Bill Text: MI HR0368 | 2015-2016 | 98th Legislature | Enrolled
Bill Title: A resolution to declare December 2016 as Heidelberg Project Month in the state of Michigan.
Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Democrat 19-3)
Status: (Passed) 2016-12-01 - Adopted [HR0368 Detail]
Download: Michigan-2015-HR0368-Enrolled.html
Substitute For House Resolution No. 368.
A resolution to declare December 2016 as Heidelberg Project Month in the state of Michigan.
Whereas, For 30 years, Heidelberg Project Founder Tyree Guyton has changed the urban landscape where he grew up on Detroit’s East Side from a decaying neighborhood wearing the scars of one of the worst race riots in U.S. history to one of the most recognizable living art displays in the world. With the hope of helping erase the wounds created by poverty, drug abuse and violence, Guyton took a simple concept of wanting to improve his neighborhood and turned it into an international art environment; and
Whereas, Armed with broom and paintbrushes, Guyton enlisted the help of some neighborhood kids and began cleaning up vacant lots. With the discarded refuse they found, they began decorating the vacant lots, introducing Found Object Art to Detroit. Thus, in 1986, with his grandfather and mentor Sam “Grandpa” Mackey, the Heidelberg Project was born; and
Whereas, The colorful but massive art project incorporated not just vacant lots and abandoned homes into the project. Guyton incorporated the street, sidewalks and trees into his mammoth art installation. Vacant lots literally became “lots of art” and abandoned houses became “gigantic art sculptures”; and
Whereas, The accolades began rolling in for Guyton, but he never lost sight of the goal of his non-profit: improving the lives of people and neighborhoods through art. Guyton has been featured in Newsweek and People Magazines and appeared on numerous TV shows. He has had his own one man show at the Detroit Institute of Arts and he has won numerous awards, such as the Spirit of Detroit Award, the Governor’s Artist of the Year Award, and the Wayne County International Artist Award, and he is the recipient of two honorary doctorates; and
Whereas, Detroit has made a steady recovery with many people visiting Detroit to take in the city’s many cultural, sports, and entertainment venues. The Heidelberg Project is one of those attractions. In 1998, the Heidelberg Project was determined to be the third most visited cultural tourist site in Detroit with more than 275,000 visitors from all over the world making the trip to the Heidelberg Project; and
Whereas, Any successful endeavor must change with the times to be relevant, so is the Heidelberg Project. As it embarks on the next 30 years, the future is Heidelberg 3.0 that will focus on an "arts-infused community" rather than an installation driven by just one man; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives, That the members of legislative body declare December 2016 as Heidelberg Project Month in the state of Michigan.
