I Got a Question For Ya...

What does the Super Bowl have to do with historic preservation and museum collections?
My answer: more than you'd think.

I would love to say that I watched the Super Bowl this past weekend, with fingers turned orange from Dorito dust and hair matted under a wedge of foam-rubber cheese, but alas, I'm not much for professional football.  I did, however, catch some of the commercials and was especially impressed (like many others) with the poignant ad for the new Chrysler 200.



As a native Detroiter, living well outside of the mitten at the moment, I find vignettes like these tug at my heart strings very easily.  Once the goosebumps and the thrill of landmark recognition passed, I began to consider the commercial more critically (because I'm a grad student and that's what we're conditioned to do).

After reviewing the Monday morning roundup of commercials, I was most struck by the contributions from the National Trust for Historic Preservation.  At present, a link to the Chrysler ad and accompanying article is prominently displayed on their homepage.

Yes, the National Trust for Historic Preservation had something to say about a rapper's attempt to hawk mid-sized sedans.  Notably, they said this:

Let me be upfront: I realize this is not a commercial about historic preservation. And whether or not Chrysler genuinely loves Detroit and its struggling stock of historic treasures is irrelevant because, at the end of the day, they have a very clear bottom line: Sell cars. I get it. However, in my eyes, the ad clearly linked preservation to progress — to the rebirth of a city that “has been to Hell and back.” The screen capture of Eminem in front of the restored and insanely gorgeous Fox Theater with “Keep Detroit Beautiful” glowing on the marquee says it all. Cue the choir (of course there was a choir!) and you’ve got water works.

I also found the overall look and feel of the commercial to be deeply moving. For me, it showed that cities are alive — and can die. And the juxtaposition of progress and the city’s real but often sensationalized ruins was beyond poignant. Yes, moving inventory is critical to Detroit’s recovery, but so is historic preservation.

(Read the entire article here.)

For Michiganders, I felt this point was an obvious one-- of course Detroit needs historic preservation.  We've all been heartbroken, watching beautiful and historic buildings decay before our very eyes.  So much of what is seen in the news is the dilapidated, abandoned Detroit.  I was a little offended that the author of this article seemed surprised that Detroit has something worth keeping.  But that aside, I very much like the idea that the city's recovery is dependent on historic preservation as well as car sales and I was impressed that the ad seemed to highlight the preservation efforts that have already been successful within the city.

Fox Theater

There were images of the Diego Rivera murals at the DIA, which not only capture iconic images of the auto industry, but are also one of Detroits points of pride.  There were also images of historic downtown buildings that have been flawlessly preserved for decades (That is the part of Detroit with which I am most familiar). There was also the Joe Louis memorial, The Spirit of Detroit, and shots of our historic churches.  Most notably, there was the Fox Theater.  Arguably one of the most stunning buildings in the city, the Fox underwent a $12 million restoration in 1988 and is still sparkling.

I think it's rather symbolic that the ad culminates at the Fox Theater.  In a way, highlighting the success of this historic preservation project represents what could happen all over the city.

Fox Theater

But the message on the marquee of the Fox Theater read like a call to action for historic preservationists: KEEP DETROIT BEAUTIFUL.  The author of the NTHP article finished by saying "I couldn’t agree more. Americans are capable of making — and saving — great things."

Indeed!  And what acts as a testament to that assertion better than a museum?

Those final thoughts bring to mind an object I saw while at The Henry Ford this past December.  My dad and I spent a great day in the Henry Ford Museum while I was home in Michigan for the semester break and after our visit, we both agreed that our favorite object on view in the museum was a set of Johansson gauge blocks.

I had never heard of such a tool before we saw them at the museum.  I can't explain the science behind them any better than Wikipedia, but I thought the way they were exhibited and interpreted in the context of the museum was just great.

Johansson Gauge Blocks

Sure, they don't look like much.  In fact, I would have walked right past them except that they were alone in a display case all their own.  Something clicked in the museum-awareness part of my brain and said, "This must be important!"  And sure enough, they were.  These blocks essentially represent the entire Detroit automotive industry.

