Explore Black History

1971; restored 2019

From 1972 until 2010, the Ebony Test Kitchen was where recipes were tested and prepared prior to publication in the storied food section of Ebony magazine or in the multiple cookbooks published by the magazine. Food Editors Charla Draper (1982-1984) and Charlotte Lyons (1985-2010) spent their days in the kitchen testing recipes, styling food for photographers, and planning the next issue’s feature in the food editor’s office close by. The kitchen was a popular gathering spot for both staff members and distinguished guests of the Johnson Publishing Company.
The kitchen was designed by Palm Springs-based interior designers William Raiser and Arthur Elrod of Arthur Elrod Associates and built as part of the early 1970s construction of Johnson Publications’ new headquarters on 820 South Michigan Avenue in Chicago, IL. Chicago-based African American architect John Moutoussamy designed the architecturally progressive 11-story building in a prime location across from Grant Park. The interiors were renowned for their lavish design, unique finishings, and state of the art amenities and the kitchen was no exception. The kitchen’s design has been described as “Afrocentric modernism”, “psychedelic,” and “bold.” Throughout its 38-year use, Ebony elected not to renovate or modernize the iconic design, except for replacing the refrigerator once in its history.
In 2010, the Johnson Family sold the Johnson Publications building, but development plans never materialized and the building remained vacant for almost ten years. Grassroots efforts to save the building from demolition led to it being designated as a national landmark in 2017, but the interiors were not protected. Local advocacy efforts resulted in Landmark Illinois, a nonprofit historic preservation organization headquartered in Chicago, working to preserve the kitchen in 2019. The organization documented, disassembled, and stored the kitchen. The Museum of Food and Drink (MOFAD) later moved and reassembled the kitchen for the exhibition African/American: Making the Nation’s Table, before the kitchen was acquired by the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture in 2023.

The Ebony Test Kitchen, originally located on the 10th floor of the Johnson Publishing Company building in Chicago, Illinois, and restored using original and refurbished pieces. The space comprises both the main kitchen as well as a small sitting room connected via glass doors. The main kitchen features modern, built-in electric appliances by General Electric.
The main kitchen has orange floor tiles and cabinet façades and wallpaper in a swirling, marbleized pattern of orange, olive green, dark purple and earthy red. The focal point is a curved, oblong center island fitted with a six-burner stove and yellow overhead cabinets. Along one wall is a white counter and backsplash with a three-basin sink at center wall and a dishwasher front-paneled with the same marbleized façade as the cabinets. A four-slot toaster is built into the wall at one end of the counter, next to an orange-paneled refrigerator with an ice and water dispenser built-in to one of the French doors. At the other end of the counter is a built-in can opener and a wall with an oven and inset microwave. The opposite wall has a yellow laminate countertop, a serving window, and yellow, glass-front overhead display cabinets. There is a second, smaller sink, another inset can opener, and a trash compactor at the end opposite the refrigerator.
The sitting room area features a wall of built-in, fabric-wrapped yellow bookshelves, beneath which is a six-sided table fitted with a yellow upholstered bench. A television is built into one of the shelf spaces. The sitting room has a carpet in a green, purple, brown, white, and orange basketweave pattern.

National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection

Buildings and Structures

Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Landmarks Illinois and the Museum of Food and Drink

National Museum of African American History and Culture

SC.0086

kitchens
appliances

Images _001 & _002: © Museum of Food and Drink Images _003 & _004: © Johnson Publishing Company Archive, Courtesy J. Paul Getty Trust and Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
Rights assessment and proper usage is the responsibility of the user.

laminate, steel, wood and plastic with fabric, synthetic fiber, and other materials

L x W (kitchen and seating area, assembled): 26 ft × 13 ft (7.9 meters × 3.97 meters)
H (kitchen ceiling): 8 ft (2.4 meters)
H (seating area ceiling): 8.5 ft (2.5 meters)

Title • Ebony Test Kitchen

nmaahc_SC.0086

NMAAHC

EBONY TEST KITCHEN

National Museum of African American History and Culture

CC0

1970s

Moutoussamy, John • Johnson Publishing Company • Raiser, William C. • Lyons, Charlotte • General Electric Corporation • Ebony • Draper, Charla L. • Elrod, Arthur Dea

Chicago • United States • Illinois • North and Central America • Cook County

Design • Cooking • Architecture • Black Press • Interior decoration • Dinners and dining • Mass media

City • Chicago • County • Cook County • State • Illinois • Country • United States • Continent • North and Central America

appliances • kitchens

Images

Unknown - Restrictions Possible