Hundreds of people lined up on the street on May 6 to get the first look inside the Center for Black Excellence and Culture, the $32 million building at 671 W. Badger Rd.
But the celebration continues long after that grand opening, as the center establishes itself as a Black-led space for gathering, learning, and creating together, with performance spaces, art galleries, and makerspaces.
The center was the brainchild of Rev. Dr. Alex Gee, pastor at Fountain of Life Covenant Church next door, and his sister Lilada Gee. Alex Gee sees the space as sort of the opposite of a Black history museum — while the center would honor the past, it would focus on the future.
The architectural design of the building uses principles of the Black aesthetic to create a welcoming and aspirational feeling, and the collaborations and creative sparks that would result from creating spaces for Black Madisonians to come together.
The City Cast Madison team went last week to the center (which has an excellent podcast recording studio, by the way), where host Bianca Martin talked to Alex Gee about seeing his vision for the space become a reality, and what comes next.
The center will start hosting walking tours following its official opening July 1. Here’s a peek inside the center and all it has to offer Madison and the greater Wisconsin community.
The Women’s Center was designed as a place for Black women to relax and recharge (and get a chair massage). (Jade Iseri-Ramos / City Cast Madison)
The center features two theaters that can also be used as multipurpose spaces. The larger theater has room for between 191 and 361 people, depending on seating arrangements, perfect for live performances, film festival screenings, cultural celebrations, and more.
A smaller theater can hold between 113 and 239 people, and is ideal for wedding receptions, banquets and corporate events. The building also contains art gallery spaces to showcase Black art.
Membership is required to enter these meeting rooms and co-working spaces, where Black talent and business community members can come together to collaborate and support each other.
This intimate Black-designed lounge is designed for weddings, concerts, and other special events, with access to the center’s Black Porch Deck overlooking Madison.
The center is full of small classroom-style rooms that can be rented for meetings and seminars, as well as maker spaces (also rentable) full of art supplies for people to work together on painting, textile, photography, and sculpture and digital arts projects.
This dedicated space is for seniors to gather for wellness and health events and social activities, including access to a large games library to play together.
This colorful space was created by and for Black women as a place to connect and recharge together.
