Location, Location, Location: What Really Matters During ArtPrize

Some nicknames that became popular amongst the
service industry this year: #fartprize #artprison
#shartprize | Courtesy of ArtPrize

It's over! ArtPrize! It's ended! Words cannot express how grateful so very, very many people from the service industry are to know that this week, we all might actually get two days off. Though we made money hand over fist, too few bars and restaurants were adequately staffed. But that's understandable, considering the fact that the wave of people that ArtPrize brings is merely temporary. Sure, it lasts three weeks and it can bring a server/bartender/barback to her/his emotional and physical knees--usually through a combination of customers' lofty expectations and personal frustration regarding humanity--but it ends. And we've made it. Congratulations, my sisters and brothers: We did it.

Now that I've got that off my chest, let's move onto my next rant: the holier-than-thou attitude that so many locals have regarding this competition. Let's get real for a second: Art is art. To those of you who say that ArtPrize is filled to the brim with garbage, get off your high horse. Sure, some of it is not going to be good. A lot of it is not going to be impressive, but that doesn't give you the right to scoff at the entirety of the process. First, consider what ArtPrize has done for Grand Rapids: It has put us on a global map--not just a national map, a worldly one. Seriously, people from all over the world come to see what art is displayed and, at the same time, see what our city has to offer. This is incredible and has given us a serious boost in cosmopolitan cred over the last few years.

Second, realize that ArtPrize is about art. Some artists will certainly peddle to the crowds that they think will vote and give them a victory (and $200,000 along with it) but many will do their best to make something that they believe in, something that piques the curiosity of a viewer, something that speaks through the artist and peaks into the souls of anyone who visits the piece. I found something like this at the Kendall College Federal Building: It's called Trash Mirror and I hope it stays put for a serious amount of time--screw it, I want it in this town forever. Words would not do it justice, but I'll try anyways: Basically, you stand in front of a wall of pixelated trash, each pixel possessing a motor. A camera watches you from somewhere within the piece and when you stand in front of it, your reflection is cast in the trash pixels. The motors bend the corresponding pieces of trash from up to down, creating a shadowy interpretation of your figure. It's really something to behold, just like another installation in the same building: Courtesy Hallway | Doors.

This installation is a set of nine doors that swing in both directions. The hallway measures 32 feet and visitors get to walk/run/creep/crawl through each of those feet and each of those doors to come out the other side. A friend and I went through this entry a handful of times, laughing and running and enjoying the hell out of it. Something that I didn't enjoy was that these pieces (and several others at the Federal Building) were neglected due to location. How sad it is to see the old realtors' proverb in truthful action: location, location, location. It's what matters during ArtPrize and if you look at the Top 10, it's blatantly obvious that this is the case. All of them were located within a few blocks of the Grand River (at most), with the top four showcased at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum. What's up with that? Apparently a large number of ArtPrize voters didn't care to walk or bike around Grand Rapids to see some of the more far flung pieces.   And the fact that two of the Top 10 were quilts? Again, something curious is going on here: Are ArtPrize goers getting older? Are quilts hip? Are hipsters being sarcastic, making ArtPrize another one of their victims? Or are older people just finally learning how to use smartphones? Alas, it's a mystery that will have to be solved next year.

A Plea to the Powers That Be in GR: Make the Winner of 54Jeff a Reality

Alright: So I wrote about the 54Jeff competition last week and I can't help but go into it further now that I've seen the winners. I accidentally attended what I think was the reception the other night and I was stunned to get a glimpse at the visions people had for the space. Seriously, human beings are some creative son-of-a-guns when they want to be and what I saw was some astonishing stuff. Let's look at the top three entrants and you'll understand exactly what I mean.

Grand Rapids Automaton by Peter Dumbadze | Courtesy of 54Jeff

In third place, we have the Grand Rapids Automaton. Sticking with the museum concept, Peter Dumbadze from the University of Michigan had the idea of putting the archives to use in a really intricate way. Basically, a new section would be built on top of the current building, adding two floors to the museum according to the diagram. This would house the entirety of the archives and double the facility's height. In addition to this addition (heh), there would be a number of elevator shafts installed--13 to be exact--each of which is directly connected to a gallery in the museum area. Museum goers could then enter the archives area--the Automaton--and send artifacts and pieces into the museum below. With or without rhyme or reason, patrons could create a brand new museum experience every time. In my opinion, this was the most fascinating idea for the space because it brought an oddly democratic feeling to the museum concept, allowing the patrons to choose what they and others see. And by allowing things to become caddywompus--because let's face it, it's definitely going to get sloppy--it seems like there is a lot being left to chance. Dumbadze noted that the inevitable occurrence of ridiculous combinations could inspire insights and conversations that would not have otherwise happened, particularly those regarding intercultural interactions. Let's be honest: I'm probably biased toward this idea because of my degree in anthropology.

