Category: Uncategorized

Jake Chidester and Alisyn Malek of Corktown Studios presents The Sidewalk Ballet: The Arkestral Procession, a series of mechanical archways that amplify visitors’ movements into light and sound. An interactive visual and aural composition authored by the willing and the unknown alike, The Arkestral Procession presents a novel mechanism for the amplification of an individual’s passive contribution to the Great Collective Sidewalk Ballet into light and sound. Click on our “ARTWORKS” tab to learn more about the artists being featured at DLECTRICITY 2021. 

Don’t forget to register for #DLECTRICITY’s signature #LightBikeParade, a 3-mile+ ride that connects Detroit’s Cultural Center to DTE’s Beacon Park. Come with your bike already illuminated, or grab a limited light kit the day of the ride (first-come, first-served). Be a part of this mobile art installation! Perfect for families and FREE to join! Click here for more information and register here: https://bit.ly/2V7NHIx

This year, #DLECTRICITY will not be possible without volunteers! Volunteers are needed to assist festival artists, act as ambassadors for the art installations, assist with implementing public health protocols, and provide real-time information to our visitors. 

If you choose to volunteer you will receive a free #DLECTRICITY t-shirt and the unique experience of working with talented individuals and artists in a large-scale cultural event! If you are interested in volunteering for #DLECTRICITY you can fill out a form here: https://bit.ly/3BCezQF or click the “ABOUT” tab!

#DLECTRICITY is excited to announce that this year’s festival will be happening the same weekend as the #FreepFilmFestival. The Freep Film Festival will feature 35+ virtual and in-person film screenings from September 22nd through the 26th. DLECTRICITY is free fun for all ages and will take place September 24th and 25th from 7pm-midnight in Detroit’s Cultural Center and at DTE’s Beacon Park. Join us for a weekend full of arts and culture!

DLECTRICITY Presented by DTE Energy Foundation Unveils Over 40 Artists and Stunning Outdoor Art, Light and Technology Installations

Produced by Midtown Detroit, Inc., nighttime outdoor festival to illuminate the Cultural Center and Beacon Park, September 24-25, 2021

• Over 40 international, national and Detroit-based artists to transform the Cultural Center with cutting-edge outdoor art installations from giant illuminated sculptures to video projections on iconic museums and buildings
• Outdoor festival focuses on safe visitor experiences in beautiful open, public spaces
• Midtown Detroit, Inc. announces return of Light Bike Parade on September 25

DETROIT (26 August 2021) – Midtown Detroit, Inc. (MDI) announced today over 40 artists from Detroit and across the globe who have been commissioned to create stunning art, light and technology installations for the highly-anticipated return of DLECTRICITY. Produced by MDI and presented by DTE Energy Foundation, the nighttime outdoor festival of art and light will take place in open, public spaces throughout the Cultural Center and Beacon Park, Sept. 24 and 25, 2021. DLECTRICITY is free to the public and will awe attendees with cutting-edge installations of light, video, performance, and other unexpected works of art.

The event is inspired by other international festivals known for bringing the best of contemporary light and technology-based arts to the streets of major cities from all over the world. DLECTRICITY features artists from Australia, France, Germany, Japan, New York, Los Angeles, Miami and Detroit.

“DLECTRICITY celebrates the immense power of art and culture in bringing us together,” said Susan Mosey, executive director, Midtown Detroit, Inc. “We are grateful to our incredible partners whose support makes it possible to bring these world-class artists and projects to Detroit and produce a beautiful outdoor event that allows us to safely connect with art and one another.”

DLECTRICITY 2021 marks the fourth edition and includes the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History, College for Creative Studies, Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit Historical Museum, Detroit Public Library, Michigan Science Center, Scarab Club and the University of Michigan’s Rackham Building. DLECTRICITY has presented major light-based festivals in 2012, 2014 and 2017.

