Arts & Entertainment

PHOTOS: New Sculpture Unveiled, Ferndale Celebrates Public Art at Rust Belt

It was a "black tie and sneakers" event on Thursday evening as residents explored the city's 11 public art sculptures as part of the ARTWN initiative.

City leaders, business owners, artists and residents from across the area joined to support public art on Thursday evening at the for "ARTWN–The Event, Small Plates and Big Art."

The event, held as part of the 's ARTWN initiative, let residents explore and celebrate the

The event included guided sculpture tours, small plate offerings donated by local businesses, a silent auction and live music from the Nighthawks Jazz Orchestra. The unveiling of the 11th ARTWN sculpture, which is located outside the Rust Belt, was also featured.

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Cristina Sheppard-Decius, the DDA's executive director, spoke at the event and said public art is about economic development. "It drives people to your community and drives yourself to your community," she said.

Berkley residents Liz Jerome and Paulina Kramer attended the event.

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"I always like to go to the Rust Belt on the weekend. It looks fantastic in here, I love it," she said. "The music is great too."

Jerome said she was glad to support public art. "It makes the city so much prettier," she said.

Steve Cannaert, an artist from Pinckney who created one of the sculptures in the exhibit, attended the event and said he was happy to be involved in the initiative. "It's pretty exciting," he said.

Jennifer Roosenberg, executive director of the Ferndale Area Chamber of Commerce, said she was "very excited for the public art."

"It just really enhances the qualify of life that's already here," she said.

Chris Hughes, communications manager for the DDA, said the event was going well despite the heat.

"We've had great feedback from everybody," she said.

Ferndale Mayor Dave Coulter spoke at the event and agreed that public art is good for economic development and also helps contribute to "sense of place."

The 11-piece public art exhibit was assembled by renowned curator John Sauve of the Sauve Art Foundation. He attended Thursday's event and said some communities "just put the art up and leave it" and praised Ferndale for organizing the event.

"This is the best party I've ever worked with," he said.


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