If history were taught as stories it would never be forgotten…

Black Architects and the Smithsonian National African American Museum of History and Culture

Despite extensive media coverage, the journey of the Smithsonian National African American Museum of History and Culture remains largely untold, particularly in the context of African Americans' unique relationship with the National Mall and its role in shaping national identity. This project explores the century-long quest to establish an African American presence on the Mall, revealing the complex connections between history, architecture, aspiration, and daily life. Through four time-specific narratives—three historical non-fiction and one Afrofuturistic fiction—each etched onto tiles overlaid on historical and speculative museum designs, the installation challenges the notion of history as fixed and objective. The rearrangeable and expandable tiles, including 64 pre-written and 34 blank ones for public contribution, invite visitors to disrupt the official narrative, encouraging new interpretations and diverse, evolving stories of the past, present, and future while questioning who tells these stories, why they are told, and who benefits from them. 

Conceived and curated by University of Michigan architecture professor Craig Wilkins, this exhibition examines the significance of the work of Black architects despite systemic challenges, and the sometimes-contentious connections between history, architecture, aspirational, and everyday experience. 

Craig Wilkins PhD, an associate professor of architecture at the University of Michigan’s Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning, is a hip-hop architectural theorist, architect, artist, academic, and activist known for engaging communities in collaborative design processes. A recipient of the 2017 National Design Award from the Cooper-Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum, he serves as creative director of the Wilkins Project, a social justice and strategic design alliance providing architectural and urban design services with a focus on public interest design and marginalized communities. Formerly the director of the Detroit Community Design Center, Wilkins’s award-winning practice spans both written and built work, emphasizing the transformative potential of publicly accessible design. His designs have been widely featured in publications such as The Washington Post, The Atlantic, and Fast Company. A leading scholar on African Americans in architecture, Wilkins explores the cultural, historical, and aesthetic contributions of underrepresented designers in books, essays, and public talks, including his acclaimed works The Aesthetics of Equity, Ruffneck Constructivist, and Diversity Among Architects. His contributions have earned honors such as the 2014 A’ Design International Competition Silver Award, a 2008 ACSA Collaborative Practice Award, a 2010 Kresge Fellowship, and the 2015 “Dear Architecture” International Ideas Competition. 

This exhibit is presented in partnership with the University of Michigan and Associate Professor,  Craig  L. Wilkins, PhD, National Center for Institutional Diversity, and Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning at the University of Michigan.