Henry Ford used these instruments because their precision in measurements allowed Model Ts to be assembled without employing "fitters" (people needed to adjust individual parts so that they fit together correctly), which saved money but also further contributed to Ford's efficiency in mass production.  The same mass production assembly line that allowed the automotive industry to take off in Detroit and centuries later, inspired Super Bowl commercials.

Eminem said, "This is Detroit and this [make cars] is what we do".  Well, "this" is what we do because of these gauge blocks.

The above pictured set of blocks is not Ford's own.  His set is not metric and is engraved with his name on every single block.  Ford's personal set of Johansson gauge blocks is impeccably preserved and on display in the Model T exhibit at the Henry Ford Museum.

Indeed, Americans are capable of making and saving great things.

White Kids on Bicycles: Museums' Most Important Target Audience?

Detroit.

Here, in Florida, I almost feel like it's a four letter word.  Nobody wants to talk about it out loud, but lots of people ask me about the details of the city in private, with a kind of morbid curiosity.  "Are there really bears in downtown?"  "Do people really shoot raccoons and sell the meat to survive?"

When I first got back to Gainesville, I met with my advisior and he had just as many questions about the city-- albeit much more relevant and realistic ones.  I'm happy to answer them.  I don't want people to think of Detroit as some kind of scary, forbidden place full of mystery and lore.  In that meeting, we talked a lot about the arts of Detroit.  Of course, there is the DIA, the Detroit Symphony Opera, etc.  But there is also the electronic music festival, The Scarab Club, the Heidelberg Project, and other more grassroots art movements.

When I was finishing up my internship at the DIA, Larry (programming director) asked me about my likes and dislikes, in an effort to find out more about the DIA's newest target audience: 20-somethings.

My birthday last week might even push me out of the most sought-after group: early 20-somethings.

I urge my countless readers to watch ALL of the videos presented here.  Palladium Boots (for some reason...) teamed up with Johnny Knoxville, of MTV's "Jackass" fame, to create a series of three videos that spotlight the "other" side of Detroit-- you know, the side that's not eating raccoons.



Don't let Johnny Knoxville's association with "Jackass" fool you (Dad!)-- he takes a very respectful, curious, compassionate, and intelligent approach to the city. 

One segment features restaurant owner, Larry Mongo, who speaks about owning a business in Detroit.  He told a story about how he closed up his restaurant after a string of murders in the neighborhood, leaving it closed for a long period (I don't believe he specified... but it sounded like more than a month).  After being closed for so long, he said one day, a group of "200 white kids on bicycles" were outside the restaurant, asking when he would open again.

Yes, hipsters are moving into Detroit.  As Larry states, they're not taking over-- they're just filling in the gaps in much the same way that African Americans filled in the gaps when the white community left Detroit.  Now that everyone has left, the hipsters are filling in.

There is a movement brewing in Detroit.  These kids, in their late teens and early twenties, are active in the community and are passionate about bringing art and life back to Detroit.  These are the people that the museums want to target, and with good reason!

It's no wonder that Inside|Out has been such a hit!  The community is thirsty for that kind of outreach and "beautification".  I realize that projects like this are like a band-aid on a gunshot wound.  Certainly, 40 fake paintings aren't going to revitalize the city.  But, I think it will do a lot to inspire and motivate the people who see them to continue in that direction of change and regrowth.

I've touched on this before but, it has been hotly debated among museum professionals so it's worth discussing again: What is the purpose of a museum?

A lot of museum professionals believe that museums exist to collect, preserve, and display works of art.  Others argue that civic engagement is a necessary function, in addition to those listed.

I think it depends greatly on what the community needs.  In Detroit's Cultural Center, students and recent graduates of Wayne State University and the College for Creative Studies are the biggest catalyst of the revitalization of that area (it's one of the fastest growing and trendiest areas of the city).  As the Palladium videos show, the young people of Detroit are motivated and willing to work on facilitating change in the city.  I think they can find a partner in the DIA. 

Detroit does not need a stoic, static building full of paintings.  It needs an active organization that can fill some of the gaps in the failing school system, provide a partner to CCS and WSU students, as they take on public art projects in the city, be a  place where Detroit residents can gather to discuss art, politics, community projects, or anything at all.  Civic engagement needs to be a major component of the DIA's purpose, as it sits in the center of a city that is desperately attempting to become re-engaged!

