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Learn about the history of African Americans in flight through this stirring collection of historical and contemporary photographs, first-hand interviews, and inspiriting stories of triumph and tragedy.
Celebrate the season, come to view the Wilhelmina L. Stewart Black Santas Collection.
This special exhibit showcases her treasured Black Santa figurines and decorations, honoring African American heritage and holiday traditions.
This will be a festive experience for families and friends.
Visit the Bruce R. Watkins Cultural Heritage Center & State Museum to view the artwork of Michael Brantley November 1-Novenber 30, 2024. Bring your family and your friends.
Mr. Brantley’s artwork is on display in the 2nd Floor Gallery.
We are open Tuesday - Saturday 10am-6pm
Exhibit Hours
Tuesday -Saturday 10:00am-6:00pm
This exhibit celebrates Sistas in the Arts- Culinary, Performance & Literacy.
The Opening Reception is April 6, 2024 3:00pm to 5:00pm.
The Bruce R. Watkins Cultural Heritage Center & Museum features local artist George Mayfield.
The theme of the exhibit is “Black Women Bring Good Things to Life”
Visit the Cultural Heritage Center & Museum Tuesday - Saturday 10:00 am-6:00 pm.
Our closing reception and sales will be on
Saturday August 27,2022 1:00 pm-6:00 pm
Entertainment will be from 2:00 pm - 4:00 pm
Help raise funds for the Bruce R. Watkins Cultural Heritage Center & Museum by support this fundraiser. Mr. Mayfield will donate 30% of the sale price to the Watkins Cultural Heritage Center & Museum. The artwork you purchase will enhance your home or office.
You owe it to yourself to see the awesome artwork of George Mayfield.
So Fresh Exhibit Reception Friday June 24, 2022
6:00-8:00pm
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QTn8nd8-FjI&authuser=0
Kansas City Black History 2021 Book
In partnership with the Kansas City Public Library, the Black Archives of Mid-America and LINC, the Bruce R. Watkins Cultural Heritage Center has been gathered the stories of Kansas City’s great men and women who forever shaped our city and our nation.
The history materials, which have been distributed for free by the thousands into schools, libraries, homes and community centers, warrant a meaningful pause to take them all in.
The 2021 project will debut a free 44-page book compiling the stories of more than 70 influential figures honored over the past ten years — with new essays from Mayor Quinton Lucas and other contemporary voices.
Since education has always been a primary goal of the project, historians and educators are crafting lesson plans to accompany the history that curriculum along with digital copies of the book can be found at kcblackhistory.org. Additional information about the project can be found at kclinc.org/blackhistory.
Please join us for the Crossroads: The Photography of David Bruce Stevens Exhibit Opening and Artist's Reception. David Bruce Stevens' stunning photographs capture the many facets of the African American experience from rural unsung heroes to iconic entertainers and political figures. His textured black and white images provide a visceral experience and create visual narratives that have too often been ignored. The Crossroads exhibit opens Friday, November 22nd, 2019 (6 pm-8 pm) and runs thru January 25th, 2020.
As Juliette Hemingway describes her artistic process, “The marks are making me taking my life, growth and expansion and making it visible. You are experiencing the visual dialouge of a life revolving around healing, autism and awareness. I want you to see it and feel it”
Exhibit Opening / Artist Reception will be held on Thursday, September 5, 2019. 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm
This all inspiring exhibit highlights symbols from ancient Kemet (Egypt). Also, on display are the works of Jewelry Designer, Clarissa Knighten.
FREE ADMISSION
APRIL 2, 2019 – MAY 25, 2019
FREE ADMISSION
April 1, 2019 – August 31, 2019
The Vintage Collection
The Vintage Collection is a series of exhibits from the Bruce R. Watkins Cultural Heritage Center’s permanent collection, featuring iconic photographs of Jazz Greats, and a unique display of Civil Rights pioneers highlighting signs from our past.
Exhibit Opening: January 21, 2019
FREE ADMISSION
Also on display are the permanent exhibits and short documentaries on Mr. Bruce R. Watkins, and the Buffalo Soldiers.
A Sense of Place and Purpose Exhibition
During the fall of 2018, the main exhibition at the Bruce R. Watkins Cultural Heritage Center is a display titled “A Sense of Place and Purpose” by Photographer Ray Hill, and visual artist Yvette Wilkins.
Ray Hill is a retired Middle School Social Studies and English teacher from Kansas City, Missouri. His work features historic photographs from slave settlement towns in the State of Missouri. Hill’s desire to share his life experiences and the places he visited with students through pictures is what inspired his photographic exhibition.
Yvette M. Wilkins graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Pre-Art Therapy and also received a Master’s degree in Counseling/Psychology from Avila University. Wilkins’ work features paintings of women that influenced her during the course of her life. While Yvette has worked with traditional materials for decades, she has recently ventured off into using digital materials.
Also featured in the lower level gallery spaces are the works of visual artists LaVonda Johnson and Gerome Berry. Both of whom are proud residents of Kansas City. Their exhibits feature paintings, drawings, artifacts and mixed media that will be on display at the Center until December 31, 2018.
Ben Mercer- A Retrospective Exhibition
June 1 – September 1, 2018
Grand Opening: Friday June 8, 2018
6pm – 8pm
Now on display at the Bruce R. Watkins Cultural Heritage Center & Museum is a collection of mixed media paintings and historic Kansas City photographs by local artist and photographer, Ben E. Mercer.
Ben Mercer graduated from Lincoln University with a BS in Education and a Minor in Biology. He received his Master’s in Adult Education from the University of Missouri- Kansas City. Not before developing and improving his skills in photography.
