Light Up the Market: Honoring the Workers of 9th Street

On Saturday, August 8th and Sunday, August 9th, join neighbors, artists and Market workers for a vibrant evening of art, storytelling and light at Our Market. This free community celebration will spotlight permanent public art and temporary light installations produced since 2019 in homage to the immigrant worker who continues to shape the South 9th Street Market’s history and culture.

Special guided tours led by the Our Market team will showcase radiating produce scales, glowing lightboxes, a moveable illuminated push cart, and a multi-media box truck with projection designed to tell the stories of 9th Street's workers and community, bringing the voices, resilience, and traditions of Market workers into the public space.

Come be part of this historic moment during the 250th, where art and light converge to honor the people who keep the Market thriving.

Register for the following Special Guided Tours (pay-what-you-wish):

Tours depart from 9th & Federal Streets.

About Our Market Project

Our Market Project is a multi-layered, community-centered public art project that has been evolving since its inception in April 2019. Led by Michelle Angela Ortiz and Fiera Studios, the project is rooted in the heart of Philadelphia’s 9th Street Market. The project focuses on celebrating and supporting the (im)migrant vendors, business owners, and neighbors who have made the market their home for generations. Our Market invests in the 9th Street Market by offering creative strategies that engage the community in addressing the pressing issues of gentrification, racism, displacement and erasure. Key initiatives feature walking tours, murals, lightboxes, and storytelling efforts that reflect the unique heritage of the area’s vendors and residents. By amplifying the contributions of (im)migrant communities, the project aims to strengthen ties within the market and preserve its unique cultural heritage.

Our Market Project Supporters:

Our Market support is generously provided by the Hearthland Foundation, William Penn Foundation, in partnership with Mural Arts Philadelphia, the National Endowment for the Arts, PHILADELPHIA250, Visit Philadelphia, and the Leeway Foundation.