Worcester Business Journal

wbjournal.com | March 4, 2024 | Worcester Business Journal 5 Mechanics Hall to unveil portraits honoring Black Americans in March e portrait gallery at Mechanics Hall in Worcester now includes paintings honoring some of the most prominent Black figures in the 19th century's aboli- tion and women's rights movements, with the venue set to unveil the paintings to the public for the first time in March. e three portraits, which were com- missioned in the fall of 2022 and were delivered this year, are set to be revealed during a celebration event on March 14, according to a Feb. 21 press release issued by Mechanics Hall. e Worcester County Mechanics Association, which owns Mechanics Hall, decided in Sep- tember 2020 following the police murder of George Floyd and the ensuing racial reckoning to put prominent Black Amer- icans in the Great Hall, which previously only featured white men and women. e four portrait subjects in the three paintings are: • Martha Tulip Lewis Brown, a free woman of African American descent who was the first woman of color to be- come a member of the Ladies Benevolent Society of the First Unitarian Church in Worcester. Brown helped raise money for freed and fugitive slaves and is believed to have been involved in the Under- ground Railroad. • William Brown, a prominent Black upholster, carpet maker, and inventor who moved from Boston to Worcester with Martha, his wife, in 1841. Brown operated a business from the Central Ex- change Building in downtown Worcester. e portrait of Martha and William was painted by Brenda Zlamany, an artist based in Brooklyn, New York. • Frederick Douglass, widely consid- ered to be one of the most important figures in the abolition movement. Doug- lass spoke at Mechanics Hall on multiple occasions, including shortly aer the venue opened in 1857. e portrait of Douglass was painted by Imo Nse Imeh of Holyoke. • Sojourner Truth, a former slave who was born as Isabella Baumfree. Truth was an abolitionist and temperance advocate who is considered to be one of the most influential Black women of the 19th century. Truth's portrait was painted by Manu Saluja of Long Island. "is is a historic moment for Me- chanics Hall and our vibrantly diverse community. Many of the world's most renowned performers take the Great Hall stage every year," Kathleen Gagne, executive director of Mechanics Hall and co-chair of the Portraits Project, said in the press release. "ey and their audi- ences will now share the hall with – and be inspired by – these striking paintings of Black Americans who lived lives of extraordinary courage. Our community, and especially our children, can look up to the individuals honored in the gallery with pride and hope." e event, entitled "Beyond the Frames," will begin at 5 p.m. with an art- ist talk that is free and open to the public, followed by a paid gala event with catered dinner, dancing, and two auctions to sup- port the hall's educational programming and the Worcester Educational Develop- ment Foundation. Mechanics Hall portrait gallery honors prominent 19th century figures who have ties to the area. e addition of these portraits comes aer a 1999 expansion of the gallery, which saw the addition of four portraits honoring prominent women from the era. Delayed nine-story, $350M UMass Chan research facility on track to finish in June Nearly three and a half years aer the project was first announced, UMass Chan Medical School's new $350-million research and education building is on track to be completed in June. Up to 250 people are working on the final stages of construction of the nine-story, 350,000-square-foot building. Upon its completion, the building will add new research space for more than 70 principal investigators and their lab teams, according to a post on UMass Chan's website published on Feb. 26. Equipment and temporary construc- tion offices will soon be removed from the school's quad, allowing for its resto- ration in anticipation of its commence- ment ceremony slated for June 2. "ere is a lot of site work to be done Martha Tulip Lewis Brown and her husband William Brown will be featured in one Mechanics Hall portrait. I would consider living in Downtown Worcester Boston developer Synergy is proposing to convert Worcester's One Chestnut Place complex, which insurer Fallon Health is vacating later this year, into 220 mostly market- rate residential apartment units. The project joins a litany of other housing developments proposed or underway throughout the city, although very few active proposals are in Downtown Worcester, which is still largely commercial. When polled online, in a very close vote, the slight majority of WBJ readers said they already live in downtown Worcester or would consider doing so. Would you consider living in Downtown Worcester? on the quad and around the building," Brian Duffy, senior director of facili- ties management for capital projects at UMass Chan, said in the post. "e plan is to have the area restored with beautiful green grass by Commence- ment." e school's current plan is to co-locate a number of departments and programs at the new building, including the Program in Molecular Medicine, the Horae Gene erapy Center, the Departments of Neurology and Neurobiology, and the school's new Program in Human Genetics & Evolutionary Biology. e research and education building was originally slated to be completed by the fall of 2023, but faced delays in the beginning of its construction. e building ended up being topped out in August 2022, with work continuing on the building since. e facility is designed to be LEED Gold certified by the U.S. Green Build- ing Council, adding to the region's Yes 47% No 48% 5% I already live in Downtown Worcester The $350-million UMass Chan Medical School research and education building is slated to open in June. Continued on next page

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