Professional Artist looking into Detroit

**DetroiterOnTheWestCoast** · July-30-15, 06:52 PM

Originally Posted by Jason

Detroit doesn't want you and I don't think there are any cities that would, although that doesn't stop you from moving anyway. imo stay in Texas where you at least know people [[unless you've been excommunicated). Sorry but what you did is a deal breaker for most people. :/

Interesting; I guess you've heard from "most people"?

**JosephMagnano** · July-30-15, 07:31 PM

I don't ask, i just do. But in this particular situation on this thread, I'm asking about how Detroit is. Is it a city that is open to revolutionary and creative thinkers, or is it caught in nostalgia, banking on the ways of the past to give direction. We all find our way in life, and what i did was an noble act of virtues. I can't convince you of that. You have to understand it.

**gvidas** · July-30-15, 08:26 PM

Eh.

Detroit is especially hard to window-shop from a distance. A lot of what you see about Detroit online is bluster and bullshit. This website is relatively down to earth, but there's still a lot of lips flapping in the breeze. As soon as you're looking for a studio/apartment/house, feet on the ground become extremely important.

In terms of people, my experience here has been about the same as everywhere else I've lived -- people are mostly great, with a few assholes sprinkled in. The ratio that you experience has a lot to do with how you live. Assholes tend to find other assholes.

Find a 1-3 week airbnb or a bed at the hostel and see for yourself.

**JosephMagnano** · July-30-15, 09:09 PM

Originally Posted by gvidas

Eh.

Detroit is especially hard to window-shop from a distance. A lot of what you see about Detroit online is bluster and bullshit. This website is relatively down to earth, but there's still a lot of lips flapping in the breeze. As soon as you're looking for a studio/apartment/house, feet on the ground become extremely important.

In terms of people, my experience here has been about the same as everywhere else I've lived -- people are mostly great, with a few assholes sprinkled in. The ratio that you experience has a lot to do with how you live. Assholes tend to find other assholes.

Find a 1-3 week airbnb or a bed at the hostel and see for yourself.

Yeah, I figure. Window shopping from a distance is joke. I totally get where your coming from, I'm getting skewed by media and what not. Its just such a big place, I don't even know where to start. I prefer no to attract assholes. Just cool folks, doing their things and keeping it hot.

**gvidas** · July-30-15, 09:39 PM

Right. Which is why I suggest you spend several weeks just soaking it in. Most people that I've watched visit [[more so a few years ago, but I think it's still true) spend the first week in culture shock.

http://artdetroitnow.com/ is fairly comprehensive in terms of art openings etc.

I'd say try for 3 weekends encompassing the third thursday of the month. Don't try to visit between october and march, you'll find the whole city is hibernating [[very few public events.)

Rent a bike. Spend any evenings that you can't find an art event at dive bars in the cass corridor or corktown [[presuming you'll end up staying at a midtown/corktown airbnb or the hostel.) Make a point of getting coffee or a meal in the outer reaches of the city [[old redford, jefferson chalmers, etc).

If you can't afford to drop a few thousand on a 2-3 week research trip [[and still plan on spending 3-6 months unemployed), then you may as well just move here [[or not.) Plan on the first apartment sucking, and don't commit to a studio sight unseen or without seriously researching how expensive it's going to be to keep your Texan ass from freezing.

I still think most of this applies to moving to any new city.

**JosephMagnano** · July-31-15, 07:46 AM

Originally Posted by gvidas

Right. Which is why I suggest you spend several weeks just soaking it in. Most people that I've watched visit [[more so a few years ago, but I think it's still true) spend the first week in culture shock.

http://artdetroitnow.com/ is fairly comprehensive in terms of art openings etc.

I'd say try for 3 weekends encompassing the third thursday of the month. Don't try to visit between october and march, you'll find the whole city is hibernating [[very few public events.)

Rent a bike. Spend any evenings that you can't find an art event at dive bars in the cass corridor or corktown [[presuming you'll end up staying at a midtown/corktown airbnb or the hostel.) Make a point of getting coffee or a meal in the outer reaches of the city [[old redford, jefferson chalmers, etc).

If you can't afford to drop a few thousand on a 2-3 week research trip [[and still plan on spending 3-6 months unemployed), then you may as well just move here [[or not.) Plan on the first apartment sucking, and don't commit to a studio sight unseen or without seriously researching how expensive it's going to be to keep your Texan ass from freezing.

I still think most of this applies to moving to any new city.

Yeah, thanks for all this info and some parts of the towns names. I was up in Detroit this past February. Came up wearing jeans, uggs and a flannel, lol. I was up visiting my fiancee and her parents in the middle of Michigan. It was definitely freezing. So whats everyone do when the weather gets freezing?