, you could
8:18
bring friends. I didn't know what else to say.
8:20
I figured she was quite popular. So there was
8:23
this giant mural dedication. I was like, I love
8:25
painting murals. So I did one mural after the
8:27
next after the next. I then got really sick.
8:29
I have lupus. So I came back to the East. I'm
8:31
from Margie, New Jersey. I was coming up to Philly
8:33
for treatments. I read about Mayor Good's anti
8:35
-graffiti network. I ended up applying. And this
8:39
is so strange because the person who was the
8:41
head of arts and culture knew my boss in L .A.
8:44
And when he called, when he got my resume, he
8:46
said, I called your boss in L .A. We're friends.
8:48
I was like, really? Because I can wear people
8:49
out. I had no idea what you would say about me.
8:51
I just exhaust people. So I said, what did she
8:54
say? He said, two things. Jane Gold is the most
8:56
tenacious person I've ever met. She will wear
8:59
you out. And number two, you should hire her.
9:01
So I got this job. I worked for Anti -Graffiti.
9:03
I fell in love with Philadelphia. I met graffiti
9:05
writers with enormous talent, met community leaders
9:08
who gave me enough inspiration for a lifetime.
9:10
And that really is what the catalyst was for
9:12
my love of public art, like really that deep
9:15
love of artists and communities. It's just...
9:19
I feel so privileged and honored to do this job.
9:21
I wake up every single day just like ready, inspired,
9:24
and knowing that art can change the world. Love
9:27
it. Can we put your first mural, that first mural,
9:31
in the timeline? What year was that? Sure. E
9:34
-E -E, let's think, 1979. Ah! Wow. Oh, was that
9:39
when I went, ah, that's when I went. So, yes,
9:42
we definitely have it. Last year, last year.
9:44
It was last year, my first panel. The public
9:48
might be confused, but we're not. So, yes, I'd
9:53
be happy to give you an image of it. Oh, I love
9:55
that. Love that, love that. And Amy, how about
9:57
yourself? No one wants to ever follow Jane. My
10:00
story is not nearly as exciting. But no, I grew
10:03
up in a very small town. I was born in Maryland.
10:05
I grew up on a farm. And also as a painter, as
10:10
a background, was an art kid. And my big thing
10:14
in high school was I would go scrap like trash,
10:16
like furniture, and strip it down and paint crazy
10:20
things all over it. And, you know, I never exactly
10:23
knew what I wanted to do. I think like all artists,
10:25
you're not just a painter. If you're an artist,
10:28
Everything is art, and you really could go in
10:30
so many different directions. So I ended up going
10:32
to University of the Arts. I also did work on
10:35
some murals when I was very young. But after
10:38
a few years of doing computer website design,
10:41
bored out of my mind, somehow ended up... working
10:44
at Center City District as a graphic designer,
10:47
and mine is a true ground -up story. I've been
10:49
there for a very long time, over 20 years, and
10:52
over time have just gotten my hand in just about
10:56
everything and just have gotten a great team,
10:59
and I've been able to work in public spaces,
11:01
public arts. It's exciting. Like Jane, I love
11:05
it. I just deeply love it. It's great work. It's
11:07
public -facing, and there's nothing better than
11:10
putting something out there into the world and
11:12
then... watching people use it and experience
11:15
it, I just think it's a gift and I wouldn't do
11:18
it any other way. I love it. That's so well said.
11:20
That is the thrill. Yes, that's absolutely amazing.
11:23
Manuela, can you let us know your artist origin
11:26
story? Ooh, so long. I can honestly say, like,
11:32
I've been creating art since I was little. I've
11:34
been asked this a bunch of times in other interviews,
11:36
but I have a memory when I was, like, five years
11:38
old. I was living in the Dominican Republic at
11:40
the time, and I don't know what movie I saw,
11:42
but there was, like, a scene of, like, I guess
11:44
my mind might have registered it as, like, it
11:46
was murals, but they were stained glass windows.
11:49
And I decided to grab crayons and, like, get
11:51
on the top of the stairway and, like, start drawing
11:53
what I saw in the movie. Yeah, that's my earliest
11:56
memory with creating art. But I think for me,
11:59
like, I lived in South Florida, Miami -Dade,
12:02
but Homestead side. I used art as, like, a form
12:05
to communicate things that I was growing up around,
12:08
from, like, the beauty to, like, the tragedy.
12:10
It was a form of kind of escaping some major
12:15
things, like violence I saw in South Florida.
12:18
And also, like, it's a prominent Hispanic community,
12:21
and we're told, like, not to talk about domestic
12:23
violence or, like, how people treat their neighbors
12:25
or any of that. And it was, like, very, it was
12:28
everywhere from all my relationships. from friendships
12:30
to family to neighbors, like, everywhere. So
12:33
that's what I started using art for, was, like,
12:35
to communicate what I was witnessing. So it was,
12:38
like, a way for me to understand hardships and
12:41
process them. And then when I moved from Miami
12:45
to Jersey, and in high school, I started taking
12:50
art a little bit more serious, and I decided
12:53
I was going to go to school for that, and that
12:54
was, like, really shocking for my family because
12:55
I was the first one to graduate. high school
12:57
and going to college and they're like you're
12:59
gonna do what they're like weren't you gonna
13:02
be like a nurse or something like you have to
13:05
take care of us I was like everyone was kind
13:07
of shocked but my mom actually really supported
13:09
me she's like oh you've always been really good
13:11
at like hustling you know I used to like have
13:13
jobs since I was like 11 and then She was like,
13:16
you'll be fine. You'll be fine. So with the art
13:19
process, it was an exploration of materials.
