PARKVIEW MAGAZINE Issue No. 4 by PARKVIEW MAGAZINE

P E O P L E . P L AC E S. S H A R E D S PAC E S.

LISA SPINDLER • DETROIT GRAND PRIX • CLAUDIA WIGGER JESSICA GOLICH • MIDDLECOTT SKETCHBATTLE EXPERIMENT KATOI • JAMAR LOCKHART • CANDICE SIMONS ERYN ALLEN KANE • THEOREMATIC

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MASTHEAD PUBLISHER AND EDITOR IN CHIEF

Ashley K. Parks

ART DIRECTOR

Judith Banham / Middlecott Design middlecott.com WRITERS

Janell Hearns / The Legendary Movement Media Group thelegendarymovement.com Malissa Martin / Sandford Martin Publishing smpublishingllc.com Spencer White COPY EDITOR

Rivan Stinson rivanstinson.wordpress.com PHOTOGRAPHERS

Jon Adams / Jon Adams Design jonadamsdesign.com Jacob Lewkow / Jacob Lewkow Photography jacoblewkow.com Justin Milhouse / JMilhouse jmilhouse.com Keenan Rivals / Rivals rivalsvs.com Ieisha Self / Ieisha Self Photography ieishaself.com CONTRIBUTORS

Jessica Golich / No Filter. No Shame. jessicagolich.com Jack P. Johnson / Atelier Cinelux Detroit ateliercinelux.com Lamar Landers / Theorematic lamarlanders.com Lisa Spindler / Spindler Project spindlerproject.com WEB DEVELOPER

editor

From the

PHOTO: JESSIE GLIESMAN STUDIOS / JESSICAHANNING.COM

Where I Stand

I read a quote a while ago that said, “When you do things from your soul, other people really dig that shit,” author unknown. It makes sense to me. When you do things with love and intention, you reap reward. PARKVIEW MAGAZINE was initially a mere imaginative project that offered me a place to explore things from my soul. It was my journal of sorts and revealed itself as my long lost love. We started this PARKVIEW journey almost two years ago. Through it we have discovered innovation, passion, commitment, community, tradition, awareness, empowerment, tranquility, and most importantly perspective. From Detroit wood restoration and automobiles, to classic letter pressing and expression of self through art, fashion, and design, PARKVIEW has showcased brilliant talent and humble entrepreneurs dedicated to a social connection and responsibility to their communities. This issue is a momentous one. It marks a red-letter day for us as we proudly celebrate our one-year anniversary. It’s an emotional milestone to say the least. Inside, you will find intimacy and vulnerability intertwined with vivacity and modern culturalism. As always, the imagery and stories are sublime. I thought I found my love in PARKVIEW but as someone once said, “Lovers don’t finally meet somewhere. They’re in each other all along.” Can you dig it? Enjoy! Ashley K. Parks

MAY 2016 Masthead

From the editor

B IS FOR BROOKLYN

Loft time with advertiser and socialite Candice Simons.

POOL LIFE

Claudia Wigger’s Community pool concept development project. I AM...

Interview with artist Jamar Lockhart.

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FEELING THE LIGHT

Photographer Lisa Spindler’s Spindler Project portfolio.

MUSCLE MEMORY

1980’s retrospective view of Detroit Grand Prix.

THE BEST SKETCH WINS

Automotive design and insight with the Middlecott Sketchbattle Experiment. MUSIC + MATH

Theorematic Project with Lamar Landers.

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DO YOU!

Interview with soulful songstress Eryn Allen Kane.

LADY BOY

Katoi, Thai inspired cuisine and transformative dining experience. 93 IT’S BEEN A RIDE

A memoir with writer and explorer Jessica Golich.

On the cover: “Woman’s Face (blue) Merged with Racks” by Lisa Spindler

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PHOTO: CASEY BUDD

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BUSINESS

B IS FOR BROOKLYN CANDICE SIMONS, the woman behind BROOKLYN OUTDOOR’S

advertising firm, brought her business to Detroit by way of her travels from Michigan to Chicago and back again. PHOTOGRAPHY: I E I S H A S E L F TEXT: M A L I S S A M A R T I N

CANDICE SIMONS,

owner of Brooklyn Outdoor Advertising and curator behind J’Adore Detroit in front of a painting by Detroit artist Ouizi.

here’s no such thing as a typical day for Candice Simons, the owner of outdoor advertising company Brooklyn Outdoor. The Northville native moved back to Michigan after dominating the advertising business in Chicago with multimillion-dollar sales. Having begun her entrepreneurial journey in 2013, she now has an office in downtown Detroit, a home office in Plymouth, and satellite offices in New York and Los Angeles bringing ideas to life through out-of-home media. “I had no idea what I was coming back to when I returned to Detroit from Chicago but I fell in love,” she says. Here’s a bit on her travels from Michigan to Chicago and back again. Simons originally moved to Chicago to complete her final two years of college after she attended Michigan State University her freshman and sophomore years. “I needed to get out of Michigan for a little while because I felt too constrained. Michigan State was the best experience I could’ve had for my first two years. It was the epitome of the college town…but I wanted to network and meet people that could help me do what I wanted to do. I really didn’t know exactly what I wanted to do, but I knew I wanted to be involved with entertainment, fashion, and design because it allows for creative facets,” she explains. The self-proclaimed “driven perfectionist” went so far as to make a professional PowerPoint presentation for her parents when she decided to move to Los Angeles but ultimately made her way to the Windy City of Chicago. While there, she

“I’VE NEVER DONE WHAT PEOPLE WOULD EXPECT ME TO DO”. studied marketing and sales at DePaul University, taking the train into downtown Chicago everyday. It was on the train during rush hour commutes where she practiced her networking skills by talking to professionals in various backgrounds. Although those rides were always crowded and rarely enjoyable, it was where she was able to observe various professional walks of life – people in sales, physicians, lawyers – on the crazy, busy, chaotic, but ever exciting train rides through Chicago. After graduation, Simons wasn’t in a rush to find a job. “I really had a unique opportunity to sit back and not take the first thing that came my way,” she says. It was a luxury that not too many young professionals have. Eventually she took a job as an account coordinator, and quickly developed the skill, materials, and tools required to be successful in advertising. Though people in the advertising industry have tried to change her unique fashion style to fit the business-suit only mold of an adman, Simons has stuck to her quirky style of dress. She’s even died her hair purple in the past. She believes that while continuing to work on oneself, in and out of the professional world, there is a natural evolution that takes place where recognizing strengths and weaknesses happen and encourage growth in all aspects of life. “I’m still going to be me and I’m still going to make sure my personality shows through. I’ve done well with that. I’ve been told, ‘You can’t do it like that, you have to wear a suit, you have to act a certain way in this situation,’ but I’ve found that everybody 7

Branded Brooklyn Outdoor coasters and business cards alongside BENTLEY, the office Chihuahua. Candice Simons sips in the BROOKLYN OUTDOOR LOFT antiqued

kitchen space.

Laughs are shared amongst Brooklyn Outdoor team members CANDICE SIMONS and EMILY NELSON, with PARKVIEW’s MALISSA MARTIN.

acts like that. So when I’m just myself, we end up owning the signs on Cobo Center,” downtown Detroit, says Simons, as she toots her own horn. She believes her outgoing personality, the people on, and culture of her team are definitely qualities that gets companies to sign on the dotted line. Their energy and personalities are infectious and attract positivity. This positivity was partially a motivating force in creating J’adore Detroit, a curated collection of local artisans, musicians, companies, fashion, style, and design in a comprehensive resource of the worthwhile things Detroit has to offer.

hen she first decided to move back to Detroit many people told her it was a bad idea. “Vast majorities of business are out of New York and L.A. So people expected me to move there. But then again, I’ve never done what people would expect me to do anyway,” Simons explains. Since moving back, she has said it was the best decision she’s made and she is surrounded by some of the most amazing people she’s ever met. “We are all very close and maintain real, long-term friendships. Competitors and clients alike, we are all a loud, obnoxious, and fun family,” she says about her friends in and around the city. “Every time I drive into the city I feel re-energized. Even in the areas where people see no energy, I still find it from the architecture and the rich history of what the buildings used to be. I know what we’re moving towards and some of the growth happening right now is because of people’s experiences in other places, bringing those experiences back, and working collectively,” she says. The Brooklyn Outdoor loft, for example, is a labor of love that not only represents her as a creative, but also the city of Detroit, her business, and the camaraderie shared amongst Detroit talent all the same. “I am an eclectic individual with unique tastes. I am polished in places and off center in others, which is the culture of our space. We are fun and not afraid to take risks,” she says. With exposed brick, walls covered with art from local artists Michelle Tanguay and Ouizi, chesterfield sofas, crystal chandeliers, and a well lit “B,” her Eastern Market loft space is a perfect combination of sophistication and whimsy, fit for a person inspired by beauty and grit. “When it comes to Detroit I like to keep people focused on who’s doing stuff here locally that we can support. I hope that we then remain in top of mind as a resident company here,” and endorsing our own, Simons said. She digs local flavor and talent differently than others and is using her platform on a national scale to welcome people into the ins and outs of the city. Candice’s story is not too different from the experiences and opportunities that so many people have. The caveat here is that she has employed her love and passion for something, be it design, fashion, entertainment, advertising, or simply having a good time, to develop relationships and professional work that speaks for itself. Candice has taken the immense outdoor advertising industry by storm, is making her mark as a strong successful woman with the capability to inspire others to be great. In her own words, “No one knows you like you know yourself and what you are capable of.” The lesson in her story is a simple one; be true to you, be your best self, care deeply about those around you, and don’t be afraid to showcase your bright lights and big signs. It’s the only way to be. brooklynoutdoor.com; jadore-detroit.com

Three bronze WISE MONKEYS

adorn a shelf in the bathroom; wallpaper by Detroit Wallpaper Company. MARQUEE LETTER B

graces the wall of the Brooklyn Outdoor loft workspace.

CLAUDIA WIGGER in the living room of her Lafayette Park townhouse.

