A first-generation immigrant planning their SEPTA bus route to work and a 12th-generation American carrying on their family name from 1600s Sweden have at least one thing in common: They, or their family, sought salvation in Philadelphia.
They are Philadelphians, among the immigrant stories featured by artist duo Nadia Hironaka and Matthew Suib in their newest moving visual piece. The Philadelphians documents the city’s history as an immigrant destination through 10 three-minute-long film portraits of recent and long-ago immigrants. First conceived a year ago, the installation comes at a time when Philadelphians need it most, as immigration policy becomes increasingly volatile under President Donald Trump and Philadelphia’s status as a sanctuary city is under threat.
The Philadelphians is the second artist collaboration with the Forman Arts Initiative (FAI) under their Public Works umbrella, a residency program with Mural Arts Philadelphia that embeds local artists in city agencies to “approach really challenging social problems from an imaginative lens,” as FAI Executive Director Adjoa Jones de Almeida put it last year. (Full disclosure: FAI’s founders Michael Forman and Jennifer Rice, a Citizen board member, support The Citizen.)
The first iteration of the program embedded artists at SEPTA. This time, Hironaka and Suib worked closely with the small Office of Immigrant Affairs to amplify their efforts and find the voices behind The Philadelphians.
The project has multiple intentions. In addition to making recent immigrants feel seen, the artists’ main goal is to pinpoint connections between Philadelphians whose family histories and personal journeys overlap more with recent refugees than they realize — or in some cases, would like to admit.
“We wanted to find points of connection for historic immigrant communities like the third, fourth and fifth generations who do not feel a connection to newly-arrived immigrant communities and cast them in the same group of people,” Suib says. “Wherever and whenever you find that connection to your roots, you have more of an understanding of your family’s journey and how that connects to the historic continuum of immigrants coming here.”
“That’s the title of the piece, The Philadelphians. It’s not the Americans’ it’s not the citizens. It’s about the reality of who’s here, who’s contributing, and who’s making the city a better place.” — Matthew Suib
The Philadelphians challenges the potent “us vs. them” rhetoric in conversations regarding immigration and offers a counter response of empathy and connection. Though touching on every immigrant community in Philadelphia is an incredibly tall order that a year’s time cannot provide, the featured stories from Chinatown to the S. 9th Street Italian Market tell a larger narrative. Without generations of contribution from decades of immigration, Philadelphia’s mosaic would be unrecognizable. Immigrants to Philadelphia immediately roll up their sleeves to build not only their own lives, but the communities they cultivate. The notion of cultural exchange is another component of the piece.
The short films that make up The Philadelphians were born from a lovingly low-budget production. Shot on a handheld 16-millimeter film camera with no crew, lights, or tripods, the bulk of the production came from time spent with the subjects. The tangible DIY style of the piece is intentional. In addition to interviews and storytelling, The Philadelphians includes footage from Temple University’s urban archive as well as clips from several crafting workshops where the hands of more immigrants, whose names and faces are omitted, visually represent the notion of community building and civic contribution.
Featured speakers chose locations they felt connected to and titles that suited them most, like “mother,” “son” or “advocate.” These threads of relatability and shared identity among generations of immigrants make the connections Hironaka and Suib sought after that much stronger.
“You’re seeing on screen multiple different cultures at play,” Hironaka says. “You’re seeing the contemporary; you’re seeing the archival. So the idea is really seeing how these different groups are all kind of working together here in Philadelphia.”
The final product will be projected in 360 degrees at the LOVE Park Visitors Center, or Philadelphia’s “flying saucer,” starting with Wednesday night’s unveiling, from 7 to 9pm, and then through June 8. The installation’s prime location is paramount to its display.
“That’s the title of the piece, The Philadelphians,” Suib says. “It’s not the Americans’ it’s not the citizens. It’s about the reality of who’s here, who’s contributing, and who’s making the city a better place.”
The Philadelphians launches Wednesday, May 7, at 7pm at LOVE Park and will remain on view nightly through June 8, 2025, from 5pm to midnight.
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