The Burchfield Penney Art Center at SUNY Buffalo State is
showcasing an exhibit featuring the city of Buffalo’s first African American
Architect, John Edmonston Brent. It opened Friday, October 9, 2015 and will
continue at the Museum through Sunday, March 27, 2016. The exhibition, which is
titled, “Through These Gates: Buffalo’s First African American Architect, John
E. Brent”, is co-curated by Nancy Weekly, SUNY Buffalo State instructor of
museum studies and Christine A. Parker, SUNY Buffalo State graduate student and
Diversity Research Fellow.
John E. Brent (1889-1962) was born in Washington, D.C.
and named after his grandfather. His grandfather was born a slave and was later
able to buy his freedom as well as his wife’s. John E. Brent’s parents were Calvin
Thomas Stowe Brent and Albertine Jones Brent. John E. Brent’s father Calvin was
the first African American architect in the District of Columbia and by 1876 he
had established his own practice in the city.
John E. Brent attended to Tuskegee Institute from 1904
to 1907. After graduating from here he received the James MacAlister
scholarship, this was a full scholarship that enabled him to continue his
education at Drexel Institute of Art, Science and Industry. While here Mr.
Brent studied Architecture, Landscape Design. Upon graduating from Drexel in
1912, Brent moved to Buffalo. Once he arrived to the city he found a job with Max
G. Beirel, making him the first African American architect of the city. In 1926
Mr. Brent earned a State of New York Architect’s Certificate and License. Receiving
this certification made it possible for him to start his own architectural
practice. This led to the set-up of his home office, located at 99 Lonsdale
Avenue in Hamlin Park. When I attended the exhibit it said on some of the
labels that during the era that Mr. Brent lived, work was very difficult to
come by. At the exhibit it left it up to those attending to decide whether this
was because of the economic climate brought on by WWI or because of racial
prejudice. It also mentions that sometimes even when work was available African
Americans were not always credited for the projects they were involved in.
Despite these circumstances, Mr. Brent was able to work on, and receive credit
for, several projects. This includes the Mitchell Miles Residence and Myron
McGuire, DDS Medical Office.
There are two designs he is probably most remembered for
though.The first is the Michigan Avenue Branch YMCA, built in 1928. After the
completion of this YMCA, Mr. Brent would go on to serve as a member on its
Board of Directors. This YMCA in particular was important because it served as
a safe place for African Americans to go to during a time when they were not
welcomed everywhere. Though the structure was demolished in 1977, it will
always be worth noting when reflecting back because of the impact it had on the
community during its time as well as the fact that this structure designed by
Mr. Brent was only the second YMCA an African
American was commissioned to design. The
second project Brent is known for is with the Buffalo Zoological Gardens.
Produced in 1935, Mr. Brent is responsible for the design of Gate #3 and Gate
#4 of the Buffalo Zoo. These Gates are cast iron, 8-ft. tall, and anchored in
concrete piers. In 2013 the structures were listed on the National Register of
Historic Places. In addition to his many professional endeavors, Brent also
holds the distinct honor of becoming the first President of the Buffalo Branch
NAACP on November 30, 1914.
As I attended this exhibit I couldn’t help but be
reminded of one of our texts from class, “From Storefront to Monument: Tracing
the Public History of the Black Museum Movement.” In the text the author,
Andrea A. Burns, talks about the creation of four African American neighborhood
museums, the DuSable Museum of African American History, the International
Afro-American Museum, and the Anacostia Neighborhood Museum, and the African
American Museum of Philadelphia. Burns speaks on the hardships facing African
American curators in starting and maintaining African American museums and the
exhibits within them. One example of a difficulty was highlighted with the
African American Museum of Philadelphia. The problem here was that the original
preferred location for the museum was in a neighborhood known as Society Hill
and the residents living here were against the museum being built within their
community. Another instance of a problem can be found with the International
Afro-American Museum located in Detroit, Michigan. In the text it said “The
lack of usable artifacts… stemmed from the persistent neglect and diminishment
of black history by most mainstream institutions.” This connects with the John
E. Brent exhibit being showcased at the Burchfield Penney Art Center. As
mentioned previously, African Americans did not always have their name attached
to the projects they worked on. In order to provide a better idea of what his resume
may have truly encompassed the Burchfield Penney also listed several projects
that took place during his career that, while not officially being credited for
it, may have included his input one way or another.
In the text, Burns explained that one of the primary
reasons for the creation of the African American Museum of Philadelphia is the
fact that it would have been a public relations nightmare otherwise. When
related back to the John E. Brent exhibit, while the Burchfield Penney is not
an African American museum, I think it just shows the evolution in the mindset
of the powers that be that it doesn’t have to take an event as large as the
anniversary of the country to pay homage to the history of African Americans. Something
I believe the Burchfield Penney Art Center has in common with the four museums
discussed in the text is its dedication to the community. While those museums worked
to serve African Americans in their community, the Burchfield Penney serves the
entire Western New York area.
Your blog brings to light the need for virtual museums. For a small and local Burchfield Penny Art Center exhibit of John Brent is an exhibit that has national interest and yet likely will not get exposure or visitors from across the nation. A virtual exhibit of John Brent not only accomplishes this but also promotes other localized museums to consider doing the same. Perhaps a virtual webpage will allow visitors to experience museums that they will never have an opportunity to view or the knowledge of such exhibits. I also enjoyed the spotlight on buffalo youtube and thought museums could incorporate a "virtual walking tour" such as this into their websites.