DLECTRICITY will host internationally acclaimed artists including Yann Nguema, Amanda Parer, among others to show a range of high-quality light-based projects. Artists include:

Joo Won Park | Electronic Music Ensembles| Interactive audiovisual installation using networked computers featuring ensemble performances and audience participation

Farah Al Qasimi | General Behavior | Video installation that depicts snatches of life drawn from the artist’s archive and occasionally, her own voice

Takayuki Mori | View Tracing #3 | Installation of “traced” sculptural objects activated by UV light

Tiff Massey | Get Big | Interactive audiovisual installation that immerses visitors in a real-time music video

42 Levels (Blair Adams) |The Interactive Magic Mirror | Step in front of the camera, wave your arms, do a dance and jump around in this interactive video installation with sound

Joana Stillwell | every day | Illuminated LED neon poetry

Won Ju Lim | Magic Lantern, Live | Live shadow play performance and installation based on Proust’s literary work, “In Search of Lost Time”

CMAP | Lantern Landscapes: The Past Spreads Out Before Us | 1/20th scale illuminated “neighborhood” based on the DLECTRICITY footprint as it looked decades ago, and video projection of an oral history about Detroit’s lights in the 1930s-40s | Presented in partnership with the Detroit Historical Society

Amanda Parer | Man | Giant illuminated inflatable sculpture of a contemplative figure

Yann Nguema | Parallels | Mapped video projection with sound and lasers featuring elaborate animations based on art objects from the Detroit Institute of Arts collection | Presented in partnership with the Detroit Institute of Arts

Abhishek Narula | All the light we cannot see | Interactive light installation using Bluetooth, wifi and cellular signals from nearby devices

Matt Sandbank’s Shadow Factory | Still Life | Series of classic shadow puppet performances with live projection

Steven Gutierrez | Creatures are LIT | Interactive video projection that animates creatures designed online by visitors

Dumbworld Ltd. | Street Art Opera double bill | A double bill of two 10-minute animated opera video projections – “He Did What” & “Two Angels Play I Spy”

Roland Graf/Assocreation; Michael Rodemer; Nick Tobier/EverydayPlaces | All-Nite Tetherball | Three LED-illuminated tetherball games installed on city light poles

Mentalgassi | Illuminated Balloon Heads – Detroit | Portraits of notable Detroiters on large, illuminated inflatable spheres

Yazmin Dababneh | YayaLand Takeover | Light installation of colorful dichroic lenses in partnership with Detroit Month of Design produced by Design Core Detroit

Corktown Studios | The Sidewalk Ballet AKA The Arkestral Procession | Interactive audiovisual mechanisms that turns visitors into walking instruments

Nature as Data (James McGrath & Gary Sinclair) | Ghost Trees | Video projection with sound created with LIDAR data from a eucalyptus tree that survived Australia’s wildfires

Scenocosme: Gregory Lasserre & Anais met den Ancxt | Distances | Visitors virtually “touch” using interactive cameras and video projection

Mariana Carranza | ephemeral angels | Visitors see themselves waving glittering white wings in this interactive video installation with sound

Patrick Ethen | Pulsar | Circular data-driven generative light sculpture using thousands of animated LEDs

New D Media | The Bird | Mapped video projection of a historical and dreamlike journey inside the mind of Jazz legend Charlie “The Bird” Parker | Presented in partnership with the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History

Facing Change: Documenting America, Inc. | In Our Image | Video presentation of FCDA Documenting Detroit’s 2019 Photography Fellows

Logan Dandridge | Men Who Devour Themselves in Mirrors | Single-channel video installation with sound critiquing the intersection of athletics and race in the American south

Mike Gould | Lasers: Make Light Play| Interactive laser “lunchboxes” let visitors to control the laser displays

Jake Fried | Brain Wave, Mind Frame and Night Vision | Three video projections of mesmerizing hand-drawn stop-motion animations

