Emoji Energy, 2012-2013
Ben Volta partnered with AAI’s Youth Arts Workshop, PECO, and the Fabric Workshop and Museum to create a public artwork that wraps a large section of the Callowhill Substation located at 11th and Callowhill Streets. Students in the Youth Arts Workshop were invited to explore the history of electricity, electricity as a utility, electricity and the human body, and electricity as a creative metaphor for conflict resolution. The imagery of the project in turn reflected the energy and ideas of these young artists and the booming creative energy found throughout Chinatown North. Ben Volta’s work has welcomed others to see industrial space as a potential access point for creative ideas.
