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Colorful 25,000-square-foot mural coming to Philly

Rhythm & Hues

Colorful 25,000-square-foot mural coming to Philly

In its fourth iteration, the “The Oval” pop-up park on Philadelphia’s Benjamin Franklin Parkway will open on July 15, in time for the Democratic National Convention.

This year Brad Carney, a local artist, will unveil his 25,000-square-foot mural: Rhythm & Hues. Carney, who has worked on more than 30 murals during his artistic career, aims to create “a full-scale music-inspired abstract experience” that “goes beyond the painted mural with complementary art activities all summer long.” He has also worked on 20 projects with the Mural Arts group in the past 14 years.

Music is a key theme to the pop-up park event and Carney’s mural’s “whimsical gestures of movement and musical rhythm” cater for the event’s other main attraction, the Orchestra Pit. An open area, the Orchestra Pit will be filled with an ensemble of instruments for public performances. Meanwhile, other artistic activities for children and adults will be available, involving the creation of one’s own musical instrument and other music-inspired artworks.

Initially only intended to run for three years, The Oval‘s success has kept it alive. “It was a pretty easy decision,” said Marc Wilken, Parks Concession Manager at Philadelphia‘s Parks & Recreation Department. “I think it was a successful experience the last 3 years. It was well received by the community and the city at-large and we felt it just made sense to do another run. When we saw the numbers of people coming out, it just made sense to bring it back,” he added.

 

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