Tyree Guyton was born
on August 24, 1955 in Detroit, Michigan. He created the Heidelberg
Project in 1986 with his grandfather Sam Mackey as an outdoor art
environment on Detroit's eastside, a neighborhood referred to as "Black
Bottom.” The Heidelberg Project is,
in part, a political protest, as Tyree's childhood neighborhood began
to deteriorate after the 1967 riots. At first, the project consisted of
his painting a series of houses on Detroit's Heidelberg Street with
bright dots of many colors, and attaching salvaged
items to the houses. It was a constantly evolving work that transformed
a hard-core inner-city neighborhood where people were afraid to walk,
even in daytime, into one in which neighbors took pride and where
visitors were many and welcomed. His
main goal was to develop the Heidelberg Project into Detroit’s first
indoor and outdoor museum, complete with an artists' colony, creative
art center, community garden, amphitheater, and more. The effect of the
Heidelberg Project is displayed
through the development of Heidelberg Street. At the other end of the
street, there are crumbling houses with lawns covered with waist-high
weeds, rubble and rubbish, with no people in sight. Nevertheless, the
Heidelberg Project attracts nearly
275,000 visitors a year, and is now considered a recognized destination
for Detroit tourists.
HOME
THE DOTTY WOTTY HOUSE
FACES IN THE HOOD
THE HOUSE OF NUMBERS
THE OVAL ROOM
NOAH'S ARK
THE HOUSE THAT MAKES SENSE
DOORS OF OPPORTUNITY
THE PARTY ANIMAL HOUSE
REFLECTION
RESOURCES
CREDITS
