Places Of Power: Villa Africana Colobó Garden is an immersive AR/VR documentary, public art, and community media initiative. It celebrates the legacy of the West African diaspora within Puerto Rican culture and honors Grupo Motivos, the visionary Puerto Rican women who transformed vacant city lots into thriving community spaces.
Developed by Termite TV Collective in collaboration with Norris Square Neighborhood Project, this project bridges North Philadelphia, the African Diaspora, and Puerto Rican heritage.
Completed in 2006, the Villa Africána Colobó garden was created to reflect the distinct Afro-Puerto Rican culture of garden founder Iris Brown’s hometown, Loíza. Three iconic huts sit at the heart of the garden, radiating vibrant colors inspired by West African homes. A rich variety of plants, including yuca, pigeon peas, sunflowers, Puerto Rican oregano, and castor bean thrive alongside a functional outdoor kitchen designed for workshops and community gatherings.The garden also features a dedicated storytelling room filled with educational materials and historical artifacts.
Project Directors Anula Shetty, Iris Brown, and Michael Kuetemeyer facilitated workshops with long-term residents to share the oral histories and memories of the Latine community in North Philadelphia. Through a process of co-creation, the workshops incorporated media technology and visual storytelling along with cooking, sewing, traditional crafts, herbal medicine and cultural lessons led by local artists and elders. Explore the stories, Virtual Tour and augmented reality artwork embedded in this special garden.
A film by Anula Shetty and Michael Kuetemeyer Created in collaboration with Grupo Motivos, Scribe Video Center, and MiND TV. (2006) We hear stories of migration, color prejudice, and reclaiming heritage. By sharing these stories, the film builds bridges across generations and across cultures. Villa Africana Colobó, African […]
...Villa Africana Colobó Garden is a direct link between North Philadelphia, the African Diaspora, and Puerto Rican culture.
In the early 1980s, “Grupo Motivos,” a collection of Puerto Rican women in North Philadelphia, grew tired of seeing their children and communities being exposed to daily drug dealings, gun violence, abandoned houses, and trashed vacant lots. They started occupying and cleaning the vacant lots.
This project features Iris Brown, one of the founders of Grupo Motivos, and her vision for Villa Africana Colobó, a garden that celebrates the African heritage and the West African diaspora in Puerto Rican culture.
Completed in 2006, the garden’s mix of herbs, fruit, and vegetables includes yuca, sunflowers, Puerto Rican oregano, and castor bean.
Colobó also includes a storytelling room and three huts that contain educational materials and artifacts.
“It’s just to tell a story, it’s just for people to have an appreciation for Africa and its people,” Brown says.
The garden is under the continued maintenance of the Norris Square Neighborhood Project.
A film by Anula Shetty and Michael Kuetemeyer Created in collaboration with Grupo Motivos, Scribe Video Center, and MiND TV. (2006) We hear stories of migration, color prejudice, and reclaiming heritage. By sharing these stories, the film builds bridges across generations and across cultures. Villa Africana Colobó, African […]
...
