Details matter. Grand ideas and sweeping intentions are important. But if a person doesn't bother with the details, those grand ideas and sweeping intentions go nowhere. As an art viewer, highly detailed work often mesmerizes me. I see the artist's hand and his or her drive to create something special....

Do critics count? Teddy Roosevelt has a great quote about critics that boils down to: critics do not count, but the person who is actually in the arena ("whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again......

Light is magic.  It disperses shadows, and it can transfix people.  It is a proper symbol for hope and new beginnings.  In the evening of October 5 (from 7 p.m. to 12 a.m.) and the evening of October 6 (from 7 p.m. to 2 a.m.), Detroit will host a new...

Detroit inspires. It is a community of contrasts and enduring possibilities. These contrasts and enduring possibilities feed the creative appetite of numerous artists. Media outlets praise the idea that artists can make a real and permanent change to Detroit's landscape. To celebrate Detroit's artists (and artists inspired by Detroit),

This past Friday, I drove to Hamtramck, Michigan. Hamtramck is a culturally diverse home to a lot of musicians and fine artists, and it is almost completely surrounded by Detroit. I drove down Caniff Street, and this drive reminded me of why I love this community. An old "Welcome to...

Detroit is Hockey Town. And the Detroit Red Wings franchise is one of the greatest sports franchises of all time. As part of the original six, they are a part of the solid foundation on which the current league rests. Gordie Howe, Ted Lindsay, Steve Yzerman, Nicklas Lidstrom and Pavel...

We respond well to the familiar. Our brains reward us with endorphins when we hear or see the familiar. We also respond well to the unfamiliar. We like to learn. Our brains similarly release endorphins when we hear or see something new. So maybe the best way for an artist...

One of the best places in Detroit to grab lunch is Cass Café.  First, it has great food.  Two of my favorite offerings are the Spanish vegetarian burrito and the artichoke-pesto melt.  Second, Cass Café works hard to support local artists.  It uses its walls as a gallery --...

Tonight, March 5, at the Max M. Fisher Music Center Orchestra Hall, Peter Buffett will give a live multimedia performance (that encourages audience participation). Peter is a New York Times best-selling author and Emmy-Award winning composer. The show will expand on themes from his best-selling book, Life Is What You...

Detroit rocks. That is a given, but the trouble I have is finding out about all of the Detroiters that rock. There are just so many great musicians popping up all of the time, it is hard to keep up. Detroit Rock City's reputation as a breeding ground for creative,...

Sorry for that language.

I love artists. I've been an artist my entire life. And I love myself. Most artists love themselves.

Despite inevitable headaches, Detroit continued to be blessed with an active and growing cultural community. This past year brought us great art exhibits, theatre, and music -- if you were in Detroit and could not find something to do, you had your eyes shut! So, like everybody else, I decided...

Detroit has abandoned buildings. How is that for an obvious and empty phrase? There are bad drivers on I-75, Detroit used to have a lot more people and you were a jerk in high school. While these statements may be true, who cares? Everyone knows that these statements are true,...

Mr. Bow Tie cleans headlights, Mr. Woods created a mansion out of discarded objects, and Mr. Thunderbolt runs a strip club out of his house. And Mr. John...

In the middle of the lush suburban academic oasis of the Cranbrook educational community sits the Cranbrook Museum of Art. (The Cranbrook educational community (319 acres) consists of the Cranbrook Schools (private P-K-12), the Cranbrook Academy of Arts (graduate school), the Cranbrook Institute of Science, and the Cranbrook House and...

Detroit is lucky. Its founders valued art. Its founders prepared the cultural soil well, so that ideas flourish here. Music grows here. Theatre grows here. Fine art grows here. So informed visitors can come here on any given day and pick a bouquet of cultural events that will enrich them...