I'm not sure if Detroiters realize what an ally they could have in the DIA.  But if they do, I urge them to vote about it.

New Semester, New Internship

Some time has passed from my last entry and a lot of things have happened.

Most notably, I am back in Florida and three weeks into the semester.

Also, I have yet another internship (now called a "practicum" for reasons I don't quite understand). This time around, I'm at the Florida Museum of Natural History (or, FLMNH), working in the education department, developing programs for seniors and adults. I am completely thrilled with this assignment. I have had programming experience in the past, so this project seems totally accessible to me-- yet I've never programmed for adults, so it's new and challenging. In short, I'm stoked.

In other happenings, one of my intern projects from the Detroit Institute of Arts is now in full swing. DIA: Inside|Out has been featured in the Detroit Free Press, Canadian Press, CBC, Detroit News, Metro Times, USA Today, Crain's Detroit Business, and ArtDaily.org!

That Canadian Press article was also featured in a dorky professional newsletter that I get, called Dispatches from the Future of Museums.  It's actually one of my favorite museum news sources, so I was really excited to see the project featured there.

Inside|Out seems to be getting a great reaction from the public, but really, how could it not? I've had several friends back in the Detroit area tell me about various paintings that they have seen around town.

It's been so rewarding to see (even if it's from a distance) this project come to fruition and be so successful. I'm really happy with the way the paintings and labels turned out. For a while, it looked as if the labels would be cluttered with corporate sponsors' logos, or be made of low-quality materials... but they look fantastic! I'm really glad that our committee held their ground with that issue.

All 40 reproductions should be installed by the middle of September, but a bunch of them are already in place-- including one on everyone's favorite Italian restaurant.  Here are a few shots of our little piece of the DIA (click on any one of them to enlarge):

The Fruit Vendor

The painting is located right next to our kitchen door

Though this photo is reminiscent of a "Where's Waldo" book, the painting is still visible.  Can you find it?

A map of all the locations and artworks can be found here.  And the DIA website, of course, has a little feature on it as well.

More photos of the various paintings can also be found at the Inside|Out flickr site.

I can only hope that my current internship will pan out to be as rewarding and educational as my time at the Detroit Institute of Arts. Already, I think this practicum was a good choice for me. I was wavering back and forth about what classes to take this fall, and when I had one schedule slot left to fill, I didn't want to settle for a course that wasn't of great interest to me. So, I decided to go a different route and spend 9 hours / week at the Florida Museum of Natural History. From the few meetings I've had, and the bit of initial research that I've done, I can tell that this will be 3 credits well spent.

Certainly, the FLMNH differs from the DIA in many ways, including content, size, location, and budget. Yet, I can already see many similarities in the general operations and some of the challenges that have been discussed-- many of which I think are universal among museums of all kinds.

So this just leaves me wondering... when will we be installing these in surprising locations around Gainesville?

Pan Asian Cuisine, Formative Evaluations, Recommendations, and 20-Something Hipsters

Over jalapeno sake and Korean food, I was told that the DIA's Executive Vice President had been given the recommendation to hire me as soon as I graduate.

I spent much of last night, before my last day on the job, wondering if I had done any good.  In my last post, I mentioned the projects I completed and spoke about their value to the organization, but I was still wondering whether or not I had actually done a good job.

So I guess that answers that.

Larry and Michelle took me to lunch today and I really enjoyed it.  I feel particularly invested in the 125th Anniversary's DIA: Inside Out, so it was nice to have lunch with the rest of the team before I leave.

Larry had very complimentary things to say about my work and mentioned that he told the EVP that she should hire me as soon as I'm done with school.  After which he said, "Wait... when are you done with school?"  A year and a half seems like a long time for the DIA to wait, but I suppose it's not unheard of.  On top of the fact that I am fantastic, there is another reason why the DIA is interested in hiring me (and people like me).  Larry spoke briefly about an initiative called the 15/15 project (or something like that), which aims to add 1,500 young, college educated, Detroit residents (living around the cultural center and Wayne State University) to the DIA's membership.

So, all of a sudden, hip 20-somethings are the DIA's target demographic.