Angela Fraleigh and Josh Miller | Sound the Deep Waters | Interactive video projection that translates visitors’ secret messages into images using Victorian Flower Language

Orkhan Mammadov | OMA | The Idea of Saving Aesthetics | AI-generated animated rugs inspired by historical patterns, projected on the ground

Layne Hinton | Shadow Machines | Analog mechanical light sculptures with light projection

Allison Janae Hamilton | Waters of a Lower Register | Immersive 5-channel film installation using the material of land as a metaphor to reflect the range of emotions that the year 2020 manifested locally and globally | Presented in partnership with Creative Time

Stephanie Dinkins | On Love & Data and Holding Space | Video projection that illuminates the power and resilience in black women’s stories, reminding us that sharing and receiving stories is an act of resistance | Presented by Stamps Gallery, Penny W. Stamps School of Art & Design, University of Michigan

Studio Erin Taylor | Eye of Detroit | Interactive light sculpture where visitors’ shadows form shapes in the “eye”

Tom Harman of LaserNet | Project Dali | Geometric-patterned overhead laser installation inspired by the artwork of Salvador Dali

Pneuhaus | Canopy | Visitors ride bicycles to activate large inflatable canopy sculptures

Bradley Scherzer | POOF! | Kid-friendly interactive geodesic dome experience: feed the POOF!

Ralph Taylor | Time to Celebrate! | Processional parade and performance of illuminated Caribbean costumes

“The Scene” with Nat Morris and friends | Programmed music stage and dance floor based on “The Scene,” Detroit’s popular televised dance show from the 1970s-80s

Beacon Park Stage:

• Pato y Pato | Windows | Live audiovisual performance inspired by Charles Baudelaire’s 1869 poem “Les Fenêtres” (“Windows”)
• Tom Carey | Death of the Last Tree | Shadow Puppet Performance
• KESSWA and Shigeto | Is My Mind a Machine Gun? | Live audiovisual performance harnessing the surreality of the collective experience and shifting of social consciousness.
  Originally presented by MOCAD in early 2021 as part of Daily Rush, the museum’s online platform for new media and video art

MDI announced the Light Bike parade is returning on September 25. Starting at Traffic Jam & Snug Restaurant, the electrifying 3-mile route will include Midtown and Beacon Park. The public is invited to participate, and registration is now open here.

In partnership with the Freep Film Festival, DLECTRICITY attendees will be able to view “Awaken” at the Michigan Science Center.

With focus on a safe visitor experience, MDI is working closely with health and safety experts, including the global public health organization NSF International, to develop public health and safety protocols for DLECTRICITY. Face masks are encouraged for festival attendees with mask-required zones for specific experiences; hand sanitizing stations will be found throughout the festival footprint; and open spaces will encourage social distancing.

Detroit’s Cultural Center is an 83-acre site in the Midtown district. The space has some of the most preeminent institutions of Detroit, which together represent the highest density of cultural institutions per acre in the country outside of the Smithsonian in Washington D.C. Prior to COVID, the Cultural Center attracted 2 million visitors per year.

DLECTRICITY is presented by DTE Energy Foundation. Sponsors include the William Davidson Foundation, Knight Foundation, and The Kresge Foundation, also key funders of the Cultural Center Planning Initiative. Additional sponsors include Midtown Detroit, Inc., Knight Arts Challenge, Detroit Institute of Arts, the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs, Michigan Humanities Council, Marc Schwartz and Farbman Group. Media partners include FOX 2 Detroit and WDET 101.9 FM.

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Press Contacts:       

Heather George, Lovio George, 248-417-5773, [email protected]  Annmarie Borucki, Midtown Detroit, Inc., 313-420-6003, [email protected]

About Midtown Detroit, Inc.
Midtown Detroit, Inc. (MDI) is a nonprofit planning and development agency charged with revitalization of Detroit’s Woodward Corridor. Representing over 150 area stakeholders, including Detroit’s anchor educational, medical and cultural institutions, MDI provides public space maintenance and security services; marketing support; technical assistance; infrastructure and real estate development; small business support; grant administration; and arts programming for the district. Visit midtowndetroitinc.org for more info.

