The rain on Saturday did not stop Penn students and West Philadelphia community members from beginning work on what they hope will be a long-lasting community jewel.
Penn's "The Big Picture: Mural Art in Philadelphia" class invited local residents to participate as they completed their class project -- painting a community mural.
Under the guidance of professors Don Gensler and Jane Golden -- the latter of whom is also the director of Philadelphia's Mural Arts Program -- Penn students, children from the Belmont School and members of the West Philadelphia community gathered on Saturday afternoon to kick off the painting of the mural and the grooming of a community garden.
The mural, located on 40th and Brown streets, will depict a so-called "Basket of Plenty," symbolizing the adjacent community garden.
Gensler said community members were involved in choosing the theme of the mural, which took about a month to plan. The massive 33-by-50-foot mural is an enlargement of a photo of a little girl holding a basket of vegetables.
"A mural is like a catalyst," Gensler said. "It is something visual, something that people notice."
Many community members said they feel they do not even know their own neighbors and are enthused about the new area, hoping it will help ease relations and bring the community closer together.
"I think it's a great thing," local business owner Arthur Oganesyan said. "I like that people from the community are helping. It gives it validity."
Volunteer Leon Hsi, who, with a team of four other members, helped out on behalf of Interoffice Systems-North, said he wants the area to benefit the community.
"It will hopefully prevent graffiti and revitalize the neighborhood," he said.
The mural will continue to be painted throughout the semester and Gensler hopes it will be completed before the snow begins to fall.
"Ultimately, [the mural] is a painting that's beautiful that people will enjoy," Gensler said. "Yes, there is symbolic reference and if some people get that it's about giving, taking, sharing, that's wonderful."
The students and volunteers dispersed along the corner of 40th and Brown. Some braved the scaffolding, while others supervised and helped the schoolchildren paint the fence around the garden area and create stepping stones.
Engineering graduate student Keshav Kunal, who found out about the event through a listserv, said he was happy to participate.
"It sounded like a fun thing, a good community thing," Kunal said. "There is good music, food, and you get to meet new and interesting people."
Belmont students were also proud to help out, as they worked eagerly painting the fence and embellishing stepping stones. The pizza, candy, face painting and music were added bonuses.
The Mural Arts Program does about 100 murals a year, and works with around 1,000 children, according to MAP Development Director Shira Kamm.
