Detroit: The New Place for Artists or Is That Just Hot Air?? (for sale)

[dundermifflin]

I have been looking into these stories about Detroit - they are really trying to make a comeback! I can find a lot of links about artist moving there and how it is poised for a comeback. Then on the other side of the coin you hear how it is dangerous just to walk around, how the crime rate is the highest or near the top in the US, and the weather is horrible, no jobs, poverty... There are these stories about getting homes for very cheap - then the apartments are hard to find downtown and not very reasonably priced anymore.

Links!!:
Detriot Pushes Back With Young Muscles
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/03/fa...pagewanted=all

For Sale: The $100 House
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/08/opinion/08barlow.html

Nice pics (some of the top pre-war arch in the country, As someone noted - there are no people around!! ):
http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=187665

So which side of the coin is it? Thanks!

[zthatzmanz28]

Artists have been moving to Detroit for years. I remember a group of German or East Europeans who moved into Old English Village with great fan fare...no one made any noise when they moved on...

If you love gritty urban living, if you are inspired by vast waste land of emptiness, then Detroit might be for you. If you want to come to Detroit because it is cool, hip and cutting edge, you might be there awhile.
As for 100 dollar houses, they usually come with $15K repair bills and thousands of dollars in back taxes. But hey, if someone has a few million to play with Detroit could be their playground.

If you are tempted, you owe it to yourself to come to Detroit and see it for yourself. Both sides of the coin are true, to a certain extent. It is not always which side has the most truths, but which side are you willing to live with.

So dundermifflin, are you willing to explore your wild side? Detroit is calling. Who will answer the phone?

[animatedmartian]

Detroit is sort of "what you see is what you get" and creative people can draw from that.

Crime is high, but it's sort of misleading because the way crime is calculated (per 1000 people or whatever) makes it very high ranking. But the actual amount of people in a lot of areas continually decreases while the amount of crime stays the same. I'm not saying it's safe, but I think it's a bit of an exaggeration to say you'd need Kevlar to walk to streets of Detroit unless you're doing something you shouldn't have any business doing. (or you're the last person in the neighborhood.)

Jobs. There are plenty, but they aren't low-wage low-skill jobs. Which is why a lot of the people who live in Detroit are impoverished and unemployed. People who are in college for particular fields are having success in finding jobs locally. Healthcare is a big job creator. A few financial companies in the area seem to be growing as well.

So it's sort of both sides of the coin at the same time, just depends on what your goals are and what you're looking to get from the city and where you are in relation to a lot of factors. Artists just seem to fit that niche of filling in the gaps IMO.

As for weather... well the Great Lakes do provide a unique climate that most people would have to get used to.

[prelawstudent613]

This is an awesome observation. Graduating from CCS, I assumed that this was (and I still do) believe this is a great space and place for the artist (regardless of the medium). However, the bottom had fallen out when the "Big 3" began to suffer. My father is an artist and several family members; one of my family members (a baby boomer) told me that, "no one gives a f#@!" about the art here. The Artists are each others' biggest fans . . .
. . . and that's about it."
I found that disturbing because there is fresh blood coursing through the veins of this city. You will see a public display of celebrating of various art medium from 9/21 - 9/28 throughout the City of Detroit. Consistence and persistence are two key tools to be recognized, accepted and respected globally.

[dundermifflin]

Thanks for the responses so far. Here is a link that was online today about Detroit's turnaround:

Detroit Sees Signs of Turnaround - WSJ.com

[dundermifflin]

hello - any updates? thanks!

[detwahDJ]

Originally Posted by dundermifflin

hello - any updates? thanks!

This is pretty old news but are you aware?
Russell Industrial Center
Eminem, Rihanna visit Detroit's Russell Industrial Center for video shoot? It sure appears that way | MLive.com

Uniquely Detroit: The artists of Russell Industrial Center | News - Home


RUSSELL INDUSTRIAL CENTER - YouTube



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_XsB_skIdmQ

If you watch on youtube, there are more videos.

[bmantx512]

Well, there is this.....

"Members of a gang robbed French street artist Bilal Berreni of $300 and debit and Bridge cards, then killed him, according to statements given by one of the members and read aloud in court during a hearing today."

Not trying to freak you out, but I hate to think outsiders would move into some of the most violent, gang ridden neighborhoods in America without realizing how crazy this area can be.

Sure there are promising areas, but if you are posting links to $100 homes those won't be the neighborhoods. Are you armed and well trained?

[animatedmartian]

Originally Posted by dundermifflin

hello - any updates? thanks!

It's still pretty much the same. Though art seems to have fallen more underground since rents have skyrocketed and much of the downtown area is now populated by yuppies and hipsters. It feels somewhat subdued but it's there if you search for it. Dan Gilbert has been pretty active using street artists to create murals on some of the buildings he owns. At the same time CCS is still churning out graduates in art and design.

[animatedmartian]

"Call Mohamed cause Detroit's a mecca".


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bJMwwH7GcmU