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{{Short description|Art center}}
{{Undisclosed paid|date=August 2023}}
{{Infobox venue
{{AfC submission|t||ts=20230801210243|u=Memorywrker|ns=118|demo=}}<!-- Important, do not remove this line before article has been created. -->
| name = William Grant Still Arts Center
| former names =
| logo_image =
| image = Front image of the William Grant Still Arts Center.jpg
| caption = The William Grant Still Arts Center, 2013
| mapframe = no
| address = 2520 S West View Street<br/> [[Los Angeles]], California 90016
| location =
| coordinates =
| broke_ground =
| opened = {{Start date|1977}}
| renovated =
| owner = [[City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs]]
| operator =
| cost =
| architect =
| project_manager =
| structural engineer =
| services engineer =
| general_contractor =
| main_contractors =
| capacity =
| record_attendance =
| website = {{official website|https://culturela.org/cultural-centers/william-grant-still-arts-center/}}


== <big>William Grant Still Arts Center (WGSAC)</big> ==
[[File:Front image of the William Grant Still Arts Center.jpg|thumb|Front of the William Grant Still Arts Center]]
[[File:WGSAC Historical Marker.jpg|thumb|Historical marker located inside of the WGSAC]]
The William Grant Still Arts Center is located off South Westview Street in the [[Historic West Adams|West Adams]] neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. Founded in 1977, the community arts center was established with the leadership efforts of Councilman [[David S. Cunningham Jr.]] in collaboration with the local [[West Adams, Los Angeles|West Adams]] community. The building was developed in 1929 to for the City of Los Angeles Fire Department Engine Company NO. 67. In 1976, the building was renovated to serve as a community arts facility of the [[City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs]]. Since the centers opening, WGSAC has offered music and art classes for adults and youth, an exhibition space, concerts, and space for community meetings and gatherings for its surrounding neighborhood.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2012-12-05 |title=WGSAC History |url=https://wgsac.wordpress.com/about/wgsac-history/ |access-date=2023-07-21 |website=The William Grant Still Arts Center |language=en}}</ref>


| publictransit = {{LACMTA link logo}} {{LACMTA icon strip|E|}}
== <big>History</big> ==
| image_size = 250px
Originally built in 1926, an old fire station was refurbished by the City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs (DCA) in cooperation with the neighborhood and local Council District 10.<ref>{{Cite news |date=1980 |title=The William Grant Still Community Arts Center: A model for the 80s |pages=2 |work=Los Angeles Fire Department Historical Archives |url=http://lafire.com/stations/archive/articles/fs067_1980_StillCommuityCenter.pdf}}</ref>
}}


It was transformed into a community arts center with a central exhibition space in the main rotunda, exhibition and meeting rooms, offices, kitchen, and outdoor patio and amphitheater.
[[File:Troubled Island Mural WGSAC.jpg|left|thumb|Picture of ''Troubled Island'' mural on the right outdoor wall of the William Grant Still Arts Center, painted by Noni Olabisi and Brother Boko.]]
[[File:WGS-Noni-Mural.jpg|thumb|Image of artist Noni Olabisi working on Troubled Island mural outside the William Grant Still Art Center]]
Dr. [[William Grant Still]] wrote over 150 compositions, including operas, ballets, symphonies, chamber works, and arrangements of folk themes, spirituals, as well as instrumental, choral and solo works. "[[Troubled Island]]," the opera Dr. Still wrote with a libretto by [[Langston Hughes]], is commemorated on the south side of the building in the alleyway in a 2003 mural created by artist [[Noni Olabisi]], with assistance from Brother Boko.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2012-12-05 |title=WGSAC History |url=https://wgsac.wordpress.com/about/wgsac-history/ |access-date=2023-07-23 |website=The William Grant Still Arts Center |language=en}}</ref> Dr. Still – who coined the term “art music” – considered and used music as a means to achieve cross cultural understanding.<ref>{{Cite web |title=William Grant Still Arts Center |url=https://culturela.org/cultural-centers/william-grant-still-arts-center/ |access-date=2023-07-24 |website=Department of Cultural Affairs |language=en-US}}</ref>


