“Cellphone Diaries” project to be featured in video series

“Cellphone Diaries,” a film produced by NC State University College of Design Professor Kofi Boone, will premiere Dec. 2, 2010, as part of the Block2 Street Video Series in Raleigh, sponsored by the City of Raleigh Arts Commission.

Boone’s film will air each day  in the window of the Urban Design Center at 133 Fayetteville St., Raleigh, NC, from late afternoon to 3 a.m. It will be visible through Jan. 14, 2011.

“Cellphone Diaries” also will be shown at the Dec. 2 opening of the National Arts Program Exhibit at the Miriam Preston Block Art Gallery in the Avery C. Upchurch Government Complex, 222 W. Hargett St., Raleigh. The event takes place from 5 to 7 p.m.

“Cellphone Diaries” is a compilation of 58 films made with smart phones by 17 residents of the South Park neighborhood in Southeast Raleigh who explore the links between place and meaning at nearby Chavis Park. It is the fifth film in the Block2 Street Video Series, which is curated by Neill Prewitt.

The project is a component of South Park East Raleigh Preservation and History Program, developed in collaboration with neighborhood residents. Ultimately, the goal of the program is for outside visitors to Chavis Park to be able to access each story with a mobile device at the sites where the memories were recorded.

Boone’s teaching focuses partly on the interaction between community and new technologies in his seminar and design studios.

The Block2 Street Video Series also receives support from Continental Graphics Co. and Empire Properties.

For more information, contact the City of Raleigh Arts Commission Office at (919) 996-3610 or email Hannah Costner, gallery coordinator.

Link to draft video here.
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Link to online test map here:

Link to News and Observer coverage.

Article by: Eric Larson