Philly’s first permanent mural about voting is all about hope

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After years of promoting voting with pop-up signs and murals around Election Day, Philadelphia now has a permanent mural to always remind residents of the power of voting.

“Legacy in Bloom” in West Philadelphia on the side of a three-story rowhouse at 57th and Walnut shows generations of women with flowing hair dabbled with flowers on an electric blue background. Across the top are the words “Philly Votes.”

Artist Tai Corrienté Baucom populated the mural with women. She grew up surrounded by women and said that when she thinks about legacies that can be passed down through voting, she envisions the women who gave rise to that lineage.

“The theme of my mural is not just about voting. I made sure to create something that still has relevance even after future elections come and go,” Baucom said. “Thinking about your legacy, about your legacy’s future: When they get to be your age, what will they have because of some of the choices you make.”

For the past six years, Mural Arts Philadelphia has erected a biannual display of murals on temporary panels in LOVE Park, called the “To The Polls” project, that stand for a few weeks before elections. “Legacy in Bloom” is the city’s first year-round mural about voting.

Both “To The Polls” and “Legacy in Bloom” were curated by Conrad Benner, a longtime chronicler of Philadelphia street art and host of WHYY’s podcast “Art Outside.” He hopes “Legacy in Bloom” will become a useful landmark for residents who need a way to celebrate civic engagement.

“When the Eagles are approaching the playoffs, when the Phillies are in the home stretch, people go out to these Phillies murals and these Eagles murals and take photos. It’s their way to talk about their excitement,” Benner said. “We need the same thing with civic engagement. People should have a way to talk about their role in being civically engaged and in voting.”

But instead of helmets and baseballs, “Legacy in Bloom” is notable for its dresses and flowers, symbolizing the generational power of voting.

“We have Forget Me Nots that are meant to symbolize remembrance, and irises for legacy,” said Baucom, pointing to one of her figures representing a descendent of a nearby ancestor.

“She is wearing her ancestors on her dress,” she said. “She’s holding a dandelion, which is about hope. You’ll see a few dandelion seeds blowing across the mural.”