These Walls CAN Talk: Heritage and Hope at the Mafundi Building in Watts

As L.A.’s Watts neighborhood reeled from the 1965 Rebellion against systemic injustice, Black architects and civil rights activists Art Silvers and Robert Kennard designed a place of healing and hope. The Watts Happening Cultural Center opened in 1970 as the home of the Mafundi Institute (“mafundi” is Swahili for artisans or craftspeople), which provided a vital creative outlet for self-expression and Black empowerment. Now widely known as the Mafundi building, this Late Modern gem is a rare symbol of art and culture with an uncertain future.

USC’s Materials Conservation class studied the building this term, using pandemic workarounds to assess everything from the windows to the coffee shop’s collection. Join us for a humdinger of a season finale about the Mafundi building’s history, significance, condition, and precarious situation. Learn about the class project from instructor Peyton Hall, FAIA and students Arabella Delgado, Emi Takahara, and Melissa Miller. And hear from alumna Rita Cofield, a lifelong community member and part of the grassroots preservation effort, about what this place means to the people of Watts and how you can help.

This episode is dedicated to the memory of Jerome Robinson – scholar, MHC alumnus, and friend – pictured at Disneyland Paris in 2017 with Save As co-host Trudi Sandmeier.

Podcast Breakdown

• • • [04:12] What’s the difference between a brick and a historic brick?
    • [12:30] History of the Mafundi building
    • [20:47] Watts Coffee House
    • [26:25] Windows!
    • [29:40] Watts community and Mafundi
    • [33:25] Saving the Mafundi building

Want to know more about some of the ideas and places mentioned in this episode? Check out:

Friends at Mafundi – sign up for emails (bottom of page) for updates

Friends at Mafundi Change.org petition

An Odyssey in B-Flat: Rediscovering the Life and Times of Master Architect Robert Kennard, 2018 master’s thesis by Jerome Robinson

The Watts Prophets

Wattstax

Faculty Member Peyton Hall, FAIA Endows Heritage Conservation Scholarship Fund, USC News

MHC Alumna Rita Cofield Keeps the Spirit of Mafundi in Watts, USC News

USC Master of Heritage Conservation program

Episode Guests

	Peyton Hall, FAIA is Adjunct Professor, School of Architecture, University of Southern California and Principal Architect Emeritus of Historic Resources Group. He serves on the Boards of the Angelino Heights Historic Preservation Overlay Zone and Friends of the Schindler House. He is a Trustee of the U. S. National Committee, International Council of Monuments and Sites.
	Rita Cofield was raised and currently lives in the Florence-Graham area of Southeast Los Angeles. She received her BA in Architecture and Planning from Howard University and recently graduated from USC with a Master in Heritage Conservation. She sits on the board of Trustees with the California Preservation Foundation and is currently leading the charge, with the guidance of long-time community stakeholders, to nominate and revive the Watts Happening Cultural Center in Watts.
	Arabella Delgado is a Ph.D. student in American Studies and Ethnicity. Her research interests include critical heritage conservation, urban studies, Latinx studies, and the history of the U.S. West. Arabella is originally from El Paso, Texas and focuses on preservation projects along the U.S.-Mexico border.
	Emi Takahara is originally from San Francisco and has a background in food and art. Before starting at USC in 2020, she worked in materials conservation, specifically on immovable cultural property. She is interested in the intersection of food, community, and heritage conservation, especially in our underrepresented communities in California.
	Dr. Melissa Miller is a USC Master of Heritage Conservation graduate student as well as a faculty member for the USC Libraries. She serves primarily as a teaching and research academic librarian as head of the historic Hoose Library of Philosophy.  Her graduate research focuses on adaptive reuse strategies to help mitigate the issues of homelessness and social injustice.
	Podcast co-host Cindy Olnick recently interviewed the Arch 551 team about the Mafundi Building. Cindy is a communications pro who loves L.A. and thinks historic places are magic.

Credits on About page