It’s hard not to feel lucky to exist early in a musical genre’s timeline. With the birth of techno occurring almost half a century ago, we as clubbers and fans of techno have a rare opportunity to engage with this genre’s pioneers, many of whom are still among us. However, as most discussions about techno history tend to center on the musicians and DJs behind the decks, we often overlook the larger forces that shape the culture; it’s time to shift our attention to the dancers, the voyeurs, the bartenders, the door attendants, the designers – all techno enthusiasts who play a crucial role in sustaining and evolving the scene...
Tara Shafa
April 14, 2025
Niki Williams is a photographer known for his dreamlike depictions of everyday life. In his photos we encounter humans in their daily pursuits, their everyday rituals, daily routines, celebrations and with their loved ones. Within Wheel is Niki William’s first photo-book. Most of the images were taken while he was living in Detroit, Michigan. Here, we present an interview with the artist about this work and his experience as a photographer currently working between Michigan and California.
A conversation with Niki Williams
January 13, 2025
Corrosion has come to define this place that was once the center of the Industrial Revolution in the US, with its metals now tarnished by extreme neglect and its communities plagued by disinvestment. Detroit, Michigan and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania flourished as engines of technical innovation in America before waves of economic abandonment left them jobless. Curator Kemuel Benyehudah’s newest exhibition Echoes from the Rust spotlights artists from these two cities, whose work touches on engineering, manual labor, and community as foundations of their blue-collar culture.
Ashley Cook
January 2, 2025
The city is full of multi-talented ladies, and this photo series is dedicated to them all!
tearyeyed
December 30, 2024
The Tuskegee Airmen earned the nickname as the Red Tail Angels for fighting fascists in the skies of World War II. They flew hundreds of patrol, escort and attack missions for the Twelfth and Fifteenth Air Forces, and were recorded as the fleet with one of the lowest casualty counts of all of the United States pilots. They were recognizable as a team because of the red tails of their planes, and because they were segregated from all of the other pilots for being primarily African American.
Ashley Cook
November 11, 2024
Mr. Spotless celebrates it's fourth Halloween as Detroit's first haunted car wash. Here, Runner Magazine interviews Fathel Salha, who came up with the idea to start this spooky seasonal attraction at his family's buisness...
An Interview with Fathel Salha
October 23, 2024
Ghanaian American author Esinam Bediako has been honored for her debut novel Blood on the Brain, set to launch in September of 2024 in Brooklyn, New York. Born and raised in Metro-Detroit, Bediako’s story of a young woman, Akosua, who is also a Ghanaian American from Detroit, highlights challenges of growing into adulthood in the United States...
An interview with Esinam Bediako
September 9, 2024
Hamtramck, Michigan is the home of a few different ceramic studios, with the newest one being Porcelinen. Vanessa Beard has been working as a ceramicist for many years, officially starting her business in 2019, and opening a storefront and studio in 2022...
An interview with Vanessa Beard
August 26, 2024
business, culture
Setting foot into The Barbershop’s larval form on May 24th, I was met with the remnants of what once was, surely, a barbershop. The faded pink walls, floor-to-ceiling mirrors, and large basins of granite counter-top which served as pedestals for chemical innovations destined to become groundwater. Despite this tragic beauty, I knew it all had to go, as I was there to meet with founder Jack Jacket to discuss possibilities for the soon-to-be gallery’s first show...
Jackson Gifford
August 19, 2024
Powerful emotional and musical undercurrents will draw audiences into this 21st century American opera by composer Missy Mazzoli and librettist Royce Vavrek. The production originated with director Tom Morris in Edinburgh in 2019. The 2024 version is an international co-production of Opera Ventures, Scottish Opera, Houston Grand Opera, Adelaide Festival, and Théatre National de l’Opéra Comique. Diana Wyenn directs this revival, which opened on Saturday, April 6th at the Detroit Opera House...
Roopa Chauhan
April 12, 2024
Yuval Sharon directed the Detroit Opera’s production of John Cage’s avant-garde musical concept, Europera’s 3 & 4, which took place on March 8-10, 2024 at the iconic Gem Theater...
