One hot and humid Sunday in July, we followed a mural walk in D.C. that was outlined in the Weekend Section of The Washington Post: “Need an art fix? Take a mural stroll.” We didn’t actually walk, because it was about 95Β°F, so we drove from mural to mural following the walk in the article, putting our masks on every time we hopped out of the car.
Most of the museums in Washington are still closed, going on four months now, so it was fun to have an excuse to go downtown and see some street art. This three-mile walk starts near the Columbia Heights Metro station in Northwest Washington, and it ends at the U Street Station. Many of the artworks have been commissioned by MuralsDC – a public program that funds murals.Β The pieces on this walk reveal the city’s cultural and economic history, highlighting the city’s native folks.
Here Einstein spray paints his famous formula on the wall like graffiti.
E=MC2 by Nessar Jahanbin (3018 14th St.)
“Buck Hill” is the 70-foot-tall saxophone-playing “wailin’ mailman” painted by Joe Pagac; it celebrates the jazz musician and postal worker.
Buck Hill by Joe Pagac (1925 14th St.)
We found three murals by Aniekan Udofia, one of D.C.’s most well-known visual artists. One of them is a gagged George Washington; another is Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
We found a number of famous and recent murals celebrating African American icons such as Paul Robeson (1898 β 1976); he was an American bass baritone concert artist and stage and film actor who became famous both for his cultural accomplishments and for his political activism.
The Torch by Aniekan Udofia, at Benβs Chili Bowl, is one of the most photographed murals in the city. Here we found Prince, the Obamas and Duke Ellington.
Ben’s Chili Bowl, founded in 1958 by Ben and Virginia Ali, is one of the oldest continuous businesses on U Street. It is also one of the few to survive both the riots that followed the 1968 assassination of the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. and the years of disruptive Metro construction in the late 1980s. Thanks in part to the patronage of entertainer Bill Cosby, Ben’s has become a national landmark. The restaurant occupies the former Minnehaha Theater, a 1910 movie house that was owned and operated from 1913 to 1920 by Sherman H. Dudley, once a leading vaudeville performer and entrepreneur.
bear mascot at Ben’s Chili Bowl
On the corner of Ben’s Chili Bowl, we saw the Obamas draped in an American flag.
The Obamas and Ben’s Chili Bowl
The Torch at Ben’s Chili Bowl
The Torch at Ben’s Chili Bowl
The Torch at Ben’s Chili Bowl
The Torch at Ben’s Chili Bowl
The Torch at Ben’s Chili Bowl
The Torch at Ben’s Chili Bowl
The Torch at Ben’s Chili Bowl
The Torch at Ben’s Chili Bowl
Kaliq Crosby painted William P. and Winnifred Lee outside their flower shop at 1026 U. St. NW.
We stopped on a side street to see Aniekan Udofia’s mural of D.C. native Marvin Gaye (710 S St. NW).
Marvin Gaye (710 S St. NW) by Aniekan Udofia
We found a number of random murals and buildings along the way.
Three separate murals in an alley celebrate the neighborhood’s musical roots.
I love this one, but I’m not sure what it’s titled or who the artist is.
unknown title or artist
We found another alley full of murals. Here the alley had a rather pungent odor. π¦
Finally, we saw the very tall “Kindred” by Alberto Clerencia (1210 V St.).
“Kindred” by Alberto Clerencia (1210 V St.)
It felt good to get out of the house after four long months of rarely going anywhere interesting.
*Sunday, July 5, 2020*
~ wander.essence ~ 
They are amazing such great detail its unreal
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I thought they were too! Thank you. It was a fun outing to see these colorful murals. π
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Wow! Packs a punch, this one, Cathy π π Good to see you out there again!
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Thanks, Jo. We’ve actually been out and about quite a bit, just not far from home. I probably go out to do something every day. π
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Great murals here Cathy… a great idea to see them by car given the heat.
