I Can Breathe

This project is an interactive installation composed of a static map, 8 portraits, and an oral history playing keyboard. The map celebrates the narratives of 8 gentlemen who were victims of gun violence and reside in the long-term care hospital in the vicinity of Cornell Tech. Designing and building the map brought together over 15 individuals from various walks of life: independent artists, activists, NGOs, and Cornell Tech students and postdocs. My role here was an assistant Maker and an ethnographer.

I Can Breathe was part of the Craft@Large initiative at Cornell Tech’s MakerLab. C@L is a weekly open space where graduate students, young people, older adults and community groups from Roosevelt Island and surrounding neighborhoods can come to ask questions, learn Design and Making skills and execute their own projects using the latest in digital fabrication tools with the mentorship of experienced technologists and designers. Craft@Large also allows Cornell Tech researchers and students to engage with these diverse communities by collaborating on projects, understanding their questions and needs, and testing out new tools and activities.

Photo credit: Niti Parikh and the Milstein Program at Cornell University