This Valentine's Day, Feb. 14, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles will join Detroit's Office of Arts, Culture and Entrepreneurship and its City Walls Detroit murals program in showing the city some love. FCA and the city will issue a global open call to artists to create murals that will comprise one of the largest municipal art installations in Detroit's history.
City Walls Detroit has worked with FCA to identify the canvases for the murals near the FCA's new auto assembly plant. FCA announced in February that it would invest $1.6 billion to convert two existing Mack Avenue facilities into a new assembly site for an all-new, three-row, full-size Jeep SUV and the next-generation Jeep Grand Cherokee. FCA also will invest $900 million at Jefferson North to retool and modernize the plant for continued production of Dodge Durangos and next-generation Jeep Grand Cherokees.
In total, the move is projected to create 4,950 new jobs.
The Canvases for the Mural Project
- The North Wall, which runs along Beniteau Street, immediately across from Southeastern High School.
- The South Wall (located at Beniteau Street and Kercheval Avenue) faces a new stormwater park that includes a walking path, pollinator gardens and an educational pavilion.
When the project is completed, Detroit's east side will have one of the largest municipal mural installations in the region at 15 feet high by 1,500 feet long. Look at the canvas here.
"Our commitment to this city goes well beyond our facility," said Mark Stewart, Chief Operating Officer of FCA – North America. "We have a shared responsibility for the neighborhood around the new plant. These murals will reflect the values and identity of the community and our shared vision for a positive future."
In an effort to ensure that the mural reflects the culture and identity of Detroit's east side neighborhoods, the City and FCA are engaging local residents, especially students, in creating the mural's design. Residents of both the Beniteau and Lillibridge communities – and students at Southeastern High School and Detroit Enterprise Academy – are generating themes for mural installation. City Walls Detroit will issue the open call, with details about the application and selection process will be on the City Walls website on Feb. 14, 2020. The selection committee will choose an artist or team by June 1, 2020.
The project is expected to be completed by Oct. 30, 2020.
"This wonderful gift from FCA is just another example of how much arts and culture are alive and well and thriving here," said Rochelle Riley, the City's Director of Arts and Culture. "And even more great things are coming in Detroit — where the arts are a way of life."
The mural project is part of the Community Benefits Agreement between FCA and the City of Detroit, a partnership that provides more than $35 million in support for neighborhood improvements, housing, workforce development, education and training programs, and environmental initiatives.
For more information, contact John Roach at City Hall at [email protected] or 313-244-7857, or Rochelle Riley at 313 720 1016 or [email protected]. Artists should contact Zachary Meers at [email protected].