13:21
I thought I wanted to do graphic art. And then
13:24
I took an oil painting class and I fell in love
13:26
with painting. It's kind of like where it really
13:28
started. I thought I was going to go to Fine
13:30
Arts Painting and be in the gallery world, but
13:33
then I had traveled to Mexico. Long story short,
13:37
I kind of got kicked out of the hotel and I made
13:39
friends in Mexico. And they were like, you should
13:42
stay with us. I was like, sure. And they're like,
13:44
come every year. It was nothing crazy, okay?
13:48
That's another story for another day. I was experiencing
13:52
a lot of muralists in this area of Mexico. It's
13:56
called Isla Mujeres. It's an island outside of
13:57
Cancun. And I was still in college, so when I
14:00
went back to college, I also interned for Lance
14:03
Fung, who runs Fung Collaboratives. They do huge
14:06
art installations in New York City, and they
14:08
were doing it in Jersey. So I interned for him,
14:11
and I witnessed both. I call it the Ivy League
14:13
of artists, the ones who are in your history
14:16
books. And then I also met street artists and
14:18
muralists. And I think also... Just from, like
14:21
I mentioned, like, I was in Mexico, like, witnessing
14:23
all these mural arts. I decided. I was like,
14:25
hey, like, I told my professor, like, I think
14:26
I want to be a muralist. Like, I don't think
14:27
I'm interested in, like, like, doing the gallery
14:30
stuff. But he ended up helping me get my first
14:32
mural. I did my first mural in Atlantic City.
14:34
One of the first murals in AC. Which, funny enough,
14:37
it was, like, it's been full circle because now
14:38
they have over 100 murals. And when they were
14:41
deciding who's going to do the 100th, they actually
14:43
picked me to do it. Wow. Yeah. Yeah, I just,
14:46
I felt like. community arts was more wholesome
14:48
i did go to a party in soho with lance in his
14:52
fancy soho apartment like i almost have been
14:54
like 20 so like i didn't really have like this
14:57
heavy resume like these people had they were
14:59
like i'm building wells over here and like i
15:02
have made this piece of art in the moment i'm
15:04
just like they're like what do you do i was like
15:08
please don't ask me any more questions and I
15:10
felt so uncomfortable until these two street
15:13
artists came and they were talking to me they
15:14
were from Texas and I remember feeling like at
15:16
ease and I was like yeah I think this is like
15:18
the world I want and I'm glad I rolled the dice
15:20
on that because it's been um It's been amazing,
15:23
you know? The art has taken me places. Like,
15:25
I've had art in Mexico. I've done art in El Salvador.
15:28
I've done art in Atlantic City. Philly, of course.
15:31
And my story with Philly is like, oh, that's
15:33
another one. The community here is really beautiful.
15:35
I've been a part of a lot of community organizing.
15:38
Now I organize the Inglese Garden, which is a
15:40
community garden in North Philly. That's kind
15:41
of like a little bit of the origin story in a
15:43
nutshell. I love that. It's a little lengthy,
15:45
but... No, no, no, it's great. It's a timeline.
15:48
And Adrienne, how about yourself? Well, I will
15:51
say that I was the kid in seventh grade art class
15:57
whose art teacher looked at my still life drawing
16:00
and after we had been working on them for weeks
16:03
and was like, well, I know you're part of the
16:06
debate team. And you're in the drama club and
16:08
you do theater. And back then in Texas, because
16:11
that's where I lived, they had these academic
16:14
competitions called UIL. You could compete in
16:17
a variety of different subjects, academic, creative,
16:20
like there was just a range of things. And so
16:22
I wasn't good at things like math or science,
16:25
but I was great in like history. But also, you
16:29
know, I could do the debating. I could give speeches.
16:31
And so I competed in those and was pretty known
16:34
around the school for that. my art teacher was
16:37
like you know you're on the debate team you do
16:39
drama you do oration you speak very well you're
16:42
an incredible writer you don't have to be good
16:45
at this it's okay it's alright I mean admittedly
16:49
when I look back at it I knew it was trash you
16:53
know what I mean like it wasn't like I was like
16:55
this looks like a kindergartner just you know
16:59
kind of just grab some crayons and like win at
17:01
it like this looks terrible so I wasn't I wasn't
17:05
hurt or anything by it. It was more of just like,
17:07
I'm really glad that this part of art class is
17:09
over. Give me like some stuff to glue together
17:11
or collage or whatever. Like I'm better with
17:14
that. But I always knew since a very young age
17:17
that I was a creative person. All my report cards
17:21
said Adrienne's reading is, you know, two, three
17:25
levels above where she's at. Her head's always
17:27
in a book. She's always talking. She's very creative.