About the DTE Energy Foundation
The DTE Foundation is the philanthropic arm of DTE Energy, continuing the legacy of community support and involvement of its electric and natural gas utilities, which serve 2.2 million electric customers in Southeast Michigan and 1.3 million natural gas customers in Michigan. In 2020, the DTE Energy Foundation provided more than $16 million in grant support and approximately $21 million in COVID relief to nonprofits where the company has a business presence. As one of Michigan’s leading corporate citizens, DTE Energy is a force for growth and prosperity in communities across Michigan in a variety of ways, including philanthropy, volunteerism and economic progress. Visit DTEFoundation.com to learn more.

About the Cultural Center Planning Initiative (CCPI)
The Cultural Center Planning Initiative (CCPI) is a bold reimagining of the City of Detroit’s 83-acre anchor cultural district. Unifying landscape, architecture and technology, the CCPI design draws upon the strengths of Detroit’s cultural institutions to create a signature public destination. By developing a more sustainable physical environment and coordinating programmatic opportunities, we will be able to serve a much broader set of residents, artists and visitors.

The Cultural Center Planning Initiative (CCPI) design team, Agence Ter-Akoaki LLC, is an international collaborative of designers led jointly by Paris, France-based Agence Ter and Detroit-based Akoaki. Their project, Detroit Square, highlights the importance of shared cultural infrastructure for Detroit’s Cultural Center. rootoftwo is leading the masterplan for the creative/civic technology aspects of the initiative as part of the larger design team. A distinguished jury of national and local practitioners selected the design team in 2018 through an international competition that attracted 44 submissions from 10 countries and 22 cities.

By fall 2021 the design team will complete the conceptual design for Detroit Square – the culmination of CCPI’s initial 18-month planning phase. CCPI is guided by a steering committee comprised of cultural district leaders, and project management support is provided by Midtown Detroit, Inc.

Visit culturalcenterplanninginitiative.com for more info.

#DLECTRICITY would not be possible without support from the William Davidson Foundation, also lead funder for the Cultural Center Planning Initiative. DLECTRICITY will shine a spotlight on the Cultural Center and enforce Detroit’s reputation as a destination for the arts this September! #CCPI #detroitculture

DLECTRICITY would not be possible without the support of returning sponsor, DTE Energy Foundation. Thanks to DTE, we will be able to deliver art, energy and light to the City of Detroit as we continue to lift each other up and try to move past this pandemic together. We’re super excited to launch DLECTRICITY this September 24-25, 2021, in partnership with DTE and include Beacon Park in our festival footprint!

MIDTOWN DETROIT, INC., DTE ENERGY FOUNDATION ANNOUNCE RETURN OF DLECTRICITY – OUTDOOR FESTIVAL OF ART AND LIGHT TO ILLUMINATE CITY, SEPTEMBER 24-25, 2021

• DLECTRICITY will serve as an opportunity for testing out ideas from the Cultural Center Planning Initiative‘s digital and mobility strategies and showcase the district’s new Wi-Fi system
• All-outdoor festival to feature stunning art and light installations and focus on safe visitor experiences in open spaces throughout Cultural Center District and Beacon Park
• DTE Foundation returns as presenting sponsor and major foundations support event

DETROIT (25 February, 2021) – Stunning outdoor art and light installations will illuminate Midtown Detroit this September with the return of DLECTRICITY which last awed audiences in 2017. Produced by Midtown Detroit, Inc. (MDI), and supported by the DTE Energy Foundation, the event’s supporting sponsor, the outdoor nighttime festival of art and light will take place in safe, open spaces throughout the Cultural Center District and Beacon Park, September 24-25, 2021. DLECTRICITY is presented by DTE Foundation and is free to the public. Artists and event details will be announced in the coming months. A video is available here.

