Art & Culture

Artwork created by youth in NSNP’s Semillas del Futuro program will be on view at Philadelphia City Hall as part of Filadelfia en el Semiquincentenario, a Hispanic Heritage Month exhibition presented through Creative Philadelphia’s Art In City Hall program in partnership with the offices of Council President Kenyatta Johnson and Councilmember Quetcy Lozada.

For the exhibition, artists were invited to reflect on cultural heritage, legacy, identity and what it means to be a Hispanic Philadelphian as the United States approaches its 250th anniversary.

NSNP youth explored these themes through handmade masks inspired by a neighborhood visit to Nunca Olvides de Dónde Vienes / Never Forget Where You Come From, a collaborative mural at N. Front Street and W. Susquehanna Avenue. With Semillas del Futuro Instructor Stefanie Hamill, students reflected on their own cultures and identities and transformed those ideas into three-dimensional artwork.

Join us for the opening reception on Friday, October 9, and see work by NSNP youth alongside artwork from artists across Philadelphia.

Opening Reception
Friday, October 9 | 5–6:30 PM
City Council Caucus Room 400A

Exhibition on View
October 9–December 4
Philadelphia City Hall
2nd, 3rd & 4th floor display cases

Free • RSVP for the opening reception

The fourth annual El Bembé returns to the gardens for an afternoon of culture, community, memory and immersive storytelling. “Bembé” is an African word for a celebration or gathering of friends, a name chosen to honor African roots and bring that cultural connection into the work happening in the gardens.

Presented by Termite TV Collective and Norris Square Neighborhood Project in partnership with the Philadelphia Latino Arts and Film Festival (PHLAFF), the celebration grew out of Places of Power: Las Parcelas, an ongoing community media project co-directed by Anula Shetty and Michael Kuetemeyer of Termite TV and Iris Brown of NSNP.

Created alongside an intergenerational group of Norris Square residents, this year's project explores Bomba and Plena through augmented and virtual reality, oral histories and community storytelling. Visitors can experience interactive works throughout Las Parcelas and Villa Africana Colobó that connect neighborhood memories with Afro-Puerto Rican history and culture.

Event Highlights

• Immersive AR/VR installations throughout the gardens
• Live Bomba, song and dance with El Junte
• NSNP Archive Activation featuring photographs from our community archive and an opportunity to leave a recorded memory
• Food, community and opportunities to explore the gardens

Also Happening That Day

Programming from Scribe Video Center's North Philadelphia History Festival, postponed because of weather in September, will take place alongside El Bembé.

11 AM–5 PM: El Jardín de la Música y El Espíritu / North Philadelphia History Festival programming
3 PM: Scribe reception
2–6 PM: El Bembé

Free and open to the public

Join Vámonos Pa’l Monte for the culmination of this neighborhood-based public art and engagement project led by artist Wanda Raimundi-Ortiz and Mural Arts Philadelphia.

On Saturday, October 17, participants will walk together in a four-mile processional from Center City to Norris Square, moving through five chapters that explore Puerto Rican culture, migration, diaspora, inheritance and the histories connecting Philadelphia and Puerto Rico. The project was shaped through two years of research and collaboration with project partners Norris Square Neighborhood Project and Taller Puertorriqueño.

Join the journey at any of three locations:

10 AM — Market Street between 5th & 6th Streets
Processional departs around 10:40 AM.

12:30 PM — Cruz Playground, 5th & Master Streets
Processional departs around 1 PM.

1:30 PM — Norris Square Park, N. Howard & Diamond Streets
Gather for a celebratory Bombazo as the processional arrives around 2 PM. Dancing and commemorative photos will continue until approximately 4 PM.

NSNP is a project partner alongside Taller Puertorriqueño.

Saturday, October 17 | 10 AM–4 PM

Free • Registration encouraged: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/vamonos-pal-monte-the-processional-tickets-2001402660233

Rain date: Sunday, October 18