New Mural in Fishtown Will Celebrate Birds of Philadelphia

A new mural currently in the works in Fishtown will celebrate birds and other wildlife native to the Philadelphia region, writes Franki Rudnesky for the Philly Voice.

Drexel University’s Academy of Natural Sciences has tapped Jane Kim, a renowned artist and scientific illustrator, to paint the upcoming mural as part of its ongoing “Illuminating Birds” exhibit.

The piece will be painted at 2331 Frankford Avenue and will highlight “Philadelphia’s incredible variety of birds and their fascinating connections to local ecologies, watersheds, and communities,” said the Academy.

The mural will be installed in partnership with Mural Arts Philadelphia, a public art nonprofit.

Kim spent last week in Philadelphia as the Academy’s Avian Artist-in-Residence. She researched local birds, drafted the mural, and led painting workshops.

She has now returned to her studio in California to create the final design for the mural which will be unveiled during Mural Arts Month festivities in October. She will return to Philadelphia in spring to install the mural.

“It was a really lovely situation where the Academy reached out to us with this idea,” said Kim.

Read more about the new mural in the Philly Voice.