[[File:WGSAC Historical Marker.jpg|thumb|Historical marker located inside of the WGSAC]]
Born on May 11, 1895 in Woodville, Mississippi, [[William Grant Still]] was an American composer and conductor and the first African American to conduct a professional symphony orchestra in the United States. Although he was a prolific composer of operas, ballets and symphonies his [[Afro-American Symphony]] (1931) was his signature work.<ref>Oja, Carol J. “‘New Music’ and the ‘New Negro’: The Background of William Grant Still’s ‘Afro-American Symphony.’” ''Black Music Research Journal'' 12, no. 2 (1992): 145–69. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.2307/779440</nowiki>.</ref> Still’s mother and grandmother raised him in Little Rock, Arkansas. He studied medicine at [[Wilberforce University]], Ohio, before turning to music. He first studied composition at [[Oberlin Conservatory of Music]] in Oberlin, Ohio, then under the conservative [[George Whitefield Chadwick]] at the [[New England Conservatory of Music]] in Boston, and later under [[Edgard Varèse]] during the latter’s most radical avant-garde period. The diversity of Still’s musical education was extended when, in the 1920s, he worked as an arranger for the bandleader [[Paul Whiteman]] and for the blues composer [[W. C. Handy|W.C. Handy]]. Early orchestral works included Darker America (1924) and From the Black Belt (1926) for chamber orchestra. Dr. Still’s activism shone in his work, notably the Afro-American Symphony; the ballet Sahdji (1930), set in Africa and composed after extensive study of African music, and Lenox Avenue (1937); and the operas The Troubled Island (1938; produced 1949), with a libretto by Langston Hughes, and Highway No. 1, U.S.A. (produced 1963 and 1977). Still became the first African American to conduct a major symphony orchestra, when he led the Los Angeles Philharmonic in 1936.<ref>{{Cite web |title=William Grant Still, 1895-1978 |url=https://www.loc.gov/item/ihas.200186213/ |access-date=2023-07-24 |website=Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA}}</ref> In 1939 he married Verna Arvey, settling in Los Angeles. He died December 3, 1978, in Los Angeles, CA.
The '''[[William Grant Still]] Arts Center''' is located at 2520 S West View Street in Los Angeles, California. Founded in 1977, WGSAC has offered music and art classes for adults and youth, an exhibition space, concerts, and space for community meetings and gatherings for its surrounding neighborhood.
== History ==
The [[William Grant Still]] Arts Center was established with in collaboration with the local community and then-councilman [[David S. Cunningham Jr.]]. The building was constructed in 1929 to for the City of Los Angeles Fire Department Engine Company No. 67. In 1976, the building was renovated to serve as a community arts facility for the [[City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs]]. In 1977, it was transformed into a community arts center with a central exhibition space in the main rotunda, exhibition and meeting rooms, offices, kitchen, and outdoor patio and amphitheater.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2012-12-05 |title=WGSAC History |url=https://wgsac.wordpress.com/about/wgsac-history/ |access-date=2023-07-21 |website=The William Grant Still Arts Center |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=1980 |title=The William Grant Still Community Arts Center: A model for the 80s |pages=2 |work=Los Angeles Fire Department Historical Archives |url=http://lafire.com/stations/archive/articles/fs067_1980_StillCommuityCenter.pdf}}</ref>


The center was named in honor of composer Dr. [[William Grant Still]]. "[[Troubled Island]]," the opera Dr. Still wrote with a libretto by [[Langston Hughes]], is commemorated on the south side of the building in the alleyway in a 2003 mural created by artist [[Noni Olabisi]], with assistance from Brother Boko.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2012-12-05 |title=WGSAC History |url=https://wgsac.wordpress.com/about/wgsac-history/ |access-date=2023-07-23 |website=The William Grant Still Arts Center |language=en}}</ref> <ref name="William Grant Still Arts Center">{{Cite web |title=William Grant Still Arts Center |url=https://culturela.org/cultural-centers/william-grant-still-arts-center/ |access-date=2023-07-24 |website=Department of Cultural Affairs |language=en-US}}</ref>
== <big>Exhibitions</big> ==
The center’s calendar operates in four quarters, each one dedicated to specific cultural themes and artistic disciplines.


