NYC public space grassroots non-profit 596 Acres just announced their fall fundraising gala, Mapping Matters. The name of the event reflects the organizations unique approach to mapping out unused public space in New York City. 596 Acres takes data on vacant publicly owned land from various sources, sifts through it all, and then uses that data to create interactive mapping that allows the community to mobilize around a shared space to turn it over into a community garden, urban farm, local meeting space, or anything else they deem beneficial to their community.
You can see a screenshot of the organization’s mapping below, but we recommend checking it out on their site—it really is quite impressive.
We created the branding for the group’s very first fundraising event back in 2012 and, recently, 596 Acres approached us about doing so again this year. The result marries the on-the-ground imagery of fenced in vacant lots with a map of New York City, using bent fencing to form the geographic boundaries and vines to subtly denote the major thoroughfares of NYC.
You can find out more about the fall fundraiser—taking place October 2 at Galapagos in DUMBO—on the groups Web site. You can see the branding we did for the 2012 event in our studio portfolio.
