Printmaking By The People Exhibition Opening

Mural Arts Philadelphia and the Free Library of Philadelphia present Printmaking by the People: Posters for a Reimagined Declaration of Independence, an exhibition of hundreds of posters created by Philadelphians who were asked to share their visions of “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” This special exhibition is part of Printmaking by the People, Philadelphia’s largest 2026 public art and community engagement project inspired by the 250th anniversary of the country’s founding.

Printmaking by the People opens at the Parkway Central Library’s Heim Center for Civic and Cultural Engagement on Thursday, April 16, with a free opening reception from 5:30–7:30 pm, and runs through August 2026. The reception will include a pop-up printmaking station, giving attendees the opportunity to share their own ideas and add to the conversation.

The exhibition is presented by a curatorial team that includes Todd W. Bressi (Public Art Project Specialist, Mural Arts Philadelphia), Suzanna Urminska (Curator of Exhibitions, Free Library of Philadelphia), and David K. Coleman Jr. (Exhibition Designer and Curatorial Advisor). The exhibition documents the voice of Philadelphians as expressed through posters they made in 35 Printmaking by the People workshops that took place across the city in 2024 and 2025. These workshops were led by more than 30 local artists working in a range of printmaking techniques.

Printmaking by the People is made possible by the Philadelphia Funder Collaborative for the Semiquincentennial and the City of Philadelphia, with lead partners Free Library of Philadelphia and Visit Philadelphia.

Complete lists of project partners, artists, advisors, and workshop host organizations can be found at the Printmaking by the People project page.