Roopa Chauhan
March 28, 2024
Social theorists around the world acknowledge Detroit as a complex place that was once built as a “utopian vision of the future” and now exists as utopia’s perfect antithesis. The city’s time-line has followed the devolution of many cities depicted in science-fiction tales, giving rise to cyberpunk, a subgenre of science fiction that focuses on a future of advanced technological and scientific accomplishments...
Ashley Cook
February 19, 2024
Delray Beyond Isolation is the story of the quiet loudness on the margins of total existence and economic chaos. A story that speaks of the indestructible spirit and the eternal search for inspiration that facilitates survival...
Karpov
November 6, 2023
The Detroit Opera House opened its season on October 7, 2023 with an original co-production of Giacomo Puccini’s Madame Butterfly bringing fresh voices and viewpoints to a timeless classic...
Roopa Chauhan
October 30, 2023
In Beatrice’s time stewarding Arnold’s, the city of Detroit was re-narrativized at least 10 times, from all sides. It was a wild time to be alive in the world, and a wild world to be trying to make sense within, especially as a young artist...
Beatrice Von Rague Schleyer and Mïï Gunn
October 16, 2023
August 11 marked the world premiere of ‘round midnight // i got it bad (and that ain’t good) by Detroit-based playwright and poet will street. The production is a semi-autobiographical semi-love-story told eagerly by the main character and narrator whose name is Elijah Eddleman...
Ashley Cook
August 23, 2023
August 11 marked the world premiere of ‘round midnight // i got it bad (and that ain’t good) by Detroit-based playwright and poet will street. The production is a semi-autobiographical semi-love-story told eagerly by the main character and narrator whose name is Elijah Eddleman...
Ashley Cook
August 23, 2023
A series of photographs taken at Hart Plaza during Movement 2023
Marissa Jezak
June 5, 2023
The Figure Club of Detroit provides the opportunity to sculpt from life...
An interview with Heather Anger and Rich Wiquist
January 30, 2023
The suburbs of River Rouge are situated between the Marathon oil refinery and the highly industrialized Zug Island located on the Detroit River; this makes the area one of the most polluted zip codes in the country...
Samuel Gulliver
November 21, 2022
On September 23, 2022, the exhibition With a Flick of a Tale opened at Loner, an unconventional exhibition space in Paris located in the attic above the apartment of Gilles Jacot, who directs and curates for the space. As a collaborative project between Linda Voorwinde and Ashley Cook, the show served as a recollection of a series of chaotic events in Detroit and Hamtramck that happened 5 years ago in 2017...
Linda Voorwinde and Ashley Cook
October 27, 2022
culture
At Hearse Fest, one of the largest gatherings of funeral car aficionados in the country, one thing is clear, death is coming for us all. When it shows up, with its cold glare and hungry scythe, you might finally get to catch a ride...
Niki Williams
October 17, 2022
A series of photographs taken on Belle Isle during the Detroit Kite Festival...
Daniel Ribar
September 12, 2022
A series of photographs taken at Hart Plaza in Detroit during Movement Electronic Music Festival 2022
Daniel Ribar
July 18, 2022
The history of art in Detroit encompasses the story of C-Pop, an exhibition space that started when Michael Lask responded to Rick Manore's ad in The Metro Times about old concert posters...
Michael Lask and Rick Manore, narrated by Ashley Cook
April 18, 2022
The heydays of the auto industry certainly led to Detroit being recognized as the Motor City. At that point, a new term called Fordism took over the world, which eventually led to the most recent one, which may not yet be completely known and defined - Detroitism...
Katarina Dačić
December 13, 2021
business, culture
Planet Ant Theatre is a true survivor and no stranger to the many obstacles that face a non-profit community of creatives striving toward a common goal. After more than 25 years in operation, the Ant boasts the longest running improv comedy show in the Detroit area...
Matthew Copeland
November 8, 2021
After a cloudy day of avoiding potholes, driving at sunset while everything glows orange is a necessary meditation. Driving around in a city this big introduces techniques and etiquette specific to the neighborhoods—learning when to roll through the lights or maintain speed while someone is stood in the turning lane is part of demonstrating respect for the areas passed through. Detroiters made the cars, and they make the rules too. Enjoy the view while it lasts and stay reckless...
Amelia Gillis
January 11, 2021