(Photo by Mark Doremus)
#BronzevilleSummer: Our Milwaukee Experience is an inaugural series in the Bronzeville Cultural and Entertainment District presented by Friends of Bronzeville in collaboration with City of Milwaukee, Jazale’s Art Studio, CUPED Corporation, and MKE<>LAX. Programs will be open to the public and will be free or low cost. As a way to connect large community events already happening in the district (Juneteenth, Garfield Days Festival, Jazz in the Hood, Jazale’s Art Studio Youth Programs and Cultural Events, and Bronzeville Week), # BronzevilleSummer is the umbrella that brings it all together under a unified vision. We see this community as a destination location for everyone’s summer entertainment, nightlife and live music experience, art, and culture. This public program series will celebrate AfricanAmerican culture by focusing on local creative entrepreneurial talent with art performances and installations, markets for youth and adults including a business summit, and health, wellness and housing resources.
The Bronzeville Cultural and Entertainment District is a City of Milwaukee redevelopment initiative inspired by Milwaukee’s original Bronzeville District of the early to mid 1900s. The primary AfricanAmerican economic and social hub of its time, Bronzeville brought all ethnicities together to celebrate AfricanAmerican culture, highlighting jazz, blues and the arts. Those living in Bronzeville recall a commercial corridor with nightclubs such as Metropole Club and the Moon Glow featuring performances by such pioneers as Billie Holiday, Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Dizzy Gillespie and Nat “King” Cole, to mention a few.
Our 21st Century Bronzeville initiative is revitalizing this area of Milwaukee where AfricanAmerican culture has been a mainstay. From Garfield Street to Center Street, and Dr Martin Luther King Drive to 7th Street, the Bronzeville District is slated to offer unique opportunities for locals and tourists. We are excited about the Bronzeville Neighborhood Cluster Development on North Avenue which is further stimulating new arts, culture and business investment. Anchors in this cluster are Pete’s Farmer’s Market and the redevelopment of the Historic Garfield School Cultural Campus with The Griot apartment complex that will be the new home for the America’s Black Holocaust Museum. W e are also hopeful about aligning with the $3 billion being invested in new Downtown development one mile South, including the Bucks sports arena and entertainment district and the streetcar line which will connect to Bronzeville. Through # BronzevilleSummer , we are providing programming that highlights, reflects, and grows the gems that already exist in the Bronzeville community as well as the new development energy underway. We are bringing together cu lture, history, art, commerce, and community rooted in this rich urban tradition.
2016 #BronzevilleSummer Series
June 19, 9:00am -5:00pm: Juneteenth Day Parade and Street Festival
June 25, 7:00pm-9:00pm: perception. Performance by Katie Loughmiller at Jazale’s Art Studio
July 8, 3:30pm-9:00pm: 4th Annual Jazz in the Hood at Garfield School Cultural Campus featuring Kevin Hayden Band, Evan Christian, and other local artists supporting Bone Marrow and Blood Donation Awareness
July 16, 12:00pm -8:00pm: 19th Annual Garfield Blues, Jazz, Gospel and Arts Festival Booth and Workshop
August 6-13: 4th Annual Bronzeville Week with the Arts and Cultural Festival on August 6th, 10:00am 6:00pm
As well, Jazale’s Art Studio provides free arts programming to youth ages 717 with workshops every Tuesday and Thursday from 2:30pm 6:00pm from June 21August 25, as well as field trips to Alice’s Garden and DJ classes scheduled on Wednesdays.
Other programming in development to highlight the neighborhood culture includes Yoga on the Block, trolley tours, outdoor movie nights, outdoor community meals, and job resource fairs.
Community Partners
Friends of Bronzeville
www.friendsofbronzeville.com
The Friends of Bronzeville (FOB) is a group of residents committed to the complete development and sustainability of Milwaukee’s Bronzeville Cultural and Entertainment District. Formed in 2012, FOB began hosting a summer week long event call Bronzeville Week as a way to: highlight all the great work happening in the area, energize a shared vision for the district, and to provide uniquely curated programming that showcases the many varieties of art and culture in Milwaukee’s urban community. An ultimate goal of FOB is to establish an endowment fund that can be used to support and sustained community and cultural programming for generations to come.
Jazale’s Art Studio
www.jazalesartstudio.org
Located in Bronzeville next to the Garfield School Cultural Campus, Jazale’s Art Studio promotes arts and education in our community by providing children with instruction and exposure to a div erse range of arts, along with homework help. With encouragement and modeling, we assist children in expressing themselves creatively while developing pride in their neighborhood. Our target demographic is aged 717 in the Milwaukee area. Our art projects spanning several disciplines paired with afterschool homework help strive to promote academic excellence.
CUPED Corporation
www.cuped.org
CUPED (Cultivating Urban Plan and Economic Development) was organized 1) to promote and
protect traditional urban neighborhoods by working to eliminate physical, economic and social deterioration; 2) to educate the public concerning the role of traditional urban centers; and 3) to partner with othdser individuals and organizations, both public and private, to foster and enhance public awareness of the role of traditional urban centers. CUPED was formed by individuals with vision and experience in real estate and a passion for urban Milwaukee.
MKE<>LAX
www.mkelax.org
MKE<>LAX focuses on cultural production and exchange through creating social interactions in
developing landscapes. MKE<>LAX investigates two American regions, with Milwaukee and Los Angeles as epicenters, through residencies and public programs to explore empathetic, structural support of market expansion for regional poetics. MKE<>LAX consults with the Greater Milwaukee Committee on the development of The Milwaukee Method of Creative Placemaking and Creational Trails with support from ArtPlace America and the Kresge Foundation.
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