(This revelation was followed by Larry asking how old I am (24) and then asking my feelings about Andy Warhol, contemporary art, and Damien Hirst.  It feels kind of nice to be a target demographic-- suddenly, everyone is interested in my thoughts on things.)

To target this demographic, the DIA really needs to have some 20-somethings on staff, which is the other big reason why Larry was so willing to recommend me.

Interestingly, I think that a large percentage of the DIA's visitors are already local 20-somethings.  While they may not actually be members, I have noticed a lot of people my age wandering around the museum on a daily basis.  In fact, yesterday, I was doing some more formative evaluations for an upcoming exhibition and more than half of the people I spoke with were younger people, and young couples seemed to be the largest demographic I saw all day.  This is purely anecdotal evidence, of course, but it seems to me that the 20-something Detroiters are already interested in the DIA, but perhaps they are not being cultivated for memberships.

So that was my last day at the DIA;  Asian food, recommendations, formative evaluations, and hipsters.

Except that I don't really think this is my last day, so much as it is my last "official" day-- perhaps my last day in the building, but I don't think it's my last day at work.

There are two projects that remain unfinished:

1.) DIA: Inside Out
Inside Out is a major undertaking and I have offered to help Michelle with emails and phone calls in any way that I can.  I made contacts and established relationships with several Detroit-area businesses and Downtown Development Authorities, and while I have given them all of Michelle's information, I was their primary contact until now, so I will continue to field any of their questions and concerns about the project, as they arise.  And Michelle has offered to keep my updated on the overall progress of the project.  As I said, I am very invested in this project and I would like to continue to be a small part of its realization.

2.) AAMD Maps
The data for the maps has been sent off to the AAMD.  But, of course, it will take some time for the fellow at the AAMD to process the information and generate the maps.  I expect that he will have some questions about the way I broke down the information, or some organizations' addresses, or Canadian postal codes, or any number of other things before the maps can be completed and I have been the only person working on this project, so it seems silly and ill-advised to suddenly dump it on someone else's desk.  I am still in contact with the AAMD, and will continue to be their primary contact until the maps are complete and in Sondra's hands.

An intern's work is never done.

Ranked

During today’s All Staff meeting, Graham was asked a question about how the DIA ranks, nationally. It has often been said that the DIA is one of the top 6 museums in the country.

I have always thought this was an odd phrase—that we aren’t quite in the top five, but we’re better than museums 7-10, so saying we were in the “top ten” didn’t do us enough justice.

To me, it indicated that we were the 6th best museum in the country, on a list of what I imagined to be 100 or so museums.

Not surprisingly, I was wrong.

The DIA is classified as a “universal museum” because our collection spans all space and time. There are 6 “top” universal museums in the country and they are: The Met, The Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, The Art Institute of Chicago, The Cleveland Museum of Art, The Philadelphia Museum of Art, and of course, The Detroit Institute of Arts.

Other museums like The MoMA or the National Gallery are excluded because they are not universal.

These 6 universal museums are not usually ranked, but when they are, it’s on a bias. If you like Impressionist art, then Chicago is #1… but if you like European Art, then the DIA is probably #1, and so on.

Thus, the clout in this phrase is really that we are among the six (as there are only six) best universal museums in the country.

I suppose one could liken it to being a “Big Ten” school—there isn’t School #1 or School #2—they’re all just in the Big Ten.

Actually, that might be a terrible reference. Once football or basketball season takes off, they are very clearly ranked.

Maybe it’s more like American Idol, once contestants reach the top 12 or top 5. Within that group, no one is individually ranked, but they are each one of the 12 best singers in the country.

I wonder if Simon Cowell has ever been to the DIA…

5 Weeks in Review

At a little past the halfway point of my internship, I thought I would give a rundown of the projects with which I’m engaged.

1. AAMD Mapping

Project Summary:  I am compiling data about the DIA's outreach efforts or "partners", to be sent to the AAMD and turned into a map.  Partners can include schools, churches, colleges / universities, businesses, community / cultural organizations, senior groups, libraries, and youth groups.  Each partner will be represented by a colored dot on the map.  Maps zoom in and out to include multiple or individual states, counties, cities, or congressional districts.  Maps like this will be useful in millage and other funding campaigns to illustrate the museum's reach.

