Petworth's Upshur Street Gets New Public Art Installation Celebrating Neighborhood History

A new 40-foot mural on Upshur Street NW in Petworth was unveiled Friday, depicting six decades of the neighborhood's evolution from a predominantly Black working-class community to one of D.C.'s most culturally diverse corridors. Artist Chandra McCormick, commissioned through the D.C. Commission on the Arts and Humanities, spent three months interviewing longtime residents to inform the piece.The mural features portraits of community figures — from a legendary barbershop owner to a church choir director — alongside scenes of block parties, school graduations, and the Saturday morning rituals that define neighborhood life. A QR code on the installation links to recorded oral histories.