“#MelanatedMurals”
Because Melanin is Magical
Content and images by: Caressa Losier
When’s the last time you stumbled upon a few good melanated murals? In some cities, Black street art is hard to come by, while others are fortunate enough to have several murals rich in melanin available in the neighborhood. But now you don’t have to travel far to see them, we’ve compiled a list of some of the best melanated murals in the Northeast for your eyes only. Continue below to see them all right here.
Legacy
All 10,000 square feet of this melanated mural in Philadelphia’s Center City neighborhood was created around Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass’s efforts to end slavery. A young Black boy wears a necklace of coins engraved with their faces as an emblem of lady liberty lights the path in his hands. To the right of him is a map of the African continent – the motherland.
Nana
Brick City’s “Nana” is a one of the most striking melanated murals from The Model Neighborhood Initiative Project that stands tall in the city’s Ghanaian neighborhood. It features a young Ghanaian king in a Kente cap aligning his head with a regal, wooden crown.
>> See More Layqa Nuna Yawar Street Art
Holding Grandmother’s Quilt
In September of 2004, an abandoned lot turned community park in West Philadelphia grew roots with the creation of this traditional melanated mural. To the untrained eye, it’s just an elderly woman sitting and sewing a quilt. To children of the African diaspora, she’s a symbol of Black identity, tradition and love – just like your own grandmother. But to Philadelphia, she’s Miss Jones – a well-known Philadelphian who’s been a part of the community for over 35 years.
1000 Black Girl Books
When a young and ambitious 6th grader named Marley Dias grew tired of the lack of diversity in books available to her, she empowered change by creating the #1000BlackGirlBooks campaign. So when indigenous art activist LMNOPI took part in New York City’s Education is Not a Crime campaign, she paid homage to the 11-year old with a stunning melanated mural on the side of Harlem’s P.S. 92 Mary McLeod Bethune Elementary School in Central Harlem.
Aspire
When Tariq Trotter, also known as Black Thought from The Roots lost a dear friend, it motivated him to come together with Mural Arts Philadelphia and create one of the brightest, most influential melanated murals in South Philadelphia. His friend Dr. Shawn L. “Air Smooth” White was a role model and active member of the Philadelphia community who was passionate about educating young Black men on HIV/AIDS and health awareness.
Dizzy Gillespie’s 100th Birthday
This melanated mural doubles the recognition of famous jazz musician and devout Baha’i follower Dizzy Gillespie, with twin murals from Education is Not a Crime in NYC’s historically Black Harlem neighborhood! The murals are side-by-side and located directly across from a plaque honoring Gillespie in the Harlem Walk of Fame.
The Watcher
This strong, statuesque and highly melanated mural was created for Skillosophy – an outdoor exhibition that takes place four times a year in Brooklyn, New York’s artsy Bushwick neighborhood. Her glorious natural crown and striking features stand out in a way that Irish street artist Fin DAC’s other urban Asian-themed murals have never done so before.
The Reflective Black Body
The Reflective Black Body is one of several inspiring melanated murals in Newark, New Jersey’s Lower Clinton Hill neighborhood that was created under Mayor Ras Baraka and Newark’s Model Neighborhood Initiative.
>>See More Layqa Nuna Yawar Street Art
Why We Love Coltrane
Smooth Jazz saxophonist and former Philly resident, John Coltrane, is the center of this melanated mural, which is the second one to have been created for Coltrane in the North Philadelphia neighborhood. His influence was so powerful that it even inspired a group of Black San Francisco zealots to establish the St. John Coltrane African Orthodox Church and they continue to share his message, today.
Birth of a Nation
“Birth of a Nation” is one of New Jersey’s melanated murals created for Mayor Ras Baraka and Newark’s Model Neighborhood Initiative project. Inspired by portraits of Malcolm, and Mayor Amiri Baraka, it was created by Latinx muralist Layqa Nuna Yawar who is based out of Newark.
>>See More Layqa Nuna Yawar Street Art
A Celebration of Poetry
This melanated mural in North Philly is a tribute to African American poets. Two women in the left corner play instruments alongside a sweet saxaphonist in a yellow suit. Between the two women is a short poem by Jerome Robinson that reads:
“Can we ever forget from where we came or
Who we left behind?
Or will we stare at barefoot babies
On lost hope streets with eyes of stone
Saying to ourselves
What makes those people act the way they do?”
Adelaide Louise Hall & Cecil Payne Mural
This melanated mural in Brooklyn’s Bed Stuy neighborhood celebrates two jazz musicians from the area, Adelaide Louise Hall & Cecil Payne. Both entertainers hailed from Brooklyn and contributed to the Harlem Renaissance, also known as the “New Negro Movement” in the 1920s.
My Brother’s Keeper
Mayor Ras Baraka’s initiatives to uplift the community goes beyond the empowering Black murals painted throughout the city. This melanated mural is a vision of Baraka’s program “My Brother’s Keeper”, designed to inspire young Black boys in the area to achieve their full potential.
You Go Girl
Art activist and Black muralist Jetsonorama created one of North Philadelphia’s most powerful melanated murals to capture the essence of poet and Philly native Ursula Rucker. On her chest features a poem written by Rucker with help from the kids at Sayre High School in West Philadelphia.
Women’s Health Community Mural
This melanated mural on the corner of Harlem’s Frederick Douglass Boulevard and 125th St., has many layers to it. This side was created by Sergio Alexis Perez and the Creative Arts Workshop and the mural to the right of it was created by Brian Collier. It is dedicated to those who have lost their lives or the lives of a loved one to breast cancer.
Tuskegee Airmen: They Met the Challenge
During the creation of this melanated mural in West Philadelphia, Black artist Marcus Akinlana teamed up with the Philadelphia Chapter of the Tuskegee Airmen. His mission was to pay homage to the courageous aviators of the 99th Fighter Squadron – unforgettable heroes in Black history. “I approach an empty surface in the same way a jazz musician approaches a saxophone. My paintings are my solos, which I try to make as funky as possible,” shares Akinlana about his creative process.
Beats, Rhymes, Relief
Just in time for the 39th birthday of Hip Hop and the 40th Anniversary of The Universal Zulu Nation, humanitarian organization Beats, Rhymes, Relief hosted a block party in NYC’s Harlem neighborhood and unveiled this 100-foot, 3-section melanated mural. The left side depicts several young Black men who have lost their lives to violence. The right side of the mural represents the National Black Theatre and the importance of preserving the culture, while the middle symbolizes the 5 elements of Hip Hop.
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