This catalogue is published in conjunction with the exhibition "Artists Take on Detroit: Projects for the Tricentennial" at the Detroit Institute of Arts, October 19 - December 31, 2001.

This exhibition was organized by the Detroit Institute of Arts and is made possible by The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts; a Detroit 300 Tricentennial Grant, which was funded by the Comerica Charitable Foundation; the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs, a partner agency of the National Endowment for the Arts; and the City of Detroit.

© 2001 The Detroit Institute of Arts

All rights reserved

Authors: MaryAnn Wilkinson, curator, and Rebecca R. Hart,
assistant curator, department of Modern and Contemporary Art
Exhibition Assistant: Michaelene Zawacki

Director of Publications: Susan Higman
Editor: Maya Hoptman
Editorial Assistant: Kelli Carr

Director of Photography: Dirk Bakker
Associate Director of Photography: R. H. Hensleigh
Photographic Resources Manager: Randal J. Stegmeyer
Photographer: Eric B. Wheeler

Associate Educator: Matthew Sikora
Assistant Educators: Stephanie James, Steven Niemi
Performing Arts Coordinator: Rudy Lauerman
Audio Visual Technicians: Philip Burke, Ian Clark
Webmaster: Ward Curtis Skewes
Assistant Webmaster: Brandon White
Intern: Jason Berry

Graphic Design, Multimedia, HTML programming
and Flash: Q LTD

Credits and Introduction page images: The Detroit Institute of Arts

Home page image: Old City-County Building in front of the
Penobscot Building, Detroit
Courtesy Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division, FSA-OWI Collection (LC USF34-110169-C DLC).

Director's Foreword page image: Fountain at Hart Plaza, Detroit
Site map image: Guardian Building, Detroit
Courtesy Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division, Historic American Buildings Survey (LC# HABS, MICH, 82-DETRO, 42).

Unless otherwise noted, all images of the projects in this exhibition are copyright of the Detroit Institute of Arts.

Acknowledgements, by project:

Altar Mary
Petah Coyne wishes to thank the following:

MaryAnn Wilkinson
Becky Hart
Mary Sabbatino
Anne-Claudie Coric
Lanka Tattersal
April Lee
Gail Biederman
Mike Dominick
Lamar Hall

Traces of Then and Now
Lorella Di Cintio and Jonsara Ruth would like to thank City Animation and Jim Leenhouts for their generous contribution of video equipment.

They also thank all of the staff of the DIA for giving them an inside look at the building. And thank you to all whom made it possible, with various expertise, to exhibit the museum and its hidden treasures.

Fast Forward, Play Back
Ronit Eisenbach, Architect/Installation Artist and Project Director

Peter Sparling, Dancer/Choreographer

Terri Sarris, Video Artist

Christopher Pomodoro, Assistant Designer

Holly Hobbs, Lisa Johnson, Julianne O’Brien Pedersen and Peter Sparling, Dancers–courtesy of Peter Sparling Dance Company

This Project was made possible in part with generous funding from the Great Lakes Fabricators and Erectors Association, Don Makins, President, and D. James Walker, Jr., Executive Director; University of Detroit Mercy School of Architecture, Stephen Vogel, FAIA, Dean; University of Michigan Arts of Citizenship Program, David Scobey, Director.

Special thanks to the following individuals, businesses, and institutions:

Arnet‘s Custom Signs: Caryl Arnet, James McIntyre, Dave Webber

Haley Bates, Construction Assistance

The Staff and Students of Dossin Elementary School, Margaret Sanford, Principal

Dunn Blue Reprographics, Jeff Perhogan, Manager

Foto1 Imaging: William Van Cleve

MBM Fabricators, Don Makins, President

Frank Pahl, Additional Sound

University of Detroit Mercy Detroit Collaborative Design Center, Dan Pitera, Director

University of Detroit Mercy Alumni, Faculty, Students and Staff: Allison Bingham, Nate Bolds, Sudip Chaudhuri, Brian DuBois, Matt Gerard, Rick Jiang, Fred Klein, Prof. Steve LaGrassa, Prof. John Mueller, Jessica Schulte, Romina Tonucci, Justin Wieber and Ryan Wrocklage

