Harvey B. Gantt Center facts for kids
Harvey B. Gantt Center, Opening Day
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| Established | October 24, 2009 |
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| Location | Charlotte, North Carolina |
| Collections | African-American art |
| Public transit access |  Brooklyn Village |
The Harvey B. Gantt Center for African-American Arts + Culture is a special place in Charlotte, North Carolina. It used to be called the Afro-American Cultural Center. The center is named after Harvey Gantt. He was Charlotte's first African-American mayor. He was also the first African-American student at Clemson University.
This four-story building is 46,500 square feet. It was designed by Freelon Group Architects. The center opened in October 2009. It is part of the Levine Center for the Arts.
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Exploring the Center's Design
The Gantt Center is located at South Tryon and East Brooklyn Village Avenue. It's a four-story building that looks very modern. It has a cool design with glass and metal. The building is 360 feet long and 40 feet wide. It sits above tunnels that connect to a parking garage.
To make it easy to get inside, the main lobby is on the second floor. You can reach it by stairs and escalators. These surround a central glass area called an atrium. The design of the stairs and atrium is inspired by "Jacob's Ladder" from the Book of Genesis.
The building's design also honors the old Myers Street School. This school was in the Brooklyn neighborhood. Brooklyn was an African-American part of the city. The school was torn down in the 1960s. It was Charlotte's only public school for African-Americans from 1886 to 1907. The "Jacob's Ladder" idea can also be seen on the outside of the building.
Another cool part of the building is its "rain screen." This screen has metal panels with holes and windows. It looks like a quilt with fluorescent lights that look like stitches. The architects, Freelon Group, won an award for their work on the Gantt Center.
Artworks at the Center
On the east wall of the building, you can see an artwork called Divergent Threads, Lucent Memories. It was created by David Wilson. This piece is also inspired by quilts. It helps people remember the history of the Brooklyn neighborhood.
Outside, in the plaza that connects the center to other buildings, there is an artwork called Intersections. This piece by Juan Logan uses patterns from the Kuba Kingdom in the Democratic Republic of Congo. These patterns, like chevrons and diamonds, show how different cultures connect.
The John and Vivian Hewitt Art Collection
The Gantt Center is home to a very important art collection. It's called the John and Vivian Hewitt Collection of African-American Art. Vivian Hewitt was the first African-American librarian at the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh. Her husband, John, taught English at Morehouse College.
John and Vivian Hewitt were not rich. But they collected amazing African-American art for 50 years, starting in 1949. They often gave each other artworks as gifts. When they started buying art, these pieces were affordable. This was because not many people were buying art by African-American artists yet. But as these artists became more famous, things changed.
In 1998, NationsBank (now Bank of America) bought The Hewitt Collection. The plan was to put these artworks in a bigger Afro-American Cultural Center. The collection traveled around the country. Now, the 58 artworks make up most of the Gantt Center's permanent collection. Some famous 20th-century African-American artists in the collection include Henry Ossawa Tanner, Ann Tanksley, John Biggers, Elizabeth Catlett, and Romare Bearden.
When the Gantt Center opened in October 2009, 26 artworks from the collection were displayed. Other pieces from the collection were planned to be shown over the next two years.
A Look at the Center's History
The idea for an Afro-American cultural center in Charlotte began in 1974. Mary Harper, a professor at UNC-Charlotte, suggested it. She worked with Dr. Bertha Maxwell-Roddey. They wanted people to learn more about the achievements of African-Americans, especially those from North Carolina. Their goal was to create a place where African-Americans could celebrate their heritage.
Harper and Maxwell-Roddey started with a festival in Marshall Park. This park was once the site of the Brooklyn neighborhood. After a second festival in 1975, they helped create the Afro-American Cultural and Service Center.
For ten years, starting in 1976, the center used a small space in the old First Baptist Church, known as Spirit Square.
Finding a Permanent Home
The center eventually found a permanent home in the Little Rock A.M.E. Zion Church. The church was building a new sanctuary. People were worried the old church building might be torn down. This old church was built in 1911. It was a beautiful brick building designed by James Mackson McMichael.
Little Rock Church sold their old building to the city in 1979. They moved to their new church in 1981. The old building was named a historical landmark in 1982. There were plans to widen 7th Street, which put the historic building at risk. But instead, the old church was renovated. This cost $1.1 million in donations and a $540,000 grant from the city.
On March 15, 1986, the Afro-American Cultural Center officially opened its new 11,000-square-foot home. This two-story building had three levels. It included a 180-seat theater and a 300-seat amphitheater. The center offered classes in music, dance, theater, and visual arts.
Moving to a New Location
In 2001, voters did not approve a plan for new cultural facilities. This plan included $10 million to expand the Afro-American Cultural Center. So, new sites were considered for the center.
On November 2, 2005, a plan was announced for a new $17.9 million Afro-American Cultural Center. It would be part of the Wachovia Cultural Campus on Tryon Street. To attract many visitors, the center needed a major attraction. Bank of America had promised to donate the Hewitt Collection in 1998. But the old building was not big enough for this collection.
On December 7, 2007, the Afro-American Cultural Center announced its new name. It would be called The Harvey B. Gantt Center for African-American Arts and Culture. This name was later changed slightly to Harvey B. Gantt Center for African-American Arts + Culture.
Philip Freelon, who later designed the National Museum of African American History and Culture, designed the new building. Even though the site was very narrow, Freelon saw it as an exciting challenge.
After the decision to move the center, people who cared about history wanted to save the old church building. In 2008, Little Rock Church asked to lease their former home. In April 2009, Little Rock paid $590,000 to buy back the old building. It was reopened on December 13, 2009, as the Little Rock Community Development Center.
The Gantt Center was the first part of the Wells Fargo (formerly Wachovia) Cultural Campus to be finished. It had four times more space than the old Little Rock site.
The dedication ceremony for the $18.6 million Gantt Center happened on October 24, 2009. Mayor Pat McCrory spoke at the event. He told Harvey Gantt, "You have been a great role model. You are the best of Charlotte." Gantt said, "This beautiful, awesome building is far beyond my wildest dreams. I feel good about what this magnificent building represents – how far we have come."
In February 2016, the Harvey B. Gantt Center was featured in Google Cultural Institute's online gallery. This gallery celebrated black history, art, and culture. The center was one of 50 cultural institutions included.
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