DLECTRICITY RETURNS to illuminate Midtown Detroit with over 35 projects!

MIDTOWN DETROIT, INC. UNVEILS 35 WORLD-RENOWNED AND EMERGING ARTISTS FOR DLECTRICITY AND ANNOUNCES DTE ENERGY AS PRESENTING SPONSOR FOR DETROIT’S NIGHTTIME FESTIVAL OF ART AND LIGHT

DLECTRICITY to Illuminate Midtown Detroit September 26 & 27, 2014

DETROIT (18 August 2014) – Inspired by nighttime art and light festivals from around the world, DLECTRICITY will once again illuminate Detroit this fall. Today, Midtown Detroit, Inc. (MDI) announced DTE Energy as presenting sponsor of this free illuminated urban spectacle featuring 35 world-renowned and emerging artists. The outdoor arts celebration will be held Sept. 26-27 in Midtown from 7 p.m. to midnight.

“DTE Energy is a tremendous corporate partner to our community and we are incredibly grateful to have them as our presenting sponsor for DLECTRICITY,” said Sue Mosey, president of MDI. “DTE Energy along with the support from all of our sponsors gives us the opportunity to create a world-class event, attracting high caliber artists and showcasing Midtown Detroit as an international art destination.”

“DTE Energy is proud to support DLECTRICITY as the presenting sponsor, bringing this spectacular nighttime festival of art and light to our community,” said Faye Nelson, vice president of Public Affairs for DTE Energy and president of the DTE Energy Foundation. “We are committed to the vibrancy of our neighborhoods and it will be thrilling to see Detroiters and visitors explore an illuminated Midtown full of public art and light showcasing our great city.”

DLECTRICITY presented by DTE Energy will commission and host 35 international, national and local artists whose art will illuminate the Midtown Woodward corridor, from the Detroit Institute of Arts to the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, with leading-edge installations of light, video, performance, interactive engineering and other unexpected works of art. A list of artists unveiled today is attached to this press release.

DLECTRICITY will feature artists from Australia, Canada, Germany, Italy, Poland and Sweden, as well as New York, Boston and Detroit’s own art community also will be well represented. Artists from 38 different countries submitted applications to DLECTRICITY, modeled after other Nuit Blanche festivals known for bringing the best of
contemporary light and technology-based arts to the streets of major cities like Paris, Rome, Toronto, Minneapolis and New York.

“The quality of artists for this year’s DLECTRICITY is extraordinary,” said Michelle Perron, of the College for Creative Studies and head of the DLECTRICITY Curatorial Committee. “The city’s cultural center will literally light up with the creative energy that continues to put Detroit on the map with international artists and visitors.” Additional curatorial committee members include Larry Baranski of the Detroit Institute of Arts, Marsha Miro of Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit (MOCAD), George N’Namdi of N’Namdi Center for Contemporary Art, Frank Arvan, of FX Architecture, and Marc Schwartz, co-chair of DLECTRICITY.

Of the 35 DLECTRICITY artists unveiled, 10 widely acclaimed and local artists have been invited to the festival to show a range of high-quality, light-based projects and video projections. Artists include:

Nathalie Djurberg and Hans Berg | The Black Pot | Video Projection | Will be shown in the Detroit Institute of Arts (DIA) Loggia
The Black Pot showcases the artists’ experimentation with newly abstracted animations and ambient electronica within a darkened, womb-like environment, in order to depict the cycle of life. Berg will also perform live each night of DLECTRICITY at the DIA. Sponsored by the Detroit Institute of Arts.

 Kelly Richardson | The Erudition | Video Projection | Will be shown on the façade of the Michigan Science Center
Canadian artist Kelly Richardson has been recognized as one of the leading representatives of a new generation of artists working with digital technologies to create hyper-real highly charged landscapes.

Sue de Beer | The Legendary Leland City Club| Video Projection | Will be shown in the Detroit Historical Museum Plaza
NY-based contemporary artist, Sue de Beer, uses multiple media including photography, video, installation, and sculpture, to explore the relationships between time and memory. This video has been created to honor Detroit’s Leland City Club, a Goth club located in the Leland Hotel, and is in part sponsored by the College for Creative Studies.

Shaun Gladwell | Broken Dance (Beatboxed) | 2-channel Synchronized Video Projection | Will be shown outside of MOCAD
Shaun Gladwell is an Australian contemporary artist who works in video, painting, photography and sculpture, and is famous for his video works which often feature him skateboarding, as well as documenting a range of street sub-culture arts such as breakdancing and BMX bike riding.

Mindfield | P.O.V. | 3D Mapping Video Projection | Will be shown on the façades of the Detroit Public Library and the Detroit Institute of Arts
Mindfield is a creative film, video and digital interactive media production house based in Detroit. Mindfield is developing a 3D mapping video experience that will fill the facades of the Detroit Institute of Arts and the Detroit Public Library on Woodward for DLECTRICITY.