“We are incredibly grateful to DTE Energy Foundation and our foundation partners for supporting the return of DLECTRICITY,” said Sue Mosey, Executive Director of MDI. “We are committed to producing a beautiful outdoor event and have engaged expert partners as we plan to safely come together, connecting with art and one another.”

The event is inspired by other international festivals known for bringing the best of contemporary light and technology-based arts to the streets of major cities from all over the world.

“At the DTE Energy Foundation, we know a healthy, energized Detroit is the underpinning of a healthier, more vital Michigan,” said Lynette Dowler, president, DTE Energy Foundation. “That’s why we support DLECTRICITY, which will once again transform the Motor City through the power of art and culture. We’re grateful to bring DLECTRICITY to visitors from our own backyard – and those joining us from around the globe – and to continue to deliver energy and light to our city as we continue to lift each other up and move past the pandemic together.”

“Since 2012, we’ve seen firsthand DLECTRICITY’s power to inspire people and energize the Detroit region’s cultural center,” said Darin McKeever, President and Chief Executive Officer, William Davidson Foundation. “This year, with the need for safe opportunities and places to gather, DLECTRICITY will again provide us all light and connection.”

DLECTRICITY 2021 marks the fourth edition and includes the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History, College for Creative Studies, Detroit Institute of Arts, the Detroit Historical Museum, the Detroit Public Library, Michigan Science Center, Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit (MOCAD), The Scarab Club, the University of Michigan’s Rackham Building, and Wayne State University. The festival debuted in 2012.

“The symbolism of DLECTRICITY bringing us together around art and light in the darkness takes on new meaning in 2021 – and we are elated,” said Wendy Lewis Jackson, managing director of Kresge’s Detroit Program. “Yes, we face hard work for many months to come, but DLECTRICITY underscores the promise of safely rebuilding public life in public spaces as we bring the pandemic under control.”

Artists have also been severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Curatorial Committee will soon close out the process of reviewing artist submissions received through its 2020 Open Call for DLECTRICITY.

“This past year, all arts organizations have been dealt a difficult blow. We’re truly inspired by how artists — innovators in their own right — continue to create amazing works of art,” said Victoria Rogers, vice president of Knight arts. “This includes the Cultural Center Planning Initiative and its focus on digital integration as they host a different, but equally promising, DLECTRICITY festival this year, creatively and safely finding a way to showcase these talented Detroit artists.”

With a safe visitor experience as the top priority, MDI is exploring the creation of more pedestrian plazas and the use of open spaces. The organization is working closely with health and safety experts, including the global public health organization NSF International, to develop public health and safety protocols for DLECTRICITY. MDI worked with NSF to safely reopen Cultural Center institutions in 2020.

“From the outset, the organizers of DLECTRICITY have made public health and safety the top priority,” said Paul Medeiros, Managing Director of Consulting & Technical Services at NSF International. “Our focus is on public health, but we know art is an essential part of the human experience. We also know art and public health can coexist with the proper planning and creative thinking, so we are honored to advise the festival organizers on COVID-19 safety protocols, regulations and best practices for mass events like this.”

DLECTRICITY is presented by DTE Foundation. Partners providing funding for the cultural initiative include the William Davidson Foundation, Knight Foundation, The Kresge Foundation, Detroit Institute of Arts, Midtown Detroit, Inc., and the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs. Sponsorships for DLECTRICITY are still available.