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Thanks so much, Albert, and how nice to see you again. It was a very hot and humid day, so jumping in and out of the car seemed the best way to do this “walk.” π
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I look forward to the day when I can go somewhere interesting again. Walking around my neighbourhood (a seaside resort mostly closed up) is so boring now. Your murals are so exciting, I wish some of these artists could be recognised for the work they do, some are I know, but most are still ignored while prizes go to ‘active art’ and other weird stuff. I have never got over the morning I spent in the Tate Gallery in London watching a sprinter run around the gallery, the only two onlookers me and a black cat. That got a prize, but I mustn’t start a rant!!
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Me too, Mari. I am so sick of the small perimeter around our neighborhood. Everything is incredibly boring here too, but as so many idiots here in the U.S. refuse to wear a mask, it looks like we’re in this mess for the long haul. That sprinter installation at the Tate Gallery sounds really weird!! I wish these mural artists would get more recognition too. π
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They’re real works of art!
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I thought so too, Pit. Thanks for coming along. π
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Plenty to keep you entertained there, my favourite is the postman playing the sax. Wonderful!
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Thanks, Jude. There were some colorful and fascinating pieces here. It was a fun outing, despite the heat. π
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Some people are so talented. I can’t imagine creating art on such a large scale.
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I can’t either. I can’t even create a tiny little watercolor!
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So vibrant! The Torch must be something to see with so many real life characters in it.
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The Torch was a fun one to see, Anabel. We enjoyed them all. π
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You certainly picked a challenging day to go around, even driving much of the time. It’s in the upper nineties here as well; the weather forecast came with a warning about going out. I’m sure you were careful. The murals are a delightful expression of color and perspective. The purple and yellow mural is especially impressive, its lack of identity notwithstanding. I’m taken in with the jazz-postal person, too. I understand the postal service is in trouble, so here’s some affirmation.
For all that the restaurant has endured, I hope it endures the pandemic.
Have a pleasant new week, Cathy!
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I’m glad you liked that purple and yellow mural too, Christopher. It was fun to see them all, despite having to jump in and out of the car and put our masks on each time. I was sweating up a storm. I loved the jazz-postal worker too. I hope Ben’s survives too. It is a very well-known place. π
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[…] A mural walk in Washington on a hot July day […]
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Amazing and fantastic murals and I love the bear π There are some really talented people out there and it just goes to show that art doesn’t necessarily have to be framed and hung on a wall in a stuffy gallery π
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Thank you so much, Eunice. I loved all the murals; I’m glad you enjoyed them too. I agree with you about the art; I really believe street art really enlivens a city. I love seeing it as opposed to sloppy graffiti. π
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Fabulous photos, Cathy. What a keen eye you have. We lived in DC many years ago before the murals gained popularity, but we were just back last summer and took the walk you described. We were gobsmacked! Of course we headed straight for Ben’s Chili Bowl and loved his murals. I’m looking forward to seeing the new ones that have been added. ~Terri
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Thank you so much, Terri. I’m glad you liked the murals. Wow, so you saw these murals last summer? I would have preferred to walk it rather than drive it, but it was just too hot. Did you eat at Ben’s Chili Bowl too? π
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Oh yes, we couldn’t miss Ben’s. It had been forever since we were there. James used to work on K Street early in his career, so it’s always a fun, sentimental journey. ~T
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Where did James work, Terri? Even though we were at Ben’s we couldn’t eat there because I’m on a strict diet for a health problem. I bet it is delicious!
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Cathy, James was a young geophysicist working for the US Geological Survey. Since he was a government employee, he was often invited to the White House when they needed a “filler crowd.” It was so freaky. And yes Ben’s is sinfully delicious. π ~Terri
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Oh interesting that James worked for the US Geological Survey, Terri. Funny he was invited to the White House when they needed a “filler crowd.” I wouldn’t go near the place right now. Glad to know Ben’s is so good!
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