Starting today and continuing for the next month, Eakins Oval will be a shiny new public space for your enjoyment. Branded The Oval, the surface parking lot that sits in front of the Philadelphia Museum of Art has been spray painted with various designs to make it more welcoming, and various events will give people a different reason to visit every day. You may recall, we first gave you the heads up about this idea a couple of weeks ago.

Overhead shot

We made our way over there today to see what The Oval looks like in real life, and found it to be a pretty cool example of place making. A coat of paint, food trucks, giant-sized board games, and cafe tables all contribute to make it feel less like a parking lot and more like a place that you might want to hang out on a slightly less uncomfortably hot day. We also appreciated the sandboxes at the end closest to the museum, with a couple of lifeguard chairs placed next to them in tongue-in-cheek fashion.

We snapped a bunch of photos, but you really have to see it in person to get the full effect.

From a distance

Designs on the pavement and big chess pieces

Branded ping pong

Just like the shore, only without the traffic (or the ocean)

Twister, too. Could get inappropriate after hours.

Bunch of food trucks with no lines to speak of. We got a tasty salad from Cosmic Catering.

The stage was not in use this afternoon

Overall, we found The Oval to be one more neat addition to the summer scene here in Philly. We suggest visiting some time very soon, just maybe on a day when it doesn’t feel like the surface of the sun outside.