17:31
I knew from a very young age that I loved being
17:34
creative and expressing myself creatively was
17:36
just a big part of my life, especially because
17:39
at home, my home life was so violent in many
17:41
ways that creativity was really kind of like
17:44
the only outlet that I had, especially at school,
17:47
because I couldn't really engage in that at home.
17:50
I grew up thinking during my grade school years
17:53
that I was going to be like the Lisa Ling of
17:55
the music journalism world. Okay, Channel One.
17:59
Channel One News. I was the geek who every homeroom
18:05
was like, hurry up, turn it on. Lisa's going
18:08
to talk to us and tell us what's going on over
18:10
in the Middle East or over wherever. You know,
18:13
I was really, really big into music. I've always
18:17
been a Prince fan. My dad was a Prince fan. So
18:19
it kind of just kind of like took over my life
18:21
very young. So very, very into music, very exposed
18:25
to a lot of music, a lot of TV and film, but
18:27
really not a lot of fine art. I didn't go into
18:30
a museum until I was in my late 20s. But I grew
18:33
up very, very engrossed in pop culture. Very
18:36
engrossed in music. I would read liner notes.
18:39
I would read interviews. I loved reading Rolling
18:41
Stone. Loved watching MTV and Kurt Loder. So
18:45
I really... The good days. Yes, the good days.
18:48
Pop -up video. I used to read those magazines
18:51
too. Yes. Find new music. I'd go to Borders and
18:55
I'd read them. They weren't even around anymore.
18:56
Right, Borders isn't even around. I love Borders.
18:59
Those were the days, man. Sam Goody. my first
19:02
job yeah so um I uh when I turned 13 I started
19:07
writing poetry so I just kind of had it in my
19:09
head that I was a writer and I was going to be
19:12
a journalist I was going to go to school for
19:14
communications and I was just going to kind of
19:17
take over music journalism and kind of like do
19:19
my thing and that's that was what I was going
19:21
to do and Life happens, and I served in the military
19:27
for four years, got out. I was pregnant at the
19:30
time. I was about six months pregnant when I
19:33
separated from the Air Force and was homeless
19:35
for a little bit, kind of couch hopping with
19:38
friends, trying to get my civilian life reestablished,
19:40
which is really, really hard because when you're
19:43
pregnant, nobody wants to hire you. Right. And
19:48
so like I went from in the military, I was a
19:50
police officer. And so you go from, you know,
19:53
taking interviews with like Capitol Police and
19:55
Pentagon Police and Secret Service and FBI to,
19:59
you know, sitting in social services building,
20:03
applying for unemployment, applying for Medicaid,
20:06
trying to get health care and things of that
20:08
nature. So it took me about. two and a half years
20:11
to really kind of rebuild my life post -military.
20:15
And I wound up moving back up here to New Jersey
20:17
and living with my parents and went back to school,
20:23
started at the community level again, was like,
20:26
I'm going to do communications. This is my thing.
20:27
And then. I met the person who's now my husband
20:31
and had my second child and I developed postpartum
20:35
depression. I eventually was diagnosed with bipolar
20:38
disorder, but interestingly enough, looking back
20:41
now, I question that diagnosis because I really
20:44
think it was underlying ADHD, but that's a whole
20:46
other story. But anyway, that process, kind of
20:51
going through getting diagnosed, being treated,
20:54
starting medications, and really grappling with
20:57
the impact that mental illness was having on
21:00
me. That's what led me to a therapist who during
21:04
one session was like, look, I think you need
21:06
to find something constructive to do with your
21:08
hands. Because she knew at that stage in my life,
21:10
I was very, very like, give me the science, give
21:12
me the data that can help me figure out how to
21:14
manage what's going on with me internally. And
21:17
so she started pulling up all the all the studies
21:19
that talked about how, you know, expressive arts
21:22
therapy is very beneficial, carpentry, gardening,
21:25
like when you work with your hands, it has a
21:28
physical impact on your nervous system and it
21:32
helps and so she started talking to me about
21:34
that and she's like so your assignment is to
21:36
find something to do with your hands to help
21:39
you manage like your symptoms with like you know
21:41
hypomania and stuff so I was like okay so I left
21:44
that appointment and I took my kids and I went
21:47
to Walmart and was looking for like crochet hook
21:50
and needles because I remember it as a kid I
21:53
had gotten a rainbow loom for Christmas one year
21:55
where you can make like little you know potholders
21:57
and you know and I never really made anything
22:00
beyond that but I was like I could try to crochet
22:03
and so on my way to grab those materials I passed
22:08
like this section that had like all these little
22:10
like cheap paint supplies and on a really it
22:13
was just like a one of those like intuitive little
22:15
nudges little whims I just kind of like grabs
22:17
some stuff, threw it in my cart and just kept
22:19
it moving. And I tried to crochet for two weeks
22:22
and I was like, hell no, this is way too tedious.