Department / Staff Collaboration:  Trickled down to Sandra from Graham Beal (Director).  Data has come from Lisa Rezin (Group Sales) and Jenny Angell (Student Tours).  I was told to meet with lots of other people, but Lisa and Jenny have proved to be biggest wealth of information.

Status:  I am making data compilations for Fiscal Years 08-09 and 09-10.  Each set of data has 4 components: Group Sales, School Tours, In-Classroom Visits, and Speakers Bureau.  08-09 has 3 of 4 and 09-10 has 2 of 4.  I am hoping to have all of the data entered by next week.

Favorite Elements:  Data entry can be mind numbing, but it's interesting to see (even before the map has been created) the areas that utilize the DIA the most.  I have been surprised by some of the results, so far.  Though, I am delighted about how many DPS visits the DIA has had in the last two fiscal years.

Challenges:  I had a lot of dead-end meetings before finding the people who had the information I needed.  Also, many (400+) schools on one list were without zip codes, so I had to look up each individual zip code for every school on that list.  That was less than riveting.  And data entry can be mind numbing.

Academic / Professional Relevance:  I have improved my skills with Microsoft Excel ten fold.  Other than that, I have found it interesting to see which programs touch people in different parts of Michigan (and beyond).  Mostly, this project has given me some insight into the kinds of groups a museum may cater to.  I also learned just how many commercial and corporate involvements museums have.  I think I was a bit naive to that before I saw all of the groups from the last two years and saw what a large percent of groups were corporate events.


2. Program Synopsis

Project Summary: Expanding the existing “Program Matrix” into a format that is more accessible and usable to new hires, development officers, grant writers, donors, and those wishing to learn more about the programs at the DIA. Each program is to be summarized into a one-page document that expresses the value of each program to the community and why these programs should continue to be supported.  At this point, I understand this to be a mostly internal document—in other words, while it will be distributed to donors and such, they will not be in card racks or generally available to the public.

Department / Staff Collaboration: Assigned by Sandra. Guidance from Jennifer Czajkowski (Education – Learning & Interpretation) and David Cherry (Grant Writer). My main resource is the Programs Matrix, compiled by Jennifer Czajkowski, Matt Frye (Marketing), and other staff involved in the Program Audit that took place before my arrival.

Status: 8 Synopsis sheets are complete. I hope to have 7 more done by July 9.

My Favorite Elements: Researching the programs gives me a more in-depth understanding of the programs at the museum. Making the case for their overall value and worthiness of funding allows me to think more critically about the program and what elements of the program are most important and relevant to the museum’s constituency.  I like looking at programs that I've never seen before and saying, "Is this any good?  And why?"  This also gives me an excuse to sit in on school tours and other programs (I love watching programs!) in order to form an opinion.  Spoiler alert: They're usually great.

Challenges: No such document has ever been created, beyond the Programs Matrix, thus I have very little to work with in terms of research material. A lot of my information comes from http://www.dia.org/ or even Google. When attempting to communicate the value of a program (many of which I have never seen), I often turn to websites like yelp.com for “customer reviews” to see what visitors are saying about the programs.  I feel awkward bothering people (without a formal survey in my hand) and asking them for their opinions about a program, so I haven't done much of that.

Academic / Professional Relevance:  I think that being able to so closely examine the educational and public programs run by the DIA will provide me a great deal of insight when I am looking to design future programs.  This analysis has also taught me to ask questions of the programs like, "What need is this fulfilling?".  Programs are great, but unless they are filling an educational gap, or answering a call from the community, they are difficult to justify to funders and others outside of the museum.


3. 125th Anniversary

Project Summary:  (I think we might now be calling it "Art on the Move").  Based on a 2007 London project called "The Grand Tour", the purpose of this project is to place "fully submersible" reproductions of the DIA's masterpieces in surprising locations around the greater metro Detroit area.  The reproductions are weatherproof and will be mounted outside, in an effort to bring the DIA's collection to people who might not otherwise see it.

Department / Staff Collaboration:  Larry Baranski (Public Programs) is heading this project, and I am working closely with Michelle Hauske (Public Programs / Registration) to secure locations for the "paintings".

