Welcome Center: Community Stories
The University of Houston, School of Art, Graphic Communications students, under the leadership of Associate Professors Cheryl Beckett and Beckham Dossett, have created a multi-platform installation that invites active contributions to Communograph by the residents of the Third Ward and visitors to Project Row Houses. The multiple installations of the Welcome Center encourage individuals to convey their understanding and experiences of the neighborhood through mapping, story telling and blogging.
Welcome Wall and Resource Center
Project Row Houses serves as a resource center for Third Ward residents and as a gateway to the neighborhood for artists and visitors. The Welcome Center, housed within Project Row Houses, greets these diverse groups with a warm welcome provides a history of the surrounding neighborhood and functions as a community communication hub.
Large-Scale Interactive Map
A large-scale wall map of the Third Ward provides a sense of place and establishes another strong visual presence in Project Row Houses. A series of color-coded magnets encourage viewers to indicate places of meaning within the neighborhood. Once placed, these magnets will visually encapsulate the communities’ many perspectives of its neighborhood.
Maps of Possibilities
To reflect the diverse experiences that collectively define the Third Ward, Maps of Possibilities provide tools and frameworks for residents to create their own maps as a way of defining their unique place within the community.
Community Stories and Web Kiosk
Brief biographies and descriptions of historically significant people and places of the Third Ward are displayed on a series of index cards. Blank cards are available for the public to add their insights and stories to the display as a way to continue writing and expanding the knowledge of the community. These stories and the Maps of Possibilities will be archived on the Communograph website where residents and visitors can dynamically contribute additional thoughts and insights.