ARCHITECTURE

Pool Life

CLAUDIA WIGGER in her townhouse.

opposite page: Townhouse units in LAFAYETTE PARK, Detroit. Urban renewal project designed by Mies van der Rohe, Ludwig Hilbersheimer and Alfred Caldwell in 1956.

In the home of architect CLAUDIA WIGGER as we discuss beautiful design, architecture, and public poolâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s impact on community development. PHOTOGRAPHY: J A C O B L E W K O W INTERVIEW: A S H L E Y K . P A R K S

In the DINING ROOM: Model 62 armchairs by Møller, originally owned by Claudia’s husband’s grandmother, Arne Jacobsen pendant lamp, Eero Saarinen table by Knoll. opposite page: Nostalgic origami paper bird perched on kitchen dinette.

riginally from Germany’s capital and cultural center, Berlin, Claudia Wigger made her way to the United States multiple times and found a home in Detroit with her husband who is in the automotive industry. They moved to Michigan nearly nine years ago for a short while, but headed back to Berlin for her husband’s work. As the familiar saying goes, “distance makes the heart grow fonder,” the separation from Detroit weighted heavy on Claudia as she indeed missed the city. It was not long thereafter that she packed her family, returned to Detroit, and now resides in the townhouses of the beautifully designed Lafayette Park. “We missed Detroit a lot and when we had the opportunity to come back, we did. We were spoiled by the architecture designed by Mies van der Rohe and we missed the unique sense of community in the city.” That was just five years ago. Detroit is a unique place. “In the place we live, it feels like a small village but is still very urban,” says Claudia. Her neighbors are a diverse mix of professionals, young families, and long-term residents. Many of which are actively engaged in creative or non-profit work throughout the city. “When we moved here nine years ago, there weren’t a lot of shops or restaurants or other things you typically find in cities. So the people that chose to stay in Detroit or moved here, came for the community, the unique mix of diversity, and the accepting and open-minded people that live here,” says Claudia. It’s a bit different now as there are more and more businesses opening downtown, but still very special nonetheless. “Although we live in somewhat of a bubble, as we are very fortunate to be in a well served community, we easily meet people who are connected with other people and learn about interesting things going on in other parts of the city,” she says. Educated at the Technical University in Berlin, Claudia is a trained and skilled architect. She runs her own architectural practice with her partner that is based in Hong Kong, Berlin, and Detroit and oversees their projects in Detroit. She teaches architecture at the Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. “I am very fortunate to be professionally involved in both teaching and practice. Teaching is very interesting way to enrich your architectural practice because you learn as the students learn. You are challenged to think about best ways to explain things, and 18

GFZK (gallery for contemporary art) Leipzig, Germany, in collaboration with as-if architects, Berlin, Germany.

“Questions about global practice, local awareness, interdisciplinary practice and the interrelation of architecture to the city are of ongoing interest for my teaching and practice.”

forced to question the knowledge you already have while continuously adding to that expertise,” says Claudia. As a professor, many projects are introduced to students that are informed through her experience in practice. “Besides teaching my students technological knowledge, skills, and a strong vocational understanding of our profession, I challenge them to develop their own position, to ask critical questions and develop their own position and architectural language. I see their time in college as an opportunity to learn how to think and to develop a desire to adjust to future transformations of our field. Questions about global practice, local awareness, interdisciplinary practice, and the interrelation of architecture to the city are of ongoing interest for my teaching and practice,” she explains.

laudia originally got into architecture because she was always interested in design, architecture, and cities in general. She is passionate about her profession as it is concerned about designing beautiful spaces for a specific program but can also incorporate a social, political, and sustainable agenda into a project to provide additional services for the surrounding community. Given the multiple void spaces Detroit has, there is much room for architectural cultivation. Indeed, Detroit has many problems to address, but filling void spaces can be a fantastic opportunity when you imagine them with programs that can help build the community. “This semester my students were studying Berlin, Germany as a precedent to develop provocative design proposals for Detroit’s large void spaces. Berlin is very interesting as it has suffered from disinvestment and deindustrialization during the Cold War, but has successfully reinvented itself over the last twenty years. It is now a creative, tolerant, and diverse city with a high quality of life. I wanted to take our students there to better understand the urban and architectural strategies that the city used to reshape their landscape, strengthen their economy, and reclaim spaces of the commons through civic engagement. We studied how residents are actively utilizing void spaces for temporary or recreational use and how these programs and participatory planning culture defines the image of the city. We want students to transfer this knowledge to their work in Detroit, to reimagine the cities’ urban void spaces as an opportunity to create alternative 19

clockwise from top left: Some of CLAUDIAâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S PROJECTS: GSSO sales office in Foshan, China, ICE; Star Center Jeonju University in Jeonju, Korea, in collaboration with RAD, Hong Kong; Frischeparadies De Pastre, Essen, Germany, in collaboration with Robertneun, Berlin; sales office, Kales Building, Detroit, ICE.

“Congregating by the water is one of the most enjoyable activities during hot summer months. You don’t only get wet together, you build new friendships.”

futures, and provide much needed services for the residents,” says Claudia. In turn, touching many of the communities in Detroit that don’t need restaurants and retail shops but rather schools and grocery stores. The challenge comes with understanding city constraints and uncovering loopholes that will allow for development of synergetic design solutions with various stakeholders being involved, providing innovative design solutions that people don’t expect.

he latest project Claudia is working on in Detroit evolved from a research project that was made possible by a grant from the Taubman College. “Dip ’n’ Dive in the D” works on different sustainable and affordable solutions to swim outdoors in the city, using natural water resources as the Detroit River as well as Natural Pools. After the management of the apartment complex in their neighborhood decided to cease selling passes for non-residents to their pool, all of a sudden, Claudia and her neighbors realized they had slim pickings for places to spend hot Detroit afternoons and evenings with their families that offered the freedom to simply get wet. The only location to swim outdoors for the whole city then was Belle Isle Beach (Brannon Pool reopened the year after). “When you are lucky to have access to private amenities such as the pool, you don’t realize how certain services are fundamentally lacking in the city. Services that are important for the quality of life for every resident,” she says. This ignited her ambition to find ways to bring more locations to swim outdoors to the city and use Natural Pools as a sustainable and affordable alternative to conventional swimming pools. Natural Pools were developed in Austria thirty years ago and use only plants and bio filters to clean the water. The concept is relatively new to the United States and was realized mainly for private swimming pools over the last ten years. The first public Natural swimming pool in the states opened in 2015 in Minneapolis. Natural pools are cheaper to build and maintain than conventional pools as they don’t use chemicals to clean the water, are more sustainable for the environment, and are healthier to swim in, particularly for kids with asthma. 21

clockwise from top left: “DIP ’N’ DIVE IN THE D”, GUERILLA POND, a DIY-pond, privately owned by not more than four owners; the Swimming Pier, a floating river bath in the Detroit River; The Swim Hole; “Dip ’n’ dive in the D” EXHIBITION INSTALLATION at Taubman College’s Liberty Annex in March 2016.

clockwise from top left: PUBLICATION of “Dip ’n’ dive in the D”; history of outdoor swimming in natural waters in Detroit; Guerilla Pond; the Swimming Pier; research about the reasons for the closing of Detroit’s former 13 outdoor swimming pools. opposite page: Section cut drawing of the GUERILLA POND.

The first public in-ground outdoor pool in Detroit was built in 1929 in a majority white neighborhood in Rouge Park. African Americans were not allowed to use the pool until the early 1950’s and later harassed when they were trying to enter. Nine more pools were built in the 1950’s and 60’s, but only two of them were accessible to African American residents. When racial tensions were rising in the late 1960’s, the city introduced five swim-mobiles to provide much needed recreational services to majority black neighborhoods that were left out from booming public investments in recreational services after the Second World War. Two more pools were built in neighborhoods with majority African American residents, totaling the number of pools to thirteen and five swim-mobiles in the 1970’s. After years of shrinking city budgets, neglect and vandalism, only two of these pools remain open today, Brennan Pool in River Rouge and Belle Isle Beach. Wayne County operates a water park in Chandler Park, but with its wave and wading pool doesn’t provide the opportunity for kids to learn how to swim. Unintentional drowning is among the top two reasons for cause of death in children between the age of one and nine years old and about 70% of African Americans don’t know how to swim. As 80% of Detroit is made up of African Americans, providing more opportunities to swim is not only about getting wet in the summer, it provides much needed spaces for kids to learn this essential lifesaving skill.

istorically, Belle Isle Beach was the only pool that was continuously open. “That’s a fantastic precedent because you can’t cut the river out of the budget, which became the initial starting point for our speculation of the natural pool project,” says Claudia. “We figured we needed to somehow think of pools differently. They need to be designed in a way that they are either integrated in a natural environment or combined with necessary urban infrastructure that makes it harder or impossible to close them,” she continued. The project develops four different designs that, with the exception of one, doesn’t classify as a public pool as defined by code. They are instead called “swim holes,” “swimming pier,” or “guerilla pond” and operate with different ownership models, the engagement of different stakeholders and funding sources. They all share the 24

View of the LIVING ROOM with Vitsoe book shelves, Warren Platner coffee table, Eames Chair. opposite page: A VESPA SS180 from 1965 is parked in the hallway.