Status:  The sample is complete!  And it looks incredible.  Other than that, I would say the project is about 40% complete.  There is much work to be done and I doubt I will see any of the paintings installed before I leave.

Favorite Elements: Finding connections between the art and the community.  There is something of a tongue-in-cheek element to this project that I absolutely love.  The committee has attempted to match the theme of the artworks to their prospective locations.  For example, I already discussed Syria by the Sea at the old train station, but there are others, such as Watson and the Shark on the Nautical Mile or The Fruit Vendor in the Eastern Market.  I think it's going to look like the paintings escaped from the DIA and went home.

Challenges:  Lots of hoops, lots of delays, little time, little money.  Every time one thing gets settled, five more issues pop up.  Of all things, we actually have to get insured for this project... in case one of the paintings falls off the wall and hurts someone.  Little things like that take some of the initial excitement out of the project.

Academic / Professional Relevance: I've learned quite a lot about the DIA's collection.  I have also been in meetings with donors and witnessed the relationship between the funder and the museum.  As frustrating as it can be, I also see the value in experiencing the bureaucracy that can sometimes slow a project down.  It is encouraging to see the rest of the committee meet these challenges with grace and enthusiasm.  Overall, it has been extremely educational to watch a program like being realized.

The Grand Tour

Good Morning! My name is Jessica. I’m an intern at the Detroit Institute of Arts and I would like to drill some holes in the outside of your building.

This summer, some of my friends are working at museums that they have never visited. I, on the other hand, am working at a museum in which I practically grew up. I think I have the better deal—at least in terms of this project. The DIA’s 125th Anniversary Project (we don’t have a real name for it yet…) is a public art installation project based on London’s 2007 “Grand Tour”.

Essentially, we will be mounting the DIA’s most famous paintings in some of the Detroit area’s most surprising locations.

Places like this:

Michigan Central Station

Yes, really.

Michigan Central Station makes my guts hurt. It’s the visual representation of why people say awful things about Detroit.

It used to be beautiful and ornate and… functional.  Now it is quite simply in ruins.

Interior of the train station, covered in graffiti

For those unfamiliar with this location, Michigan Central Station used to be a large train station, with trains running frequently to major cities like Chicago. It was on par with the great train stations of New York City and had lots of offices (and a hotel, I think?) and other stuff in the large building above the station. Now, every single window is broken.

At first, I was shocked that the committee had chosen to include Michigan Central as a location for this project. Until I saw what painting they had chosen for it.

Syria by the Sea, Frederic Edwin Church (American 1826-1900)

It broke my heart in such a good way. It’s a painting of magnificent ruins.

Syria by the Sea is one of the DIA’s most famous and popular paintings. I have seen it many times, but I had never really considered it until now. It is so completely perfect for Michigan Central Station.

And as Larry (the head of this project committee) pointed out to me, the idea is to place these artworks in surprising locations around the city. Well, I can’t think of any place more surprising than one of the biggest abandoned buildings I have ever seen.

I am also told that people (tourists!) quite frequently visit Michigan Central. The old train station is across the street from an area that is quickly becoming a revitalized area of Detroit—popular and trendy. That strip is home to one of the coolest restaurants in the city, Slows Bar B Q. Interestingly, their logo is a train.

So anyway, I guess people going to that side of town to hit up Slow’s also stop by Michigan Central to take in the ruins. At first, I was kind of appalled by this. But then I remembered how many times I’ve visited the ruins in Rome or Pompeii. While this is not nearly as old… I think it holds some of the same appeal to visitors. So that’s how Michigan Central Station came to be a stop on Detroit’s Grand Tour.

Here's a few shots from London's Grand Tour to give you an idea of what it is:

The rest of the sites are somewhat less surprising. Trendy areas like Downtown Ann Arbor and The Nautical Mile of St. Clair Shores, and Detroit’s Eastern Market are all great locations for these paintings.

So after going through the list of locations and paintings, I began “cold calling” some businesses and honestly, I felt a bit like Oprah.

Everyone in today’s studio audience gets a reproduction of a masterpiece from the DIA’s collection.

EVERYONE gets a painting! Yes, YOU get a painting! YOU get a painting! And YOU get a painting!

