A projection shines upon the Detroit Public Library during Dlectricity 2012. Photo by the Kresge Foundation on Flickr. This is a big week in Detroit and a great week for several Knight Foundation-sponsored events. It is a week to celebrate the creative and innovative elements of Detroit’s growth and revitalization—and to have fun. The Detroit Design Festival returns for its fourth year, beginning with a kick-off party on Tuesday evening and closing with Light Up Livernois on Sunday. The festival is a celebration of Detroit’s role as a global center of design and creativity, with over 500 designers, 25,000 attendees and 30 “Design Happenings.” One of the great parts of the Detroit Design Festival is its mix of national and “big” events and ideas with locally inspired happenings. My favorite part is always Eastern Market After Dark (presented Thursday night). Expect 20-plus studios, shops and design happenings in Detroit’s historic and eclectic Eastern Market district. The entire schedule can be found here. This year, the Detroit Design Festival coordinated with the organizers of Dlectricity, a two-night festival of art + light. Thirty-five international, national and local artists will illuminate the Woodward Corridor Friday and Saturday nights, from the Detroit Institute of Arts to the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, with cutting-edge installations of light, video, performance, interactive engineering and other unexpected works of art. Dlectricity was an inaugural winner last year of Knight Arts Challenge Detroit. Two years ago, despite the rain, these were two of the most magical nights I’ve ever seen in Detroit. And Dlectricity mixes big and small, national and local too. As Detroit builds its momentum as a bike city, the Saturday night Dlectricity Light Bike Parade will rival Detroit’s own Slow Roll. The schedule for Dlectricity can be found here.
