South Side Community Art Center Opens Interim Offices in The DuSable Black History Museum and Education Center Honoring Shared Legacy of Dr. Margaret Burroughs on Her Birthday!


South Side Community Art Center Opens Interim Offices in The DuSable Black History Museum and Education Center Honoring Shared Legacy of Dr. Margaret Burroughs on Her Birthday!

CHICAGO, IL – The South Side Community Art Center (SSCAC) has established its interim offices in The DuSable Black History Museum and Education Center in the Washington Park area of Chicago.

SSCAC’s temporary move comes at the heels of its $18-million renovation and expansion project and represents a meaningful chapter in SSCAC’s 85-year history as a steward of Black art and culture. The capital project includes preservation of its landmark 1892 building at 3831 South Michigan Avenue and construction of a new 10,000 square-foot addition. The expanded facility will deepen SSCAC’s capacity to serve artists, students, and the broader public through exhibitions, residencies, education, and cultural programs.

Though distinct institutions, SSCAC and the DuSable share a deep historical and cultural connection through the legacy of Dr. Margaret T. Burroughs, co-founder of both organizations. In celebration of this lineage, SSCAC and the DuSable will celebrate with cake on November 1 at 1:00 PM in honor of Dr. Burroughs’ birthday and her lifelong commitment to Black cultural organizing.

“This is a time of powerful transformation for the Center,” said Monique Brinkman-Hill, Executive Director of SSCAC. “Being housed on the DuSable campus allows us to stay grounded in our home community while continuing to grow our programs and steward the incredible legacy entrusted to us.”

Founded as part of the Works Progress Administration (WPA) in 1940 and dedicated by First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt in 1941, SSCAC is the oldest independently run, and continuously operating Black arts institution in the United States that remains from the WPA-era. Throughout its history, SSCAC has supported countless artists – including Gwendolyn Brooks, Gordon Parks, Charles White, Archibald Motley, Eldzier Cortor, and Dr. Burroughs herself – providing one of the first platforms in Chicago for African American artists to exhibit, teach, and build community.


The historic home, transformed into a gallery space using New Bauhaus design principles, became a cultural hub for the Bronzeville community during the 20th century and was designated a Chicago Landmark in 1994 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2017. As SSCAC embarks on this next chapter, it remains devoted to its founding mission: to conserve, preserve and promote the legacy and future of Black art and artists while expanding arts education in the community and beyond.

“We are proud to be able to provide a temporary home to the South Side Community Art Center, and I know that Dr. Burroughs would be thrilled to see both of her wonderful institutions under the same roof for a time. We hope that this arrangement will be an opportunity for our two organizations to develop an ongoing partnership to pursue collaborative opportunities in arts and education, while reinforcing the legacy of Dr. Burroughs and enhancing community engagement for both iconic institutions,” said Perri Irmer, president and CEO of the DuSable.

SSCAC’s presence at the DuSable aligns with the Museum’s upcoming 65th Anniversary celebrations and highlights the institutions’ shared commitment to Black art and cultural exchange. The celebration will begin with the opening of Paris in Black: Internationalism and the Black Renaissance, one of the largest exhibitions ever presented by the Museum.

This groundbreaking exhibition traces the vibrant intersections of art, music, and literature that defined the global Black presence in Paris. It also reveals how Black artists, writers, and intellectuals retreated to the City of Lights for creative freedom. Through original paintings and sculpture, rare photographs, archival materials, and immersive storytelling, Paris in Black celebrates the transatlantic dialogues that redefined modernism – and the enduring spirit of Black internationalism that continues to inspire today.

About the South Side Community Art Center

Founded in 1940 as part of the Works Progress Administration (WPA), the South Side Community Art Center is the oldest independent Black art center of its kind in the United States. For over eight decades, SSCAC has been a home for intergenerational artists, a protector of Black visual legacy, and a catalyst for community dialogue through exhibitions, education, and cultural organizing.

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