Philomena Marano

As a tribute to Philip's Candy, Coney's oldest candy shop which was housed at the entrance of the Stillwell Avenue subway terminal since 1930 and was forced to move in 2001, Philomena installed a giant lollypop at the station and called her work, Giant Lolly: Homage to Philip's. She grew up coming to Coney with her family and later returned in the late 70's to find it in steep decline. She then met Richard Eagan, with whom she co-founded the Coney Island Hysterical Society, aimed at raising awareness of the state of Coney Island. Their work was documented in the "Artists' Renaissance of the 1980s" chapter in Charles Denson's book Coney Island: Lost and Found (2002). By her own estimates, Philomena has created over 100 art works inspired by Coney Island, some of which can be found on her new website www.philomenamarano.com.

UPDATE: Published in May 2026, Hysterical Coney Island: An Art Memoir of the Coney Island Hysterical Society by Richard Eagan and Philomena Marano combines oral and written history, archival images, and full-color art to chronicle their high-spirited adventures in 1980's Coney Island.
https://store.bookbaby.com/book/hysterical-coney-island