Art Connects Dearborn: 22 Pieces on Public Display

“Portrait of a Collagist” by American artist Benny Andrews is located on the exterior wall of Lile’s Ham Sandwich Shop, 13800 Michigan Ave. in east downtown Dearborn as part of the city’s public art initiative. This self-portrait of Andrews is full of surprises such as pieces of real cargo pants and shoelaces. (Photo: City of Dearborn)

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Art connects Dearborn – on the east side, west side and in between. Twenty-two pieces of public art currently are on display in various outdoor locations.

They include 12 reproductions from the Detroit Institute of Art (DIA) Inside/Out program, on display through October, and 10 sculptures from the Midwest Sculpture Initiative that are on exhibit until April 2015.

An “Indian Summer” bus tour, scheduled for Sunday, Sept. 21 from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., will provide an opportunity for those who want to take it all in on one trip. Seating for the tour is limited and reservations are required. The cost per person is a $10 donation to the Dearborn Community Fund’s “Art in Public Places” initiative.

The tours, part of Dearborn’s “Art in Public Places” project, are presented by the East Dearborn Downtown Development Authority, West Dearborn Downtown Development Authority and the Dearborn Community Fund (DCF) in partnership with the Detroit Institute of Arts.

The public also is encouraged to explore Dearborn’s outdoor art gallery during self-guided tours. Detailed brochures for both the DIA Inside/Out and the sculpture initiative are available at the Ford Community & Performing Arts Center and upon request.

To make a bus tour reservation, request a brochure or receive more information about the “Art in Public Places” project, call the Dearborn Community Fund at 313-943-5478.

The DIA Inside/Out 2014 project is sponsored by the Knight Foundation. The DIA works on exhibit through the end of October include:

• Seascape: Sunset (located at Ford Field, Cherry Hill entrance);
• Eros Triumphant (Starbucks Plaza);
• Bank of the Oise at Auvers (Bryant Library);
• Flowers in a Glass Vase (West Dearborn Pocket Park);
• The Fruit Vendor (Nigosian Oriental Rug Co. building);
• Trappers’ Return (Henry Ford College);
• Dancers in the Green Room (University of Michigan-Dearborn);
• Solitude (Henry Ford Centennial Library);
• Indian Summer (Ford Community & Performing Arts Center);
• Portrait of a Collagist (Lile’s Ham Sandwich Shop);
• A Day in June (Dearborn City Hall Park);
• Still Life: A Letter Rack (Joe’s Top Dog).

Through the Midwest Sculpture Initiative, the eight sculptures in Dearborn until April 2015 are located at the Ford Community & Performing Arts Center, Dearborn City Hall, Oakwood Midwest Health Center (Schaefer and Michigan Ave.), Starbucks Plaza, Commandant’s Quarters, and on the corner of Michigan Ave. at Military.

Two permanent sculptures are located in the West Dearborn Pocket Park and Dearborn City Hall Park.

The Midwest Sculpture Initiative is sponsored by the Dearborn Community Fund and the East and West Dearborn Downtown Development Authorities.