Conserving Black Modernism

With its distinctive concrete shade structures, the municipal pool house in Wichita, Kan., strikes a distinctive modernist pose amid the aging Victorian Renaissance and Art Deco structures that dot the McAdams neighborhood northeast of downtown.

Built in 1969, it was designed by Charles McAfee, one of the most important African American architects in the U.S. Known for employing modernists design aesthetics, McAfee also tackled social inequalities with a focus on creating affordable housing. He served as president of the National Organization of Minority Architects in the 1970s and was elected to the Fellow of the American Institute of Architects in 1981.

So when the water complex faced closure in 2017 due to budget shortfalls, local supporters mounted a successful campaign to save the architect’s creation. The city eventually renamed it in McAfee’s honor.

Today, the Charles McAfee Swimming Pool and Pool House is one of eight grant recipients from the Conserving Black Modernism program, part of the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund. The initiative - backed by a $3.1 million gift from the Getty Foundation- is an ambitious attempt to elevate and preserve the work of Black modernist designers and architects in the U.S.

“We’re committed to reconstructing a new national identity that advances conservation planning, training, and storytelling for historic Modern Movement sites across America by Black architects and designers," says Brent Leggs, executive director of the African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund and senior vice president of the National Trust.

A Harvard University Loeb Fellow and author of Preserving African American Historic Places, Leggs says the fund’s main goal is to promote the role of cultural preservation in telling the nation’s full history, but also empowering activists, entrepreneurs, artists, and civic leaders to advocate on behalf of African American historic places.

“Black architects and designers played an important role in helping to shape the modern architecture movement in the U.S. but their contributions have been largely overlooked,” adds Leggs. “Our efforts at the National Trust’s African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund aims to amend that.”

Since its inception in 2017, the African American Cultural Action Fund has raised more than $91 million and thrown its financial support behind 242 preservation projects nationally, including homes, museums, and landscapes that represent African American cultural heritage. The Action Fund’s national grants have made a total investment of $20 million since 2018.

Though the Getty Foundation has long backed programs that supported the conservation of modern buildings in the U.S. and around the world, the Conserving Black Modernism program is its first push to financial support the preservation of modernist structures designed by Black architects.

Joan Weinstein, director of the Getty Foundation, said in announcing the partnership that the program looks to spotlight the achievements of African American architects and designers, which she says have been undervalued.

“Our understanding of modernism in the United States will remain incomplete until we recognize the extraordinary contributions of Black architects and designers,” Weinstein said in announcing the partnership with the Action Fund and Black heritage networks. “These grants will preserve important sites, deliver training to the people who care for them, and reveal new stories for all of us about the talents and resiliency of Black architects in twentieth century America.”

Conserving Black Modernism recently put out a call for grant applications for 2024’s program. The group anticipates announcing the new grantees later this year.

Below, the eight modernist structures designed by African American architects that have received grants through the Black Modernist Buildings program.

Charles McAfee Swimming Pool and Pool House - Wichita, Kansas

Constructed in 1969, the Charles McAfee Pool House, with its distinctive modular shade structures, was designed by Black architect Charles McAfee, one of the founding members of the National Organization of Minority Architects (NOMA). Funding will go towards developing a preservation plan to guide the site’s future maintenance and long-term care.

Watts Happening Cultural Center - Los Angeles, California

A design collaboration between African American architects Robert Kennard and Arthur Silvers, the Watts Happening Cultural Center is a centerpiece for Black arts and culture in the Watts neighborhood of South Los Angeles. Funding will enable the development of a Historic Structure Report and preservation plan to guide future rehabilitation and programming for this cultural anchor, home of the historic Mafundi Institute and other community organizations.

Carson City Hall Building - Carson, California

The Spanish Rancho- and Japanese-influenced Carson City Hall, with its organic, nautical-inspired forms, was designed by Black architect Robert Kennard, whose firm is the oldest Black American architectural firm in Los Angeles. A Historic Structure Report will provide information to address the preservation needs of the building and landscape as well as enhance public educational programming to raise awareness about the site’s importance.

First Baptist Church-West - Charlotte, North Carolina

Recognized as the oldest Black Baptist church in Charlotte, North Carolina, First Baptist Church-West was designed by Harvey Gantt, the first Black Mayor of Charlotte and the first African American student admitted to Clemson University. A comprehensive plan will allow the history of the sanctuary to be preserved with necessary repairs to the roof and baptismal area.

Fourth Baptist Church’s Educational Wing - Richmond, Virginia

Established in 1859, Fourth Baptist Church is one of the oldest Black congregations in Virginia. The church’s modernist educational wing was designed by Ethel Bailey Furman, the earliest known Black woman architect in Virginia. Furman was self-taught and designed an estimated two hundred residences and churches in Virginia as well as two churches in Liberia. A Historic Structure Report with limited capital repairs will give the congregation the information they need to preserve the educational wing and allow future generations to learn about the trailblazing legacy of Ethel Bailey Furman.

Morgan State University’s Jenkins Hall - Baltimore, Maryland

Named after a former president of the University, Jenkins Hall was designed by Louis Edwin Fry, the first African American to receive a master’s degree in architecture from Harvard. Morgan State University will complete a conservation management plan and reuse study to determine the optimal future use for the building while preserving its monumental history.

Second Baptist Church of Detroit’s Education Building - Detroit, Michigan

Second Baptist Church of Detroit is home to the oldest Black congregation in Michigan. Established in 1836, the church played a significant role in the social and political lives of generations of Black Detroit residents. Renowned Black architect Nathan Johnson designed the Modernist education building in 1968, which allowed the congregation to further its educational impact. A comprehensive building assessment with limited capital repairs will equip the congregation with the necessary framework to preserve the educational building for generations to come.

Zion Baptist Church - Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Renowned Black architect Walter Livingston, Jr. designed Zion Baptist Church in the early 1970s. Characterized by its dramatic clerestory walls composed of colorful staggered glass panels that rise above the brick first story, the church embodies a deep civil rights history, having been led by civil rights leader Reverend Leon Sullivan. A comprehensive building assessment and preservation plan will provide a roadmap for the protection and maintenance of this significant historic church and community treasure.