DETROIT — DLectricity is an art festival that bills itself as a ‘Nighttime Festival of Art and Light.’
So who better to sponsor the event than Detroit’s hometown electric utility, DTE Energy?
Midtown Detroit Inc. announced DTE as presenting sponsor of the free, illuminated urban spectacle that will feature 35 artists, both world-renowned and up-and-coming. The outdoor arts celebration will be held Sept. 26 and 27 in Midtown Detriot from 7 p.m. to midnight.
“DTE Energy, along with the support from all of our sponsors, gives us the opportunity to create a world-class event, attracting high caliber artists and showcasing Midtown Detroit as an international art destination,” said Midtown Detroit president Sue Mosey.
Added Faye Nelson, DTE Energy vice president of public affairs and DTE Energy Foundation president: “We are committed to the vibrancy of our neighborhoods and it will be thrilling to see Detroiters and visitors explore an illuminated Midtown full of public art and light showcasing our great city.”
DLectricity will commission and host 35 international, national and local artists, whose art will illuminate the Midtown Woodward corridor, from the Detroit Institute of Arts to the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, with installations of light, video, performance, interactive engineering and other works of art. Additional details are available at www.dlectricity.com.
DLectricity will feature artists from Australia, Canada, Germany, Italy, Poland and Sweden, as well as New York, Boston and Detroit’s art community. Artists from 38 different countries submitted applications to DLectricity, which is modeled after other Nuit Blanche (literally, “white night,” and figuratively, “all-nighter”) festivals. The events bring the best of contemporary light and technology-based arts to the streets of major cities like Paris, Rome, Toronto, Minneapolis and New York.
“The quality of artists for this year’s DLectricty is extraordinary,” said Michelle Perron, who leads the DLectricity Curatorial Committee and gallery director for the world-renowned College for Creative Studies in Detroit. “The city’s cultural center will literally light up with the creative energy that continues to put Detroit on the map with international artists and visitors.”
Additional curatorial committee members include Larry Baranski of the Detroit Institute of Arts, Marsha Miro of Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit (MOCAD), George N’Namdi of N’Namdi Center for Contemporary Art, Frank Arvan of FX Architecture and Marc Schwartz, co-chair of DLectricity.
The Detroit Symphony Orchestra also returns to DLectricity with another live video projection of the Pops performance, “Let’s Dance,” conducted by Jeff Tyzik, which celebrates the art of dance as tango, tap and ballroom dancers are projected onto the facade of the Carpenter’s Building on Woodward.
DLectricity debuted in the fall of 2012, attracting 75,000 people to Midtown. Popular programs from the inaugural year are back, including the Light Bike Parade on Saturday, Sept. 27, where cyclists will bike a 4-mile route through Midtown, adding extra light and energy to the streets. The DLectricity Light Bike Parade is sponsored by Shinola with support from Wheelhouse Bikes. Cyclists may register at: www.lightbikeparade.eventbrite.com
DLectricity is also partnering with the Detroit Design Festival this fall, with both festivals during the same week. The DDF North America Festival of Independent Design, produced by Detroit Creative Corridor Center, will be held Tuesday, Sept. 23 through Sunday, Sept. 28.
Also supporting DLectricity are The Kresge Foundation, The Knight Foundation, The William Davidson Foundation, Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan, The Fred A. and Barbara M. Erb Family Foundation, Quicken Loans, Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs and The National Endowment for the Arts, Detroit Institute of Arts, Masco Foundation, the Marcia and Eugene Applebaum Family Foundation, Phillip Fisher, Shinola, Flagstar Bank, Northern Trust Bank, College for Creative Studies, the Detroit Medical Center, Wheelhouse Bikes, Marc A. Schwartz, Alan and Marianne Schwartz, Midtown Detroit, Inc., Fox 2 News, The Metro Times, and WDET.