22:24
This is making my anxiety worse throughout the
22:27
needles and the yarn. And I was having a particularly
22:30
rough Saturday, I remember, and my partner. had
22:35
the kids and I was home by myself and I remember
22:38
looking and seeing the paint stuff in the corner
22:41
and I was like well you know why not let me try
22:44
again to do my therapy homework and so I pulled
22:47
the materials out and I just spent about 45 -50
22:49
minutes just kind of like pushing paint around
22:51
I don't even think I used a brush it was just
22:53
my fingers and I remember just the the tactility
22:56
of it sensory wise it was just so calming and
23:01
soothing. And I remember my brain felt quieter
23:03
and I just felt very grounded and I didn't feel
23:07
like I was going to break out of my skin. And
23:09
that's literally how I started painting. It was
23:12
purely just from a therapeutic standpoint, a
23:15
need to just kind of manage what I was experiencing
23:19
internally. And a few months later, I was taking
23:23
a humanities class and my professor pulled up
23:26
a paper clip. She put it on the projector and
23:29
She launched this debate asking us, you know,
23:31
is this art? And she started walking us through
23:35
modern art, especially post 1950. And we started
23:39
talking about the abstract expressionist movement
23:41
and all of that. And one of my classmates, the
23:43
only one who had ever been to my apartment on
23:46
campus, she raised her hand and she was like,
23:49
this looks like some of the stuff that Adrian
23:50
does. And I was like, girl. I can't just be putting
23:56
my business on the front page. What are you doing?
23:59
I was like, you're no longer invited. And she
24:04
was like, no, it really does. So anyway, I just
24:07
kind of brushed it off. And after class, the
24:09
professor was like, Adrienne, come here. I would
24:10
like to talk to you. And I was like, hopefully
24:12
this is about the homework I haven't turned in.
24:14
And she was like, I would love to see the art
24:17
that you've been doing. And I was like, well,
24:20
okay. And so I pulled up my phone. And this was
24:22
back in 2011. This was when Instagram had just
24:25
started. It only had the five filters. There
24:27
were only like six people working at the company.
24:30
Mark Zuckerberg hadn't sunken his talons into
24:33
it. And I started showing her pictures. And she
24:37
got really quiet. And she looked at me. And she
24:39
kept looking at the pictures. And she did this
24:41
for like five minutes. And I was just like. And
24:43
she goes, you know, I know you think of yourself
24:46
as a writer. She's like, I know you do. She's
24:48
like, and as you should, you're a great writer.
24:49
She said, but I really think if you brought some
24:51
intentionality to what you're doing here visually,
24:55
she's like, I think you would find another outlet
24:57
for your creative voice. And she said, I know
25:01
you call yourself art history illiterate because
25:03
that semester she had sent us to go see the Van
25:06
Gogh exhibit at the Philly Art Museum. And that
25:08
was my first time actually ever going to a museum.
25:11
and she said you know she started giving me language
25:14
in terms of like here's what to google right
25:17
so she's like there's people who are self -taught
25:19
and they just do intuitive based art making there's
25:22
abstract expressionism there's all these different
25:24
so she started just giving me things to kind
25:26
of like research and I remember going back home
25:29
and for a month doing that research and Googling
25:34
names and looking at things and being like, oh,
25:36
wow, okay. And it was really kind of the first
25:39
time that I started thinking about fine art,
25:42
visual art, being a way to communicate things
25:46
that I had only written about or would only turn
25:49
to writing. So that's kind of a long roundabout
25:52
way of, you know, talking about how I started
25:56
with painting. It's beautiful. Yeah. Beautiful.
25:59
Amazing stories from both. Thank you. Lovely.
26:02
2026 is a huge year here in Philadelphia. We
26:07
are celebrating our anniversary. We have FIFA
26:11
in town. We are continuing to focus on projects
26:16
throughout the entire city. Amy, can you share
26:20
a little bit about how this project came together?
26:23
Sure, I would love to. So we all know that Center
26:27
City is the heart of the city. It's where everyone
26:30
comes when they come in for these types of things.
26:33
They're sitting at the hotels, they're eating,
26:34
they're drinking, they're walking around. This
26:37
morning I just saw all of the Ecuadorian fans.
26:40
And so with that in mind, Center City District,
26:45
we do a lot of studying, right? We're a big numbers
26:48
company and we're always looking at numbers and
26:50
we make database decisions. And so we knew that
26:53
Market East, it has one of our highest vacancy
26:56
rates. It's also always been a gap between people
26:59
who are coming. They're staying in the historic
27:01
district and they're walking into the downtown.
27:03
It wasn't the best experience and we all knew
27:06
that. And so we were lucky enough to be able
27:09
to partner with the city of Philadelphia on this.
27:11
They gave us a grant to do some work to get Market
27:15
East ready for 2026. And we had some great partners.
27:19
We brought Mural Arts on board. ISA architects
27:22
and we did some retail pop -ups we did a bunch
27:26
of stuff we painted things we repaired things
27:28
and we got it ready and so that is where this
27:31
project stems from and I think one of the best
27:34
things you can do on a vacant space that's been
27:37
just dark for years is just give it some life
27:40
and Manuela's piece was the first one and it
27:43
just immediately changes the narrative on the
27:46
street you go from these black dark depressing
27:49
windows to something that just It brings you
27:51
joy when you walk past it. It's been amazing.