intention to optimize and intensify the use of existing natural, social and infrastructural resources of the city and to increase the access and benefit for its residents. Rather than proposing projects that rely on the availability of one funding source, it speculates on the mix and overlap of necessary infrastructure with public amenities informing synergetic design solutions. The project embraces Detroit’s diverse landscape of strong neighborhood and community engagement and intends to link it with public and private investment to reintroduce the neighborhood pool as collaborative platform that invites the city’s residents to a new, engaged form of democratic participation. The quilted pool, the only one of the four projects classifying as a public pool, redefines the municipal neighborhood pool as a space for public engagement and community effort. It links public and private investment but as well skills and knowledge of community organizations and local residents. The pool is operated by a neighborhood organization with the support of the Parks and Recreation department and local stakeholders such as schools, churches and Non-profit organizations. Those involved in the maintenance of the natural landscape, the training of lifeguards, and providing swim lessons also benefit from the pool as an extension of their own facilities. This pool serves as a location where neighbors can meet during summers and it engages residents of all ages to contribute to the construction as well as successful operation of their community pool. The goal is to secure funding and to build one of these pools in a neighborhood in Detroit in the near future. “Congregating by the water is special and is different than being in a green park. It is one of the most enjoyable activities during hot summer months. You don’t only get wet together, you build new friendships,” says Claudia. Claudia is most passionate about speculating and developing ideas that question the status quo to make things better. “The pool project is very ambitious but is certainly feasible,” she says. It is very much related to her job as an architect and professor but developing ideas that can reimagine things are what community development is all about. Although the city feels unfinished in some ways, there is a lot of freedom in Detroit and abundant opportunities for growth within its borders. dipndivedetroit.com; icehk.com 26

I AM... An intimate studio conversation with artist

JAMAR LOCKHART

where he talks fervor for art and influence. PHOTOGRAPHY: J U S T I N M I L H O U S E INTERVIEW: A S H L E Y K . P A R K S

rt enthusiast Jamar Lockhart was born and raised in Detroit and found his passion for art very early in life. Having watched his father, an artist, he was able to witness first hand the drive, detail, and dedication needed to produce fine pieces of work. As an artist, but as a man and human being first, Jamar reveals some of the intimacies in the mind of an artist and a responsibility to righteousness. More than just in the work we do, but the life one leads is what creates an influential person. Jamar holds this same principle as his guiding force. A lover of the truth revealed in documentaries and biographies, he too has a story to tell. “My documentary would be a collection of experiences that make up my life. They would be real, flawed, vulnerable, and interesting. I would call it, I am…” says Jamar. 27

PARKVIEW: Where did your origins in art begin? JAMAR LOCKHART: My earliest recollection of

doing art would go back to elementary school. I was always interested in art but I had a second or third grade teacher who really encouraged me as an artist. She introduced me to local contests and things to get involved in as she fostered my interest to be more consistent with it. I had another teacher in middle school who would excuse me from class assignments so that I could do artwork. I was able to paint a picture that my dad drew of my sister and me for the school, and they hung it up on the wall. My dad was also an artist so I was lucky to watch him draw pictures of people that he liked including Otis Redding, James Brown, and The Supremes. As for me, I started out heavily sketching cartoons and my talent evolved from there. I was heavy into

Artist JAMAR LOCKHART.

Acrylic painting of CHARLIE “BIRD” PARKER.

opposite page: Paintings of BURN RUBBER DETROIT X NEW BALANCE

collaboration, hip hop artists NAS and JAY Z, and abstract MAN ON A CHAIR, surrounded by a painting of Jamar’s father, musician Jerome “Bubby” Lockhart.

wrestling as a child. I would draw muscle wrestlers but they would have sharp angles as body parts with a triangle for a head and a rectangle for a body. My earliest drawing that I’ve kept is a drawing of Shaft that I entered in a middle school competition. I may have won maybe second place. I thought it was pretty good (laughs). I remember growing up and being surrounded by students who weren’t really interested in art but for me, art class was more than just class. How do you define art? Art is life. Everything we do here on earth is art to me. The way we dress is art. The way we express ourselves is artistic. The way we speak or the words we choose are art. The music we listen to, it’s all art. There are just many different forms and styles that exist in a creative kind of way. I’ve always been a fan of documentaries, which is visual art. Real authentic stories are told through documentaries, and the interviews are in depth. They are the truth. They speak to the rise and fall of a 29

person and everything in between, filling in the blanks that people don’t always see. I don’t think there is good or bad art. It’s all just a matter of expression. For example, although something may have a racist tone to it, I can’t define the art as racist. What is being portrayed may be, but not necessarily the work. Do you think you have a responsibility to contribute to the climate of racism through your artwork? Absolutely. More than through my artwork, but as a man first. I have a responsibility to live righteously. I don’t only have a social responsibility but a moral obligation to put positivity into the atmosphere. I think it is up to all people to portray a different way of life because there is so much negativity out there that it can be difficult to combat. It’s therefore essential that we live with integrity, high standards, a moral compass, and with a certain creed about ourselves. I didn’t grow up in a church centered home but I was definitely brought up to appreciate faith. I had and still have strong examples of people who

exhibit those principles. My mom and dad would tors are all a big influence on me personally, and do things out of the kindness of their heart. No gift many other artists unnamed. There are people out was too big for them. Everyone is presented with there now who are trying to recreate some of their choices and it’s up to that person to decide how to works, which is a testimony to the influence they face them, particularly when it comes to racism. had on art culture as a whole. It isn’t so much of We have a choice to hurt or their personal lives that make heal with the things we say and me appreciate their artwork or “I don’t only do and how we treat each other. their talent any more or less. have a social When I look at their paintings What other artists influence or any of their work, it gives responsibility you? me depth into who they were but a moral People like Jacob Lawrence as human beings and how they obligation to put and his portrayal of African used their art to express themAmerican life during the Harselves. The art reveals the truth positivity into the lem Renaissance, Basquiat and of their lives to me. atmosphere.” his depiction of social struggles, Keith Haring, and Picasso What do you want people to have contributed to my overall interest in art. Alvin see when they view your artwork? Ailey dancers at a performance inspired me once. I want them to see me. My personality. My charThe colors, the background details, the body flu- acteristics. My style. I want them to see my vision idity are all artistic. Although I am not a dancer, and pieces of my life. I want them to see some of the art is influential. People who were innova- the things that I have gone through and experi30

What would you tell your younger self now about life? I would tell my younger self that life is not promised. We all have an expiration date that we don’t know of. Live life with no regrets and to your fullest capabilities. Don’t be afraid to take chances. Some part of me wishes that I were more trusting and open with people on an intimate level. I have been blessed with some amazing friends who I have maintained close relationships decades later. I was guarded as a child but I could have been more trusting of the process of getting to know someone and making sure they are deserving of my time and effort. To my younger self, I would say don’t be so quick to settle. Live a little. Fair How are you different now from childhood? Daddy tells me he’s experienced “two lives in From a youngster to an adult, one lifetime,” from the there are definitely pieces of things he has experienced. “When I paint, me that remain. I’ve had to He has infused a wealth of I paint to make grow up quickly due to things knowledge in my life and myself happy. that happened to me and have gives me a lot of jewels like, shaped me into the man I am. “A man is only as good as My work reflects My parents passed when I was his word,” “Education is the my happiness.” in high school. I remember the hippest game in town,” and Saturday before it happened. “You are lucky to have one My mom got a new car, and we went to practice true friend in life.” He has been my biggest infludriving because I was starting driver’s training. ence and I would share those same pearls with my I must not have been paying attention to some younger self. safety measures or something because I rememI think everything happens for a reason. I am ber her telling me about her first accident. Ironi- not one of those people who questions or secondcally, that night or early the next morning, both guesses life. I find solace in the fact that things are of my parents passed in a car accident. I remem- supposed to happen as they do. The person I am ber having this funny feeling inside the whole today is, in part, a great deal because of the people night and when my grandfather, we call him Fair I have surrounded myself with and because of the Daddy, told me what happened, everything in me people who have helped and allowed me to grow dropped. He said, “We don’t question God,” and into a man. Without those people being such key I never did. But for the most part, I feel like that parts of my life, I may not have ever developed young boy still remains in me. I would describe from that 10-year-old boy. When I paint, I paint to that person as shy, introverted, and reserved. make myself happy. My work reflects my happiNaturally, I don’t always feel comfortable around ness. So to any younger or older person, whoever people I don’t know but I am more at ease as I you are, wherever you are in life, I say do what grow to know someone. I don’t know where that makes you happy. I am. comes from, but it’s just the way I am. instagram.com/jlock_art_designs enced culturally and how all of those things make me who I am as an artist. You can tell a lot about an artist through their work, particularly their use of color and lines. For me, you will see clean lines, bright colors, and shades. I really enjoy abstract work because the message is left to the viewer’s interpretation. I also want people to see talent in my work. I would be lying if I didn’t say I want people to see that I actually have skill. I shy away sometimes from putting too much of what I like into commissioned work because I am not always certain that other people will be receptive to my style of art. It can be a bit of an insecurity, but also a challenge and motivation for me to master another body of work.

Jamar holds a painting of his “WIFE AND KID.”

ART

FEELING THE LIGHT Through an exploration of art and passion, LISA SPINDLER takes a photographic journey through the experiences that create “Spindler Project”. PHOTOGRAPHY: L I S A S P I N D L E R INTERVIEW: A S H L E Y K . P A R K S

“Woman’s Face Merged with Racks”.

“Karen’s Skirt”. opposite page: Detail of “Abstract of Merged Car Transport Racks Vibration”.

“Jambox”. opposite page: “Mother and Child”.

“Racheal Nude”. opposite page: “Woman’s Body Merged with Racks”.

“Red Lips” on aluminum.

“Detroit Industrial Foundry Patterns series”. opposite page: “Side Nude Profile Hands Behind Back”.

“Detail of Abstract of Merged Car Transport Racks Vibration (night)”.

clockwise from top left: “Verticle Sleeping Nude”; “Corn”; “Portrait of Ruth”; “Jessica in Sheer White Robe”.

Spindler Project space; 1970’s high back circular couch by Milo Baughman with Arco floor lamp by Achille Castiglioni; “Elevator Door” series on aluminum on far wall; sheer fabric panels with various hand and body images hanging from bamboo; “Woman’s Face Merged with Racks” on aluminum.

LISA SPINDLER at Spindler Project space.

opposite page: Sheer fabric panels of various hand and body studies.

There are rare occasions when you have the opportunity to meet someone who has years and years of captivating photography, shelf on top of shelf of published works, and an art studio curated to intimate perfection as you will with Lisa Spindler. We had the pleasure of joining Lisa in her beautiful gallery overlooking the Ambassador Bridge and the Detroit River as she carried us on a photographic journey through her naked truths and love of Detroit. Artist and photographer, Lisa has zeal and charisma that manifests with each of her collections.