Mr. Mercer went to work for the Kansas City, Missouri Parks and Recreations Department from where he retired. The photography skills he achieved while in college still supply the foundation for his works today.
By taking photographs, Mr. Mercer is able to freeze time and capture the full essence of the minute for drawing at a later time. Being a true perfectionist, his works are complete in his head before he presses the shutter on his camera or puts the pen to paper. His style is distinctive because of his obsession with detail and exactness.
In the December 1993 issue of the Artist Magazine, Ben Mercer received the honor as one of the top 200 portrait artists out of 11, 500 artists.
Also on display at the Center in the lower level gallery spaces are works by Endia Lasker and Eboni Feaster.
THE ART OF MY LIFE by visual artist, Essex Garner is the newest exhibit on display at the Bruce R. Watkins Cultural Heritage Center. This exhibition features inspiring oil and watercolor paintings on African American life. This vivid and iconic exhibition has been displayed in numerous galleries and museums throughout the United States.
Formally trained as an artist at Lincoln University, in Jefferson City, MO, and influenced by the artists, Henry Ossawa Tanner and Dean Mitchell, Essex Garner holds a Bachelor’s of Science in Art Education and a Master’s in Education in Leadership Training & Curriculum Development with an emphasis in Art Education.
Garner currently resides in Jefferson City, MO but is a Kansas City native, and was raised a few blocks from the historic 18th & Vine district. He attended Central Jr. & Sr. High Schools. He is a four time juried artist with the National Oil & Acrylic Painter Society Best of America, and a Professor of Fine Arts at Lincoln University in Jefferson City, Missouri.
The Art of My Life exhibition features iconic paintings of Barack Obama, 44th President of the United States of America, Michelle Obama, Aretha Franklin, the Buffalo Soldiers, and much more.
The exhibit will be displayed January 13th through March 10, 2018.
The SONGS FROM THE SOUL exhibit explores African American ICONS in Jazz, Rhythm & Blues, Gospel, Soul, and Rock & Roll while examining the relationship between music, history and culture….
Based upon historical text captions and original portrait illustrations by international artist Wolfram Schramm, and historic black and white photographic portraits from the William Gottlieb Collection, SONGS FROM THE SOUL is bound to inspire visitors of all ages with life-size electrifying portraits that seem to come to life.
With over 35 portrait pictures and photographs featuring music legends like Ray Charles, Charlie Parker, Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder, James Brown, Ella Fitzgerald, Tina Turner, Aretha Franklin, Diana Ross, and Whitney Houston, to mention a few, this all inspiring exhibit is on display until December 31, 2017.
The Center’s hours are Tuesday through Saturday from 10am – 6pm.
The World of Art – By Joseph Smith
Joseph Smith is an acclaimed visual artist born in Kansas City, Kansas. He holds a Master of Arts degree from the University of Central Missouri, in addition to a Bachelor of Arts and an Associate’s Degree which he earned from the University of Missouri –Kansas City and Penn Valley Community College respectively.
Over the years, Mr. Smith worked several types of jobs, most notably for the Kansas City Missouri Fire Department and Kansas City Area Transportation Authority as a Bus Operator.
His paintings and pottery creations reflect how he (Jo Smith) engages with the world around him. In this exhibit, Mr. Smith showcases themes of art that are historical in nature but have relevance in the modern world. The artwork on display highlights Kansas City monuments, the Civil Rights era, Jazz Greats, African American women in church hats, “Still Life”, and African paintings. With over 50 pieces of pottery and paintings on display, Mr. Smith’s artwork is bound to inspire all of us to see what is possible and not what limits us.
This exhibit showcases the contributions of Black women and men in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and math.
Come and experience the genius of these inventors and innovators through more than 100 viewable inventions, reproductions, and representative samples for ancient African Cultures and modern culture.
Additionally, "Making a Difference: African-Americans Leading by Example" will be on display in the lower gallery.
The work of local artist, Pierre Owens, will be on display in the children's gallery.
This exhibit is free and open to the public.
The Echoes of Slavery and Segregation Exhibit is a collection of rare photos, portrait pictures and documents from three exhibits that highlight the history of slavery and segregation at the national, state and local level.
The three exhibits on display include the Famous Lewis and Clark Expedition featuring a slave named York, Slavery's Echoes in Missouri and the Whitley Sisters in Kansas City exhibit.
The Bruce R. Watkins Cultural Heritage Center and Museum is proud to present this traveling exhibit. The exhibit chronicles the historic contributions of A. Philip Randolph and the Pullman Porters. The story of these great men and what they stood for is often told within the context of American railroad history, yet the real impact of their lives and mission far exceeds the railroad industry. This exhibit touches on the many stories of African-American participation in U.S. railroad history. Appropriately then, this collection begins with the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863 and highlights important events in the following 100 years to the 1963 March on Washington.
About the Exhibit
This collection was assembled to document specific social events, important concepts, and historical moments in the history of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters (BSCP) union and A. Philip Randolph's leadership. Each exhibit panel tells a part of the story of this unique history. The images are grouped chronologically and are representative of each period. We welcome all to experience this historical exhibit in memory of this important part of African-American history.
This historical exhibit is the property of the National A. Philip Randolph Pullman Porter Museum.
The Historic Registry of African American Railroad Employees is available at the Museum's physical location and it is available on line at www.pullmanportermuseum.com
Click on EVENTS to see documentary information "Rising From the Rails" viewing dates and times three Fridays in March.
The exhibition is based on Mr. Sonny Gibson's popular book on the achievements of African-Americans in Kansas City from the early 1900s through the 1940s.
This exclusive exhibition will display rare photographs, artifacts, and information about a people with great pride and progress.