The 2021 DLECTRICITY Curatorial Committee, including Detroit-based curators and arts and culture professionals, consists of:

• Larry Baranski, Director of Public Programs, Detroit Institute of Arts;
• Annmarie Borucki, DLECTRICITY Director; Director of Arts and Culture, Midtown Detroit, Inc.;
• Cezanne Charles, CCPI Design Team, Digital Strategy; Partner, rootoftwo;
• Pat Elifritz, Senior Manager of Media + Technology, Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit (MOCAD);
• AJ Funchess,  Assistant Director, Marketing + Communications, Detroit Public Library;
• Chrisstina Hamilton, Director, Penny Stamps Speaker Series + Roman Witt Visiting Artist Programs, University of Michigan Stamps School of Art & Design;
• Megan Heeres, Beacon Park Manager, DTE Beacon Park;
• Peter Kyte, DLECTRICITY Technical Director; Principal, The Kyte Group;
• John Marshall, CCPI Design Team, Digital Strategy; Partner, rootoftwo;
• Scott Northrup, Assistant Professor of Digital Film & Interdisciplinary Studies, College for Creative Studies;
• Sheryl Oring, Professor + Chair, Department of Art + Art History, Wayne State University;
• Malika Pryor, Senior Director of Education + Programs, Detroit Historical Society;
• Marc Schwartz, Founder, Art Detroit Now and Chair of the Dlectricity Festival;
• Reggie Woolery, Director of Education + Public Programs, Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History; and
• Alivia Zivich, DLECTRICITY Curatorial + Production Manager; Partner, What Pipeline gallery.

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Press Contacts:
Heather George, Lovio George, 248-417-5773, [email protected]
Annmarie Borucki, Midtown Detroit, Inc., 313-420-6003, [email protected]

About Midtown Detroit, Inc.
Midtown Detroit, Inc. (MDI) is a nonprofit planning and development agency charged with revitalization of Detroit’s Woodward Corridor. Representing over 150 area stakeholders, including Detroit’s anchor educational, medical and cultural institutions, MDI provides public space maintenance and security services; marketing support; technical assistance; infrastructure and real estate development; small business support; grant administration; and arts programming for the district. Visit midtowndetroitinc.org for more info.

About the DTE Foundation
The DTE Foundation is the philanthropic arm of DTE Energy, continuing the legacy of community support and involvement of its electric and natural gas utilities, which serve 2.2 million electric customers in Southeast Michigan and 1.3 million natural gas customers in Michigan. In 2019, the DTE Energy Foundation provided $18 million in grant support to nonprofits throughout the company’s service territories. As one of Michigan’s leading corporate citizens, DTE Energy is a force for growth and prosperity in communities across Michigan in a variety of ways, including philanthropy, volunteerism and economic progress. Visit DTEFoundation.com to learn more.

About the Cultural Center Planning Initiative (CCPI)
The Cultural Center Planning Initiative (CCPI) is a bold reimagining of the City of Detroit’s 83-acre anchor cultural district. Unifying landscape, architecture and technology, the CCPI design draws upon the strengths of Detroit’s cultural institutions to create a signature public destination. By developing a more sustainable physical environment and coordinating programmatic opportunities, we will be able to serve a much broader set of residents, artists and visitors.

The Cultural Center Planning Initiative (CCPI) design team, Agence Ter-Akoaki LLC, is an international collaborative of designers led jointly by Paris, France-based Agence Ter and Detroit-based Akoaki. Their project, Detroit Square, highlights the importance of shared cultural infrastructure for Detroit’s Cultural Center. rootoftwo is leading the masterplan for the creative/civic technology aspects of the initiative as part of the larger design team. A distinguished jury of national and local practitioners selected the design team in 2018 through an international competition that attracted 44 submissions from 10 countries and 22 cities.

By fall 2021 the design team will complete the conceptual design for Detroit Square – the culmination of CCPI’s initial 18-month planning phase. CCPI is guided by a steering committee comprised of cultural district leaders, and project management support is provided by Midtown Detroit, Inc.

Visit culturalcenterplanninginitiative.com for more info.

Hold on to your hats! We’re happy to share that Dlectricity is now scheduled for September 24-25, 2021. We’re excited to dig in and begin the planning efforts to make Dlectricity safer, more interactive and a bold celebration of Detroit’s Cultural Center. Stay tuned for details…