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Our mission is to preserve, promote, and propel the right of all people to a place where they can live and prosper—a place to call home.

    Natasha Florentino

    At a rally, a person with long dreadlocks speaks at a podium with a gathering of people behind him. They hold banners, signs, and t-shirts with messages like “Save Section Nine” and “Save our homes.”
    A person with long dark hair holds a camera and leans against a brick wall on the roof of a building. There is an out-of-focus high-rise in the background.

    Meet 2024–2025 Artist as Instigator Natasha Florentino

    Natasha Florentino is a documentary filmmaker, cinematographer, and video producer whose practice involves deep research, community engagement, and a sustained commitment to revealing the power dynamics behind displacement. Her documentary films include A HOME WORTH FIGHTING FOR, Rezoning Harlem, and Abundant Land: Soil, Seeds, and Sovereignty. 

    About the project

    Natasha leveraged her Artist as Instigator residency to complete a 40-minute documentary on the proposed demolition of the Fulton and Elliott-Chelsea Houses in the Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan, working on the final stages of production, post-production, distribution, and public engagement.

    A HOME WORTH FIGHTING FOR

    The Push to Stop the Demolition of Public Housing in Chelsea

    Through the eyes of longtime residents fighting to save their homes, A HOME WORTH FIGHTING FOR, exposes a flawed political process that prioritizes private developers over the preservation of public housing while dismissing calls for transparency. Determined to defend their community from demolitions, residents organize to resist a profit-driven plan aimed at privatizing public housing.

    For information on future screenings, follow @a_home_worth_fighting_for

    A preview of a new documentary by Natasha Florentino

    Premiere screening

    The film debuted with a screening and conversation at the National Public Housing Museum on October 23, 2025.

    An audience watching a film projected on a screen
    An audience gathers for a film screening at a museum
    Natasha Florentino talks with a microphone
    Film still of Renee Keitt speaking at a microphone
    Film still of Etta Davis
    Film still of Don Washington in a shirt that reads Housing Justice Voter
    Audience members ask questions during a film screening
    A panel of speakers in front of a projector screen
    Portrait of four presenters after an event

    Displacement left a permanent imprint on my life. It shaped my commitment to expose the roots and consequences of housing injustice through documentary filmmaking.

    Natasha Florentino

    Stills from the film

    Two children playing a hand clapping game outside
    A person wearing a yellow beanie and a shirt that reads tenants against demolition.
    A person in a yellow shirt leads a protest from a podium
    A protestor holds up a handwritten cardboard sign that says "No land grab, no luxury housing, no privatization"
    A mid-rise brick building
    A speaker at a podium with protestors visible in the background
    A person stands to the right of the frame with the US Capitol building visible in the background
    A person holds a photo of a large family gathering up to the camera
    An elevated view of several brick tower buildings

    How it started

    Artist Talk with Natasha Florentino
    Recorded December 5, 2024

    Meet National Public Housing Museum’s sixth Artist as Instigator Natasha Florentino, who shares her past work and her plans for her 2024–2025 residency, including ways you can get involved, and support the national fight for public housing.

    Watch on YouTube

    Support

    Generous support for the 2024–2025 Artist as Instigator residency at the National Public Housing Museum is provided by the Mellon Foundation and the Illinois Arts Council.

    Logo for Mellon Foundation Logo for Illinois Arts Council