Awards

The jury awards a Special Citation for Grassroots Initiative to Friends At Mafundi (F.A.M.), a coalition that seeks to sustain the history, culture and tradition of the Watts neighborhood, for their efforts to save the Mafundi Building. The two-story, white stucco structure was designed by prominent Los Angeles-based Black architects Arthur “Art” Silvers and Robert Kennard in 1969-70 as part of neighborhood revitalization efforts after the 1965 Watts Rebellion. In 1972, artist Elliott Pinkney added a powerful mural for the Mafundi Institute symbolizing the spirit of a resilient community. The building has been an anchor for many cultural and social service organizations over the years. F.A.M. formed in February 2020 in response to a request for proposals issued by the City of Los Angeles that left the Mafundi building open to demolition. F.A.M. raised awareness of the issue through online petitions, word of mouth, and social media. They encouraged supporters to submit comments to LA City Council. Rita Cofield, F.A.M. member and University of Southern California Master of Heritage Conservation alum, prepared a Historic-Cultural Monument application. At the Cultural Heritage Commission meeting in April 2021, numerous public comments were heard in support of the designation, and the Commission voted unanimously to landmark the site and cancel the RFP. The landmark process is still ongoing, and Docomomo US is pleased to recognize the success of the efforts thus far and to emphasize the need to preserve modern sites by Black designers and other underrepresented communities.

applauded the “ability to put pressure on local agencies and make a difference in saving this building.”

- Flora Chou, 2021 Advocacy Committee member

Restoration Team

Advocates: Friends At Mafundi

Designer(s)

Robert Kennard

Architect

Robert Alexander Kennard, FAIA, was born in Los Angeles and founded his firm here in 1957. He began with residential design and completed some 40 residences through the early 1960s. One of his first homes, the Zeiger Residence, has been designated as a City of Los Angeles Cultural-Historic Monument. But in the mid-1960s he shifted his practice to public work.

Arthur "Art" Silvers

Architect

Arthur Silvers was a partner of Kennard and Silvers, the first Black architecture firm in Los Angeles. He was from a generation of post World War II architects whose work demonstrated a break from traditional European influences. Silvers and Kennard were modernists -- influenced by Richard Neutra and Victor Gruen. Silvers was the Historian and Parliamentarian for the National Organization of Minority Architects (NOMA) in the 1970s. He and Kennard attended the USC School of Architecture and were both members of Scarab (Architecture Fraternity). (Source: LA Conservancy)

Other designers

Elliott Pinkney, mural artist

Commission

1965

Completion

1969

Original Brief

After the 1965 Watts Uprising, USC Architecture alumni Robert Kennard and Arthur (Art) Silvers partnered with Pollak, Barsocchini, and Associates and the Community Redevelopment Agency of Los Angeles to create a plan to rebuild the infrastructure of Watts. The design included connecting bridges, garden courts, and a new type of architecture style called Afro-Western architecture. This style combined contemporary American architecture with shapes that represent the African culture (square, circle, rectangle, and triangle). A simliar influence is seen in the nearby 102nd Street Elementary School (now the Florence Griffith Joyner Elementary School), another Kennard and Silvers project, completed in 1972.

It is unclear if this style was incorporated in the Mafundi building, and more research is currently being conducted. The Watts Masterplan was never fulfilled, instead the city slowly rebuilt the community one building at a time. The Mafundi building was the first of these piecemeal projects to be completed.

The two-story, white stucco structure was designed by Kennard and Silvers. Partners at the time, both architects were influenced by the modernism of Richard Neutra, Victor Gruen, and Paul R. Williams. Kennard and Silvers were as much activists as architects, particularly when it came to the next generation. Local advocate and founder of Friends at Mafundi Rita Cofield noted in the LA Historic Cultural Monument nomination form that as African Americans, Kennard and Silvers “made it their mission to encourage and mentor young people, especially underrepresented ethnicities, to pursue careers in architecture and urban planning. They made sure students were also aware of social justice issues as they themselves navigated inequalities as professionals.”

The building opened in 1969 and has been an anchor for many cultural and social service organizations over the years, including the New Watts Writers Workshop, created by poet Amde Hamilton of the renowned Watts Prophets. From 1969 to 1975, it housed the Mafundi Institute, named for the Swahili word for craftspeople or artisans. The cultural academy gave Black artists creative space and freedom, fostering self-empowerment, community identity, and African aesthetics. In 1972, artist Elliott Pinkney created a mural on the northeast façade depicting the institute’s logo, the silhouette of a young Black man radiating other silhouettes in the Pan-African colors of red, green, and black.

Current Use

Now officially named the Robert Pitts Westminster Neighborhood Center (after the first black Regional Administrator of the US Department of Housing and Urban Development), the building houses the Los Angeles Education Corps and the Watts Coffee House. The latter is a soul food restaurant that’s been there since 1995 and was recognized as a Legacy Business by the Los Angeles Conservancy. Its walls are covered in memorabilia including classic albums, headshots of up-and-coming actors, autographs by the likes of Steve Harvey, even a note from one of the architects, Art Silvers.

Awards

Case Study House No. 21

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Designer(s)

Robert Kennard

Architect

Arthur "Art" Silvers

Architect

Other designers

Original Brief

Current Use