PORTRAIT: MARK KRYSIAK

ORI G I N S O F LISA SPINDLER AS A N ART IS T: I was always very interested and fascinated by

art at an early age. I remember my art teacher would wear a different pin everyday on her clothes. They were surreal and I was drawn to them. I remember wanting to draw all the time too. The most intriguing thing for me, however, was light. I would stop and stare at the way light would spill into a room. But it wasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t until my junior year in high school when I was afraid to take a photography class, I took that class, and things changed. I will never forget doing a fashion portrait of my sister in my bedroom. There was a stream of light coming through the window and when I shot the photograph I felt something that I had never felt before. I almost held my breath because I became so excited. I loved that feeling and I remember the rush that I experienced. I got an A on that assignment and I saved every assignment from high school after that. My teacher also recognized that I had started to develop my own vision. I realized I wanted to be a photographer so I put everything into learning as quickly as I could. That was my first year with Jack Summers. He was the teacher who changed my life. He taught me to look at light differently and develop my own style and vision through my camera. E A RLY Y E AR S : I was born in Detroit at Mount Carmel Hospital, west side. My parents moved out of Detroit after the riots to the east side. We were lucky to move into a block within the Grosse Pointe 52

“Queen Bee” photograph from “Driven” nail series.

city limits that allowed us to attend Grosse Pointe schools. It was a tough adjustment for me because both of my parents were very hard workers and Grosse Pointe was, and still is, a very affluent community. It wasn’t always diverse. I just remember how hard my parents had to work in order for us to go to school there. We moved to Grosse Pointe particularly for the school district because the education in Detroit was threatened as a result of changes the riots caused. My dad worked for Ford and my mom worked at the Westin Hotel. I remember watching my mom take the bus to work. There were many long days but they sacrificed a lot for us. I can’t say that I would have even considered photography if I had not gone to those schools. After I graduated from high school we left Grosse Pointe. Overall, it was a different community back then but I have them to thank for cultivating my passion. DETRO I T THEN AND NOW: I have very early memories of Detroit. We went to a lot of festivals and

Greektown when it was called Trappers Alley and the buildings preserved the industrial and architectural elements of the time. I remember walking down an alley into two brick buildings that artists had converted into little shops. My parents were very explorative so we would literally wander through Detroit and look at old buildings, Hudson’s, and enjoy the boat races. After the riots, and for a long

Triptych of sheer architectural screen images in the lobby of Spindler Project. opposite page: Spindler Project space view reflected off window.

while, the city became like a ghost town. I could literally hear my own footsteps when I would walk down Woodward. I would go for walks with my camera and take nude photographs of models, even myself, underneath the viaducts of the Dequindre Cut in abandoned areas. I knew I would never see anyone there; it was so vacant. Almost like a city after a war, it looked bombed out. It was very lonely. I remember wondering if it would ever change. So much so that when I worked at the souvenir stand on the Bob-Lo Boat, I saved a photo of Detroit from the 1940’s because it reminded me of a time when the city was vibrant. What I’ve witnessed in Detroit most recently is pretty incredible. I realize it’s a younger generation of people who have a vision and fresh ideas that are moving to the area. It’s definitely a different time. I worry sometimes about the soul of Detroit getting diluted and losing what Detroit is really all about. There is a fine line and a sensitive subject matter amongst true Detroiters who were born and bred here and are watching what’s happening in certain areas of the city. Even I have been treated like an outsider. I realize too, that there are new people coming in but its imperative that they don’t forget about the people who have been here. The soul of Detroit is vibrant, like a heartbeat, or energy you can feel when you know something is authentic. You can’t stop the growth but you just hope that the soul is never lost. 56

“Woman’s Face Diagonal Merge with Racks”.

ENVI RO N M ENT AND WOR K: Over the years, the location of my studio has influenced my work.

When people surround me, they are my subjects. In my first apartment in Palmer Park, I would meet people around the area I lived and they became my friends and subjects. When I was on the rooftop of the Park Shelton, I didn’t shoot many people at all because there were hardly any people up there. When I lived on a farm, I had no people and I fell in love with photographing nature for the first time. Now, I am doing more experimental work with materials and I have an incredible space that I felt needed to be filled with music and art. It is a space that reflects a positive environment that mixes those things together.

S T UDI O REFLEC TION: I’ve come from a studio of just 200 square feet to now a studio of over 5000

square feet. My first studio was in my home in Palmer Park. I photographed my apartment because I filled it with beautiful things that made me feel good. I submitted photographs from that apartment to a home magazine and won in the style category for Home of the Year. That gave me a lot of inspiration and confidence. I realized then that it doesn’t matter where you are on your journey, if you have a vision and you have something unique, people will take notice. I have a natural ability to curate these mini galleries or museums in my studios and feel very comfortable creating spaces that feel cozy and comfortable with the art and objects I display. It comes naturally for me. The work I have displayed now is lonely, isolated, and very quiet, likely reflective of my life at the time the photographs were taken. I absolutely adore my studio now and never expected it to turn into a collaborative space that I have opened up to a small group of artists who I believe in.

CO N N ECTI ON TO THE ART: It’s almost serendipitous that when I am going through a hard time, I

get an unspoken intervention through my artwork. My passion is innate. Photography has always been my first love and it was all that I’ve had. For example, I have been photographing the human figure since high school and I am captivated by it. It has offered me many opportunities that crossed into breast cancer stories and heart disease stories, stories from newborn babies to elderly women. All my work has been evolutional and grows with each series. Currently, I am working on an eighteen yearlong project that involves a man’s work that I met on a street corner one summer. He is an amazing artist that I have been collaborating with. We have developed a strong connection and have become friends based on our trust in each other’s abilities. I feel he could be one of the most important artists to come out of Detroit or even one that Detroit has ever seen. We are bringing his work to life and ultimately that’s what all artists want.

THRO U G H THE LENS OF A PHOTOGR AP HE R : I always look for the power combination of composition, light, shapes, and experiences. Whether I’m working with a person or nature, I try to find something that I see differently. I try to see things that other people don’t see. I try to find what other people view as ordinary and bring out the beauty and strength thereof. I aim to surprise people a bit and create an image that will stand the test of time; something people will remember. spindlerproject.com See Lisa Spindler’s next exhibition with Dr. Lycia Trouton and Dessi Terzieva at Galerie Camille, May 13 - June 4, 2016; galeriecamille.com

PHOTOGRAPHY AND MOTORSPORT

MUSCLE MEMORY 59

Mario Andretti rounds the curve of the GRAND PRIX race in his car sponsored by Kmart.

Secured behind a row of tires, photographer Jack P. Johnson photographs one of Detroit’s most iconic symbols: Marshall Frederick’s SPIRIT OF DETROIT, as a backdrop to the 1983 Grand Prix race.

Remember when the GRAND PRIX was raced on the streets of Downtown Detroit in the 1980’s? JACK P. JOHNSON does and has the photographs and commentary to recollect the contests.

PHOTOGRAPHY: J A C K P . J O H N S O N TEXT: S P E N C E R W H I T E

he return of the Detroit Grand Prix in 2006 was the return of the city’s prodigal son. Detroit’s great invention, the automobile, came home to race on the streets that carried the first of its kind. Photographer Jack P. Johnson has photographed racing in Detroit for over thirty years since the second Detroit Grand Prix in 1983. From 1982 to 1988, the Detroit Grand Prix saw Formula One race cars take to the city’s streets. In 1989, Formula One moved the race to Phoenix—Detroit’s streets were too tough on the precision machines— and Championship Auto Racing Teams would later modify the race again and move to Belle Isle for the 1989 race, according to the Detroit Historical Society. CART races eventually outgrew the island’s meager support systems and, too, dropped the race. Now the race is revived as the Detroit Indy Grand Prix. Detroit is Johnson’s muse. It’s driven him to photograph it for nearly his whole life. He’s been capturing the city since he was twelve years old, after he saved up enough money from his paper route to buy his first camera, a Yashica MG-1. As a teenager, he cut class at Cass Technical High School to wander the city, training his lens on the art gallery that is Detroit’s skyline. Johnson started shooting in the age of manual exposures and film photography. He started developing his own photos at age the twelve, attending photography workshops in the basement of Detroit Camera on Michigan Avenue alongside people three times his age. “I was this little kid sitting there with all these adults, talking about developing and processing black and white film and everything! I was right along with ‘em—[I’d ask] ‘How do you fix this?’ It was really cute,” Johnson says. Johnson describes his photographs of the original Detroit Grand Prix races from the 1980s as “time capsules of the city.” They are powerful images for someone familiar with Detroit landmarks—seeing 61

With the race on the STREETS OF DETROIT, Johnson was able to travel around and see that action in multiple locations.

Cars shoot around COBO HALL and jockey for a position. opposite page: The AMERICAN RACING car overtakes the Sherwin-Williams driver.

“WHEN YOU HEAR IT RATTLING THE WINDOWS AND THE BUILDINGS, WHEN YOU HEAR THOSE CARS START UP AND YOU FEEL YOUR BONES SHAKE A LITTLE BIT, THAT’S THE THING THAT STICKS OUT.” 65

Formula One race cars dart underneath the People Mover track and slink around the Renaissance Center is an almost surreal demonstration of the ability of the automobile. They depict icons like Mario Andretti, who once told Johnson “excuse me” as he snuck behind him through a crowd after a race, in action. Photographing the race was hard work, but also, a singular rush, Johnson says. “Something that really sticks out to me is the sound of the cars going through downtown. When you hear it rattling the windows and the buildings downtown, when you hear those cars start up and you feel your bones shake a little bit, that’s the thing that sticks out,” Johnson says. Johnson hadn’t thought of photographing auto racing before 1983. He enjoyed photographing architecture, and his fascination with Detroit’s old buildings led him to study history at Wayne State University. But a chance promotion would change his career. Agfa Photo, a film processing company, offered photographers photo passes to the 1983 race and as much film as they could shoot. Johnson, like any photographer in the pre-digital age, jumped at the opportunity. “You’d go and you’d shoot and you’d go over to the booth and say you needed some more film,” Johnson says. “They’d say ‘Here you go’ and give you five more rolls of film. Five rolls of thirty-six! Then you go burn through those and then come back and another ‘Here you go.’ You’d mail them in and they’d send the photos back all processed. I started using their film after that.” Photographing the race involved photographers huddling all day in the photo pit in the summer heat, mentally preparing for the cars to pass by in those fleeting instants—all while focusing and framing the shot on mechanical cameras. “Every once in awhile you hear a car start up. You hear it coming towards you, slowly building, slowly building, then it just shoots past you. You feel the sound. It’s a good idea to 66

Whether it rains or not THE

RACE CONTINUES.

