January 21, 2026
Thom Carroll/for PhillyVoice
South Street's business improvement district seeks 15 to 20 artists to create new banners that will be displayed on lampposts along the corridor. Application are due by Friday, Jan. 30.
The South Street Headhouse District is calling on artists to design a new set of banners that will adorn lampposts along the corridor to capture its spirit and history.
The neighborhood's business improvement district says it's looking for 15 to 20 artists with backgrounds in painting, illustration, and type and graphic design to collaborate on the banners. The application deadline is Friday, Jan. 30.
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"This is a beautification project with a goal of supporting and highlighting Philadelphia’s creative community," South Street District said in an Instagram post. "These banners will help identify the district while welcoming visitors and residents and will have a special page built out on our website to honor the chosen artists."
The South Street Headhouse District runs from Front Street to 11th Street and along numbered streets from Lombard to Bainbridge streets. It also extends down Fourth Street from Lombard to Christian streets and includes the Headhouse Shambles — the city's first volunteer fire house built in 1805 — that now hosts farmers markets and other events at Second and Pine streets.
There's no shortage of inspiration. Isaiah Zagar's Magic Gardens, the mosaic gallery between 10th and 11th streets, emerged from protests against plans in the 1960s to build an expressway through the neighborhood. Over the ensuing decades, the project grew into a 3,000-square-foot space that still serves as one of South Street's cultural treasures.
South Street also was home to the former Southwark Theatre, America's first permanent playhouse built in 1766, near the intersection of Leithgow Street. The surrounding community was a beacon for Swedish and Dutch settlers in Philadelphia and later became a home for the city's Black artists and business owners. The textile industry took root in the South Street Headhouse District by the early 20th century, turning a stretch of South 4th Street into Fabric Row, and the neighborhood became a countercultural nightlife hub for artists and musicians in the 1960s. The Orlons, a local R&B quartet, dubbed the corridor "the hippest street in town" in the 1963 hit "South Street."
Eleanor Ingersoll, who took over as South Street Headhouse District's executive director two years ago, said Wednesday the banner program on South Street was not well-maintained in years past. The business improvement district put out the call for artists after securing a grant to spruce up the neighborhood's image.
"After the last two years, spent stabilizing the budget and creating a more robust events schedule, it was time to turn to the physical identity of the District — as it was a bit rudderless," Ingersoll said. "The members of the Vision Committee were committed to having South Street visually embrace its artistic roots."
Artists interested in participating in the banner designs are asked to provide three to five samples of their work in the application and give a brief description of how they envision representing South Street.