ReplyDeleteA critical piece of the mission of many of the African-American neighborhood museums was to foster among members of the black community a sense of racial pride and instill an appreciation for African-American historical contributions by presenting an interpretation of U.S. history that departed from the hegemonic whitewashed narrative to include the voices and experiences of African Americans. I applaud the Burchfield for installing an exhibit that celebrates a figure so central to Buffalo's black community, but I wonder if the museum has made any effort to ensure black community members who do not typically visit the Burchfield are informed about the exhibit and feel welcome to attend and to ensure those who do not have ready access to the museum for a variety of reasons, including lack of transportation or the finances to pay admission, can still benefit from the exhibit. A mobile outreach exhibit might be especially appropriate in this case.
ReplyDeleteI think its cool that the Burchfield, a museum mostly dedicated to artwork and the life of Charles Burchfield himself is displaying the works of a man who made such great achievements within the Buffalo community. I worked for the Burchfield for almost two years and never saw them put up an exhibit-surrounding race so its great to see them broadening their horizons a bit. The Burchfield is certainty no Anacostia in terms of its mission and how it seems to serve the community, to bring an exhibit of this nature to a museum that does not usually deal with racial content is refreshing. I’m excited to see what the future brings for Penny!
ReplyDeleteThe creation of this exhibit at Burchfield reflects the increasing efforts of historians and museum curators alike to enrich the typical historical narrative. I think you make a very good point about the changing of a museum's mindset to be even more inclusive. Intertwining race into the museum's exhibits brings in a new interest and therefore a new audience to the storefront. I agree with the point made by Jonathan in a previous comment. John Brent would definitely be a historical character of interest to locals within the community and schools in the Buffalo area. A virtual site portraying the exhibits information and displays would prove to be a useful source for academics and those invested in the community's history. Providing the public with a more immediate means of interacting with this exhibit and possibly including a forum in which they could discuss personal connections to John Brent and even suggest figures for future exhibitions.
ReplyDeleteThis is one of those instances where an online presence is incredibly important, because I would have likely never heard of this exhibit had it not been for this blog. Outside of the local community, this sort of exhibit doesn’t seem like one that will draw in national crowds of tourists. And, if you wanted to visit the exhibit, you’d both need to disposable income and time for traveling and not have any other destinations to occupy them with. To connect it with Burns’ book, it’d probably be immensely helpful if one of the larger museums of African American history (especially the new National Museum of African American History and Culture) had websites where these smaller sites were linked to. And the same could be said of architectural museums, or any sort of museum for that matter, with the more prominent ones letting people know about the more obscure ones.
ReplyDeleteI agree with what Stephen said, that this is an excellent example of the perks of being "online" for I never would have heard of this otherwise. I will be honest and say that I really don't care for art so the Burchfield Penny is not someplace that I would think of going to and therefore I would never know about exhibits like this. It is in situations like this when virtual exhibitions are extremely beneficial. Not only can they increase awareness but for someone like me who is interested in the exhibit but would maybe like to check it out before hand they can. I would love to see our local museums take part in this movement in some way. With Buffalo working hard to change its image and boost tourism, perhaps virtual exhibitions will help draw in additional tourists.
ReplyDeleteGood and informative blog post John, as I will agree with most that had it not been for this post, I would have not know about John E. Brent. His architectural work seems to have a lasting impact in the Western New York area. Weekly and Parker do a great job in their research and descriptions of Brent about his accomplishments. It is extremely important to spread word about the display since I amusing that most outside of the Buffalo State campus would not have heard about this display. When it comes to history like this in this day in age, it should be easier than every to spread word about exhibits and history. I'll have to stop by before it closes in March.
ReplyDeleteI agree with what Steven, Sara, and Johnathan said about the importance of virtual exhibits. I would never have heard of Brent if not for this blog post. While a virtual exhibit can never present physical objects in the same way that a brick-and-mortar museum can, a virtual exhibit can still be used to present information to a wider audience. A virtual exhibit is never too crowded, and never closes. There are just so many museums and exhibits in places around the world that I'll probably never visit, and knowing I'm able to visit the exhibits virtually definitely helps.
ReplyDeleteLike the others, I had never heard of Brent before reading your blog post. I agree with Steven, it is vitally important for smaller, more obscure museums that may not get widespread publicity. I also agree with his point that websites for larger museums should provide links to the websites for smaller, less publicized museums.Lastly, as someone who is new to the Buffalo area, I always find it interesting to learn about the people who helped to design and shape this city.
ReplyDeleteExcellent blog post, I learned a lot about Buffalo history in this post.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the others that the virtual museums are an increasing necessity, and view them not as a detriment to attendance in person. In fact, I probably would be more inclined to attend an event or visit a museum if I had already taken a virtual tour of said museum and had my interest piqued over some exhibits.
It's nice to see the Penney put on an exhibition about an influential member of Buffalo's society. Before this post, I have not heard of Brent or his achievements, so thank you for enlightening me.
ReplyDeleteI agree with many previous comments that with the Burchfield being a smaller gallery its online presence would help the popularity of this exhibit.
Looking at the Burchfield website, there is a brief biography on Brent explaining the exhibition. What I would like to see is actual objects from the physical exhibit on the website.
I think the Burchfield does a good job explaining their exhibits but they would benefit from having a more interactive website.