The Africa Center facts for kids
.jpg)
The entrance to The Africa Center on Fifth Avenue.
|
|
| Established | September 1984 |
|---|---|
| Location | 1280 Fifth Avenue New York, NY 10029 U.S. |
| Public transit access |  New York City Subway:
New York City Bus: M1, M2, M3, M4, M106 buses |
The Africa Center is a special place in New York City that helps people learn about and enjoy the amazing art and culture of Africa. It started in 1984 and has had a few different names, including the Museum for African Art. You can find it on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan, right at the top of a famous street called Museum Mile.
The Center is famous for its fantastic art shows. It has put together almost 60 exhibitions that have traveled to nearly 140 places all over the world. It also has great education programs and a store where you can buy beautiful, handmade crafts from Africa.
Contents
The Center's Journey Through New York City
The Africa Center has moved a few times over the years, with each new home helping it grow and change.
1984–1993: Starting on the Upper East Side
The Africa Center first opened in September 1984 as the Center for African Art. Its first home was in two townhouses on the Upper East Side of Manhattan.
The founding director, Susan Mullin Vogel, wanted to show African art in new and exciting ways. She created exhibitions that made people think differently about art from Africa. One famous show was called "Africa Explores: 20th-Century African Art." These early shows were so good that some critics said the 1980s were a "golden age" for African art exhibitions.
1993–2002: A New Home in SoHo
In 1993, the center changed its name to the Museum for African Art and moved to a much bigger space in the SoHo neighborhood. This new location was designed by the famous architect Maya Lin, who also designed the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C.
The new museum space was beautiful. An architecture critic said it was like "a flowing sequence of galleries." The design used different colors to make visitors feel like they were traveling through time and space as they looked at the art.
2002–2006: A Temporary Stop in Queens
In 2002, the museum moved again, this time to Long Island City, Queens. This was planned as a temporary home. The museum's leaders had a big dream: to build a brand-new, permanent building on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan.
While in Queens, the museum closed its public gallery in 2006 to focus on planning for its future home. The board decided to change the museum's mission. Instead of just being an art museum, it would become The Africa Center—a place for art, culture, and important conversations about Africa.
2006–Present: A Dream on Museum Mile
The Africa Center's current home is on the corner of Fifth Avenue and 110th Street. This was the first new museum building on New York's Museum Mile in over 50 years!
The goal was to create a cultural center, similar to places like the Asia Society. The new building, designed by architect Robert A.M. Stern, is huge. It has lots of space for art shows, a theater, classrooms, a restaurant, and more. The project was supported by important people like Chelsea Clinton.
Although the outside of the building was finished in 2010, it took some time to finish the inside. In 2019, a West African restaurant called Terenga opened inside the Center. The current President and CEO is Martin Kimani.
What Can You Do at The Africa Center Today?
The Africa Center is a lively place for events, art, and food. It also has a Shared Studios Portal. This is a special gold-painted shipping container that lets you connect with people in other parts of the world in real-time, as if you were in the same room. Many of these connections are with communities across the African continent.
See also