My job today was to call all of these locations and tell them that “YOU get a painting!”, or more accurately, “Your location has been scouted and selected by DIA staff as an appropriate site for one of our life-sized reproductions”. Either way, it was fun.

I was surprised by how enthusiastic some of these contacts were. The woman at the Ann Arbor Downtown Development Authority has been emailing me all afternoon with pictures she’s taken of various places where she wants us to put a painting. I love it!

There are 45 locations in all, and I have a lot more “cold calls” to do, but today’s results have been encouraging.

Now for the boring part—funding it.

We are making “fully submersible” reproductions of our most famous paintings—they can get rained on, exposed to extreme heat and cold, etc. The images of the paintings are going to be printed on a vinyl material (much like any outdoor banner you would see around town) and mounted on a Versatex sheet board. The frames will be made of an ultra-light material called Fypon, which will then be painted with a self-oxidizing gold paint (to make it look 200 years old in about 2 days).

The budget for all of these materials is $11,096. We have a very generous donor (I believe he owns the printing company and is thus printing our repros for the fabulous price of FREE) who has given $12,000 to the project. So he covers all of the production—with $904 left over for lunch.

All we need now is another $8000 for the labor and mounting hardware. Larry says he thinks that he can find a “little pot of money” somewhere in the museum to take care of this. But I really liked what our donor guy said during our meeting. He said, “The original budget ($12000) is all I'm prepared to commit to, but I'm not prepared to let this program not happen." Basically, he is saying that he is willing to use his business contacts to help us out, in addition to the $12,000 he is already giving.

Our donor is one hell of a good guy and I really like his attitude.

All in all, I'm really pleased to be a part of this project. It benefits my hometown, and I think my knowledge of the area is helpful (both to me and the project committee, as they don't have to explain where things are and the demographics of each location, etc,).

Tomorrow I am meeting with the rest of the 125th Anniversary Project committee and I'll be able to see the first sample reproduction!

Exciting!

Check Mate

I feel as though I have been given a job that I don't deserve.

One of my intern tasks is to research all of the DIA's programs and do a short, one-page write up on each of them, expressing the program's value to the museum and community.  Essentially, I am presenting information about the programs (revenue, people served, frequency, target audiences, etc.) and then stating why the DIA should continue these programs and why you, the public, should support them.

Basically, I've been asked to determine which programs are of any value.

So I've been going through this list of 100 some programs and making up these little synopses or info-sheets.  I think I have 6 done so far.  Because there's a fair amount of research involved, it's not a terribly expedient process.

But anyway, today I was working on the synopsis for the Detroit City Chess Club, and I was astounded.  The kids in the DCCC have won all kinds of awards, scholarships and trophies for playing competitive chess.  There are over 200 kids, from 50 schools in the Detroit Metro area, but none of these schools will give the club any space to meet and play chess.  Super lame, DPS.  So the DIA stepped in and every Friday, gives the DCCC enough space for dozens of chess games.  It's really something to see.

I've walked past this event for the past several weeks, and I'm always impressed.  First of all, I think it's just plain cool to see twenty or so school kids playing chess among 400 year old suits of armor. 

Secondly, I am always amazed by how much these kids seem to genuinely enjoy the game of chess.  They're always smiling and laughing and cheering each other on.  Some of them get so excited that they can't stand to sit in a chair, and end up pacing around the tables while playing. 

The other great thing about this program is that it takes place on Friday nights.  The DIA is open to the public until 10pm on Fridays for a program called "Friday Night Live".  As a result, lots of people are walking by the DCCC set up, and many stop to play a game with the kids, or among themselves-- which the DCCC both welcomes and encourages.

So not only do we give the DCCC a place to play, but we also get the general public interacting with Detroit school kids and playing chess-- thus witnessing the DIA's civic engagement and developing a positive image of the DIA as an active member of the Detroit community.

There has been much debate in the museum world concerning the "function" or "purpose" of museums.  Should they really be turned into community centers?  Or should their mission center solely on the care of artworks?