27:53
It's been a great experience. That's incredible.
27:55
Jane, how do you pair a project and an artist
27:59
together? Well, it really depends. I mean, there
28:02
are different ways of... doing murals so when
28:06
we became mural arts that was in 1998 like our
28:09
goal was okay there were just five of us and
28:11
we had a budget of a hundred thousand dollars
28:12
and we sat around for some reason the department
28:14
of recreation didn't have desks for us so they
28:16
gave us an empty floor which of course if you're
28:18
an artist you love an empty floor so we had this
28:20
rickety furniture we looked at each other we
28:21
said we are a pro art program we're not anti
28:23
anything anymore and we are going to employ artists
28:27
work in every neighborhood employ emerging artists
28:29
establishers and everyone in between and everywhere
28:32
everywhere is going to have art right And we
28:34
went, right. I mean, just the few of us. It wasn't
28:38
like a crowd. And so we had started, because
28:42
of anti -graffiti, we had started to do murals
28:44
in neighborhoods. And the murals became, it was
28:47
like contagious. Like people wanted art. I think
28:49
we've really tapped into a chord of like a love
28:51
of art in our city. And we have 4 ,445 murals
28:55
now. I mean, it's sort of amazing, isn't it?
28:56
More murals than any city. And we say in the
28:58
universe because in case they're counting. We
29:01
know it's a world. And I want to say, I want
29:04
to back up for a minute, that someone some years
29:06
ago said that mural arts is like the visualization
29:08
of democracy, and that was the biggest compliment
29:10
to me, because I think that often people don't
29:13
get to control their own narrative in their lives,
29:15
and things are just... The block captains back
29:17
in the day used to say, when we talked about
29:19
a mural, they would say, well, you know something,
29:20
Jane Golden, things are either not done or done
29:23
to us, and the only visual stimulation we have
29:25
in this neighborhood are billboards advertising
29:27
alcohol and tobacco. And we were like, well,
29:29
that can change. What would you like? This is
29:32
your decision. It is your home. You get to pick.
29:35
And so the murals really became part of the civic
29:38
life of our city. And so there's a waiting list
29:40
now. So people can go on our website and they
29:43
can apply for a mural. Or it comes out of we
29:45
have five departments in mural arts and restorative
29:48
justice and art education, behavioral health,
29:50
community murals, environmental work. And then
29:53
people come to us with ideas, funders. Artists
29:56
have ideas. The city has ideas. So it's a combination.
29:59
And so it depends on the project. like a project
30:01
like this with the Center City District. And
30:03
we have a nice history of working with the Center
30:05
City District. So we were thrilled when Prima
30:07
and Amy came to us. It was just wonderful. We
30:10
view this as a very important partnership. So
30:12
it's all about collaboration. Like if you're
30:14
working in a neighborhood, you want to say to
30:16
people like, okay, what are you thinking of?
30:18
And if people say we'd like a landscape or we'd
30:19
like something figurative, then we show people
30:21
artists. Or maybe there's an artist in the neighborhood.
30:23
And together you start to construct what is really
30:26
like public art, which is it involves a number
30:29
of people. in the process and that's what makes
30:32
it so. wonderfully resonant to the citizens who
30:35
are here. This is not art that just drops from
30:37
the sky, that people go, how did that happen?
30:39
That would not occur in Philadelphia. So with
30:41
Amy and Prima, we discussed together, we looked
30:45
at the sites, we were selecting the sites at
30:46
the same time, we were talking about who were
30:49
the best artists, and we looked at lists of artists,
30:51
and together we came up with fabulous artists,
30:54
and that's how it works. And that makes it a
30:57
successful project, because everyone feels really
30:59
good about it, and for us to be able to do work.
31:02
along Market East was fantastic because we've,
31:04
you know, like I said before, like we are wall
31:07
hunters, right? We're always thinking of different
31:09
sites, different walls, you know, so we would
31:11
go up and down Market Street, up and down Market
31:12
Street to see potential everywhere. Really, we
31:14
see potential everywhere across the entire city,
31:16
which is like, ah, we need to quadruple the amount
31:19
of work we're doing and hire more artists. So,
31:22
sorry, I don't mean to bang on the table. I'm
31:23
just so excited. So, but it was this delightful
31:26
collaborative process where we feel really good
31:29
about it. And as Amy is right, it looks... Both
31:31
your work, it just looks so beautiful. And when
31:34
you think what was there before and what's there
31:36
now, I mean, sometimes, like I say to people,
31:38
like, think about what Philadelphia would be
31:40
if you shut your eyes and Philly did not have
31:42
public art. And I don't mean just the murals,
31:44
but the sculpture and mosaics, and we do some
31:46
frescoes. It just would be just, it's an image,
31:49
it's too depressing. Art humanizes us, and it
31:53
makes our city sing. And the fact that often...
31:56
art doesn't get centered in the way it should.
31:59
It's like people talk about it, they love it,
32:00
they go, yay, art, and then it goes left or right.
