Eastern Market Main Street (EMMS) is applying for a DC Arts and Humanities grant to support a mural project near Eastern Market.
EMMS Executive Director Ann Blackwell told the July 12th meeting of Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 6B that the mural is intended to go on the alley side of the building housing Clothes Encounters (202 Seventh St. SE), just across from the marketbuilding.
The mural is intended to serve as placemaking for the market itself, which lacks large signage. Blackwell said that in the age of selfies, murals have themselves become important economic drivers, pointing to her experience with a murals project in Hollywood, FL.
The art concept is titled “farm to table” and would be about 28 feet by 28 feet, covering nearly the entirety of the wall. The concept centers around the idea of the market as a site of diversity, exchange and local food.
Blackwell hastened to clarify that while EMMS would like to stay within the concept, there is still time to take feedback and discuss content. Business owners on either side of the alley have supported the project, as has the owner of the building in question.
EMMS engaged art project management company DC ArtBox which facilitated the search for the artist, settling on art collective 5 Creatives. Art Box representative Tia Kane said the collective was made of four local artists who promote cultural diversity and the use of art to make a difference in the community.
Commissioners Steve Holtzman and Gerald Sroufe agreed to put Blackwell in communication with adjacent neighbors. Learn more about EMMS at easternmarketmainstreet.org or email info@easternmarketmainstreet.org.
