116 portraits will transform vacant Corktown building into year-round cancer tribute

A long vacant building in Corktown will soon stare back at the city. 

This spring, 116 hand-painted portraits of cancer survivors will fill the windows of the former CPA Building at Michigan Avenue and 14^th Street, transforming the structure into a public ode to resilience, healing and community storytelling.

The installation, entitled STILL HERE: Rooted in Place, Emerging in Public, is led by Lions & Rabbits Center for the Arts in partnership with the North Corktown Neighborhood, Business Associations, Knight Foundation, Steelcase, and the American Cancer Society, using public art as a tool for creative placemaking and cancer awareness.

“We don’t often use the word ‘healing,’ when we talk about cancer,” said Hannah Smith, executive director of Lions & Rabbits Center for the Arts. “But what happens when a community shows up publicly for people who’ve lived through it?”

The concept grew out of Detroit Month of Design collaborations, when organizers began exploring how creative placemaking could address real community experience. Cancer, Smith said, is something nearly every family can relate to.

And, while one day standing outside the empty CPA Building, the concept became clear: “There are 116 windows in that building,” said Smith, “We thought – what if every window held a face?”

Each portrait begins with a photograph taken by Corktown-based creative Lamar Dupree, and is then painted by a local artist. Organizers are prioritizing participants who live or work in the surrounding neighborhood, including restaurant workers and small business employees.

“This is about the people of Corktown,” Smith said. “The artists are from the community. The photograph is from the community. The people in the portraits are from the community.”

The installations will also feature interactive audio stations allowing visitors to scan QR codes and hear recorded stories from survivors and caregivers. A large-scale mural – created by artist Ivan Montoya alongside paid local youth apprentices – will wrap part of the building, featuring native floral species and Indigenous language.

While Lions & Rabbits focuses on the creative placemaking component, the American Cancer Society is working to expand awareness and outreach.

Sati Smith, a local ambassador with the American Cancer Society’s Voices of Black Women initiative, said the project aligns closely with the organization’s mission. 

“Cancer affects so many people – those currently fighting, those newly diagnosed and survivors,” said Sati. “Some people don’t want to talk about their diagnosis, because it was devastating. This project makes it visible and reminds people they’re not alone.”

The Voices of Black Women initiative focuses on research participation among Black Women ages 25 to 55 who have never been diagnosed with cancer. Combining this outreach with a highly visible public art installation, according to Sati, strengthens community engagement.

“It’s about getting the word out,” she said. “Encouraging people to get tested, get treated and listen to survivor stories.”

Organizers are still seeking at least 50 additional participants for the portrait series. Survivors, caregivers and family members may all take part.

The installation will begin in spring, with initial elements unveiled during International Placemaking Week, scheduled for June 24-26 in Detroit. A community paint-by-numbers event and dinner will accompany the unveiling. The completed installation will remain on display year-round and will be featured during the American Cancer Society’s Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Walk in October.

For Smith, the project represents both personal and neighborhood transformation.

“It’s an empty building right now,” she said. “But when 116 artists and 116 survivors rally around it, it becomes a place of belonging.”

Community members interested in participating can sign up at lionsandrabbits.com/placemaking/detroit.