Two Dearborn Artists Represent City at 2013 Art X Detroit: Kresge Arts Experience

Two artists will represent the Dearborn community in the 2013 Art X Detroit: Kresge Arts Experience, held April 10-14 in Detroit's Midtown district.

Ken Meisel of Dearborn and Bruce Giffin of Dearborn Heights will participate in the event.

Throughout the five-day festival, more than a dozen venues will display a collection of visual art installations, dance, musical and theatrical performances, and literary readings created by the Kresge Eminent Artists and Kresge Artist Fellowship awardees.

“A thriving arts and cultural community not only enriches the quality of life for residents and visitors to southeastern Michigan, but inspires fresh ideas and fuels the creative vitality of the region,” said Rip Rapson, Kresge’s president and CEO. “In attracting local, national and international audiences to experience the works of these artists, Art X Detroit celebrates the Detroit metropolitan area as a hub of innovation and human energy. We’re proud to support the event and celebrate the Kresge Eminent Artists and Artist Fellows.”

Meisel, who received the Kresge Award for his poetry in June 2012, said he is humbled by the opportunity to present his work at Art X Detroit. He will perform his poem John Lee Hooker’s Boogie Chillun, from his book Beautiful Rust, to the hip hop stylings of 2012 Kresge Performing Arts Fellows, Passalacqua. The performance will take place from 9:30 to 10:30 p.m. April 10 at The N'Namdi Center For Contemporary Art.

In addition, Meisel's photographic collage based on his poem Automotive Wedding, Packard Junkyard, Piquette Avenue, will be on display throughout the festival at the Garfield Lofts. The image evokes the intimacy of the Rust Belt and Motor City. The lyrical poem, placed across the photograph in this video installation, both contextualizes and adds language and meaning to the piece.

"The poem is fitting for this art show because it depicts how Detroit is disastrous and hopeful at the same time," he said.

Giffin, a self-taught photographer, has been shooting photos of residents in the city of Detroit for nearly 30 years.

"I love what I do," Giffin said. "My photos tell a story of survival. What you see is what you get. Some photos are interesting and some are shocking."

After shooting landscapes for several years, Giffin said he turned to portrait photography to capture the plight of Detroit residents through visual art.

"I engage the people I shoot. I give them a few bucks and spend a few minutes with them learning who these people are and what motivates them to keep going," he said.

One example, he said, features photos of a homeless man living in an abandoned three story building.

"He is bound to a wheelchair and has a wheelchair on each floor of the building," Giffin explained. "When he has to get somewhere, he pulls himself along. It shows that the people of Detroit will get up again and again, and keep trying to forge ahead."

Giffin's photos will be on display from April 10-28 at the visual exhibition room at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Detroit.

The Kresge Foundation has provided $2 million to support more than 70 artists living and working in Metro Detroit through its Kresge Eminent Artist and Artist Fellowship programs since 2008. The Eminent Artist and Artist
Fellowship programs are administered by the College for Creative Studies.

For more information about Art X Detroit, view the complete schedule at www.ArtXDetroit.com.