High art in Highland Park
Move over, Midtown, and get out of the way, Eastern Market — Highland Park is the new hot art community of the D. Recent New Zealand transplant Robert Onnes and Detroiter Bob Sestok have teamed up to transform 333 Midland from an abandoned factory into what could be the biggest and brightest of Detroit’s galleries, and last weekend was the three-day opening celebration for Big Paintings at the Factory, the space’s inaugural exhibit. The 20,000-square-foot property hosted a mix of the Cass Corridor’s old guard, as well as Detroit’s young blood to check out the work of 47 artists, including Gilda Snowden, Jerome Ferretti, Mike Ross, and Tead. The Pink Flamingo, a groovy Airstream trailer-turned-food truck, was on hand slinging Vietnamese steak sandwiches and Mexican elotes. Highland Park mayor DeAndre Windom even made an appearance, looking dapper in a gold suit.
Detroit councilman troubles
Sometimes you really do run into people in the strangest places. For example, when we were inside the Central Records room in the Coleman A. Young Municipal Center, a stuffy section of the building’s basement, lo and behold, as soon as we sat down, Detroit City Council President Pro Tem George Cushingberry Jr. walked in, asking the clerk for something related to a particular case. We’re not sure what brought Cush down into the bowels of the city-county building, but we have one idea: Just 12 hours-or-so earlier, Fox 2 aired a story from investigative reporter M.L. Elrick on accusations against the councilman that he essentially stole two classic cars from a woman as part of a lawsuit. The alleged story’s a bit much: The woman’s husband died in 2011, but he apparently didn’t leave a will. A relative introduced the woman to Cush, who said he’d settle the husband’s medical and funeral expenses by helping sell his two classic cars. In the suit, the woman claims Cushingberry drove the cars around, and eventually sold them. And she claims she received none of the proceeds. Elrick actually found a guy who purchased one of the cars, which, to us, sure seems like it got Cush’s attention.
Beer, food, and friendly faces at Campus Martius
Though it was a bit drizzly and a touch cold, DDAYS had a hell of a time at Summer Beer Fest at Campus Martius on Friday night. Though we were stationed at Rochester Mills’ brand-new tiki hut for most of the evening (pouring beer to raise money for Handy Hearts), we got to wander around a bit and ran into some of our favorite folks. Allison and Jay Clark, Danielle Mayo, Alex Wojcik, Sadie Q, Lanie Offman, Stephanie and Josh McKeith, and Brian Sawyer were just some of the faces we saw. Swigging Rochester Mills’ new Tongue Tied Cherry Saison for most of the evening, by the time 10:30 p.m. rolled around, dancing in the rain to Top 40 hits was as much fun as we’ve ever had at a beer fest.
Oh taste and see!
DDAYS popped in to Grosse Pointe Park Saturday afternoon for the grand opening of Atwater’s new brewery. Housed in the former Grace United Church, the unique atmosphere features stained-glass windows, high vaulted ceilings, a huge indoor bar, and a rockin’ front patio biergarten. Young and self-taught Brad Etheridge is the brewmaster whose beers are paired with a diverse food menu created by the Epicurean Group. The menu includes German dishes like bratwurst and schnitzel, pierogis, and the quintessential bar burger.
Trick Trick’s No Fly Zone
DDAYS understands that Rick Ross was due to headline the Summer Jamz 17 mega rap show at Chene Park on Saturday night, but he had to cancel because of threats made by controversial local rapper Trick Trick. We understand that 100 to 150 supporters of T2 formed a blockade around the service entrances, preventing Ross and his people from entering. Eventually, Ross decided to leave rather than get into something serious. Essentially, if an out-of-town rapper comes to Detroit to make a lot of money, he is apparently required to call Trick Trick first. Rappers are not to blow into town, make a bunch of cash, and then blow out again without doing something that constitutes “keeping it real” here.