== Exhibitions ==
The annual Black Doll Show is one of WGSAC’s most significant and longest standing programs. The annual exhibitions serve to address racial stereotypes and autonomously empower marginalized communities through art.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2012-12-06 |title=Annual Black Doll Show |url=https://wgsac.wordpress.com/exhibition/annual-black-doll-show/ |access-date=2023-07-23 |website=The William Grant Still Arts Center |language=en}}</ref>
The center’s calendar operates in four quarters, each one dedicated to specific cultural themes and artistic disciplines.
[[File:WGS-Black Doll Show-Double Dutch.jpg|thumb|Rotunda view of 38th Annual Black Doll Show (2018), "Double Dutch: A Celebration of Black Girlhood"]]


=== The WGSAC Annual Black Doll Show ===
[[File:WGS-Black Doll Show-Double Dutch.jpg|thumb|Rotunda view of 38th Annual Black Doll Show, 2018]]
The Annual Black Doll Show is one of the longest running exhibits of the Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs and is also one of the longest running Black Doll Exhibits in the United States.<ref>{{Cite web |title=William Grant Still Arts Center |url=https://culturela.org/cultural-centers/william-grant-still-arts-center/ |access-date=2023-07-24 |website=Department of Cultural Affairs |language=en-US}}</ref>


=== Annual Black Doll Show ===
For nearly 40 years, the William Grant Still Arts Center has presented the Black Doll Show, an original annual exhibition of Black dolls from artists, collectors, and the local community. It has been a platform to showcase the ongoing traditions and diversity of doll-making, practices which can be traced back to African doll making both currently and prior to the period of enslavement in the Americas.The Black Doll Show is also informed by the Community Arts and [[Assemblage (art)|Assemblage Arts movements]] of the 1970s and 80s.


For nearly 40 years, the William Grant Still Arts Center has presented the Annual Black Doll Show, an original exhibition of Black dolls from artists, collectors, and the local community. <ref name="William Grant Still Arts Center"/>
The curated exhibitions have been an important site of discourse on issues such as identity and representation, health and spirituality, HIV/AIDS prevention, superheroes, gentrification, African-American leisure, and gender.


=== '''Black Doll Show Exhibitions''' ===
=== Black Doll Show exhibitions ===
'''2022''' – 42nd Annual - Fun and Games
'''2022''' – 42nd Annual - Fun and Games


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'''1989''' – 9th Annual - Symmetry - A Comparison of Dolls and Puppets
'''1989''' – 9th Annual - Symmetry - A Comparison of Dolls and Puppets


'''1988''' – 8th Annual - The Genius of the Black Doll - From Slavery to the Twenty First Century
'''1988''' – 8th Annual - The Genius of the Black Doll - From Slavery to the Twenty First Century<ref>{{Cite news |last=Ziaya |first=Christine |date=February 20, 1988 |title=Exhibits Celebrate Work of Black Artists |pages=4 |work=The Los Angeles Times Newspaper |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/404172896/?match=1}}</ref>


'''1986''' – 6th Annual - Puppets and Puppeteers, The African American Image
'''1986''' – 6th Annual - Puppets and Puppeteers, The African American Image
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'''1984''' – Historical Odyssey of Black Dolls
'''1984''' – Historical Odyssey of Black Dolls


'''1983''' – 3rd Annual – It’s A Small World
'''1983''' – 3rd Annual – It's A Small World


