PUBLIC CLASS with Hood Century and Jerald Cooper

Hood Century’s PUBLIC CLASS comes to Juxtaposition Arts as part of their At Least Know Ur Hood! 2025 World Tour. Led by Jerald Cooper—artist, designer, cultural historian, and current Walker artist in residence—this class goes beyond his signature curriculum, “Discovering Black Modernism: In Architecture, Design, and Popular Culture” to focus on the infrastructure of Near North, exploring what Hood Century calls “us and the city.”

In an explorative setting, participants define what Black modernism means in Minneapolis through image-rich case studies and a deep-listening practice that centers neighborhood memory and lived experience. Together, we’ll explore layers of Black culture, connecting academic design history to recognizable moments in everyday life. You’ll leave with a shared vocabulary and a new ways to analyze the built environment, plus a clear pathway to contribute your stories and photos to Hood Century’s living archive.

Public Class, 6–7:30 pm
Kickback, 7:30–8 pm

Hood Century is a visual archive and digital movement that highlights mid-century modern architecture and design in Black neighborhoods. Through his platform @hoodmidcenturymodern, Cooper uncovers homes, storefronts, churches, signage, and domestic interiors in communities often overlooked by traditional design history. Cooper’s account reframes modernism as a living culture, showcasing Black bodies in modern settings, and reclaiming ownership of the very aesthetics they helped to shape and popularize.

No prior training in architecture or design is needed. This class welcomes all ages and backgrounds.