The Arts

The patient's on the operating table. Surgery is underway. Excision to obtain fiscal solvency, and Emergency Manager Kevin Orr is holding the scalpel - Detroit has been cleared for eligibility to become the largest municipality to declare bankruptcy by Judge Steven Rhodes.

But the Art could be saved. There was a chance, it seemed earlier, that the artwork of the DIA would be at risk. But, there's even a possibility now, that maybe, just maybe, the pensions too...could be saved.

It's still all very wait-and-see...

There's a lot to worry about. There's a lot to be upset about. There's still a bit be hopeful for...

The energy and enthusiasm of the Arts community has only amplified under the watch of this blog...As the city's financial woes increased, so to, did the activities of its artists, its crafters, its painters, its graphic designers, its authors, its spoken-word artists, its musicians, its singers, its street-performers - There was activity everywhere. But beyond that, there was a sense of community in every one of these corners.

Further reading: 
Plan to Privatize the DIA Still Alive

What are we all still doing here, trying to beautify a city that's ridiculed by so much of the rest of the country...A deluded-country convinced that this could never happen to them... Well, the bars will still open so the rock shows will go on... DIY devotees will still foster their own art-spaces for exhibitions and unconventional performance art, off the beaten paths. The MOCAD's been going five year's now and the Metro Times Blowout festival expanded in duration, location and line-up.

And this weekend - Midtown's shops open their doors with good cheer for the annual Noel Nights (more info here), just as the craft community aligns for this weekend's Detroit Urban Craft Fair.

http://www.handmadedetroit.com/

And later on....there's the Mittenfest Music Festival -5 days of live music over in Ypsilanti -raising funds for non-profit writing-education organization 826Michigan.

http://826michigan.org + http://mittenfest.org

These artists have bright spirits and big hearts and it seems to me they're staying here because they still feel that sense of community, whether the municipality downtown is bankrupt-or-not. It's the art and the artists, like those on display daily at the D.I.A. that demonstrate why this city is worth saving.

Let's see what happens next, for the D.I.A.....