32:03
And so we feel like that's part of our moral
32:06
responsibility is to center the arts and support
32:09
everyone and everything around it. So when we
32:11
get to partner with the Center City District
32:13
with the goal of creating more art and beauty
32:16
and hiring fantastic artists, that is a good
32:19
day for us. Manuela, can you share a little bit
32:21
about your art installation? For sure. First
32:24
off, I was definitely honored when I heard my
32:27
name was dropped in that meeting. I was like,
32:30
have I made it as a Philly artist? I've been
32:40
wanting to actually do a piece about Philly for
32:42
a while. I was going to say before talking about
32:45
this, a lot of what you say, Gina, I did resonate
32:47
with. I feel like when I started making public
32:50
art, even when I was an intern, it was all about
32:52
sometimes about the tourism. And at the time,
32:54
I was living in Jersey and I was working in Atlantic
32:56
City. And I knew AC in a different light. I knew
32:59
the people there. When my professor had mentioned
33:02
like, oh, yeah, we can get you a mural. Like,
33:03
what do you, you know, just do whatever you want.
33:06
And I was like, oh, I want to, like, highlight
33:08
the people who live here. And it's been a fight,
33:10
actually, in the beginning. It's definitely changed
33:13
a lot now. Advocating to do art that represented
33:15
the people in the neighborhood. And I knew the
33:17
neighborhood. I was, you know, I would hang out
33:18
there all the time. I would work there. The beach
33:20
was there. The food was great. I swear, the best
33:23
tacos are in Atlantic City. Oh, you're going
33:26
to have to let me know after this. Yeah, like,
33:29
I've been going there since I was 17. Okay. Yeah,
33:31
they're indigenous, like, Mexican folks that
33:33
make, like, the best tacos. But anyway, I digress.
33:36
Philly for now 10 years. I've lived everywhere.
33:38
I've lived in the big republic, Cancun. Miami
33:41
and I was like Philly I love it just look at
33:44
it look at the outside and like what made it
33:46
special for me was the community here I owe a
33:48
lot of my art growth to Philly and then seeing
33:51
all the murals here and like traveling back and
33:53
forth to Mexico when I was in college made me
33:54
want to be a muralist so the piece is called
33:56
Philly cool people live here I went through so
33:59
many designs you probably saw them I was like
34:01
I hated all of them I was like oh my gosh and
34:04
then like under pressure of course like it finally
34:06
came out And I was like, yeah, we're celebrating
34:09
a lot of really great things coming here. And
34:12
I was like, let's like highlight the folks here.
34:14
Obviously, I love doing tourism art now, but
34:16
like I want to go back to like I'm highlighting
34:19
the really amazing work that's done here. I was
34:21
like, I want to talk about. The people who live
34:23
here, the little archetypes that exist here in
34:26
Philly, like, from the alley cats to, like, the
34:29
boxing. I have friends that are boxers out in
34:32
Washington, like, brought in Washington. I have
34:34
friends who are salsa dancers, a great salsa
34:35
scene here. A lot of bikers, the bike community.
34:38
I'm actually collaborating with, like, a bike
34:40
community now, making, like, a really cool map.
34:42
And also, most importantly, I want to highlight
34:44
the people. One of my roommates, I call her an
34:46
art dynasty baby because her mom is a great,
34:49
like, Indonesian dancer. really has done amazing
34:52
stuff in the city. So she's a born and bred Philadelphian.
34:55
Her and her mom have brought in the South Asian
34:58
dance community all over Philly. So I was like,
35:00
you're going up. You're the one. The other two
35:03
friends I added are also in a way for me kind
35:06
of an archetype, but they're real people. My
35:08
friend Jonathan is a young adult who grew up
35:11
in a place in a... an environment where he was
35:13
told to be a certain type of way, but Philly
35:15
made him tap into the alternative life, and I
35:17
appreciate Philly for that. I think the city
35:20
can do that for people. Johnson kind of became
35:22
this reminder of this archetype for a lot of
35:25
people. He feels like he's connecting with himself.
35:27
And then the other person I decided to draw was
35:29
my friend Carolina, and she's a multidisciplinary
35:33
artist who migrated from Chile to here. There's
35:36
a lot of great immigrant communities here in
35:38
Philly. I wanted someone who's really had a journey
35:42
this past three years. Not my story to tell,
35:45
but I definitely wanted to put her on there in
35:48
some ways, like highlight her journey here. There's
35:51
something really nice about reminding people
35:53
that Philadelphians are really cool. We're like
35:56
no other. Can you tell us the location of your
36:00
installation? So it's in the Fashion District,
36:02
10th and Market. It's a beautiful representation
36:04
of Philadelphia. And then Adrienne, how about
36:07
for your art installation? When I was approached
36:11
to do this project, I was very excited about
36:14
the idea of doing it, but I also knew that...
36:18
I had never done anything like this before. I
36:21
paint very large works. I have a work that's
36:23
like 36 feet long. So I'm used to working very
36:27
large, but not in this particular format. And
36:31
even the other temporary murals that I've done,
36:34
they've still been, they've been big, but they've
36:36
been on like wood. So I've never done a window
36:41
art installation before. And I also don't do
36:44
anything digital. So I was kind of like, not
36:49
really sure what to do. But then I was like,
36:51
well, I do have images. really high -res images
36:54
of recent work that I've done. And so I started
36:57
looking through those. And I had a four -panel
37:00
piece that I had done for an exhibition over
37:02
in France, and then it came to North Carolina.
