Detroit’s motto is Speramus meliora; resurget cineribus-“We hope for better things; it will arise from the ashes”. In the 1750s, Detroit was one of the wealthiest fur trading cities in the world. In 1805, the whole town burned down. It re-invented itself and found a niche in ship-building and lumber until the Great Depression destroyed both industries. Once again, Detroit pursued and emerged as the historic heart of the American automotive industry. Fast forward to 2011, and Detroit was declared bankrupt. Now, Detroit is starting to rise out of its abyss and become a technological, art, and social entrepreneurial city. Most importantly, it has grown from the passion of young locals and outsiders seeking for a better tomorrow.
In many ways, these driven people have found their niche in the emerging Detroit market by getting involved in social entrepreneurship. These ventures focus on addressing and eradicating issues still systemic in Detroit through collaboration and self-expression. One of the most famous examples is the Heidelberg Project.
The Heidelberg Project was made by Tyree Guyton as a political protest for his cause. After the 1967 police riots, communities that participated stopped getting supported by the city. Tyree wanted to bring attention to the fact that his neighborhood had been stripped of even the little safety, value, and support it had. As a response, Guyton took ordinary items like toys, clothes, and appliance in his vacant inner cities and turned it into an art project stretching blocks-long. Empty houses and lawns became the new canvas for polka dot contraptions and symbolic art. He used the outskirts as a canvas to speak his mind and bring awareness to the conspicuous issues in neighborhoods that were not being addressed. Utilizing his nonprofit as a vehicle for change and the art as its motor, Guyton art became a constant reminder to Detroit that time is ticking and cities are deteriorating. Guyton used art to support his social organizations desire to improve the lives of people and neighborhoods in lower economic cities.
So many nonprofit organizations in Detroit are engaging in art to story tell about their past and hopes for a better future. Social ventures are focusing on eradicating issues in the world so that growth and prosperity can occur. These organizations complement both the public and private sector. The private, public, and social enterprises are important because each focuses on an important factor to grow a city. Private entities attract wealth and people in order to grow. Their medium is the economy. Public entities manage the distribution of wealth and people. Their medium is the government. Social entities fix the cracks in a foundation so that an economy can be well-managed and further grown. Their medium is art. Detroit’s art not only paints a canvas of what the past was like, but it also both carves into buildings what the city is now and sculpts what the city can become. At this rate, Detroit’s trajectory looks as if the city will become a beacon of social entrepreneurship.