'''1982''' – 2nd Annual – Black Doll Exhibit
'''1982''' – 2nd Annual – Black Doll Exhibit
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'''1981''' – 1st Annual – African American Dolls<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=African-American Artists of Los Angeles: Cecil Fergerson |url=http://www.oac.cdlib.org/view?query=william+grant&docId=hb7h4nb803&chunk.id=div00033&toc.depth=1&toc.id=0&brand=oac4&x=0&y=0 |access-date=2023-07-25 |website=www.oac.cdlib.org}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Jones |first=Kellie |title=South of Pico: African American Artists in Los Angeles in the 1960s and 1970s |publisher=Duke University Press |year=2017 |isbn=978-0-8223-6164-0 |pages=172}}</ref>
'''1981''' – 1st Annual – African American Dolls<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=African-American Artists of Los Angeles: Cecil Fergerson |url=http://www.oac.cdlib.org/view?query=william+grant&docId=hb7h4nb803&chunk.id=div00033&toc.depth=1&toc.id=0&brand=oac4&x=0&y=0 |access-date=2023-07-25 |website=www.oac.cdlib.org}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Jones |first=Kellie |title=South of Pico: African American Artists in Los Angeles in the 1960s and 1970s |publisher=Duke University Press |year=2017 |isbn=978-0-8223-6164-0 |pages=172}}</ref>


=== '''Black Composer’s Series''' ===
=== The African American Composers Series ===
The Black Composer's series celebrates the life and work of a selected African-American composer.


==== African American Composers exhibitions<ref>{{Cite web |date=2012-12-06 |title=African-American Composers Series |url=https://wgsac.wordpress.com/exhibition/african-american-composer-exhibition-series/ |access-date=2023-07-24 |website=The William Grant Still Arts Center |language=en}}</ref> ====
The exhibits are complemented by panel discussions, concerts, workshops and other programs.

The series is staged in conjunction with The William Grant Still Arts Center’s African-American Heritage Education Program, which focuses on teaching art skills, cultural history, and music through practice and playing experience to beginning and intermediate students of all ages via the works of groundbreaking musical innovators in the tradition of our namesake, Dr. [[William Grant Still]].

==== '''Black Composer’s Exhibitions'''<ref>{{Cite web |date=2012-12-06 |title=African-American Composers Series |url=https://wgsac.wordpress.com/exhibition/african-american-composer-exhibition-series/ |access-date=2023-07-24 |website=The William Grant Still Arts Center |language=en}}</ref> ====
'''2020''' – [[Spanish Grease]] – [[Willie Bobo]]
'''2020''' – [[Spanish Grease]] – [[Willie Bobo]]


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'''2017''' – Nearly Gone Gal: The Rescued Archives of [[Nellie Lutcher]]
'''2017''' – Nearly Gone Gal: The Rescued Archives of [[Nellie Lutcher]]
[[File:2016 - AACS So What Miles Davis Exhibit Front Wall.jpg|thumb|Entrance of the 2016 Black Composer Series Exhibition, "So What! The Artistry of Miles Davis"]]
[[File:2016 - AACS So What Miles Davis - Exhibit Wall.jpg|thumb|Picture of the 2016 Black Composer Series Exhibition, "So What! The Artistry of Miles Davis" in the WGSAC rotunda.]]
'''2016''' – So What! The Artistry of [[Miles Davis]]
'''2016''' – So What! The Artistry of [[Miles Davis]]


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'''2009''' – [[Charles Mingus]]
'''2009''' – [[Charles Mingus]]


=== '''Fall Exhibition Series'''<ref>{{Cite web |date=2019-11-07 |title=Fall Exhibition |url=https://wgsac.wordpress.com/fall-exhibition/ |access-date=2023-07-24 |website=The William Grant Still Arts Center |language=en}}</ref> ===
=== Fall Exhibition Series<ref>{{Cite web |date=2019-11-07 |title=Fall Exhibition |url=https://wgsac.wordpress.com/fall-exhibition/ |access-date=2023-07-24 |website=The William Grant Still Arts Center |language=en}}</ref> ===
Fall Exhibition series feature additional exhibitions and programming that cater to the interests of the community.


==== Fall exhibitions ====
The exhibits are complemented by panel discussions, concerts, workshops and other programs.

