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  FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
D Troit
CURATED BY TREVOR SCHOONMAKER

December 11, 2003 – January 31, 2004

RECEPTION THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11, 6-9PM
(opening sponsored by Tanqueray No. Ten // after party w/ BMG of Ectomorph)

Gigantic Artspace presents as its inaugural show, D Troit, a group exhibition curated by Trevor Schoonmaker. D Troit examines the city of Detroit and its specific socio-political conditions that have given rise to new forms of cultural and artistic production. The collapse of the automobile industry, the 1967 race riots and the ensuing “white flight” from the city to the suburbs gave birth to a center of urban decay and desolation that once was a model of the modern industrial city. But within this failed utopia a new generation of artists and musicians developed who are a product of and explore the specific history, urban development and cultural memory of the city of Detroit. They are the cultural residue of the city affectionately known as “Motown,” The Motor City,” “Detroit Rock City,” “Techno City,” or simply “The D.” This exhibition is not a comprehensive show representing the city of Detroit, but a sampling of the diverse body of visual culture and music in the city. D Troit is proud to introduce the work of these artists to New York City. An exhibition catalogue will be available.

Susan Cook: Video montage of family home movies and race riot footage examines societal ambivalence and expectations and how the past, both real and subliminal, affect the present.
Doug Coombe: Haunting photographs of abandoned architecture from the heart of the city.
Mark Dancey: Satirical illustrations from the co-founder of the influential underground culture and music fanzine, Motorbooty.
Andrew Dosunmu: Hot Irons is a poignant documentary about the world of African-American hairstyling, as explained by five Detroit hairdressers in preparation for the “Hair Wars” convention.
Tyree Guyton: Work from the Heidelberg Project, a community revitalization art installation, which has drawn international attention to the plight of Detroit’s forgotten neighborhoods.
Kenjji: Drawings from the afro-futuristic WitchDoctor comics that empower the disenfranchised.
Thom Klepach: Lightboxes investigate the beauty of Detroit’s culture despite rampant corruption, discrimination and environmental degradation in the urban center.
Mark Powell: Striking photographic portraits of people from downtown Detroit.
Thomas Rapai: Paintings of isolated motels embody the fallout of Detroit’s utopian ideal and the modern automobile industry.
Mike Rubin: Music journalist and editor of Motorbooty has compiled a historical overview of the finest Detroit area music of the last forty years.

Trevor Schoonmaker is a Brooklyn based independent curator and co-founder of the art consulting agency, Associated Projects www.associatedprojects.com. He most recently curated Black President: The Art and Legacy of Fela Anikulapo-Kuti at the New Museum of Contemporary Art, New York, 2003.


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