In 1969, the City of Seattle used federal Model Cities funds to purchase a building for use as a community center, the Chevra Bikur Cholim Synagogue, which was designed in 1915 by B. Marcus Priteca (1889-1971) and located at 104 17th Avenue South in the Central District neighborhood. In 1971 the building became the home of what is now known as the Langston Hughes Performing Arts Institute (LHPAI), the hub for African American arts and culture in Seattle. After 45 years as a program of Seattle Department of Parks and Recreations, in 2018 a non-profit arts organization, LANGSTON, was created to oversee LHPAI and to strengthen and advance local community through Black arts and culture.
In this image Shirley Parker, singer and pianist, performs during a "Singing for Your Supper" gospel concert at the Langston Hughes Cultural Art Center, as it was then known. The event collected food and money for the Rainier Food Bank's Operation Emergency Center.
Caption information source: "Langston Hughes Performing Arts Institute (Seattle)," by Zola Mumford, HistoryLink.org Essay 10909. Caption information source: https://www.langstonseattle.org/our-story/#top Caption information also derived from captions written by Post-Intelligencer staff and attached to the back of the photograph.
ID Number: 2000.107.138.12.01
Date: 1982
Physical Description: 1 photographic print : b&w ; 8 x 10 in.
Additional Information: Digital copy of this item available thanks to funding from a 2016 Institute for Museum and Library Services grant.