==== '''Fall Exhibitions''' ====
'''2019''' – Legacy: Rocking the Nation (RTN), 30 Years of Creativity<ref>{{Cite web |title=Legacy: Rocking the Nation (RTN), 30 Years of Creativity |url=https://culturela.org/event/the-william-grant-still-arts-center-presents-legacy-rocking-the-nation-rtn-30-years-of-creativity/2019-09-28/ |access-date=2023-07-24 |website=Department of Cultural Affairs |language=en-US}}</ref>
'''2019''' – Legacy: Rocking the Nation (RTN), 30 Years of Creativity<ref>{{Cite web |title=Legacy: Rocking the Nation (RTN), 30 Years of Creativity |url=https://culturela.org/event/the-william-grant-still-arts-center-presents-legacy-rocking-the-nation-rtn-30-years-of-creativity/2019-09-28/ |access-date=2023-07-24 |website=Department of Cultural Affairs |language=en-US}}</ref>


'''2018''' – Making the Divine from the Disposable: Teresa Tolliver<ref>{{Cite web |last=Center |first=William Grant Still Arts |date=2018-09-11 |title=WGSAC Presents: Teresa Tolliver “Making The Divine From The Disposable” 10/6/18 – 11/17/18 Free Admission |url=https://wgsac.wordpress.com/2018/09/11/wgsac-presents-teresa-tolliver-making-the-divine-from-the-disposable-8-6-18-11-17-18-free-admission/ |access-date=2023-07-24 |website=The William Grant Still Arts Center |language=en}}</ref>
'''2018''' – Making the Divine from the Disposable: Teresa Tolliver<ref>{{Cite web |last=Center |first=William Grant Still Arts |date=2018-09-11 |title=WGSAC Presents: Teresa Tolliver "Making The Divine From The Disposable" 10/6/18 – 11/17/18 Free Admission |url=https://wgsac.wordpress.com/2018/09/11/wgsac-presents-teresa-tolliver-making-the-divine-from-the-disposable-8-6-18-11-17-18-free-admission/ |access-date=2023-07-24 |website=The William Grant Still Arts Center |language=en}}</ref>


'''2017''' – A Woman’s Place
'''2017''' – A Woman’s Place
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'''2012''' – Dragon’s Flight<ref>{{Cite news |last=Motevalli |first=Ami |date=September 20, 2012 |title=Dragon's Flight Exhibition Media Alert |work=Department of Cultural Affairs, City of Los Angeles |url=https://culturela.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/2012_DragonsFlight.pdf}}</ref>
'''2012''' – Dragon’s Flight<ref>{{Cite news |last=Motevalli |first=Ami |date=September 20, 2012 |title=Dragon's Flight Exhibition Media Alert |work=Department of Cultural Affairs, City of Los Angeles |url=https://culturela.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/2012_DragonsFlight.pdf}}</ref>


'''2011''' – Hell No! We Won’t Go!: 50 Years of the [[Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee|Student Non-violent Coordinating Committee]] (SNCC)
'''2011''' – Hell No! We Won't Go!: 50 Years of the [[Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee|Student Non-violent Coordinating Committee]] (SNCC)


== Educational Programs ==
== Educational programs ==
The William Grant Still Art Center began offering programs in 1979. These educational programs include art, movement and music classes for seniors, adults, teens, children, including early childhood education.
Educational programs include art, movement and music classes for seniors, adults, teens, children, including early childhood education.<ref>{{Cite news |date=May 16, 1993 |title=City Times Billboard |pages=238 |work=The Los Angeles Times |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/712118299/?match=1}}</ref>


In 2015, the WGSAC and community members collaborated with professional archivists and local historians to develop West Adams Collectors Club, took place over the course of eight Saturdays from March 14 – May 2, 2015.<ref>{{Cite web |date=September 20, 2023 |title=West Adams Collectors Club |url=https://wgsac.wordpress.com/programs/west-adams-collectors-club/}}</ref>
Professionally-produced exhibitions that include the annual Black Doll Show and the African-American Composers Exhibition are paired with an education series that displays, archives and teaches music and art through the life and work of a selected composer.


'''Art & Jazz Summer Day Camp'''
===Art & Jazz Summer Day Camp===


Art and Jazz Summer day camp for ages 3-12, jazz-based ensemble instruction, partnerships with teachers at local schools and universities; and readings, film screenings, and concerts throughout the year.
Art and Jazz Summer day camp for ages 3–12, jazz-based ensemble instruction, partnerships with teachers at local schools and universities; and readings, film screenings, and concerts throughout the year.


