Rick Delaney
Mark Cameron
Zoë Charlton
Irene Poulsen
Irene Poulsen and Mark Cameron of the Neighborhood Design Center in Baltimore are inspired by the city; they work continually to revive high-crime and low-income communities. Local artists and collaborators Zoë Charlton and Rick Delaney are similarly stimulated by Baltimore. This team of four is intrigued by Baltimore unobserved-the stories, personalities, and histories of neighborhoods lost either through abandon or gentrification. Using the seemingly archaic notion of terra incognita (unknown territory that has not been mapped or documented), the group seeks to immortalize the identities of these forgotten and ignored communities through recording the stories of their inhabitants.
photo by Mitro Hood
by Mark Cameron, Zoë Charlton, Rick Delaney, and Irene Poulsen
How do you give a voice to those who have been silenced?
"In Baltimore, many neighborhoods have devolved into terra incognita, burdened and rife with vacant land and abandoned structures, and rampant with drug and gang-related problems," writes Irene Poulsen. "These neighborhoods are primarily highlighted when a crime, accident, or murder occurs, but their true identity has been obscured, and they have sometimes been made to feel that the condition is their fault. Stories and histories, related by residents, create a more authentic record of neighborhoods. Sharing these stories supports residents in their struggle for recognition, justice, and control in gaining a status of health that all Baltimoreans expect and deserve."
Terra Incognita (n.)
an unknown, unexplored region; territory that has not been mapped or documented