From GREEKTOWN to the river the race stretched throughout the majority of downtown.

If it were possible to come out of the womb with camera in hand, JACK P. JOHNSONÂ would have. He was the kid that processed E-6 slide film when he was 12 years old in his darkroom. Heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the grown up kid who will talk your ears off about photography and filmmaking. Trained at Wayne State University in both history and communication and media arts, Jack has been photographing Detroit for many years and has a portfolio of nearly 50,000 images. His photographic and cinematic works can be found throughout and on the cover of local Detroit and Wayne State University publications. A freelance photographer and filmmaker at the heart and soul, Jack is not new to Detroit. It is his hometown and his work tells badass stories. ateliercinelux.com

pre-focus some areas of the track, so that you have a little muscle memory so when the cars come through you know where to come back to be in focus,” says Johnson. The Detroit Grand Prix had a rocky history as far as logistics and setting went for reasons that will not surprise modern Michiganders. The streets of Detroit were in poor shape, and gave the precision Formula One machines trouble. The downtown course had the vehicles cross over railroad tracks in addition to hairpin turns onto Woodward, Larned, Beaubien and Congress. Johnson has evolved with the race, as well. A project focusing on the people of Detroit—and their departure—led him to Wayne State’s master’s program. The photographic project, titled “Tribute,” focuses on mortality in the city of Detroit. “‘Tribute’ uses the memorials of places around the city where people have died for various reasons, such as shootings or poverty-related issues,” Johnson says. “The idea is to focus on the causes of death and the causes that drive the mortality rate in the city.” Johnson’s love of architecture has also led him to direct a documentary about Corrado Parducci, an architectural sculptor whose work adorns many iconic Detroit buildings. The lobby of the Masonic Temple is his handiwork. Johnson calls him “the man who made Detroit beautiful.” Johnson has left his mark on the city just as surely as it has on him. A Jack P. Johnson photograph is featured as the book cover for artist Tyree Guyton’s “Connecting the Dots,” which is about Guyton’s famous Heidelberg Project. An unofficial custodian of Detroit history, Johnson has tens of thousands of photographs in his collection, with the individual and collective stories of hundreds of Detroiters— living and dead—depicted. In a city older than most in America, Detroit is lucky to have Johnson as a record keeper. 70

AUTOMOTIVE DESIGN

THE

BEST

SKETCH

WINS Brook Banham and Frank Schwartz introduce the MIDDLECOTT

SKETCHEBATTLE EXPERIMENT™ and

offer insight and thoughts about the automotive design industry. PHOTOGRAPHY: J O N A D A M S INTERVIEW: S P E N C E R W H I T E TEXT: A S H L E Y K . P A R K S

The MIDDLECOTT SKETCHBATTLE EXPERIMENT 2016 taking place at Tangent Gallery, Detroit.

here are some cars that move you emotionally when you see them zip past on the street. Cars like the mile long 1959 Cadillac Coupe Deville, 1966 Lincoln Continental with suicide doors, the 1968 Dodge Charger, or the 1971 Ford Mustang Mach 1 with 351 “Cleveland” engine. Maximum horsepower and high shine finish make watching and listening to these beauties breathtaking. But far before the consumer is able to enjoy the automobile, there are visionaries who see highways filled with dope rides. The rock star automotive designers function as what has been considered cultural anthropologist by former head of Chrysler’s Interior Design Klaus Busse. They find things that move people, figure things out for the future, and translate them into products and forms, “while the rest of us feel it, but don’t really know what it is,” says Frank Schwartz, founding principal behind Advanced Automotive Consulting Services a private business development and marketing firm for automotive suppliers and partner in the Middlecott Sketchbattle Experiment. Creativity, concept development, drawing, sculpting, an understanding of the functionality of vehicles, love, and appreciation for everything on the road are the basic skills needed to be an automotive designer. Beyond that, there is a story for each sketch rendered, a reason behind the design. Theoretically, any art is narrative. If it doesn’t have a story then it is somewhat shadowed. The Middlecott Sketchbattle Experiment is a hardcore automotive design contest that creates a space for creatives to showcase their skill in the spirit of competition and fraternity amongst designers. It is an event that allows candidates to sketch imaginative vehicles while justifying their story. It’s more than creating pretty pictures but an idea that explains the passion behind the model. While

clockwise from top left: Sketchbattle contestants OMAR GONZALES and JUSTIN SALMON. Master of Ceremony SATORI CIRCUS. Contestant DARBIE BARBER. DJ’s EVAN DAWBER and ROBERT-DAVID JONES.

BROOK BANHAM, founder of Middlecott Sketchbattle Experiment, and FRANK SCHWARTZ, partner, in front of past Sketchbattle posters. Sketches by Brook.

PHOTO: INGO RAUTENBERG

left: 2016 Sketchbattle held at TANGENT GALLERY; right: Panel of COMPETITOR SKETCHES showcasing color schemed cars.

laymen might not necessarily understand the blueprint, the design speaks to the consumers selfconscious and makes them want to hop in the driver’s seat.

et’s take a little step back and meet Brook Banham, the mind and talent behind the Middlecott Sketchbattle Experiment and co-owner of Middlecott Design. Born in Texas but raised for many years of his teenage and young adult life in England, Brook was a bit of a wayward kind of kid, rebelling against his strict boarding school philosophies and parents alike. He studied car design at Coventry University in the United Kingdom where Rolls Royce, Jaguar, Land Rover, and Aston Martin’s are made. “It’s like the Detroit of the UK,” says Brook. Graduating top of his class, he took the very first job that came to him and began working for the first job that was offered to him, the Italian shoe brand Fila, in Venice, Italy. “Fila was really cool. I liked it. It introduced me to a corporate world, that sucked though. I was designing footwear grudgingly because to be honest, I just wanted to do cars,” says Brook. Going to work late because he simply “didn’t give a crap,” Brook was given an ultimatum to get himself together or he would be fired. “So I said alright you mother fuckers, I’ll show you how to do this. I just started banging out badass shoes because no one ever gives me shit. I started designing totally unorthodox shoes and they loved it,” he says. Soon after, Fila offered Brook the opportunity to go back to London, England, study trends, and draw shoes from there, freelance style. He has been in the business of freelance ever since. From there he moved to Mu-

FAR BEFORE THE CONSUMER IS ABLE TO ENJOY THE AUTOMOBILE, THERE ARE VISIONARIES WHO SEE HIGHWAYS FILLED WITH DOPE RIDES. nich, Germany, working with Puma but again was unhappy with the corporate world. “But I met my wife in Germany at a techno club, getting our funk on,” say Brook. So if nothing else, the trip was worth the ride. From Germany to San Francisco, California, and then Detroit, he has made his way to the Motor City, a place after his own heart. He earned a Master’s in transportation design at the College for Creative Studies and met his now business partner, Frank Schwartz. “Brook is the person who created the Sketchbattle, I helped it,” says Frank. Breathing life into the idea, Frank is the business behind the battle. Well connected in the automotive industry, and always having the heart of a car designer, Frank’s passion for cars is intangible. Originally from a town called Zell im Wiesental, Germany, population less 7,000. From a child to teenager, Frank’s creative side came out in architecture, as there was no clear career path for car design. “I started working for an architect at 16 years old. I would go to high school in the morning and worked with the architect in the afternoon. I started off just running errands, getting in the car and driving specs to different engineering firms. Then 78

PHOTO: INGO RAUTENBERG

clockwise fom top left: The WINNING SKETCH by Omar Gonzales. The AUDIENCE at the 2015 Sketchbattle discussing the work. 2015 judges: ROBERT WALKER, chief designer at Jeep, KYLE EVANS, former designer at Ford and Chrysler, and CRAIG MACKIEWICZ of Industrial Designers Society of America.

STUDENTS HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO MEET THEIR POTENTIAL EMPLOYERS DIRECTLY. 79

they allowed me to graduate into making architectural models and detail drafting,” he says. “There is a huge architectural model that I worked on of all of the state offices as a teenager still standing in Raleigh, North Carolina today,” he continues. He was trained in architecture at Cape Fear Technical Institute and automotive engineering at North Carolina State. “One summer I got an opportunity to work at a nuclear company as a draftsman, then after the summer they offered me a job making what an engineer would make after graduation. I never went back to engineering school,” says Frank. Many years in the automotive and design industry, Frank decided to ultimately start his own consulting firm. A friend and alum of College for Creative Studies, Shabtai Hirshberg, introduced Brook and Frank at an Auto Week design forum during the North American International Auto Show, held annually in Detroit. Together, the two appreciated the relationship with car designers and the business implications dealing with designers so it was a natural match. Frank had been doing go-kart races for design studios in California and Detroit as a way for companies to interact with designers in a social atmosphere, removing the wall of professional networking. “So when Brook told me about the Sketchbattle it clicked with me. I didn’t know anything about the event but I believed in it. It is completely different than the karting events but very similar in that the concept is the same,” says Frank. Karts were replaced with sketches and a social space was strategically designed. It was an idea that Brook had when he decided to go into business in Detroit for himself. It offered an opportunity get to know Detroit and Detroiters. The first Sketchbattle was in 2012. From a social aspect you have alcohol and something entertaining for people so there is a party, and who doesn’t love a good party? But on a larger scale, there are clear differences in the Middlecott 80

from left to right: Skechbattle showgirl presenting the “Fight Club of Design” TROPHY BELT, built by Mobsteel. KEMAL CURIC, Ford Mustang designer, DANIEL SIMON, design legend, RALPH GILLES, head of global design for Fiat Chrysler, BROOK BANHAM, and CAMILO PARDO, designer of the 2005 and 2006 production Ford GT and winner of the 2014 TruTV series Motor City Masters.

