Philadelphia Murals and the Stories They Tell [Hardcover]

Jane Golden (Author), Robin Rice (Author), Monica Yant Kinney (Author), David Graham (Photographer), Jack Ramsdale (Photographer)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 15, 2002

In June 1984, Jane Golden, a young muralist from Margate, New Jersey, headed up a project that was originally planned as a six-week youth program in the fledgling Philadelphia Anti-Graffiti Network. This small exercise in fighting graffiti grew into the most vibrant public art project in the United States. Led by Golden and dozens of artists, neighborhood residents, and volunteers, the Philadelphia Mural Arts Program has adorned the city with over two thousand murals. In the process, this vibrant art, painted mostly on city walls, helped to change the look of the city, creating an enduring legacy in all of the neighborhoods in which the murals were added. In this lavishly illustrated chronicle of the Mural Arts Program, you will see the murals in all of their beauty and learn about their inspiring legacies in neighborhoods throughout the city. You will go behind the scenes to find out how murals are made and why the process is as much an art of diplomacy and consensus building as paint and perspective. You will discover through pictures and text how murals give communities a new way to define themselves, not in terms of the streets and intersections that border them, but in terms of the people who came together to create something of dramatic beauty. Author note: Jane Goldenis Executive Director of the Philadelphia Mural Arts Program, the largest program of its kind in the United States. She graduated from Stanford University and holds an MFA from the Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers, State University of New Jersey. This is her first book. She lives in Philadelphia. Robin Rice is the senior art critic for the "Philadelphia City Paper". She writes for a number of national and international magazines, including "American Ceramics", "Woman's Art Journal", and "ARTnews". She is an adjunct Assistant Professor in the graduate programs in criticism and humanities at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia. The recipient of writing fellowships from the Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation and the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts. She lives in Philadelphia. Monica Yant Kinney is a metropolitan columnist at "The Philadelphia Inquirer", where she has worked since 1996. She was formerly the television critic at the "St. Petersburg (Fla.) Times". She grew up in Fort Wayne, Indiana; graduated from the University of Notre Dame; and is married to David Kinney, a political reporter for the Newark Star-Ledger. This is her first book. David Graham is a freelance photographer whose work has appeared in "Time", "Newsweek", "U.S. News and World Report", and "The New York Times Magazine", among other publications. He has published four previous books, including "Taking Liberties" (2001). He is Associate Professor of photography at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia. Jack Ramsdale has been involved with the Mural Arts Program since 1998. In November 2001, his mural design titled "ONE WORLD" in remembrance of the victims of 9/11 was painted across 15th Street from City Hall. He attended Cranbrook Academy of Art, receiving an MFA with a photography concentration. He has had a commercial photography business for the last fifteen years and continues to create art in Philadelphia, where he now resides.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

The most important public art program in the United States

About the Author

JANE GOLDEN is executive director of the Philadelphia department of recreation's Mural Arts Program. ROBIN RICE is an independent artist and writer in Philadelphia. MONICA YANT KINNEY is the "Metro" columnist for The Philadelphia Inquirer.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 160 pages
• Publisher: Temple University Press; 1st edition (November 15, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1566399513
• ISBN-13: 978-1566399517
• Product Dimensions: 11.3 x 9.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #537,668 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wow! I didn't know Philadelphia had so many murals!, December 17, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Philadelphia Murals and the Stories They Tell (Hardcover)

What a surprise I had in learning that Philadelphia, a city I've lived in for over ten years, has over 2,000 murals. And,in this book, they are beautifully displayed (well, not all 2000) and discussed. I learned about the artists who created the murals, the communities where the murals are, and just lots of interesting details about the mural arts program in Philadelphia--the most prolific in the country. And, I can't say enough about how spectacularly beautiful the photographs are. If you're ever in Philadelphia, you must buy this book and take a stroll through some of the neighborhoods that house the murals. There's even a map.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Coffee Table Book that Reads like a Novel, January 16, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Philadelphia Murals and the Stories They Tell (Hardcover)

This beautiful book tells the story of the wonderful murals that you see all over Philadelphia. It is more than just a pretty book,however, because it is also the story of Jane Golden and how the Philadelphia Anti-Graffiti Network started and how it has grown over the years. The pictures are photographed with amazing accuracy, and the authors have maintained a professional attitude while making the reader feel compelled to continue reading. The book makes you want to see in person all the wondrous walls that Jane Golden and her muralists have created. A great gift and an even greater find.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Murals of Philadelphia, August 16, 2007

By 

Martin A. Healey (Yardley, PA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Philadelphia Murals and the Stories They Tell (Hardcover)

The first of two books and an eye opener as well. I had always love seeing these as I traveled around, but until I open the book I did not know we had so many and how they came to be. Well done to Jane Golden for collecting these for us.