Meet the recently exonerated artist who worked on Philadelphia's newest mural
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Murals are practically everywhere in Philadelphia, but they each have their own story to tell.
On Saturday, a massive new mural will be unveiled, the first work of art that Eddie Ramirez, a man recently exonerated after 27 years behind bars, has created as a free man.
Ramirez has been busy after serving time at State Correctional Institution – Phoenix, a maximum-security state prison for men, where art became his therapy through the group Mural Arts Philadelphia.
The mural, set to be unveiled at 6th and Spring Garden streets, is the size of a basketball court.
Ramirez remembers that while he was in SCI Phoenix, West Philadelphia artist King Saladeen began to work with inmates to create the city's newest mural exhibition, called Brotherly Love.
"I knew while in prison there was no way I could make a meaningful contribution to the project," Ramirez said.
King Saladeen remembers Eddie and they both share an admiration for one another. On the latest mural on Spring Garden Street, thety worked together.
"I know it doesn't just mean a lot to me, but it means a lot to my brothers inside," Saladeen said.
For months King Saladeen was going back and forth between the state prison and his studio, working with men through the Mural Arts Philadelphia Restorative Justice Program. The goal of the program is to reintroduce incarcerated individuals back into society.
Damon McWhite, interim director of the Restorative Justice Program, says this program is needed throughout the city.
"A lot of participants when they come through the program, they have really big ideas as to what they want to do but they don't know what's the pathway to follow to get there," McWhite said.
Chris Niles is the Assistant Guild Coordinator and Marily Rodrigues-Behrle is the Guild Coordinator for men between 18 and 24 years old.
It helps them identify coping skills and get a job after being incarcerated. He is also another artist who worked alongside King Saladeen.
"When I first saw his murals, it brought me back to my childhood when you saw art from the city, in the city," Niles said.
Mural Arts is behind over 3,000 murals all around Philadelphia.
The newest mural will be filled with uplifting messages and King Saladeen's iconic "JP the Money Bear" inspired by his best friend who died of cancer in 2011.
King Saladeen's vision is to take a picture of him and his best friend and turn it into an 80 feet by 20 feet mural.
The mural's dedication and unveiling is scheduled for Saturday from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.
