There's nothing like a dance party to bring people together.
That was the goal of an event put on by the Detroit artist collective known as "Complex Movements."
Photographer Doug Coombe was there when the group put on its "Doing it in the Park" event to celebrate Detroit's Capitol Park neighborhood. He posted photos of the event and of the group on our Michigan Radio Picture Project website (you can see some of the photos above).
From the Picture Project site:
It only made sense for Complex Movements to celebrate the great historic neighborhood of Detroit’s Capitol Park while shedding some light on the massive dislocations being brought on by the rapid gentrification of downtown Detroit. The...“Doing It In the Park” event was equal parts dance party, art installation and community empowerment event. Just like pretty much everything Complex Movements does.
Complex Movements blends multi-media art forms with hip hop and community activism. "Doing it in the Park" is one way the group does this.
Here's another way. Take a look at how their vision plays out at one of their shows at the Detroit Science Center during the Kresge Foundation's Art X Detroit festival in 2011. The rapper is female artist Invincible, one of the group's members:
The group also was selected for a 'time performance' ArtPrize award in 2012.
More on that here:
They also had an exhibit this summer at the African American History Museum in Detroit, "Beware of the Dandelions." More exhibits will surely be coming from this creative collective.
