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By Tom Jenz, Shepherd Express
For the past several years, I’ve been tracking the ambitious plans to establish the Bronzeville Center for the Arts (BCA) at North Avenue and Martin Luther King Drive in the central city. The estimated $55 million construction of the BCA and its 50,000-square-foot museum will be a lighthouse of creativity for the Black community and will anchor the Bronzeville business district. The BCA is dedicated to celebrating African American art, culture, and heritage. The goal is to complete the project by 2028-29.
The BCA Board of Directors has announced plans to soon begin demolition of the vacant DNR building located at 2312 N. Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, where the future BCA will be built. Although the property will remain as greenspace until the BCA begins construction a few years from now, this expansive greenspace will feature artistic exhibits during the interim.
“The reason I am so passionate about the BCA is because I was born and raised in Bronzeville and have seen all the changes over many years,” says Milwaukee artist Mutope Johnson. “Nationally, many institutions do not feature enough African American artists. We want those artists featured in the future BCA, and we have been reaching out to our community for ideas.”
Johnson’s body of work is best known for themes celebrating African American history and culture. He stresses the color, indigo blue, as a metaphor. “Indigo blue recalls the textile industry and how it’s tied to the plant itself and the blue pigment that gave birth to the Civil War Union Army uniforms,” he said, then added, “It’s also about the blues, the African-American music form.”
Milwaukee’s Bronzeville itself is directly related to African American history and the African American experience. Historically, Bronzeville was a close-knit community held together as the cultural epicenter for Black Milwaukee citizens in the early 20th century. From grocery stores to flower shops and jazz clubs, Black-owned businesses flourished in this north side neighborhood.
Demolition and Construction
The vacant DNR building demolition will begin in early June, clearing the way for the interim green space.
Deshea Agee, vice president of the Milwaukee developer, EMEM Group, acts as advisor for the future BCA project. The BCA board recently chose BrandNu Design, headed by Michael Ford, as the architecture firm to design the BCA.
“Mike Ford will be working with other design professionals including the prominent landscape architect, Walter Hood and his Hood Design firm,” Agee says. “They are nationally known African American designers. The lead is Walter Hood. He is part of the design team led by Mike Ford. But we at the BCA will design some interim uses for the vacant space featuring art on the greenspace side and on the other side where the parking lot is located. This will all take place before the new BCA building is constructed.”
Hood Design is an international and national landscape architecture firm with experience in landscaping world class institutions.
The demolition of the old DNR building is starting in June 2025. “That was always part of the plan,” says John Russick, CEO of the BCA. “The old DNR building is empty and unsightly. We were given state grants, and part of those funds is targeted for the demolition of this building.”
I asked about the target date to complete the BCA construction. “We’ve been working on a 2028-2029 working date, but that might get pushed back a little,” he said.
“Presently, we have our offices in the new Gallery 507 building on North Avenue not far from where the BCA will be built,” Russick continues. “We are close to starting out a full-on campaign to raise funding. We have raised more than half of the proposed budget. An anonymous donor donated $25 million. We also have an additional $5 million that Governor Evers recently allocated from the state of Wisconsin.”
Mutope Johnson adds, “The BCA project has already had a positive impact on the Black community, even with our new 507 gallery. We will grow as the community around us grows. The upcoming BCA will be a mutual benefit to all of us.”
Bronzeville Center for the Arts will announce opportunities for public input on the temporary use of the vacant site in the coming weeks. Community involvement is a core principle of the project, and BCA encourages residents, artists, and local leaders to participate in shaping the vision for this important space.