'''Community Workshops'''
===Community workshops===


The WGSAC offers community workshops that incorporate hands-on art instruction and the preservation of long-standing community traditions and cultural history of the [[West Adams, Los Angeles|West Adams neighborhood]]. The workshops range from drawing, arts & craft, percussion, keyboard, tap dancing, and physical exercise.
The WGSAC offers community workshops that irange from drawing, arts & craft, percussion, keyboard, tap dancing, and physical exercise. The WGSAC also offers doll-making workshops to share the tradition of doll-making practices.

In addition, the WGSAC also offers doll-making workshops to share the tradition of doll-making practices and to continue the legacy of doll-makers across the diaspora.

'''West Adams Collectors Club'''

In 2015, the WGSAC and community members collaborated with professional archivists and local historians to develop West Adams Collectors Club, which focused on archiving grassroots histories and legacy residents of the West Adams neighborhood. The West Adams Collectors Club took place over the course of eight Saturdays from March 14th - May 2nd, 2015, and was followed by a six-week exhibition called ''West Adams Collectors Club: Collecting, Archiving, and Exhibiting Your Own Cultural History'' which featured the archival collections developed by the workshop participants. The exhibition showcased stories and legacies across multiple generations to encourage younger audiences to collect and preserve their history.


== Directors ==
== Directors ==
* Amitis Motevalli (current)
'''Amitis Motevalli (current)'''<ref>{{Cite web |title=AMITIS MOTEVALLI |url=http://amitismotevalli.com/ |access-date=2023-07-24 |website=AMITIS MOTEVALLI |language=en-US}}</ref>
*Joyce Maddox
*James Burks
*Kamau Daaood
*Hakim Ali<ref name=":0" />


==See also==
'''Joyce Maddox'''


*[[City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs]]
'''James Burks'''
*[[William Grant Still]]


== References ==
'''Kamaal Doud'''


{{reflist}}
'''Hakim Ali'''<ref name=":0" />


'''See also'''


[[City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs]]


[[Category:Arts centers in California]]
[[Historic West Adams]]

== References ==
<!-- Inline citations added to your article will automatically display here. See en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WP:REFB for instructions on how to add citations. -->
{{reflist}}

Latest revision as of 18:49, 8 February 2024

William Grant Still Arts Center
The William Grant Still Arts Center, 2013
Address2520 S West View Street
Los Angeles, California 90016
Public transit E Line
OwnerCity of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs
Opened1977 (1977)
Website
Official website


Historical marker located inside of the WGSAC

The William Grant Still Arts Center is located at 2520 S West View Street in Los Angeles, California. Founded in 1977, WGSAC has offered music and art classes for adults and youth, an exhibition space, concerts, and space for community meetings and gatherings for its surrounding neighborhood.

History

[edit]

The William Grant Still Arts Center was established with in collaboration with the local community and then-councilman David S. Cunningham Jr.. The building was constructed in 1929 to for the City of Los Angeles Fire Department Engine Company No. 67. In 1976, the building was renovated to serve as a community arts facility for the City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs. In 1977, it was transformed into a community arts center with a central exhibition space in the main rotunda, exhibition and meeting rooms, offices, kitchen, and outdoor patio and amphitheater.[1][2]

The center was named in honor of composer Dr. William Grant Still. "Troubled Island," the opera Dr. Still wrote with a libretto by Langston Hughes, is commemorated on the south side of the building in the alleyway in a 2003 mural created by artist Noni Olabisi, with assistance from Brother Boko.[3] [4]

Exhibitions

[edit]

The center’s calendar operates in four quarters, each one dedicated to specific cultural themes and artistic disciplines.

