#art musing |
"Reconsidering Detroit"
By Diego Andrés Barnes July 2014
To sell a masterpiece or not to sell, that is the question… but neither the curator Todd Levin, Marlborough nor Marianne Boesky galleries want you to think about the sprawling cooperative exhibition Another look at Detroit in those terms. But I can’t help it. No matter the volume of positively-charged mentions that flutter about the internet that side with the curatorial prowess of this utterly enchanting exhibition, you say Detroit I think; grey area of extremes. Contrast the innovative and DIY beautification culture that has come out of public art initiatives such as the Heidelberg Project with the longstanding and vast permanent collection of an institution like the Detroit institution of Art (DIA) both of which fight for their life on opposite sides of the cultural scale. The Heidelberg Project was recently hit by a group of fires which destroyed about half the buildings and vacant homes the project used as canvases for their public sculpture. At the close of his recent NY Times interview, Heidelberg Project founder Tyree Guyton is optimistic. “This is a new beginning. This is two plus two equals eight. We’re making magic here!”. Many could say the same about DIA’s “Grand Bargain”, a plan that hopes to convert it’s collection of high valued art into a charitable trust. This move would simultaneously halt attempts by the US Treasury and Detroit’s creditors from tapping the city’s municipally owned fine art collection to pay the more than 800 million dollar deficit facing pensioners. The “bargain” would also stand as a symbol for the cultural longevity of Detroit, despite all. The real magic in this whole dismal situation is that many of the nations largest philanthropic entities have pledged hundreds of millions of dollars to the cause. In fact, foundations like the Kresge Foundation, the Kellogg Foundation, and New York’s Ford Foundation have taken on Detroit’s artistic preservation wholeheartedly. Lawrence T. McGill, a philanthropic researcher, claims that this level of donation from more than 13 major foundations is somewhat unheard of. For instance, nationally, between 2008 and 2012, foundations donated only 550 million dollars in support of reducing the fallout from the American economic crisis. Interestingly enough, despite the influx of financial interest in supporting Detroit’s art world, Curator Todd Levin has said that “Another look at Detroit" is not intended to say “up with Detroit” as some might be thinking. Rather, gallery host, Marianne Boesky insists that “We wanted a show that reflected a living city, not a dead city, and that if it had a message it might be ‘Don’t take what’s left.’ ” What’s left, as the New York show highlights, is a glamorized past of manifest destiny-turned American Dream-gone haywire. One enters both gallery spaces through curtained, dimly lit rooms featuring all of four pieces each. In both spaces, this room is offered as a sort of preamble to the following, more multifaceted spaces. In one of the first rooms a found art object, “The Book of Knowledge”. It is on display, having just barely survived both fire and water damage. As a found art object, “The New Book of Knowledge” is a transparent metaphor for the city, who set industry standards and lead the world in terms of manufacturing in it’s prime but despite all has faced a fall from grace unlike any city in America and now is often considered a cautionary tale. Both galleries' main exhibition spaces were broken up with large, wide, though not ceiling height, walls. Both were made to look only partially finished. The walls, one in plywood, and the other, raw drywall, also stood out to me as crucial metaphors. I read them as a symbol of the fact that despite all the decay and destruction that Detroit is so notorious for having undergone, the art coming out of it, and the art world encompassing it is still building and growing. This notion, combined with the eclectic hanging of pieces in non-traditional ways, also points to a playfulness and progressive attitude toward art that is devoid of pretension and highly welcoming. This shows physical breadth and wide span of time is all due to the collaboration that has taken place between Detroit and New York’s art scenes. In fact, every loan request made by Mr. Levin in preparation for this show was met with an affirmative, which is very uncommon for a show housed at for-profit venues. The artists, owners, and institutions from which the works were borrowed saw an opportunity to both help themselves, but more so to re-globalize Detroit through it’s vast cultural output as opposed to its former industrial offerings. “Another Look at Detroit” felt like an invitation to participate in Detroit’s unique brand of openness, perseverance, and community. As a broke, high-strung New Yorker I felt humbled to be able to shake the metaphorical hand of Detroit, a cultural community with simultaneously nothing to lose and every possibility under the sun.
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holler @ me: diegerbomb <— my personal blog
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