Light Beams by Doonam Back, Yann Caclin, and Hugo Pace | Courtesy of 54Jeff

In second place, we have Light Beams. Dreamt up by two architects and an intern, this French submission is a very modern redesign of the space. The beauty in it resides in its reliance on the old--the ceiling is cut like the ribs of the famous whale skeleton that used to hang in the facility, the same one that hangs in the new Grand Rapids Public Museum. With a rooftop garden, an inner amphitheater, and a genius reallocation of space with minimal addition to the facility's exterior, I have to say I was impressed. Very much so. I can imagine spending quite a bit of time at a place like this, especially if it became a well-respected venue for entertainment and community events.

Reforestation by Danielle Berwick | Courtesy of 54Jeff

First place was insanely impressive, though. Long story short, the public museum would become something I've never seen before: a pseudo-museum for tree trunks. The project, called Reforestation, was designed by Danielle Berwick from Vancouver, Canada, and I'm not quite sure that words could do it justice. Half indoor green space, half sustainable practices, half visual orgasm, the space would become one-of-a-kind. Don't worry, I know that I listed three halves; I'm just flabbergasted and this project deserves some praise beyond what I can provide within the confines of normality. Tree trunks on tree trunks on tree trunks, all hanging from the ceiling--though dead, the trunks cling to life by reclaiming the position they once held on a plot of land that is ancestral to them: before the great Chop of the Lumberjack, trees used to be everywhere. Honestly, I've never heard nor dreamt of anything like this and what Berwick has created, even if it's only a plan, is something out of this world. I want to see this happen. Desperately. It would add yet another thing to Grand Rapids that no other city has, yet another thing for us to be proud of as citizens of this wonderful town.

Arise Grand Rapids: The Revitalization of Downtown

Slowly but surely--even rapidly in some cases--Grand Rapids is transforming. Our old buildings, vacant for some time, are finding new owners with an eye for the future and tenants that are cut from the same cloth. Take the old Harris building for example: Run down for some time after its construction more than 100 years ago, I remember being intrigued by it a handful of times when I was traveling along Division Avenue. I had tried to pull open the door to see if it was unlocked (I do this pretty regularly to buildings that catch my attention) but, as usual, I had no luck. It was a few months later that I heard about something called #saturdaze. Basically, the idea behind this was to host a party. I don't know if it was the first time #saturdaze did this, but they somehow managed to land access to the Harris building. I marked my mental calendar, impatiently awaiting the first time I would get to enter this old gem.

Ah, the Harris building | Photo courtesy of theharrisbuilding.com

The party was killer. So was the party after that. There may have been a third and a fourth fiesta after these, but soon the streak would end and the building would get a new owner. It's safe to say that I was sad to see the venue go as it kind of made these parties what they were: grungy yet mystical. Case in point: My friends and I would wake up the next morning with the blackest of boogers, having danced in a space that wasn't put to use for years. We soon realized it was all of the dust that had been kicked up; those little particles had plastered themselves to the insides of our nostrils while the feet of strangers shuffled around us--kind of disgusting but kind of alluring, right? Though tragic, the death of the relationship between #saturdaze and the Harris building was beautiful because it brought a renewed attention to the Harris building and now, with its new owner, it has been revitalized. A locally-owned organic pasta company called The Local Epicurean moved from its Eastown location into the first floor of the building as soon as it could--and other retailers are expected. Future plans include residential lofts, restaurants, community event space (which means #saturdaze might be back!), and work studios. For the next handful of weeks, the building is even an ArtPrize venue (I guess this shouldn't be too surprising). If everything goes as planned, the Harris building could become a model for the restoration of other buildings in the city.

Another building that is getting a lot of attention is the old Grand Rapids Public Museum. After opening in 1940, the museum moved to its new location in 1994. The building went mostly unused--to the public, anyways--for 16 years. It was then that a nonprofit arts group known as SiTE:LAB began collaborating with the museum to make use of it as a space for ArtPrize. Many citizens enjoyed what SiTE:LAB did and began wondering what the space could be used for the rest of the year, thinking that there had to be something that could occupy the 30,000-square-foot spot for more than just three weeks out of the year. Through these notions, a competition called 54 Jeff was conceived and dozens of entries were submitted for the building's revival. A board of expert jurors, focused mostly on art and architecture, are expected to reveal the competition's winning idea later this month and I'd be lying if I said that I wasn't excited.

Anyone traveling on the S-Curve on any given day will see cranes, scaffolding, and insulation going up on buildings like wrapping paper.  Clearly there are big plans for Grand Rapids' old formerly industrial parts.  Cleaning and refurbishing them is something all of us can be happy about.