I know that many of my peers shudder to think of the museum being transformed into a community center.  But I think it works here.  Detroit is something of a special case these days.  All of the city's organizations need to work together to make sure that their kids aren't falling through the cracks of this deeply cracked city.  I don't mean to be harsh on the City of Detroit.  I love Detroit, and I'm not afraid to say it.  While I see a lot of negatives in the DPS and other areas, I see as many positives in programs like those at the DIA that are actively supporting the city's students.

And if I haven't mentioned it yet, I need to do so now:  Chess is great.  It is a highly strategic game that develops critical thinking, and parents of chess club members have reported improvements in their kids' self-esteem and GPA. 

For an organization like the DIA, which so highly values critical thinking, a partnership with the DCCC seems like a no-brainer.  DCCC kids and their families are also frequently offered VTS tours of the collections-- another way of developing critical thinking skills in students. 

Thus, in my most humble intern opinion, I see the Detroit City Chess Club as being one of the most valuable programs at the DIA.


All of the photos came from the chess club's website, www.detroitcitychessclub.com

Dedicated by the People of Detroit to the Knowledge and Enjoyment of Art

I have lived all but one year of my life in Michigan. That's 23 Michigan winters. But you know what? I'm still freezing. I don't know if I have poor circulation or an iron deficiency or something... but I don't handle cold temperatures very well. As I mentioned, the ODHR office is kept at near arctic temperatures. Maybe they're trying to keep Jimmy Hoffa fresh in one of those suspiciously unused cubicles-- I can't say for sure.

I just know that the weather is finally warming up outside, so I have an escape (and can stop running to the bathroom to run my hands under hot water).  So this afternoon, I took a little stroll outside  to warm up and walked around the entire exterior of the DIA. It's more impressive than I had remembered.

The museum underwent a massive reorganization, renovation, and expansion several years ago. I talked previously about the changes to the interior-- new text panels, smaller gallery rooms, new interpretive techniques, etc.-- but there were some major changes to the exterior of the museum as well.

For those who may not be familiar with the great City of Detroit, the Detroit Institute of Arts is located in what we refer to as the "Cultural Center" of Detroit. This area is home to other great Detroit treasures such as...

The Detroit Public Library

Wayne State University

The Detroit Science Center

The Scarab Club

(http://www.scarabclub.org)

My dad took me inside the Scarab Club once, when I was younger. It functions partly as an artist collective of sorts, and also as a community arts center. It's a crazy little historic building, and I remember being granted access to one of the top floors when we visited-- which is generally closed to the public. Upstairs are a number of artist studios, and I recall meeting one of the artists and discussing his work briefly. It was pretty neat.

Anyway...

It is easy to see where the "new" and "old" DIA meet each other. I recall there being some rumblings in the community about the look of the expansion. It does look much sleeker and more modern and is a definite departure from the traditional temple-style of the "old" DIA

Old and New DIA converge

One of my favorite things about this building (and I think most Detroiters would agree) is the Woodward entrance. Woodward is a major street in Detroit, and while much of the city has declined, Woodward Avenue remains both active and reminiscent of Old Detroit. Fittingly, this part of the DIA is about as reminiscent as it gets. In one of my classes last semester, we discussed the museum as being a "temple" for art (or history, or what-have-you) and that many museums were actually elevated off the street by impressive marble staircases and other heavily classic architectural features. The movement now is toward a more welcoming structure that is less separated (physically and metaphorically) from is surroundings. That's what is so interesting about the DIA-- you can actually see this shift taking place in its very architecture.

Classic Woodward Entrance

What is unfortunate these days is that Woodward is no longer a functioning museum entrance, and it's a damn shame. I think there is something transformative about walking up a flight of marble stairs, between two shooting fountains, and past "The Thinker" that prepares the visitor for a meaningful museum experience. What you can't see in the photo is that it's been gated shut.

Entrances to the DIA are now on the sides of the building, and feature a more contemporary and low-key style. Does this make for a more positive and less intimidating visitor experience? I don't know.  Museums never intimidated me, so I can't even begin to answer that.

Contemporary Farnsworth Entrance

I'm pretty neutral about the new style of the expansion. I liked the old DIA, but I like the new one, too. I think the white marble is sleek and solid looking in its simplicity. But there will always be a place in my heart for the ornate design of classic museums.