I created "Whose Streets" to capture imagery from picket lines, protests, and even riots; drawing heavily from the Black Lives Matter marches that took place over summer 2020 in Philadelphia. It's also inspired by the poster works of Palestinian liberation artists, created with the goal of spreading radical hope and optimism in the face of occupation and oppression.
With “Whose Streets,” I wanted to memorialize workers and protesters in a very grand, exalted light. I looked at images of my favorite narrative textiles, including “Tar Beach II” by Faith Ringgold, and even the Bayeaux Tapestry. Using a hierarchical pattern of rows stacking from bottom to top, I portrayed how groups of worker-organizers, domestic laborers, housing activists, and protestors build and interconnect to create movements of liberation and change. At the top, a group of protest leaders using a megaphone direct their call to action back down to the bottom of the cycle, where change begins again with each generation.
