Midtown viaducts to become art installations, destinations

Viaducts, some of the darkest and dankest spaces found in any city, are about to become some of the most artful and engaging spots in Detroit. Three viaducts in the city's TechTown district are each to receive tens of thousands of dollars in beautification enhancements.

Three teams of artists will each turn a viaduct into their canvas, with each team receiving a $75,000 budget. New Economy Initiative and the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation are funding the Midtown Viaducts Public Art + Light Project, or MIDVIA. Midtown Detroit, Inc. is the administrator of the project.

At the Cass Avenue Viaduct, Becky Nix and Olek Zemplinski of bioLINIA are installing more than 7,500 reflectors and other sources of lighting throughout the passageway, illuminating an otherwise dark place. Dubbed "Reflector," the installation is said to be an interactive experience.

Cezanne Charles and John Marshall of rootoftwo, LLC, and Karl Daubmann of daub, LLC have teamed to form r+d LAB, the winning entry for transforming the Second Avenue viaduct. Titled "Resonance," the artists are also playing with light, this time through the installation of 22 LED light boxes between the archways of the viaduct, each forcing an intense series of shadow and light.

New D Media Arts, consisting of principals Gabriel Hall and Daniel Land, are employing smart phones as part of the Third Avenue viaduct experience. The "Light Bender" installation allows pedestrians to use their phones to manipulate waves of colored light throughout the pedestrian pathways while animated lights react to entering vehicles.

The project is an opportunity to demonstrate how public art and other efforts in placemaking can positively affect a neighborhood, organizers say. Katy Locker, Knight Foundation program director for Detroit, says, "These artists will help to improve neighborhood life, encouraging people to interact with their neighborhood and creating new opportunities for residents to connect."

Writer: MJ Galbraith

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