Afromation Avenue comes to Philly’s historically Black 7th Ward

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Afromation Avenue, a project funded by Mural Arts Philadelphia, has chosen the historic 7th Ward as its latest home.

Now in its third installment, Afromation Avenue is a “collection of curated positive affirmation street signs” that are created by Black artists in neighborhoods that are either predominantly Black or historically so.

Co-founders and project curators Brittni Jennings and Kristin Kelly, who have been friends since middle school, originally came up with the idea for Afromation Avenue in response to George Floyd’s killing in May 2020. They were educators in the School District of Philadelphia at the time.

“We only teach about 100 and something kids, small impacts make great change. But we kept wrestling with like, what can we do to not burn the streets down? Because that’s what we wanted to do — symbolically burn them down, burn them down in a sense that we want to make people interrogate where they live, why they live where they live, who was living here before them, you know, thread the needle between like, the past, the present and the future,” Jennings said.

Jennings and Kelly pitched ideas to each other and landed on one for positive affirmation street signs installed in local neighborhoods.

“Street signs are used to guide and regulate the traffic flow of people; they assist in helping others get from one familiar place to another. Afromation Avenue lends itself as a social emotional guide in hopes of cultivating spaces where community members feel encouraged, valued, and respected,” explains the Mural Arts website.

Jennings and Kelly decided to put together a pitch deck and requested funding from Mural Arts, the largest art organization in the city. Initially, they did not hear back.

Realizing their email never sent, they attempted again and Mural Arts wanted to set up a meeting.

“Everything we’ve been doing, we’ve learned how to do,” Jennings said. “We are artists in our own right. But I think it’s important to note that they invested in an idea. We did not pitch them with hardware, like, ‘This is what it would physically look like.’”

Jennings and Kelly emphasize that they are not formally trained artists.

“You know, we’re artists — but we’re educators first,” Kelly said. “Just letting people [know], especially young people, if you have an idea, don’t think that it’s not possible. Like, don’t give up. Try it out. Because you won’t know unless you try.”

As dedicated educators, Jennings and Kelly opted beyond a “traditional reveal” for every unveiling of Afromation Avenue.

“For us, everything is a lesson,” Jennings said.

Instead of ribbon cuttings or speeches, the two co-founders led a guided walking tour, using African American history to contextualize their work.

Elementary and high school students joined a guided group led by Jennings and Kelly who highlighted prominent landmarks and influential Black figures integral to the neighborhood’s rich history. Once home to more than 15,000 Black residents, this historic area now includes parts of Graduate Hospital, Rittenhouse Square, Washington Square West and Society Hill.

The 7th Ward was a part of the Underground Railroad and was home to prominent figures like W.E.B. Du Bois and Octavius V. Catto, both renowned civil rights activists.

The tour started off on 6th Street outside Mother Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church, which was founded by Richard Allen, a former enslaved man, in 1794. Renowned as the oldest A.M.E. congregation, the church also holds the distinction of being “the oldest continuously Black-owned parcel of land” in the United States.

Along the way, signs are also visible along South Street and Bainbridge Street, marking the site of the former Institute for Colored Youth.

Kelly kicked off the tour by sharing the message behind “We are Connected to this Land as Seeds Are to Soil” — a sign placed outside the historic church.

“Like seeds embedded in the soil, Black families and communities have nurtured this neighborhood,” Kelly said.

“Black communities continue to be uprooted, just as a tree cannot grow without roots, the neighborhood’s essence is inseparable from the Black communities who have shaped it. So this affirmation: ‘We are connected to this land as seeds are to soil,’ serves as a reminder to this unbreakable bond,” Kelly continued. “It’s a call to resist erasure and to honor the resilience of those who have made the 7th Ward what it is today.”

And with that, the group traveled to the next stop where they learned about Andre Chaney’s first sign. At each location, the artists revealed the intent behind their work.

Jennings shared that her work is frequently influenced by Afrofuturism. Chaney described his “figure-heavy” pieces as a reflection of how his chosen affirmations are affecting people. Meanwhile, Mithsuka Berry’s creations included nature symbolism and vibrant colors drawing on their deep connections to Black cultural expression.

As the tour approached 8th and Bainbridge, Kelly noted the removal of three signs on that block. When speaking with WHYY News after the tour, Kelly said she noticed the absences when she did a run through the previous day to prepare for the tour.

“It seemed very intentional because there weren’t more signs that were taken,” said Kelly. “That’s kind of why we continue to do what we do. Because even in spaces where we’re not wanted, we still have a right to be here.”

Being funded by Mural Arts, which in turn receives funding from the city, Afromation Avenue’s signs are legally permitted to occupy the spaces that they do. They even place stickers on the back of each sign, letting city workers know not to remove them.

“I think it’s important to note that our projects are intentionally curated and we make sure that they are on the public side of the street. So, you know, we would have preferred if someone just — our contact information is on the back — if someone would have just contacted us and, you know, say they didn’t necessarily want it in front of their residential space or what have you and that would have been fine,” Jennings added. “But it’s more so the idea that someone took the time out to unscrew the screws, dismantle the sign and then get rid of it.”

With this latest installment taking residence in Society Hill, the creators are newly navigating bringing their art to a predominantly white, historically Black neighborhood.

“You know, we were in West Philly, we were in Germantown and this is the first time that the signs were completely gone,” said Kelly, referring to the project’s two other sites.

When asked if they plan to put the signs back up, Kelly, through shared laughs with Jennings, said, “Yes, we plan to put them back up. We don’t know if it’s going to be in the exact same spot, but it’ll still be intentional within the 7th Ward.”

This intentionality is included within every bit of Jenning and Kelly’s work, and that became especially clear at the tour’s final stop.

Ending at the Institute for Colored Youth — “the oldest institute of higher learning for African Americans,” now known as Cheyney University — Jennings and Kelly purposely sandwiched the tour between two Black spaces.

“We thought it was very important to not only start at the Black church, but also end at a Black school,” Jennings said, wrapping up the tour. “Both are spaces to cultivate community, promote Black creativity and it’s also an avenue to invest in Black people, Black futures, Black presents and even honor the Black past.”

Afromation Avenue is currently an in-person-only experience, but Jennings and Kelly are working to make it accessible to a wider audience. An online platform is in the works that will allow participants to view each sign and read the inspiration behind it. The platform is also set to include information on the surrounding neighborhood and its historical significance.

To support this initiative, a GoFundMe page has been launched and is accepting donations.