The Detroit Wrap Up

I had a great time in Detroit. In five action-packed days I experienced downtown, the suburb of Birmingham, the Cranbrook campus, Motown, looked across the Detroit River at Canada, floated on a lake, and ate great middle eastern food.  I saw Diego Rivera Murals, the urban creativity of Heidelberg, 3 deer, 2 groundhogs, 4 owls and a swarm of fireflies.  I met creative and interesting people who are opening shops, galleries and restaurants all throughout Detroit and environs.  There's a lot of great stuff in Detroit. I encourage you to go check it out for yourself.

Motown was born in this house, Hitsville USA.  Singing "My Girl" in Studio A was definitely a highlight of my trip to the Motor City.     (no photos inside, please)

The new Mike Kelly installation at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Detroit (MOCAD)

The hostess with the mostess, Christine Schefman of David Klein Gallery

Walnut Lake, a good place to float around on a raft on a hot day.

   

If you go to Detroit, check out 41 things to do in Detroit before you die:
http://www.detroitmoxie.com/home/2009/10/7/40-things-to-do-in-detroit-before-youre-dead.html

And just in case you need some extra convincing of how cool Detroit is, take it from Mark Wahlberg. He knows Detroit, and Birmingham!
http://www.latenightwithjimmyfallon.com/video/mark-wahlberg-is-pulling-for-detroit/n39433/

The DIA (Detroit Institute of Art)

How many times do municipalities have to learn that art is a great resource?  With so much speculation in the news lately about the value of the art in the DIA and the possibility of selling off the collection to pay the city's debts, I can't help but think they aren't really capitalizing on one of their greatest resources. Over 100 years old, the DIA is one of the most fantastic museums in America, definitely a "must see."  It is a perfect sized, encyclopedic museum with A+ examples of works of art throughout the ages and cultures. Highlights include works by Breugel to Tintoretto to Van Gogh to Picasso to Matisse to Rothko to Warhol to Sarah Sze and oh, yeah, then there are those murals.

Diego Rivera came to Detroit in 1932 commissioned to paint The Detroit Industry fresco cycle.  The murals are comprised of 27 panels depicting industry and technology at the Ford Motor Company. When revealed, they were not without controversy but it didn't take long for them to be considered Rivera's greatest work.

Downtown Detroit - More Shinola, Less Shit

I arrived in Detroit on the exact day the city officially declared bankruptcy and there has been a lot of speculation about what that means.   Despite this news, I saw lots of signs of re-birth.  Motor City Brewing Works, Shinola, The Butcher's Daughter Gallery and Avalon Bakery are all businesses that are breathing life into downtown Detroit.

Shinola produces beautifully made watches, bicycles and leather goods, all products of Detroit design students and was recently seen in the Style section of the Sunday, New York Times.     www.Shinola.com

Avalon Bakery features organic artisinal breads was recently voted one of the 100 top inner city businesses in the United States.    Their motto is "Eat Well / Do Good."    www.avalonbreads.net

Monica Bowman's gallery The Butcher's Daughter Gallery just opened in this new development on Cass Avenue.
www.TheButchersDaughterGallery.com

Motor City Brewing Works, the name says it all.

City Bird and Nest are terrific boutiques featuring Detroit-centric merchandise located in a mixed use building with lofts for rent on top.

The Heidelberg Project

With so much being reported about the city of Detroit these days, I was eager to experience the urban soup of this once great city. The Heidelberg Project seemed like a good place to start.

The Heidelberg Project is an outdoor, urban art environment begun by Detroit artist Tyree Guyton. Named for Heideberg Street where Tyree grew up, it is comprised of many houses and abandoned lots and utilizes recycled and found objects discarded on the streets of Detroit. The project began in 1986 as a response by Tyree to the ongoing blight and decay that exists in many discarded Detroit neighborhoods. Twice it has been destroyed by the city government and each time, Tyree has re-built.

No tour of downtown Detroit is complete without viewing the most beautiful, desolate abandoned train station in the world, The Michigan Central Station. One can only hope someone can do for this beautiful structure what the people of New York did for the High Line.

Michigan Central Station during better days.

For some interesting reading on the state of this magnificent building, check out the following articles:

http://www.theatlanticcities.com/neighborhoods/2013/05/detroits-famously-decaying-train-station-has-5-new-windows-and-no-one-knows-why/5766/

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/06/us/06station.html

A few other sites from Downtown Detroit.

It was quite a moving experience to see how nature is re-claiming this city and how the people who call this neighborhood their home are existing within it. I can tell you that within 10 minutes we were in a newly gentrified area where galleries, restaurants and boutiques are opening and lofts and studio spaces are being rented by people that are hopeful that Detroit will rise again.

To learn more about the Heidelberg Project, go to:
www.heidelberg.org