The Heidelberg Project is an unusual public art project in downtown Detroit. Originally opposed by the Detroit government, the artist Tyree Guyton’s project has become a world renowned public art project. My husband took these pictures the day we were there. It’s so worth the visit. To put it far too simply, Guyton has taken garbage and the remnants of a city on a long decline and created a spectacular community art project. When I was there the installations included a garden of brightly painted old vacuum cleaners, a field of repurposed and painted car hoods, brightly painted and dotted homes and something unique everywhere you look.
The single unifying theme–aside from repurposing everyday items long discarded–is that many pieces of art feature brightly colored dots. Interestingly, connecting the dots–from Heidelberg Street to dots painted on many abandoned downtown buildings–allows the visitor to ask what the unifying theme of Detroit itself is. And it often comes back to decay and the riots in the ’60s.

Connecting the dots on a repurposed playground rocking horse. Check out the website to take a virtual tour of Heidelberg Street: http://www.heidelberg.org/