Michigan’s largest city is a center of culture and expression. You’ll find works by some of the country’s best artists side by side with pieces created by the city’s endless local talent.
From downtown’s famous museums to up-and-coming art districts, you’ll have plenty of places to choose from. During your stay, the city’s creative energy and spirit will take you in. Here’s what you need to know before you come to Detroit!
1. Visit the Museum of Contemporary Art in Detroit
If you’re a fan of contemporary art, then Detroit’s MOCAD is worth a visit. The museum is located in a 22,000-square-foot former auto dealership. The building’s tall ceilings and industrial architecture create a unique open environment for the art. The museum features rotating collections that tell the story of the city and its impact on global art and culture. In addition to local artists, the museum also features works by contemporary artists from around the world.
Every month, you can enjoy events hosted by the museum and artists from the community. From lectures and meet and greets to live performances, there is always something new to experience. When you finish your visit, you can head outside to see the other galleries and murals of the city’s Sugar Hill Arts District.
2. Spend the Day at the Sugar Hill Arts District
No visit to Detroit would be complete without stopping by the two-block Sugar Hill Arts District. This creative space is located in Midtown Detroit and is surrounded by museums, Wayne State University, and the Detroit Medical Center. With funding and guidance from Midtown Detroit Inc., an organization founded in 1976 to promote the area’s cultural attractions, artists have been able to turn the space into a center of art and creativity.
The neighborhood’s long history of inclusive diversity and artistic expression is preserved in its galleries, murals, and events. Here, some of the city’s best artists come to display their work. You’ll see murals, graffiti, sculptures, and occasional live performance art. When you visit, don’t miss the Detroit Artists Market, where you can buy local art. Also in the neighborhood is the N’Namdi Center for Contemporary Art, a gallery that features works by local and visiting African American artists.
3. Explore the Detroit Institute of Arts (DIA)
Detroit’s DIA is one of the country’s largest art museums. Its collection includes over 65,000 pieces, including Diego Rivera’s Detroit Industry murals and Vincent van Gogh’s Self-Portrait.
The DIA is full of diverse collections spanning various art movements and mediums. You’ll see everything from African American art at the museum’s General Motors Center for African American Art to classic Asian and European works. You can spend hours wandering through the museum’s over 100 galleries. Some of the highlights include the theatrical puppets of the Paul McPharlin Puppetry Collection and one of the largest collections of Islamic Art in North America.
The museum hosts events at its state-of-the-art lecture hall and a 1,140-seat auditorium. Check the museum’s website to stay up to date and catch one of the exciting annual events.
4. Check Out Mexicantown’s Murals
Mexicantown is in the city’s southwestern corner. The neighborhood is a center of Detroit’s Mexican community. Within its quiet streets and family-run businesses is a thriving art scene. Here, you’ll enjoy hundreds of murals, such as Elton Monroy Durán’s Dream Picker and the Duality Mural. Each mural depicts the lives of real people who inspire Durán and his community.
Colorful works from other artists also decorate the walls of many local businesses and depict Mexican pop culture, political figures, and local community heroes. Local artists will paint their recent works throughout the warmer months, so you’ll always have something new to enjoy before winter. Try caching a local street mural tour or explore the neighborhood on your own. People are more than happy to help you find their neighborhood’s iconic and hard-to-find murals if you ask.
5. Stroll Along the Detroit Riverfront
Every year, over three million visitors come to Detroit’s riverfront to run, walk, and enjoy art outdoors. You’ll find lively art events as well as live performances throughout the parks and waterfront spaces. To the riverfront’s east is the Aretha Franklin Amphitheatre, one of the city’s best venues for live theater and performances. From here, you can walk west and see murals and sculptures. You can also visit monuments such as the International Memorial to the Underground Railroad. Head further east to see the Yard Graffiti Museum, an outdoor space dedicated to the art of graffiti. Here, local artists display their work in a beautiful outdoor space and on overpass walls.
6. Spend Time at the Dabls MBAD African Bead Museum
Artist Olayami Dabls created the mesmerizing Dabls MBAD in 1994 to show that art can be a vehicle for cultural expansion and healing, a concept rooted in African artistic tradition. Since its founding, Dabls has expanded the museum to include a wide variety of material works meant to stimulate the human experience.
The museum currently showcases 18 installations. You’ll see everything from traditional beadwork to large pieces made from a wide range of elements. Dabls incorporates the healing properties of rocks, wood, mirrors, and iron to tell the story of Detroit’s industrial history and cultural roots. The Dabls MBAD is looking to expand and create a state-of-the-art building space and outdoor garden area. The massive project involves rebuilding collapsed townhomes and repurposing land to include areas for events and future community art spaces.
7. See the Creative Spirit of the Heidelberg Project
Detroit suffered immensely from the racial tensions of the 1960s and its deindustrialization. Many homes, factories, and buildings were left abandoned for decades. However, the city is reviving itself, and artists are taking the lead in turning forgotten spaces into centers of art and expression. One of the best examples of this is the Heidelberg Project. Local artist Tyree Guyton started the project in 1986 as a way to transform his abandoned neighborhood. With other local artists and children, he turned the space into a colorful art center for his community.
Although Guyton’s project has faced several hurdles, including fires and demolition orders by the city, it has survived to become a quintessential part of Detroit’s art scene. When you visit, you can see the outdoor space for free and learn more about the art and the neighborhood’s history.
8. Enjoy Street Art at Eastern Market
On top of hosting one of the best food and produce weekend markets in the city, the Eastern Market neighborhood is a must for art lovers. You’ll see endless murals and street art by some of the city’s most popular local artists. The neighborhood has hosted several art-centered events, such as the Murals in the Market festival. During the festival, local artists team up to turn the already expressive streets into pop-up art installations and more.
In addition to wandering through the mural-filled streets, you can visit galleries such as the Wasserman Projects. This center for art was created as a community art space where artists and art fans could interact. Since its founding, it has become one of the city’s most popular destinations for local art.
9. Walk Along the Dequindre Cut
Since 2009, the Dequindre Cut in downtown Detroit has been a hub for Detroit’s street artists and fans of street art and murals. The two-mile-long green space runs parallel to St. Aubin Street. On either side of the path are murals by some of Detroit’s top street artists. Works such as The Organic Variables of Growth and Hygienic Dress League sprawl along the concrete overpass walls.
You can enjoy this art-focused urban green space on foot, on bike, or even on rollerblades. No matter how you like to get around, you’ll be sharing the path with plenty of other art enthusiasts. Dequindre Cut also hosts events such as night markets, art shows, and musical performances. To keep up with local events, visit the Detroit Riverfront Conservancy website.
10. Visit the Lincoln Street Art Park in Detroit
Detroit’s industrial past is often the fuel for its creative spirit, and few places in the city reflect this more than the Lincoln Street Art Park. In 2011, a group of local artists teamed up with the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs, Detroit’s recreation department, and the local recycling center to create the space. They saw the potential to create an outdoor art space in an abandoned industrial zone.
Since then, artists have created murals, sculptures, and other works out of refuse and industrial materials left on the site. The murals and graffiti art display a wide range of styles, mostly done by artists from the neighborhood. Some of the works include abandoned airplanes, automobiles, and various industrial appliances that have been turned into art pieces. Throughout the year, the park hosts full moon parties and other events. If you visit during this time, you’ll get to meet local artists and some of the park’s visionary creators.
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