The TAP Gallery, aka The Alley Project, consists of a garage that serves as a studio and gallery, as well as two lots fitted as common space for artists and neighbors and an alley that has been transformed into a walking gallery. TAP presents graffiti as art and gives producers safe and legal places to practice, along with opportunities to teach and give back to the community. Founder Erik Howard stated that because these works are ephemeral, it focuses its programs to “build in a process that gives beyond the piece itself” and engage the community. An example would be providing a mural workshop that teaches youth how to put their energy toward the positive while growing valuable social capital. Upon entering the Springwells neighborhood, where TAP is located, it is obvious how much the project has impacted the community. Storefronts have hand-painted signs that resonate with the bright walls poking out from the alleyways. On my walk through the gallery, I was greeted by a neighbor who explained how the paintings had stopped people from vandalizing the house next door and how the kids were making his block beautiful. Howard commented that the TAP Gallery is helping to create an “ever-expanding physical environment filled with a lot of art.” The entrance to the TAP Gallery on Avis Street is a lot between two houses with an installation that serves as a front porch created by Cranbrook grad Ross Hansen. The functional and aesthetically beautiful work is made up of seating and planters created out of wood to look like industrial pallets. Howard said he first saw the sculptures at Detroit’s Movement Electronic Music Festival and immediately knew Hansen’s ideas of “sustainability, reducing cost and discipline to not over-design” aligned with the project. The seating invites people to utilize and feel comfortable in the space that also holds a gravel walkway that leads toward the alley and is lined by boards for artists to come hone their skills. A walk down the alley exudes the spirit and thoughtfulness of its founder. The Alley Project has transformed the city’s forgotten spaces into some of its most beautiful and made them an asset to the community.

The Alley Project (TAP) 9233 Avis, Detroit, Mich. Visitors are invited to view from 12 p.m. to 8 p.m. daily. Parking available in front of the lot and on Woodmere at Avis. (Please do not park in the alley, as it is used by neighbors.)