Frank Schwartz, 2016 SKETCHBATTLE WINNER Omar Gonzales, and Brook Banham.

DESIGN IS VERY COMPETITIVE. WHOEVER HAS THE BEST SKETCH WINS. Sketchbattle Experiment than any other event. In the design industry, there is an issue of where to find the greatest talent. Of course recruiting at universities, reviewing portfolios, and interviewing is standard but those aren’t time dependent. Portfolios are collections of the best work done over four years but when the real work begins after graduation, companies want the best ideas, the best designs, and the best products and they want them now, oftentimes in high pressure environments as it is in the Sketchbattle, different from your classes. This makes the Middlecott Sketchbattle Experiment comparable to real life and offers employers another avenue to find talent. Given the strong support the battle has with companies like General Motors, the students have an opportunity to meet their potential employers directly, which in turns creates an avenue for career exposure. “Design is very competitive. That means, whoever has the best sketch wins,” says Brook. They get the best jobs and their products are chosen amongst all the other designers. The automotive industry is just as competitive as racing cars is. To Frank, “racing cars is where I get all of my business acumen because it’s identical.” He explains, “If I’m on the track, spending all my time paying attention to all the other cars on the track and what they are doing, my lap time gets longer, I get slower. But when someone is out 81

in front of me and I am chasing them, that is as fast as I can be. I am extremely focused.” So you have to be aware of where everyone else is because you don’t want to collide but if you’re blocking, tackling, and doing other moves on the track, you’re not very fast at all. The key is to set him up many corners and straightaways before you actually pass them. This same lesson applies in design, it is important to master your craft, be badass at it, and the race is yours.

ust for fun, Frank and Brook told us the car that strikes them in an indescribable way. Frank states, “It’s an interesting combination of my North Carolina and German roots. The Porsche 917 racecar and the Plymouth Road Runner Superbird are my choice. I have eleven cars because a car is very much like an article of clothing, it serves a function but it also reflects who I am to the people around me.” Brook chose the 1976 Firebird Trans Am and Jaguar E-Type. “When I was young my dad worked for Pontiac. On the rare occasion he would bring home a Firebird, I was always so glad because I was enamored with ‘Smokey and the Bandit’. The car was full of gimmicks and I thought it was sexy and integrative. My dad also had a Jaguar XK 120 in the garage he was always working on. As a kid, I remember going in the garage putting in bolts and stuff with my little hands. So my inspiration comes from my American and English roots.” Having established a personal and professional relationship, Brook and Frank are on to something great with the Middlecott Sketchbattle Experiment with a vision to bring together the greatest international talent in the design industry. What better place to do that than in Detroit where the automobile was born. middlecott.com; supplierconsultants.com 82

MUSIC I

MUSIC MATH LAMAR LANDERS

examines the composition of music through a formula based on passion, talent, heart, and soul through the

THEOREMATIC PROJECT. PHOTOGRAPHY: K E E N A N R I V A L S TEXT: J A N E L L H E A R N S

FOR MANY, music is more than just an art

form that entertains us; it is a feeling, a place, and a time. Woven in the thread that connects each note and encoded in melodies, our memories can live infinitely. Artist and intellectuals alike experience the same wonderment while listening to songs that provoke powerful ideas and evoke deep emotion. Detroit native and visual artist Lamar Landers happens to know this wonderment personally, as

Artist and producer LAMAR LANDERS.

he has been influenced and intrigued by his auditory experiences. Landers describes music as “a timeline,” citing albums from rapper MC Eiht, hip hop singles like Common’s “I Used to love H.E.R”, and Souls of Mischief’s “93 til Infinity” as nostalgic triggers that take him back to previous times in his life. These blasts from the past have led him to explore the process that occurs in musician’s minds when conceptualizing and creating some of the music that moves us and documents moments in time like no other art form can. In his documentary film series Theorematic: The Math Behind The Music, Landers provides musicians with an opportunity and platform to 85

share their creative process. “Theorematic is in part my way of expressing myself as an artist by showcasing the work of musicians. It feels like I’m doing something worthwhile and I am fulfilled in it,” says Landers. The series’ title Theorematic is a term used in mathematics that references formulas. The play on words The Math Behind The Music complements the purpose of the series since it is assumed that there is a technique or formula used when creating music. By definition, formula is a mathematical relationship or rule expressed in symbols. It is a structure or sequence of components that are combined to create an equation. Each person’s musical formula is different although

clockwise from top left: Saxophone player that goes by name, “SAXAPPEAL”; country music and soulful artist, DENITIA; a fusion of hip-hop backdrop, live strings, and alternative group BONES AND BEEKER; producer, playwright, activist, poet, and vocalist JESSICA CARE MOORE; rapper FINALE; soulful songstress ERYN ALLEN KANE.

the result is generally the same, success, happiness, and fulfillment. “The common denominator is passion. Only passion with make you pack up and move across the country, or even the world, to pursue something that you believe in,” he says. Of course talent is key, along with hard work and perseverance, but what he has found is the formula reveals itself through passion for the music. “You figure out the formula and the know how through that passion,” he says. And when the music is made its magic and true. In stripped down settings, with Landers behind the lens, introspective interviews take place. In these authentic and relatable short films, we ex-

perience artists discussing experiences that have contributed to their journey and the dedication required to make a living as a musician. The series began when Landers, who had a clothing line, decided he wanted to photograph musicians wearing his apparel. Those projects didn’t come naturally or move in the direction that he envisioned for himself. “I wasn’t fulfilled with doing that. In the beginning it was fun, but in the end, the message was always the same. That message was simply building that brand. I really enjoyed the photography so I stuck with that because it allowed me to be free, appreciating a different outlook and perspective,” says Landers. That decision changed the trajectory of Landers’ life as photos became videos and clothing became interviews instead. Landers’ creative ability and love for good music has become a vehicle in which he has traveled all over the world to document and experience. The Detroit native has taken Theorematic from coast to coast in America and also abroad to Australia, Amsterdam, and London. Theorematic has profiled the likes of hip hop legend Common, songstress Res, rapper Ras Kass, poet Jessica Care Moore, and many others from a variety of genres. “I am inspired by people who are living off of what they love to do and get lost in their world of music. Maybe you’re not a millionaire but you are living the life you want. It helps me to believe that it can be done and when it is, you will have a good time doing it,” he says, and that’s what matters most. theorematic.com. 86

MUSIC II

DO YOU

An interview and listening session with soulful songstress ERYN ALLEN KANE

PHOTOGRAPHY AND INTERVIEW: L A M A R L A N D E R S TRANSCRIPT: Y A K E L A R O B E R S O N

IN A WHIRLWIND of musical collabora-

tions, working with, and mentoring relationships with the industryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s greatest artists and filmmakers, there is still nothing more liberating and empowering than staying true to oneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s own voice and message. Eryn Allen Kane is a songstress with a soul for vocalist and instrumentation inspired by Motown and a genuine love for music. Detroit native, Chicago based singer, songwriter, and actress, ERYN ALLEN KANE.

Detroit native, turned Chicago resident, Eryn’s music is captivating and resonates deep. From refusing to succumb to the standards of pop music to sharing her voice with the world, she is as amusing as the skip in her voice and acapella melodies.

kind of spawned after that. My grandmother was a classically trained pianist. Growing up my father and my mother loved it so it was kind of always there. Music had a very strong presence in my life so I was drawn to it and decided to pursue it as an actual career when I realized that I had and knack for it.

PARKVIEW: How did Eryn Allen Kane, the songstress, come to be?

Why did you leave Detroit to move to Chicago? I moved to Chicago for college. When I graduated, I didn’t want to go to a state school so I applied to New York University and Juilliard, had auditions there, but I didn’t make it in to either one. I went to high school at Detroit School of Arts and finally my acting teacher there was like you should go to Co-

ERYN ALLEN KANE: I started singing in church when I was six years old on the eastside of Detroit, Conant Gardens (laughs), in a Seven-Day Adventist Church. I joined the choir there and my singing 89

Eryn Allen Kane serenades in her CHICAGO STUDIO.

