Little Theatre and Carl Van Vechten Art Gallery

The “Little Theatre” is the main center for the performing arts at Fisk. It doesn’t look like most of the campus buildings, but there’s a reason for that. The “Little Theatre” is actually two of the original army barracks from the founding of the university and dates back to 1860. Moved from the Gulch to this site, this is actually the oldest structure on campus! The Fisk Stagecrafters is an award-winning ensemble, and they have performed at the “Little Theatre” for almost a century. First led by John Ross and Lillian Voorhees, the Stagecrafters gained prominence in the mid-20th century for their productions, especially those written by African-American playwrights, including Countee Cullen and Ross himself. 

Fun Fact: In 1943, right here at the “Little Theatre,” the famed African-American author and novelist Richard Wright attended a performance of the Pulitzer Prize–winning play Green Pastures.

Continue down the sidewalk to reach the Carl Van Vechten Art Gallery on your right.

According to the Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture, “In 1888 an enterprising student at Fisk University petitioned his fellow senior classmates to join with the fledgling Fisk Alumni Association to raise funds for a new multipurpose building. The unwavering dedication and persuasive eloquence of the student, W.E.B. DuBois, brought generous results, and an imposing brick structure in Eclectic architectural style was completed in 1889.” The building contains a full basement and originally served as a gymnasium and mechanical arts building, the first such facility constructed on a Black college campus.

Physical education and athletics moved to a new gym in 1948, and this building was renovated and rededicated in 1949 as the Carl Van Vechten Art Gallery. Its namesake was a famed art critic, photographer, and Fisk benefactor. Van Vechten was responsible for encouraging the artist Georgia O’Keefe to donate a large part of her husband Alfred Stieglitz’s art collection to the university. O’Keefe also provided funding for the renovation of the building as an art gallery.

The Stieglitz Collection features 101 works by Cezanne, Picasso, Rivera, Renoir, and O’Keefe, among others. In 2012, after years of legal wrangling, Fisk sold a stake in the collection to the Crystal Bridges Art Museum in Bentonville, Arkansas. The two galleries now share custody of the collection, which is exchanged biennially. The gallery features an outstanding permanent collection of African-American art and exhibits work by Fisk artists—past and present.

Walk to your LEFT to reach the statue of W.E.B. DuBois. From here, you can look across the street to see the Fisk Memorial Bell and W.E.B. DuBois Hall.