37:05
And then I had a couple of works from an exhibition
37:09
that was on view in London. And as I was looking
37:12
through those, there were two that really stood
37:14
out to me. And the first one is a four -panel
37:17
piece, and it was really, really bright, colorful.
37:20
It honestly, in some ways, reminds me of, like,
37:22
the... Fiesta Colors in San Antonio I'm a native
37:24
San Antonian and it was inspired by a quote from
37:27
an interview that Toni Morrison did where she
37:29
talks about even in the midst of crisis you have
37:32
to hold on to the magic in order to to move through
37:36
crisis you have to hold on to parts of yourself
37:39
and you have to still find a way to keep living
37:42
and hold on to your whimsy and the soft parts
37:44
of yourself. That was one piece. And then this
37:46
piece that's up at Ethan Market was inspired
37:50
by a couple of different literary texts. One
37:53
actually has a connection to the Penn Museum,
37:57
but the other literary connection is to Sonia
38:00
Sanchez. And she was not... born in Philadelphia,
38:05
but she has lived in Philadelphia in the Germantown
38:07
neighborhood for decades. So she's such a, like
38:11
when you think about her, you think that she's
38:13
from Philadelphia because she's just become such
38:15
a... prominent figure here. You know, she taught
38:20
at Temple, she goes back and she, you know, still
38:23
does lectures. She has two poems. One is called
38:26
Set Number One, and the other is called Present.
38:29
And this piece is really my visual response and
38:34
reactions to lines in those poems that really
38:37
resonated with me. And so I wanted to use this
38:43
piece as a way to Honor. her and honor her contributions
38:49
to the city of Philadelphia. If we're thinking
38:51
about the 250th anniversary, we're thinking about
38:54
there's so much art that is happening this year.
38:58
There's all of these world -renowned events happening
39:01
here this summer. In my work, something that
39:04
I always try to do, especially because I work
39:05
in abstraction, I always am trying to find ways
39:08
to not only honor the other Black women artists
39:11
who have come before me and have paved the way
39:15
for me to be able to do what I do, but also really
39:18
center and ground Black creativity, Black genius,
39:22
feminist thought and theory in my work as well.
39:25
And so Sonia is a great example of that. And
39:28
so I wanted to use this piece to honor her contributions
39:31
to the city and to art. overall, in general.
39:35
And then also the other piece to this is I'm
39:39
a native Texan, but both of my parents have Philadelphia
39:42
roots. They actually met in Texas and got married
39:46
in Texas when they were in tech school. They
39:48
were both in the military. They were 18 -year
39:50
-old kids. And both of my grandmothers maternal
39:54
and paternal, lived in North Philadelphia. My
39:56
great -grandmother on my mom's side, she owned
39:59
a candy shop in the 40s and 50s in North Philadelphia.
40:02
She was kind of like a unicorn in that way. She
40:05
used this space as like a community organizing
40:07
space, also as a space to show sculptures that
40:11
her sons had done. She was very beloved by her
40:14
neighborhood and community, and so I wanted to
40:17
use this piece as a way to honor her and to honor
40:19
that and to honor the contributions that both
40:22
her and my grandmother. My grandmother was a
40:25
member of the local chapter of Reverend Jesse
40:27
Jackson's Rainbow Coalition. She was a voting
40:30
rights activist. She worked for the school district
40:33
in Philadelphia. So really this piece is just
40:36
a way to pay homage to black women and their
40:40
contributions to art, to the city. It comes from
40:42
a very personal place, but also kind of, it also
40:45
has this broader message as well. That's beautiful.
40:47
Beautiful. Thank you. Adrienne, can you tell
40:50
us where your installation is? The address? Yes.
40:55
My installation is at 821 Market Street, and
40:58
it's the Old Straw Bridge. Beautiful. Beautiful.
41:00
And I saw Sonia Sanchez the day before yesterday.
41:03
Oh, my gosh. Because we dedicated a mural in
41:06
Germantown on the side of Weaver's Way, their
41:08
new building, and Sonia lives across the street.
41:12
The mural is about the Wissahickon and Lenape
41:16
land, and it's quite beautiful and spiritual.
41:18
But everyone, the artists and the team, all agreed
41:22
there has to be a quote from Sonia. So they picked
41:24
this beautiful line of poetry about the importance
41:27
of the earth and how you have to love the earth.
41:28
Oh, I love that. And towards the end of the dedication,
41:32
she walked over. I love that. She sat next to
41:34
me. I always call you Sister Jane. Oh, I love
41:39
you. Never met her, but I've always heard stories
41:44
like that. I mean, when I posted, I posted about
41:46
this on Instagram a couple days ago. Tim McFarlane.
