NOMA celebrates its 50th birthday with a new exhibition at the Detroit Historical Society

As part of the National Organization of Minority Architects' 50th-anniversary celebration, the Detroit Historical Society has organized a new exhibition called SAY IT LOUD examining the organization's impact on the built environment.

NOMA was founded by a group of twelve Black architects at the 1971 AIA convention in Detroit. Since then, it has gone on to become one of the leading professional organizations in the design community, growing to represent more than 2,500 architects working in the field. 

"We’ve crossed a lot of milestones," NOMA executive director and Detroit native Tiffany Brown told The Detroit News. "We’ve become the go-to entity of firms or universities that want to become diverse."

Years in the making, SAY IT LOUD is the brainchild of Beyond the Built Environment founder, curator, and 2021 Whitney M. Young Jr. Award recipient Pascale Sablan. Items and artifacts from 50 different significant projects are displayed alongside personal items, like the walking stick handed down from NOMA president to president at the end of their respective tenures. 

Sablan herself will take over as president once 2021-22 president Jason Pugh's term ends.

The exhibition will remain on view at DHS’ Robert and Mary Ann Bury Community Gallery until January 9th. More information about the HOMECOMING celebration which recently wrapped up in Detroit can be found here.