University of Michigan Media Union: Steve Baker, Kim Bayer, Tom Bray, John Johnston, Jacques Mersereau, Ryan Wilcox

University of Michigan LS&A Media Services: Mark Marabate, Rob Hoffman

University of Michigan Program in Film and Video Studies: Rachel Wilkins

The artists are especially grateful to the following individuals and organizations whose support made this project possible

Project Row Houses Foundation
Detroit Summer
Masco Foundation
Masco Corporation
City of Detroit Cultural Affairs
University of Detroit Mercy School of Architecture
Design Build Studios by Ashley Kyber/Greg Vendena and Will Wittig
Crossings Architecture

Relics
Valerie and Dennis Parks
Travel Art Inc., Beverly Hills
Peter Gluck Woodworking, Oak Park
All America Plywood, Detroit
Pete Hoster, Johnson Auto Paint, Ferndale
Angie Baan Photography, Detroit
The Home Depot, Madison Heights
Richard Gage Studio, Royal Oak
Coley McClean, Salt Mine Studio, Detroit
John Burkwhat and Paul Refalo
Michelle Spivak and Nancy Jones
Gilda Snowden and Glen "Hey Man" Mannisto
Mitch "Handsomeboy" Cope and Chris "HTBT" Howson
Harry "Thunderclapp" Schnurr and Sioux "Cajones" Trujillo
Heather, Elke, Ed, Mark, Joe and Joe
Jeff, Arie, Diego, Mr. Grey, The Lil' Priest, The Hole, God
Michaelene, Becky, Maryanne, Pam, Jim, Bob, & Terry
Everybody else

A Persistence of Memory
The artist would like to thank the following individuals for their contributions to the success of the installation:

MaryAnn Wilkinson: For inviting Michael Hall to participate in the exhibition and for suggesting the possibility that the historic collection in the museum’s storage could be somehow incorporated into the installation. Throughout, MaryAnn ran "interference" for the project and was crucial to its realization.

Rebecca R. Hart: For serving as "project manager" over the many months during which the installation evolved from an idea into an actuality. Becky’s enthusiasm for the project was key to its realization and the fact that she attended to all the requests and queries phoned in by the artist as the work evolved has been deeply appreciated.

Michaelene Zawacki: The "details" person who maintained the correspondence between the museum and the artist. Also, the one who valiantly tried to open the disk file of copy that never opened.

Julie Moreno: The conservator who graciously approved and supervised the presentation of some very fragile and old paintings charged to her care for the completed installation. Julie shares the artist’s fascination with paintings as artifacts and objects–as well as works of art.

Margot Delidow: An artist in her own right who designed and fabricated all of the custom brackets needed to present the paintings in the installation. Without Margot’s patience, sensitivity, and skill, A Persistence of Memory would have been considerably less visually and conceptually successful.

Kim Dziurman: The logistics person who coordinated the moving of the sculpture component of the installation from the museum’s loading dock to the second floor gallery.

DIA staff: Thanks to all the museum personnel who participated in the hanging and lighting of the installation and all those who assisted the artist in his excavations of the storage galleries in the basement of the museum where so many treasures were discovered. The work of the photography staff who provided the photo images of the historic paintings from the collection is similarly acknowledged. A special thanks also to the museum security officers who facilitated the artist’s comings and goings to and from the museum building during the production of the work.

Richard Nonas: Sculptor and old friend. The New York anthropologist turned artist who always listens and offers good advice as ideas become actualities.

Gary Zych, Fred Zajdel and David Puls: Willing friends in Hamtramck who helped secure and load the "dumpster" component of the installation.

Pat Glascock: Artist, partner, and spouse. The one who endures the complaints, offers sage council, provides the second pair of hands in the studio and survives the mania with unfailing support and a smile.

Fellow Artists: The numerous artists past and present who, in their own ways, have "taken on Detroit" and have, thus, become a part of the collected experience enshrined in A Persistence of Memory."

Voyageurs
Joseph Wesner is deeply indebted to and grateful for the creative, technical and physical assistance of the following:

Gregory Steel
Janette Chisholm
Hill Gallery
Diane V. B. Jones
Dixon Kirkland III
Friends of Detroit Rowing
Jim Leenhouts/City Animation Co.
Jim Storm
Kathleen Mellerowicz