41:49
Oh, friend of the pod. Yes. He's doing a new
41:53
mural. Yes. He shared in the comments, he shared
41:56
a story that he has with Sonia, and it literally,
41:59
like, made me, like, I was in my kitchen reading
42:01
it, and I just, like, started crying because
42:03
I was like, oh, my God. So it's just, again,
42:05
just one of those things. Very, very meaningful.
42:07
Very, very meaningful. So I've never met her,
42:09
but forever in awe of her and grateful to her.
42:13
And I love that she's such like a staple here
42:16
in the city. I remember one time I took her to,
42:19
we went out to our prison class, which was an
42:23
amazing experience. And I was talking to her
42:25
about some obstacles that I was facing with the
42:28
job. And as I dropped her off, I remember as
42:31
she was getting out, she turned to me and she
42:33
said, Sister Jane, we can't give up. And I just
42:38
remember thinking that it was just like, she
42:41
doesn't, just those few words from Sonia Sanchez
42:44
means the world. Yeah. Well, thank you all for
42:48
joining us today and sharing your story with
42:50
us. Thank you to the Center City District for
42:53
bringing these partnerships together. Can we
42:56
shout out Leo Manning? Yes! In the room! Hi,
43:03
hi, hi. Leo facilitated all of this, and we so
43:07
appreciate it. Yes, thank you so much. Thank
43:09
you. And if you would or want to share with the
43:14
audience how... Okay, so my handle is lazybeam,
43:20
like a light beam. And then you can just go on
43:24
my website, manuelaguin .com. Excellent. So for
43:28
Center City District, you can always go on our
43:30
website, centercityphila .org, and have a phone
43:36
number, like the main line, call if you have
43:37
any questions. At Center City District. At Center
43:41
City. For me, my website is... AddieB .com. AddieB
43:48
is of my great -grandmother. So it's A -D -D
43:53
-Y -E -B .com is my website. So on Instagram,
43:56
it's airbuilding. Perfect. And finally... And
44:01
finally, Mural Arts' website is muralarts .org,
44:04
and it's full of information, and Instagram is
44:07
at muralarts. Excellent. Thank you all so much.
44:10
Thank you for sharing your stories and your art.
44:13
And everyone, check out Market Street for beautiful
44:16
installations. Thank you. Thank you. I mean,
44:36
the chance to sit with Jane, the little bits
44:41
of those incredible stories that she has to share
44:44
about her lifetime of mural arts was little nuggets
44:53
into what could end up being and should be its
44:57
own documentary. She deserves that. and more.
45:01
And thank you to Saanich City District for making
45:04
that happen and bringing all of these artists
45:07
together. To be able to basically transform that
45:13
part of the city with these incredible artists
45:16
is absolutely amazing. To just... Take what would
45:20
have been a blank space for the longest time
45:24
and just give it a zhuzh. Hey, we're going to
45:27
have all of these amazing people in our city
45:29
for the 250th anniversary for FIFA. And they
45:33
get to now explore mural arts and more artists
45:37
work throughout the city just to make it a little
45:41
bit better than it already is. It was so great.
45:44
I loved the Jane by Jane. Yes. Yes. Loved it.
45:51
Also, I think we could die knowing that we have
45:54
now lived a fulfilled life. Yes, definitely.
45:57
Definitely. I mean, the podcast, we could turn
45:59
off the pod. Turn it off. Thank you so much.
46:03
It was a great run. We'll see you never. Just
46:06
kidding, guys. We will see you in September.
46:10
And just an FYI, we will be rerunning minisodes
46:13
and season announcements throughout August. it's
46:17
going to be exciting and i i can't wait but in
46:21
the meantime we need a little break but here's
46:23
some things that you can do tomorrow thursday
46:26
july 30th starting at 7 30 the philly film society
46:29
young friends presents a byob screening of josie
46:33
and the pussycats at ritz east This Friday, July
46:38
31st, from 6 .30 to 8 .30, Grant Goldsworthy,
46:43
a .k .a. White Deer, is having a reception uncovering
46:47
the work at Curator Collective. Also Friday,
46:51
from 4 to 8, the PMA Young Friends will be taking
46:54
over the Road and Garden Bar. Are you still a
46:58
PMA Young Friend, Robert? Yes, I am. I'm down
47:02
a level, but I am. You cannot be on the leadership
47:06
committee forever. That's entirely true. Maybe
47:09
they could use me right now. I'm starting to
47:11
age. You saw that article. Yes, I did. Moving
47:16
on, this Saturday, August 1st, is the last day
47:19
to catch Soft Architectures and Maybe Buy. Bridget
47:23
offers payment plans at Bridget Mayer Gallery.
47:27
And with that, Philly has heart. And art! Thanks
48:10
for tuning in to Philly Has Heart, your weekly
48:12
cultural update. Subscribe and join us next time
48:15
as we keep amplifying the artist -shaping Philadelphia
48:18
culture. Really hard week. It's, it's been, it's
48:53
been rough. Okay, so it's not just me. It's,
48:57
something's in the air. Are we just coming down
49:00
from all the cool stuff that we were doing in
49:03
Philadelphia, you know? Maybe, maybe, and maybe
49:06
like the whole city's like on a eh. Not feeling
49:11
great, man. No.