Redlined

Leena Cordova

My project explores gentrification and the history of housing discrimination informing the evolution of San Diego neighborhoods. Throughout my research, I discovered that historical “red line” maps of San Diego – indicating where housing options were made accessible to communities of color – included present-day affluent neighborhoods. I also noticed that neighborhoods in San Diego that were “red lined” in the past are now being gentrified today and have homes and businesses worth millions of dollars. Through the use of photography I plan to capture the change of such neighborhoods – their history and present-day features. I envision my work to bring forth recognition and awareness of how communities have been affected by discrimination and displacement in different degrees for years.

About the Artist

Being Mexican-American myself, I have a deeper questioning as to why society repeats patterns and cycles of displacement impacting working class communities where People of Color reside. My creative practice explores these questions through the work of documentation photography. 

I work with Black-and-White photography to evoke a sense of timelessness: a sense of history frozen in a moment. And as we all know, history tends to repeat itself. The intention of my work is to bring awareness to the history that surrounds us. I want the audience to be aware that there are different forms and effects of displacement. I want the audience to be aware that there is only so much we can do to improve the environment around us when we have forces against us.

Additional Documentation