Rotunda view of 38th Annual Black Doll Show, 2018

Annual Black Doll Show

[edit]

For nearly 40 years, the William Grant Still Arts Center has presented the Annual Black Doll Show, an original exhibition of Black dolls from artists, collectors, and the local community. [4]

Black Doll Show exhibitions

[edit]

2022 – 42nd Annual - Fun and Games

2021 – 41st Annual - Black Doll Magic

2020 – 40th Annual - All Dolled Up: A 40 Year Celebration of the WGSAC Annual Black Doll Show

2019 – 39th Annual - Psychedollia

2018 – 38th Annual - Double Dutch: A Celebration of Black Girlhood

2017 – 37th Annual - Jubilee, Celebrations in Color[5]

2016 – 36th Annual - Paper Plastic Ceramic and Wood

2015 – 35th Annual - Trench Art Retrospective: The War Against HIV/AIDS – Women Of The African Diaspora In The Trenches

2014 – 34th Annual - A League Supreme

2013 – 33rd Annual - Dolls Gone Wild

2012 – 32nd Annual - Space is the Place

2011 – 31st Annual - The Politics of Imagery

2010 – 30th Annual - The 3Rs - Remember, Recycle, Revive

2009 – 29th Annual - I’ve got a Story to Tell

2008 – 28th Annual - Dolls of Color Around the World

2006 – 26th Annual - Lemons to Lemonade

2005 – 25th Annual - Lemons to Lemonade

2004 – 24th Annual - From the Cotton Fields to the New Millennium

2003 – 23rd Annual - A Salute to Doll Artists

2002 – 21st Annual - A Salute to Doll Artists

2000 – 20th Annual - Futuristic Dreams and Fantasies

1999 – 19th Annual - A Century of African American Dolls: The Pride and Politics of Portrayal[6]

1998 – 18th Annual - Dolls: Social-Political Images, Collectibles & Toys[7]

1997 – 17th Annual - Past to Present

1996 – 16th Annual - Adventures in Dollhouse Land

1995 – 15th Annual Black Dolls Are Maker’s Wonder

1994 – 14th Annual - Doll as Companion, Image and Treasure[8]

1993 – 13th Annual – Handmade Dolls[9]

1992 – 12th Annual - Moving Parts - Puppet Images of the African Diaspora

1991 – 11th Annual – Dolls: Past and Present[10]

1990 – 10th Annual - Black Dolls of the World: 10th Anniversary

1989 – 9th Annual - Symmetry - A Comparison of Dolls and Puppets

1988 – 8th Annual - The Genius of the Black Doll - From Slavery to the Twenty First Century[11]

1986 – 6th Annual - Puppets and Puppeteers, The African American Image

1985 – 5th Annual - Time Capsule of Dolls[12]

1984 – Historical Odyssey of Black Dolls

1983 – 3rd Annual – It's A Small World

1982 – 2nd Annual – Black Doll Exhibit

1981 – 1st Annual – African American Dolls[13][14]

The African American Composers Series

[edit]

African American Composers exhibitions[15]

[edit]

2020Spanish GreaseWillie Bobo

2019 – Music is Art, Music is Philosophy, Music is History: The Legacy of Dr. William Grant Still 2018 – How the West Got Funked Up!

2017 – Nearly Gone Gal: The Rescued Archives of Nellie Lutcher 2016 – So What! The Artistry of Miles Davis

2015 – Love You Madly – A Portrait of Duke Ellington

2014 – I Got My Pride – The Blues Tales of Lead belly

2013 – Arkestry of the Cosmos – The Universe Language of Sun Ra

2012 – Deeds Not Words – The Life and Work of Max Roach & Abbey Lincoln

2011 – A New Day – Nina Simone

2010 – The High Priest of Bop – The Jazz Odyssey of Thelonious Monk

2009Charles Mingus

Fall Exhibition Series[16]

[edit]

Fall exhibitions

[edit]

2019 – Legacy: Rocking the Nation (RTN), 30 Years of Creativity[17]

2018 – Making the Divine from the Disposable: Teresa Tolliver[18]

2017 – A Woman’s Place

2016 – Intersections: Valena Broussard Dismukes[19]

2014 – Return of the Mecca: The Art of Islam and Hip-Hop[20]

2013 – Tequio Aqui, Tequio Alla[21]

2012 – Dragon’s Flight[22]

2011 – Hell No! We Won't Go!: 50 Years of the Student Non-violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC)

Educational programs

[edit]

Educational programs include art, movement and music classes for seniors, adults, teens, children, including early childhood education.[23]

In 2015, the WGSAC and community members collaborated with professional archivists and local historians to develop West Adams Collectors Club, took place over the course of eight Saturdays from March 14 – May 2, 2015.[24]

Art & Jazz Summer Day Camp

[edit]

Art and Jazz Summer day camp for ages 3–12, jazz-based ensemble instruction, partnerships with teachers at local schools and universities; and readings, film screenings, and concerts throughout the year.