PRINCE CALLED AND WAS LIKE, “HEY GIRL, CAN YOU COME MAKE A SONG WITH ME?” AND I WAS LIKE “COOL.” lumbia in Chicago. I had never heard of it. I looked it up, applied the same day, and got accepted. How did you get connected with local rappers and other artists in the Chicago music scene? When I started, I didn’t really do my own music. I kind of gave up on my music for a little bit because of a bad development deal that went down before I left for college. I wasn’t really focusing on my stuff but I went away to Australia and did my own thing. When I returned, I found my manager, by way of a professor. That’s when I started making (my) music. Saba, I guess, was the first rapper that approached Robbie, my manager and was

like, “Yo, she sings good. Can she like hop on this stuff?” That was the first time I featured for a rap artist. I was always working on my own music but people like Chance, Saba, and Prince stepped into my life and saw what I was already working on and wanted to utilize my talent. Has your music always been soulful? When I was with the people that I signed with in Detroit they tried to get me to do the pop stuff and I hated it! They kept telling me I had a young face and would be perfect like Christina Milian. Not that she isn’t a great musician, but it wasn’t the kind of music that I grew up on or the kind of music that is inside of me. It was not the kind of music that I found substance in. So I was like, “nah.” All of my music has always been pretty soulful. Early on, I would do a lot of covers to Anita Baker’s old songs. The first song that I wrote and actually released was a soulful song called “Her Pain.” Soul has always been my heart and the kind music I find healing in. How has your experience with Prince helped you develop as an artist? About three years ago, I released an all acapella song called “Hollow.” I don’t know how the hell he found out about it but he must have been watching it. Prince tweeted the video and the song. After that his camp hit us up and said, “We want to work with you. Can we possibly set up something?” Our schedules didn’t match up at the time so two or three years later, I guess he still had eyes on me. I hadn’t released anything in a while then I released “Have Mercy.” He called again and was like, “hey girl, can you come make a song with me?” and I was like “cool.” So we went out to meet with him, we did the song, and it was really cool. He showed it to me and asked, “What do you think you can do?” I was like, “I don’t know!” So he said, “Do you!” I hopped in, did me, and that was the song. Meeting Prince was awesome. He was like a mentor to me. It was a really awesome relationship. At first I was really really nervous because everybody looked at Prince like he was a God. I 90

think people get this misconception that he was a super diva and mean but he was not at all. He was the funniest dude and he made fun of himself all the time. He was really helpful and encouraging and inspiring. He was constantly shooting me emails here and there about other singers and artist that I should be paying attention to and he wanted advice from me asking what singers and artist he should be listening to. It was a really cool collaborative thing. He was just a really awesome person and I’m grateful to have had him as a mentor. I really didn’t expect any of this to happen and have such an opportunity come about from “Hollow.” He was really into supporting artist that he believed in. How was working with Spike Lee in Chi-Raq? It was crazy because maybe five minutes after I hopped off stage with Prince in Baltimore when we did the Rally for Peace, Robbie, my manager walked up and said, “Eryn why don’t you read your email.” I picked up the phone and I’m like, “What the fuck its Spike!” Well not him but his assistant. She said, “Spike needs to meet with you ASAP.” At first, I was just going to make music for ChiRaq then it kind of segued to him writing me into the movie. I ended up being one of the principle characters in the film and I was really grateful. The experience was rewarding. I was the one with all the crazy hairstyles! How does it feel to do your own work after having worked with such great influencers in the music and entertainment industry? It feels liberating! Only because I was always working on my music. People like Chance and Saba and Prince stepped into my life, saw what I was already working on, and wanted to work with me. They appreciated my work. It was somewhat of a battle at first because I was still working on my music and had been for two years. It was a struggle to see all these songs with other people and to watch their music grow. Inside I felt like I still needed to show the world my music. When I was finally able to release my music, after working two nanny 91

jobs, sometimes seven days a week, and coming to the studio late at night, people saw that I could actually sing and it felt really really good. I was always around other musicians so it snowballed into other opportunities. It was a very organic experience. Now, I’m finally beginning to make a name for myself and I think that’s important. For every artist, I believe, when you have something to say its kind of nice to be able to do your art without having all these names attached. How does Aviary: Act I and II, represent who you are as an artist? We actually split it up into two parts because it made sense due to the way it just develops. The first half establishes me as an artist with my soul. The second half is high octane, I’m going crazy, and I have a lot more to say. I show off a little bit more of what I have to offer. I get asked a lot if there will be a third Act and I’m like, “I don’t know.” What inspires you more, fame or the love of music? I’m definitely doing it for the love of it. I’m 26 years old and I’m making the music I want to make. If I were doing it for the fame I would have gone for hit songs. You know, no one releases an all acapella song as a single. In this technical world that we live in, that doesn’t make any sense. You don’t release acapella songs. But for me, I release what I feel is true and what I feel the world needs at that time. Regardless of whether it gets big or not, just releasing it into the world makes me feel better. It’s therapeutic, you know. As long as I have people who thoroughly enjoy my music and listen to it 50 years from now, I’ll be straight. Even if it’s just a small group of 70 people, the point is just to make music that can really resonates with people. How are you sharing your Motown influence with the world? Motown does have a big influence on my music. My mom used to play Aretha Franklin’s Gospel album all the time in our house every Sunday morning before church. My dad was always listening

Eryn Allen Kane belts out a tune on stage at the OKEECHOBEE MUSIC FESTIVAL.

PHOTO: CASEY BUDD

I RELEASE WHAT I FEEL IS TRUE AND WHAT I FEEL THE WORLD NEEDS AT THAT TIME.

to Stevie Wonder and Marvin Gaye, and other Motown artist. They all had something to say at one point or another. My mom and dad would say, “Don’t listen to the radio, listen to these people. What they’re saying still applies to the world that we live in today. You need to be saying these kinds of messages if you are going to make music. If God or whomever gives you the platform to speak on these things, then you need to be doing so.” Motown musicians were great. The writers were great. I see that there is a space for me to fit into and I have Motown and Detroit’s musical legacy to thank for that. erynallenkanemusic.com 92

RESTAURANT

Lady+Boy

KATOI FOOD, inspired by

Thai cuisine, creating radical transformation one bite, sip, sound, thought, experience at a time. Owner Courtney Henriette talks freedom of expression and harmony.

PHOTOGRAPHY: J O N A D A M S INTERVIEW: A S H L E Y K . P A R K S

Owner and partner COURTNEY HENRIETTE poses in front of Katoi restaurant in midwest form.

â&#x20AC;&#x153;When you come into this space there is an idea of connections, conversations, and being rewarded. This space is the art.â&#x20AC;?

Katoi DINING SANCTUARY with booths adorned in a whimsical fabric find from New York City, and crystal glassware.

“Katoi means lady boy – There is a constant tug of war that keeps balance.”

ALTAR TRINKETS designed by Katoi friends Erin, owner of Eldorado General Store, and Joel.

clockwise from top left: Thrice cooked sweet potatoes; owner and chef BRAD GREENHILL; Thai fried chicken.

â&#x20AC;&#x153;Our food is hot. The tastes are spicy. The tables are small. Sometimes the music is loud. The flavors are always bold and dynamic. So when you come into this space, its so much more than a restaurant.â&#x20AC;? 99

clockwise from bottom left: Katoi main dining sanctuary with neon blue color block walls; bartender NOELLE STULL; owner and bartender DREW POMPA mixes and mingles.

â&#x20AC;&#x153;We are trying to break this paradigm of going to a restaurant to be served and fed but to come here and have transformative experiences.â&#x20AC;? 102

â&#x20AC;&#x153;Detroit is a place where you can think about ideas at large and create something that is good for humanity and do so in ways that are larger than Detroit itself.â&#x20AC;?

Dinner at Katoi with well fed guests. katoidetroit.com

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A collection of photographs from Jessica Golichâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s classroom, the world.

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MEMOIR

JESSICA GOLICH is a natural

born explorer with an insatiable curiosity for the world. Writing stories that shape her life and photographing her wanderlust, Jessica reveals herself like none other in this personal and candid memoir. PHOTOGRAPHY AND TEXT: J E S S I C A G O L I C H

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IT’S BEEN A RIDE.

I wipe genuinely soothing tears from my probing eyes as I examine and reflect retrospectively upon the life I have lived thus far. I had a relatively magical childhood. I affectingly feel fond memories flood in as I muse upon footloose days at the park in which I would throw a softball around with my father or the sincere love that my mother welcomed me into the world with and bestowed upon me throughout my innocent adolescence. My beloved parents gave me an ample amount of reasonable space which triggered countless curiosities within the blossoming of my own imagination and creation of an inner value for simplicity at a substantially young age. I am the middle child and altruistic sister of my two treasured brothers, Jonathon and Donovan, who are eternally my dearest sidekicks and heedful right hand men. Our family grew up in the aggressive slums of Southwest Detroit in which our small, two bedroom home was anchored between my Sito and Jido’s (grandmother and grandfather in the Arabic language) bungalow and an eerie cemetery that was utterly visible from our nearly microscopic front porch. My father intently slaved away day and night at the bar that his father owned, Johnny’s Bar, to ensure that our family had food on the table every single night while my mother counseled and watched over my brothers and I at home. I was brought up in a neighborhood in which GUNSHOTS SERVED AS ALARM CLOCKS and noisy barbecues, corner stores, police sirens, pimped out whips and the real world nitty-gritty forced me to grow up quickly in the face of adversity. I survived and escaped a kidnapping by a venomous child molester in the form of man who handed me a shiny ring at the naively ripe age of 6 years old. I attended a prominently Arabic American elementary school in which I was willfully picked on for simultaneously not wearing a hijab in the classroom and being the only caucasian child in sight. I was naively an outsider dressed in a chirpy peach colored dress with silky golden brown hair swaying from side to side. I was very ahead academically and resorted to teaching myself how to shift my feelings of being an alienated source of teasing full of loneliness into the creation of imaginary friends that would keep me company and assure me that I was never alone. I BEGAN EXPRESSING

EMOTION THROUGH WRITING AT THE AGE OF 7 YEARS OLD.

I vividly recall preferring books to classmates and reciting a charmingly simple poem I had written in front of my disinterested peers at our school’s talent show which later was published in The Anthology of Poetry by Young Americans. Ironically, I won a D.A.R.E award at the age of 11 years old for an essay I had written pertaining to my intention to never engage in illicit drug or alcohol use.

