Farmington Hills Couple Takes on MI Apple Challenge

This Saturday, a stop along the MI Apple Trail comes to Downtown Farmington.

The public art project, sponsored by Eastern Market in Detroit, features 4-foot tall, three dimensional apples that will be decorated by local artists and displayed at farmers markets throughout southeast Michigan through mid-September.

Downtown Farmington’s edition, painted by local residents Geoff and Marty Merrill, will spend six weeks on the grounds of , near the Walter E. Sundquist Pavilion, home of the Farmington Farmers & Artisans Market.

The Merrills, Farmington Hills residents, have close ties to the market. Marty Merrill is a frequent vendor; she sells hand-made necklaces, bracelets and earrings at the Jewelry Cottage. She is a graphic artist who opened MacMarty Advertising with her late mother, Dorothy McLean, in 1968. She obtained a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Wayne State University.

Geoff Merrill is a respected contemporary artist whose works have been on display at some of the Michigan's finest arts competitions, including the Detroit Artists’ Market, Detroit Institute of Arts and Wayne State University. He is a graduate of Wayne State University (where he met his wife over 30 years ago) and previously studied painting in Florence, Italy.

“I applaud the Merrills for taking on this fantastic project,” Annette Knowles, DDA Executive Director, said. “They were so enthusiastic and so creative with their ideas for the apple, I knew right away they were perfect candidates for the job. We really appreciate the Merrills' efforts to put the polish on our big apple.”

Although no date has been announced, the Merrills will receive public recognition at a future market.

Part of the MI Apple Trail project includes a Passport Program. Passports will be distributed on a first-come, first-served basis at participating markets. Individuals who visit five different markets to have their passports validated will be eligible to enter a drawing for great prizes. Simply drop your completed passport in the mail.

At the end of the project, decorated apples will be harvested and returned to Eastern Market to be showcased with the whole peck until the Apple Gala and Auction in October. Proceeds from the auction of the apples will be returned to the farmers market from where it originated.

The project aims to help promote a bountiful crop of Michigan apples and the great farmers markets that serve Oakland, Wayne and Genesee Counties.

For more information, visit DowntownFarmington.org, follow downtown Farmington on Facebook and Twitter.