Community workshops

[edit]

The WGSAC offers community workshops that irange from drawing, arts & craft, percussion, keyboard, tap dancing, and physical exercise. The WGSAC also offers doll-making workshops to share the tradition of doll-making practices.

Directors

[edit]
  • Amitis Motevalli (current)
  • Joyce Maddox
  • James Burks
  • Kamau Daaood
  • Hakim Ali[13]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "WGSAC History". The William Grant Still Arts Center. 2012-12-05. Retrieved 2023-07-21.
  2. ^ "The William Grant Still Community Arts Center: A model for the 80s" (PDF). Los Angeles Fire Department Historical Archives. 1980. p. 2.
  3. ^ "WGSAC History". The William Grant Still Arts Center. 2012-12-05. Retrieved 2023-07-23.
  4. ^ a b "William Grant Still Arts Center". Department of Cultural Affairs. Retrieved 2023-07-24.
  5. ^ "Black Doll Exhibition is Back!". LA Sentinel. January 18, 2018.
  6. ^ "The 19th Annual Black Doll Exhibition Comes to L.A". LA Sentinel. December 30, 1995. pp. B5.
  7. ^ "Black Doll Show on to March 1 (18th Annual Show)". LA Sentinel. February 18, 1999. pp. A3.
  8. ^ "Black Dolls Are Maker's Wonder (14th Annual Show)". LA Sentinel. February 16, 1995. pp. C4.
  9. ^ "Black Doll Exhibit at William Still Center". LA Sentinel. January 12, 1993. pp. A10.
  10. ^ "Dolls: Past and Present at Annual Black Doll Show". LA Sentinel. December 12, 1991. pp. A16.
  11. ^ Ziaya, Christine (February 20, 1988). "Exhibits Celebrate Work of Black Artists". The Los Angeles Times Newspaper. p. 4.
  12. ^ "Doll Collection on View at Still Center". LA Sentinel. December 10, 1985. pp. F10.
  13. ^ a b "African-American Artists of Los Angeles: Cecil Fergerson". www.oac.cdlib.org. Retrieved 2023-07-25.
  14. ^ Jones, Kellie (2017). South of Pico: African American Artists in Los Angeles in the 1960s and 1970s. Duke University Press. p. 172. ISBN 978-0-8223-6164-0.
  15. ^ "African-American Composers Series". The William Grant Still Arts Center. 2012-12-06. Retrieved 2023-07-24.
  16. ^ "Fall Exhibition". The William Grant Still Arts Center. 2019-11-07. Retrieved 2023-07-24.
  17. ^ "Legacy: Rocking the Nation (RTN), 30 Years of Creativity". Department of Cultural Affairs. Retrieved 2023-07-24.
  18. ^ Center, William Grant Still Arts (2018-09-11). "WGSAC Presents: Teresa Tolliver "Making The Divine From The Disposable" 10/6/18 – 11/17/18 Free Admission". The William Grant Still Arts Center. Retrieved 2023-07-24.
  19. ^ Center, William Grant Still Arts (2016-09-15). "Intersections: Valena Broussard Dismukes". The William Grant Still Arts Center. Retrieved 2023-07-24.
  20. ^ "Home". Return of the Mecca. Retrieved 2023-07-24.
  21. ^ Center, William Grant Still Arts (2013-09-11). "Tequio Aqui, Tequio Allá (Tequio Here, Tequio There) // October 5-November 23 // Opening Concert: Saturday, October 5, 3-6pm". The William Grant Still Arts Center. Retrieved 2023-07-24.
  22. ^ Motevalli, Ami (September 20, 2012). "Dragon's Flight Exhibition Media Alert" (PDF). Department of Cultural Affairs, City of Los Angeles.
  23. ^ "City Times Billboard". The Los Angeles Times. May 16, 1993. p. 238.
  24. ^ "West Adams Collectors Club". September 20, 2023.