My social anxiety was heightened by school bullies to such a staggering extreme that it led toward hasty anger outbursts, feelings of unworthiness and a great deal of emotional turmoil. I had nobody to sit with in the cafeteria at lunch and the coping mechanism I chose was to timorously hide in the bathroom stall and create stashes of uneaten sandwiches my mother prepared for me in my sparkling pink backpack to feel safe from emotional bullying. I contemplated, planned and achingly failed at executing suicide which laid the frame-work for self harm in the form of MALICIOUSLY CUTTING MYSELF in hopes that the excruciating physical pain would alleviate the emotional pain I was feeling inside. I would deliberately tear my skin until the sting of harrowing pain and the rush of the sight of my own tender blood provided a sense of mollifying comfort. I hated myself. I felt as if I did not have any value to contribute and not a single individual to turn to or talk to pertaining to my disheartening feelings of estrangement. My substance abuse concerns began in the 7th grade at Stout Middle School in Dearborn, MI when I was first prescribed the controlled substance and anti-anxiety medication by the name of 107

Xanax by a psychiatrist I was visiting on a weekly basis. I was instantly hooked on the powerfully addictive benzodiazepines that provided rapid social anxiety relief and inhibited my brain’s natural ability to anxiously speed up and principally go bonkers. Before you know it, I MORPHED INTO A REBELLIOUS 13-YEAR-OLD ADDICT mischievously hiding away from my parents in my room, skipping school and snorting illegally purchased Xanax bars off of my dusty social studies textbook. Every single one of my grades began to plummet and I chose abusing extremely high doses of sedatives to recapture a feeling of relaxation to better cope with the so-called stress I encountered and periods of hyperactivity over delivering a straight A report card to my highly concerned parents. It wasn’t until I was a high school freshman that I began to experiment with Schedule I drugs (ecstasy, cocaine, marijuana) and THE ALMIGHTY SOURCE OF SPIRIT PRODUCED BY DISTILLATION that morphed me into a frightful and wretched monster. It was within moments of swallowing my fist sip of the drastically mood-altering substance that my meager sense of self and absolute common sense began to dwindle away. I nearly instantaneously adapted the reputation of being able to toss back more tequila than my amigos and blackout prior to the social engagement I was attending even remotely beginning. I endured more episodes of amnesia in which I lost my capability to form a single memory while I was exceedingly intoxicated than actual days I attended high school. I wholeheartedly formed the crooked belief that drinking alcohol was the glue that was holding my life together. I began ruthlessly shoplifting alcohol from local drug stores on a daily basis within my sophomore year of high school without a slight concern of getting caught red-handed and the potential consequences of my dishonorable actions. I was ARRESTED AND PLACED IN JUVENILE DETENTION on numerous occasions for drinking as a minor, shoplifting and physical altercations. I was so traumatized from my experiences of bullying aching at my core that I in turn became the bully who inflicted pain and hurt others. I spent every year of my teenage life on ceaseless drinking sessions that ended in waking up in a sleazy beau’s bed or spending the night next to boneheaded deadbeats in a chilly jail cell after sucking down a fifth of cheap alcohol that I shoplifted between bouncing from one crooked situation to the next. I made my mother suffer until her hair turned gray. I regularly ridiculed and verbally abused my mother in public. I watched my mother pour her eyes out with heavyhearted tears as I purposely engaged in any poor behavior that would create catty wars and increasingly make my parent’s life a living hell. I was placed in an accredited chemical dependency treatment center at the age of 14 years old in which I would barbarously lash out at the director and regularly fail every single drug and alcohol test I was required to endure. I discovered cocaine at the age of 15 years old and vividly recall the first time that I instantaneously felt a gram of what I believed to be pure gold MAKE MY LIPS GO NUMB. The highly toxic and life threatening combination of cocaine and alcohol allowed me to consume higher amounts of alcohol and obtain what I believed to be a sense of social acceptance. My ailing sense of confidence was boosted and malevolently admired by my cold-blooded peers as DESPICABLE STORIES FULL OF HUMILIATING MEMORIES began to rapidly add up. As I floundered in high school and anesthetized my personal struggles with alcohol and drugs, my adolescent life rapidly began to go downhill similar to a sled gathering speed. I dropped out of high school with a 0.6 GPA. On the fast track to self-destruction and rashly under the belief that I was invincible, I became progressively preoccupied with living life strung out with guilt and through a state of pure ignorance. After years of fake id’s that led me to be the first individual at the bar 108

and the last individual to leave, I began feeling as drained as the Energizer Bunny on empty. What initially began as a narrow, shallow path became so deeply engrained and solidified that it morphed into a deep and wide trench. I was murkily engulfed by a choppy tide grimly shedding all of my sainthood like snake-skin. I received a phone call from my mother with her voice trembling despite her efforts to control it stating that my little brother, Donovan, had received news that he was diagnosed with cancer. In a state of initial cold-hard denial, I shouted, “No he doesn’t”, and abruptly felt the bitter nothingness of discord, nonacceptance and opposition morph into a poignantly heartbreaking fact. LIFE CHANGED. It felt akin to all of the air being sucked out of my lungs and a ton of bricks being pitilessly dropped on top of my heart. My heart literally hurt. Tears liberally rolled down my face. Our family has found incredible strength over a period of harrowing uncertainty and have intimately come together to join our little man in his war against the smiting disease attacking his body and mind. I began reassessing how I perceived trivial matters in life and opened my heart to a new level of acceptance. Through succumbing to the fact that this relentless illness is certainly real and currently the most important matter in each one our family members lives, I developed a zero distractions mindset set upon the only goal; overcoming. I LEARNED HOW TO ACT IN A CALM MANNER DESPITE ADRENALIN FLOWING BENEATH. I learned how to stabilize my emotions and regain rationality through forthright acceptance. I selflessly learned that my brother’s diagnosis had absolutely nothing to do with me. And I have had the experience of observing a young man whom I love dearly develop and transform into a powerhouse full of unwavering fortitude and endurance. The all too familiar question of ‘Who am I?’ began to stir in my mind without a clear answer in sight. I began distancing myself from human beings and discovering my ability to elevate the murkiest disarray into words that string together and activate the process of identity. I took the onyx pain into my arms like a wicked amorous lover who has perilously derived art from obscurity within the lurid storm between birth and death. The diminishing rays of a blurred sun duskily grasped my urbanized walls downward as daylight mercilessly ended and I unabashedly morphed into my own pitiless private investigator in the unmitigated quest for clues on how MY PUERILE INNOCENCE HAS BEEN RUTHLESSLY EATEN ALIVE. I found it oddly alchemically refreshing to be intractably drawn to opaque smokiness from the flaring wildfire in the abstruse depths of my labyrinthine mind. I experienced days of exhilarating honest reflection which shed layers through revealing the magic ribbon leading to sublime inner and outer views. I would probe the complexity and sheer simplicity of human existence while gazing in the manner of an ensorcelled child down the tunnel of the kaleidoscope of my life. I liked the quietness. I liked the stillness. I liked being able to feel my breath slowly caress my core and nourish my being. I liked feeling hungover free and sober. AS I BEGAN TO RELEASE

ENERGETIC TENSION STORED IN MY BODY, I AWAKENED A PROFOUND DEPTH OF INTERNAL COMFORT THAT LED ME TO ENTER FORMIDABLE EXPERIENCES I NORMALLY WOULD’T DARE TO GO AS I GREW TO LEARN THAT THAT WAS WHERE THE FLOWERS GROW.

Today, I have been sober for years and cry tears full of profound pain as I recall how I embedded the emotional pain that was pin-balling inside of me into my mother and loved ones while I was engrossed 109

in a state of perpetual hysteria. Today, I take FULL ACCOUNTABILITY FOR MY LIFE. I write for a living and have travelled the country over the past year in which I have gathered information from my experiences to develop probing questions while opening portals that empower the discovery of new and effective ways to free myself in the deepest sense. I have cultivated an inner GPS system that unceasingly points to the path of opening to the moments of ecstasy within the bloody, raw and painful realities of life. I am an intricate act of ever-changing and charmingly aging beauty rising out of stasis and adorning the brief nature of life. I have developed versatility and broadened my personal borders through life-enhancing experiences and influential exposure. The beauty of crafting words awes me, and the journals in which I share my internal equanimity are my best friends. Hell, I could be Anne Frank reincarnated. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s my favorite time of day when I choose to close my eyes, open my heart, stop looking, stop hearing, and START FEELING. I have rediscovered who I am and what I want out of life. I am marvelously made. I have discovered an enchanting place within where colors are luminous and energetic freedom lives. I HAVE DEVELOPED COURAGE BY FAILING. Many times. Over and over again. Experimentation has led me to demonstrate to myself that I am able to push every single self-created boundary. I have rewired my brain. I breathe life through my body. I am an ever-emerging constellation of elaborate ingenious patterns in touch with the far-fetched, dreamy inner child and the wisdom of a seasoned veteran on the road of life. I stand in my worth unwaveringly. I am simultaneously soft and ferociously bold. I am 26 years young and wise. I am strong in my sensitivity. I am alive and free in my forthright vulnerability. My life is not polished and pretty. It never will be. I am no shaman and I put my pants on the same way that you do. I chose not to wait until I hear that I am dying to begin to live. I did not play the hand that I was dealt; the hardy warrior inside of me changed the cards. Stop wishing upon on a star from the sidelines of your life. You are the architect of your life experience. This is my heart speaking to you. NOTHING IS SEXIER THAN ACCOUNTABILITY. Take action. I have developed monk-like focus through piercing into the marrow of my being and deliberately preserving my health. I am eternally a grown up kid from the block with the mind of a scholar who is proud of the woman I have chosen to become. Although I recognize my cheery disposition mellowly subsiding and tottering towers of experience accompanying me regardless of destination, I do reserve feverish reverence for the sharpened perception and curbed enthrallment that mutely examines and descries neurotic wonder in all. I CONFIDENTLY EXPRESS MY AUTHENTIC SELF TO THE WORLD. The choices and sacrifices I have made to intentionally exist where I am today have led me to actively living the life of my dreams while residing in Los Angeles, California. I observe internal assurance while living in the fullness of magnetizing, sunlit nourishment. I am a living, flawed work of abstract art and a woman of superior amaranthine grace. I stand emotionally open before the world as a prismatically offbeat bouquet of words and an introspectively impenetrable world. I carry a mischievous vividness full of cogent stimulus through enduring a turbulent flow which arouse a golden glow exhibiting the gifts I bestow. I treasure my scars as reservoirs full of evolutionary insight that carry the golden ticket to the accusation of timeless wisdom. I have written my own prodigious constitution at the worlds oldest and largest educational institution. Poetic, eh? Hi. My name is Jessica Golich and I have been enrolled as a student at The University of Planet Earth since birth. May you take appropriate action toward overcoming your personal battles and create the world you live in to be THE WORLD OF YOUR DREAMS. jessicagolich.com 110

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