(Columbia, SC) – The Ernest A. Finney, Jr. Cultural Arts Center is hosting a drop-in Open House on Thursday, August 15th from 6:00 to 8:00 PM for the community at-large as it launches a $2 million capital campaign to transform the former Southern Electric Company historical building, originally a tobacco warehouse from the 1940s, into a gathering place for people of all ages who view art as community building.
The Finney Center will break ground on the renovation this fall, using a plan developed by the Boudreaux architectural firm. It will include a stage with seating for 200, which can be opened to the outdoors, an exhibition space with a 360-degree view, a dance floor, studio rooms, and other spaces for multidisciplinary endeavors.
Bounded by two historic districts, the Robert Mills District and the Waverly District, The Finney Center connects the heart of the African American community, past and present, to an ever-changing downtown Columbia, South Carolina. It is housed in a former tobacco warehouse from the 1940s, which was renovated and repurposed in the 1960s for the offices of the Southern Electric Company.
“Black Philanthropy Month is an annual August reminder for us in the Black community to look behind and to also look ahead,” says Director and Poet Nikky Finney. “Both my paternal and maternal grandparents taught me that it was just fine to focus on my own dreams as long as I also donated time, attention, and money to the community in which I lived, worked, and dreamed, making sure it too prospered. Join us at The Finney Center on August 15th as we host an Open House for our community. We want to share with you more about what’s been going on in 2024 and what’s ahead for 2025 and beyond.”