Compagnia TPO | Kindur: The Adventurous Life of Icelandic Sheep | Interactive Theater Performances for Children | Will be performed in the Garden Theater
Under the direction of Francesco Gandi and Davide Venturini, Italy’s Compagnia T.P.O. (Teatro di Piazza o d’Occasione) is the world’s foremost pioneer in interactive performance media for all ages and melding astonishing digital imagery with multidisciplinary performance techniques in the use of music, dance, art, sculpture, digital media, computer technology, lighting and sound.

Jeff Sturges of Mt. Elliott Makerspace, Ralph Taylor of Caribbean Mardi Gras Productions and Sicari Ware of 5e Gallery and Piper Carter | Hyper Interactive Hip Hop Carnival | The C. H. Wright Museum of African American History
This is a participatory series of nightly performances that combine the talent, creativity and innovation of three unique Detroit cultures: the hackers and tinkerers of DIY making, the creators of Caribbean Mardi Gras parades, and the musical, visual, and performing artists of Hip Hop.

Osman Khan | House | Neon Sculpture | College for Creative Studies Sculpture Garden
Osman Khan is an artist interested in constructing artifacts and experiences for social criticism and aesthetic expression. His work plays and subverts the materiality behind themes of identity, communication, economics and public space through participatory & performative installations and site-specific interventions.

Steve Locke | Untitled | A collection of neon signs displayed in the windows of Midtown Detroit, Inc.
Steve Locke attended Boston University and received his M.F.A. at Mass. College of Art where he currently teaches in the painting department. He also attended Skowhegan School of painting, shortly after he became dean of the program and has continued this position for the last five years.

Casa Magica | Sound Spheres | Video Projection | Will be shown on the 71 Garfield Building
Friedrich Foerster and Sabine Weissinger form the team Casa Magica, and are known for their illumination art created within the built environment. Sound Spheres is a site-specific, animated audio-visual work that will explore basic elements of sustainability, while celebrating the green building practices and the energy reduction features of the 71 Garfield building.

The Detroit Symphony Orchestra also returns to DLECTRICITY with another live video projection of the Pops performance, “Let’s Dance,” conducted by Jeff Tyzik. Bring a lawn chair and enjoy this celebration of the art of dance as tango, tap and ballroom dancers are projected onto the façade of the Carpenter’s Building on Woodward.

Debuting in the fall of 2012, DLECTRICITY presented by DTE Energy attracted 75,000 people to Midtown. Popular programs from the inaugural year are back including the Light Bike Parade on Saturday, September 27, where cyclists will bike a 4-mile route through Midtown, adding extra light and energy to the streets. The DLECTRICITY Light Bike Parade is sponsored by Shinola with support from Wheelhouse Bikes. Cyclists are encouraged to register for the Light Bike Parade in advance at: www.lightbikeparade.eventbrite.com

DLECTRICITY is also partnering with the Detroit Design Festival (DDF) this fall. By scheduling both festivals during the same week, we are able to showcase programming and conversations that mark the intersection of art and design. The DDF, North America’s Festival of Independent Design produced by Detroit Creative Corridor Center, is Tuesday, September 23 – Sunday, September 28.

DLECTRICITY is presented by DTE Energy, and supported by the following foundations and organizations: The Kresge Foundation, The Knight Foundation, The William Davidson Foundation, Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan, The Fred A. and Barbara M. Erb Family Foundation, Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs and The National Endowment for the Arts, Quicken Loans, Wayne State University, Detroit Institute of Arts, MASCO Foundation, the Marcia and Eugene Applebaum Family Foundation, Lauren and Phillip Fisher, Marc A. Schwartz, Alan and Marianne Schwartz, Flagstar Bank, College for Creative Studies, the Detroit Medical Center, The Kaufman Memorial Trust, Shinola Detroit, Wheelhouse Bikes, Northern Trust Bank, Fox 2 News, The Metro Times, and WDET.

Midtown Detroit, Inc. (MDI) is a nonprofit planning and development agency charged with revitalization of Detroit’s Woodward Corridor. Representing over 100 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; grant administration; and arts programming for the district. Over the last decade, MDI and its predecessor organization, the University Cultural Center Association, have raised $56 million for a variety of initiatives including the Midtown Greenway Loop, restoration and conversion of six historic homes into a boutique hotel, the Woodward Avenue Streetscape Enhancement project, the creation of the Sugar Hill Arts District, the construction of two community gardens and a Green Alley, the renovation of many commercial facades throughout the district, and a matching grants security enhancement program for property and business owners. MDI has also facilitated funding for over 40 residential developments resulting in over 1500 new units of housing and has assisted over 40 local businesses with technical assistance and financing. MDI also manages Live Midtown, a successful initiative to increase population density through incentives to eligible anchor institution employees. Over 900 participants have taken advantage of the Live Midtown program to date. Additional initiatives include a comprehensive communication and marketing campaign to increase awareness of Midtown’s numerous qualities, stimulate population growth, and attract new businesses to the area. MDI additionally promotes local cultural events including three signature events – Noel Night, DLECTRICITY, and Art X Detroit along with New Center Park summer entertainment.

The 25 artists selected from the DLECTRICITY Open Call: