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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. Natasha is currently producing a film about the fight for public housing that follows residents who oppose the proposed demolition of two public housing developments in New York City.

    The Public Record

    Natasha will leverage her Artist as Instigator residency to complete a 30-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 preview of a new documentary by Natasha Florentino

    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

    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
    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

    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