Traveling Exhibit - POOL: A Social History of Segregation

Created by Victoria Prizzia

POOL is a powerful traveling exhibition that explores the deep social currents flowing beneath the surface of America’s public swimming pools. During the 20th century, pools were cherished community hubs—but they also became battlegrounds over who had access to recreation, dignity, and belonging. Drawing on scholarship, including Dr. Jeff Wiltse’s Contested Waters, POOL reveals how public pools mirrored and enforced racial and economic divisions, even as they offered spaces for joy, learning, and togetherness.

Through immersive storytelling, historical context, and artful design, POOL illuminates how past discrimination and disinvestment shaped the stark disparities we see today—especially in Black communities disproportionately affected by drowning rates. More than an exhibition, POOL is a call to reflect, reckon, and reimagine. It challenges communities to confront legacies of exclusion while envisioning a future where all can safely and equitably share the water.

Format: 10 double-sided pull-up banners
See the online exhibit here: https://www.poolphl.com/