DesignPhiladelphia is the oldest design event in the country.  It highlights the work of the city’s local designers, architects, and creative professionals.  DesignPhiladelphia demonstrates Philadelphia’s reemergence as a 21st century city, molded by thoughtful design, the collaboration of multiple disciplines, and community engagement. 

Come see what DesignPhiladelphia is all about!  Organized by the Philadelphia Center for Architecture, the festival runs from October 8-16, 2015.  This year celebrates the 11th Annual DesignPhiladelphia Festival with the Pearl Street Passage, where the 1100 block of Pearl Street – from 10th Street to Broad – will be transformed.  This 4-block corridor in the Chinatown North/Callowhill neighborhood, will showcase up to 10 installations, created by multidisciplinary teams of artists, designers, makers, builders, and neighborhood stakeholders. 

This year’s theme is SHIFT.  With our city constantly changing around us, there is a SHIFT occurring in Philadelphia.  So we might ask ourselves, when I SHIFT, you SHIFT, where will we SHIFT?

Pearl Street Passage: Team 9
Designers from Ennis Nehez, Jeffrey Allan Designs, The Lighting Practice, and emerging architecture professional Lily Meier are the collaborative force behind Team 9.  Their design space is situated in the viaduct tunnel.  Team 9 has designed a sculptural installation consisting of two intersecting “shift-able tunnels”.  Visitors can pass thru a tunnel pushing against the inner walls, “shifting” the other visitors who are in the opposing tunnel space, affecting the experience of all involved.  The installation’s location within the viaduct tunnel provides an opportunity to incorporate electric light “shifting” the visitors’ anticipated experience within the viaduct tunnel.  Light from below the tunnels will bounce along the walls as the tunnels move and visitors pass above; every action causes a reaction.  Team 9 asks us, “As you move, who do you move?”  Their design for the Pearl Street Passage highlights the impact individuals have on each other and on society.  The SHIFT of one individual can cause a direct or indirect SHIFT for another.  The constant SHIFT throughout the installation is a representation of our ever evolving city – the SHIFT of people throughout neighborhoods as Philadelphia reemerges as a dynamic destination, a 21st century city.

Follow the link to learn more about Pearl Street Passage and the 10 creative teams preparing to SHIFT your perspective: Pearl Street Passage

Don’t forget to follow @DesignPhilly on Twitter to join the conversation and learn about the 130+ events that make up the DesignPhiladelphia Festival.  Follow #pearlstpassage to see team updates that will SHIFT your experience of our beloved city.  Finally, join DesignPhiladelphia and the Philadelphia Center for Architecture, at the commencement of its 2015 Festival, as they reveal the transformation of Pearl Street Passage on October 8.