I have always been struck by how Detroit wears its story on its walls.

At first glance, those walls can seem like backdrops, but look closer and you see chapters of struggle, creativity, protest and pride unfolding in real time. What was once a source of friction has become one of Detroit’s most visible symbols of renewal.

Over the past decade, the walls of Detroit have undergone a transformation as profound as anything we have seen in the city’s built environment.

Once, murals were flashpoints. Vibrant expressions often painted without permission, sparking the kind of municipal pushback that saw City Hall and artists in tension over what belonged on Detroit’s walls. Those early years were marked by code enforcement notices, whitewashed facades and a belief that murals were more nuisance than civic asset.

But something changed.

Around 2017, the City of Detroit launched City Walls as part of Mayor Mike Duggan’s “Blight to Beauty” initiative. It was a recognition that what had been treated as a liability could be an instrument of pride, safety and connection.

What began as an effort to replace unauthorized graffiti with sanctioned artwork became a program that has since commissioned more than 200 murals, employing more than 70 artists to transform freeway overpasses, commercial corridors and neighborhood gathering spaces. Places like Jefferson Avenue, 7 Mile and Dexter are now enlivened by color, story and identity.

This shift was not simply about beautification. It was a tacit acknowledgment that art, especially art created by local hands, can help repair the civic fabric, restore dignity to neglected spaces and create conditions for dialogue.

That recognition opened the door for something more ambitious.

BLKOUT Walls launches

In 2021, Detroit artist Sydney G. James (Kresge Artist Fellow 2017) joined Thomas “Detour” Evans of Denver and Max Sansing of Chicago to launch the inaugural BLKOUT Walls Mural Festival in the city’s North End. They had all participated in mural festivals around the country and recognized two persistent truths: artists of color were often underrepresented, and they were rarely compensated for their work. BLKOUT Walls was their answer, a biannual, artist-led festival designed to center Black and Brown creators, provide fair pay and create lasting works of art with and for the community.

With Kresge’s support, the festival brought together artists of color from Detroit and across the country to create twenty new murals. The North End’s walls became a living gallery, amplifying voices, reclaiming space, and offering a stage for conversations about racial justice, equity and belonging.

The festival also made intentional space for young Detroiters through a partnership with the Detroit Area Pre-College Engineering Program (DAPCEP), which expanded its STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) curriculum to STEAM by adding the Arts. Local students, many from the North End, learned how art, like engineering, can shape the world around them.

The results were tangible:

• Creation of twenty new murals that activated underutilized spaces in the North End
• Enhanced walkability and neighborhood engagement
• Professional opportunities for at least 14 artists of color
• Youth development through direct involvement in the creative process
• Narrative-shaping around racial justice and accessibility to the arts

Together, City Walls and BLKOUT Walls have rewritten the story of how murals function in Detroit. Once contested, they are now celebrated, embraced by neighborhoods, championed by the City, and supported by cultural institutions. The Dequindre Cut preserves graffiti murals as a deliberate feature of urban design. The walls of Eastern Market, refreshed each year through Murals in the Market, draw international talent and thousands of visitors.

Our own role in this journey, supporting artist-led and equity-centered placemaking, is a reminder that when we invest in creative expression, we are investing in the long arc of community identity.

Detroit’s walls tell the story of its resilience. What began as an act of defiance has become a citywide chorus of pride. And if the past decade is any indication, these walls will continue to speak in color, in history and in hope for decades to come.

You can be part of that story as BLKOUT Walls returns with its third street festival, transforming Detroit’s North End into a living gallery. From Sept. 4–14, experience artists at work, community celebrations and the unveiling of new murals that will add fresh chapters to Detroit’s story.

Join us in celebrating the power of art, place, and community at blkoutwalls.com.