Art Programs

Artistic Expression & Creative Reawakening

Our creative art therapy sessions and curated exhibitions offer our guests space to create and connect through mindfulness. Our offerings reflect diasporic artforms and intangible cultural heritage practices: the living expressions & traditions passed down through generations over time.

A woman with long gray dreadlocks and wearing a colorful patterned shirt holding a framed artwork at an art gallery or studio. Artworks are hanging on the walls and tables are set with art supplies and paint cups.
Two individuals are coloring with crayons on white paper at a red table, surrounded by various books and supplies.

Archive Programs

Collecting & Sharing Global Majority Histories

Witness wisdom from the past to reclaim knowledge, and reframe power for our present day.

We help spark critical thinking about the continuum of past, present and future through a lens of our shared humanity. Guests discover the hidden histories and rare books held in the Montgomery Collection. Our archive revitalizes public discourse & piques curiosity, essential for civics and inquiry.

Archive Programs

Collecting and Sharing Global Majority Histories:

Centered on preserving and celebrating the stories of the global majority, this initiative includes the publication of a book on the 25th anniversary of Dr. Montgomery’s Collecting and Sharing African American History (2001). Using the archive, as we work to conceptualize and author this book, we will organize matching community-centered programming, public events, and future traveling exhibitions.

Archive Digitization:

We are embarking on a large-scale digitization of The Montgomery Collection’s™ 10,000+ archival pieces by UTILIZING POWER Library’s PA Photos and Documents service. This effort will make our archive accessible to K–12 classrooms and library networks across Pennsylvania. After obtaining the proper funding, we can hire and train a full-time collections manager, complete metadata requirements, and preserve materials using best practices. A digital catalogue will increase public access, support educational programming, and provide the foundation for our future exhibitions and publications.

25th Anniversary Reprint: Collecting African American History:

Dr. Montgomery’s book Collecting African American History (2001, Stewart Tabori & Chang) is the first comprehensive, illustrated book offering in-depth information about African American collectibles, highlighting the value of Black history and the case for investing in material culture of the Black experience. For its 25th anniversary, DiasporaDNA is reprinting Dr. Montogomery’s book featuring new photography and essays from leading Back scholars.

2025 Archives Update

People browsing books and art at a book fair inside a spacious building with wooden and brick walls. Some individuals are seated on stairs, others are standing and examining items on tables.
A display of books about African, jazz, and Tibetan yoga on a table, with a framed photograph of two people in the foreground, and a small woven decorative object to the left. The books are arranged vertically behind the photograph and the table is covered with an orange cloth.

Ancestry Programs

The Ancestors Never Left You

Remember your roots and reconnect with yourself, your lifelines and your bloodline.

Tap into the power of memory via creative writing and genealogy scholar talks. Guests explore identities and intersections across diverse diasporas, echoing a sense of belonging and purpose. We honor the legacy and ingenuity of our ancestors, who illuminate our path to redefine our self regard.

Patterns of Our Diaspora™ Podcast

Join DiasporaDNA™ for a captivating podcast journey into the culture, community, and creativity of our lives via 'Patterns of Our Diasporas' podcast–a media offering centering Healing Through Heritage.

We convene creatives, leaders, founders, and everyday folks doing the work. Our conversations spark joy, curiosity, and reminiscences of memories woven into our collective consciousness. Celebrate in living color with stories, style, and scholars from across the global majority. Honor their resilience and your own lived experiences by listening to 'Patterns of Our Diasporas'™ podcast, hosted by DiasporaDNA™ 🎙️✨

Listen to ‘Patterns of Our Diasporas’™ on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Amazon Music.

A woman with a headscarf and green hoodie speaking into a microphone in a room with glass walls and empty chairs.
Two women sitting at a table with microphones, one wearing a pink top and the other wearing a brown headwrap and beige top, in a discussion or podcast setting.

Activation Programs

Celebrate the Magic of Philly Festivals

Celebrate the heartbeat of Philadelphia through its 200+ cultural festivals—powerful lifelines of heritage, creativity, and community. City of Festivals preserves and amplifies these traditions with youth-driven storytelling, think tanks, toolkits, education opportunities and a traveling bus tour that transforms archives into experiences. By uplifting underrepresented voices and sustaining cultural producers, we ignite pride, economic growth, and global visibility for the City of Festivals.

City of Festivals Programs

Save Philly Festivals™ Network: Think Tank

Coming in 2026, the Think Tank will be a full-day convening of festival producers, corporate sponsors, funders, city officials, and cultural leaders that this Planning Session helped develop. The Media Day will follow shortly to officially announce our partners and the festivals season.

Save Philly Festivals™ Tour

Ride the streets of the City of Festivals to witness a memory lane of good times at the Philly Festivals Tour. See a diverse display of vibes, cuisine, music, dance, photos, videos, and stories from the neighbors and neighborhoods that host these special gatherings. The Tour connects you to the celebrations, concerts, block parties, parades, fairs, and festivals that make Philly famous as the City of Brotherly Love and Sisterly Affection.

Website

​​The Save Philly Festivals™ website (www.phillyfestivals.org) is being developed and expanded by the talented team from the Information Experience Design Master’s Program at Pratt Institute. It will be a one-stop shop for all things festival-centric in Philadelphia, featuring an active calendar, event recaps, video content, tickets, tours, and more.

City of Festivals Community Archiving Initiative

This initiative focuses on capturing the vibrant, often fleeting stories and artifacts from festivals celebrating global majority cultures. The goal is to document oral histories, preserve physical and digital items, collect diverse contributions, and share them accessibly to build cultural resilience and public awareness.

Toolkit

This toolkit is for organizers, block captains, and community builders who bring people together through festivals and public gatherings. It offers principles for creating intentional, impactful, and community-centered events. Volume 2 will debut at Think Tank Day, shaped by ideas from our Planning Session.

Media Justice

The City of Festivals docuseries is a media justice storytelling project that amplifies the voices behind the city’s celebrations–from festival-goers sharing their cherished memories, to organizers revealing the artistry and labor that make these events possible. These stories will be brought to life through engaging and celebratory reels giving you an inside look at festivals citywide. City of Festivals will capture how festivals shape collective memory, belonging, and joy across Philadelphia.

A woman with curly hair wearing a black top and necklace is standing in front of a colorful collage wall with festival images. There are green potted plants next to her, and a framed photo hangs on the beige wall to her right inside an indoor space with large windows.
Five people sitting around a table in a room with white brick walls, engaged in conversation. One person is showing something on a smartphone to the others. Items on the table include bottles and notebooks. A large window with a view of trees and a brown bag on the windowsill.