Counter Cartographies: Mapping Spaces of the Unhoused in Philadelphia

Counter Cartographies is a community art project in collaboration with unhoused shelter residents served by Bethesda Project. The project spatially maps residents’ lived relationships with the city of Philadelphia – its paths, barriers, and refuges – and transforms those maps into collective art. The project’s artmaking draws on ethnographic mapping practices to challenge how power shapes spaces and their representations, using maps grounded in community experience and co-creation to collaboratively create art.

This free event will take place at the Rotunda from 4:30 pm to 7:30 pm. Light refreshments from Renatas Kitchen will be provided.

This project was conceptualized and initiated by volunteer contributor Nayantara Ghosh, who continues to participate in a volunteer capacity. Collaborators include Bethesda Project residents, staff, and volunteers, and Design Fellows through PennPraxis and Civic House (University of Pennsylvania). Support for this project has been provided by The Sachs Program for Arts Innovation.