Save As: NextGen Heritage Conservation

These Walls CAN Talk: Heritage and Hope at the Mafundi Building in Watts

May 13, 2021 USC Master of Heritage Conservation Program Season 1 Episode 15
Save As: NextGen Heritage Conservation
These Walls CAN Talk: Heritage and Hope at the Mafundi Building in Watts
Show Notes Chapter Markers

As L.A.’s Watts neighborhood reeled from the 1965 Rebellion against systemic injustice, Black architects and civil rights activists Art Silvers and Robert Kennard designed a place of healing and hope. The Watts Happening Cultural Center opened in 1970 as the home of the Mafundi Institute (“mafundi” is Swahili for artisans or craftspeople), which provided a vital creative outlet for self-expression and Black empowerment. Now widely known as the Mafundi building, this Late Modern gem is a rare symbol of art and culture with an uncertain future. 

USC’s Materials Conservation class studied the building this term, using pandemic workarounds to assess everything from the windows to the coffee shop’s collection. Join us for a humdinger of a season finale about the Mafundi building’s history, significance, condition, and precarious situation. Learn about the class project from instructor Peyton Hall, FAIA and students Arabella Delgado, Emi Takahara, and Melissa Miller. And hear from alumna Rita Cofield, a lifelong community member and part of the grassroots preservation effort, about what this place means to the people of Watts and how you can help.

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What is the difference between a brick and a historic brick?
History of the Mafundi Building
Watts Coffee House
Windows!
Watts Community and Mafundi
Saving the Mafundi Building