Making Detroit More Vibrant: One Wall at a Time

Detroit is targeting blight in its neighborhoods with the powerful connection between art and community.

“Community art is all about ownership and connection,” Bethany Howard ’21 said. “It's about bringing people together to create something special, something that reflects their shared values and experiences.”

That was the inspiration behind the City Walls program, which the City of Detroit launched in 2017 and which Howard runs. Through this program, Detroit artists work to remove blight by creating murals throughout the city. At first, the program sought to replace graffiti-covered walls and viaducts with murals through an artist residency program called the Blight Abatement Artist Residency Program.

Now in its seventh year, City Walls has grown into much more, having turned almost 300 walls across the Motor City into works of art.

“Our mission is to create vibrant public art that authentically represents the values and aspirations of the communities we serve,” Howard said.

Not only does the City Walls program build on Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan's Blight to Beauty campaign, it acts as an agent that brings communities together.

From curating a diverse stable of local artists, whose styles and perspectives align with those of City Walls, to engaging with the community to ensure the art reflects their values and aspirations, Howard is an integral cog in the engine driving the Motor City’s transformation. She keeps the wheels turning by collaborating with other city departments and organizations to provide support while connecting with residents and stakeholders.

“The public often sees the stunning murals adorning city walls, but there's a significant amount of work that goes into each project,” she said.

The process is intricate, and Howard has her hand in it from start to finish.

Once a project is identified and stakeholders, community members and nonprofits have collaborated to devise a vision statement for the project, Howard puts out a call for artists to submit a proposal, which could contain a rendering or preliminary sketch based on the stakeholders’ vision statement. From there, a selection panel, which can consist of Detroit community members, stakeholders and arts professionals, votes on the submissions. This process narrows down the artists’ proposals. The next step is to score the proposals.

“The rubric could be based on a plethora of things, such as if the artist is from Detroit, submitted a preliminary sketch, understood what the vision statement was and/or has experience painting on outside durable spaces. The rubric varies on a project-by-project basis,” said Howard. “The scores determine the number of winners based on the number of walls we have per project. If we have three positions for a wall, the three artists with the highest scores are awarded the project.”

The artists chosen for the project are given a healthy stipend for their participation in the project as well as a budget for supplies.

It’s often Howard, with boots on the ground, who identifies spaces suitable for a mural. Typically, building owners will approach City Walls about the prospect of painting on their wall and it’s added to the list, but Howard said she’s “caught a lot of fish” when she comes across a blank wall in her daily pursuits that falls in line with a project and approaches the building owner herself.

This work is rewarding and something Howard has gravitated toward most of her life.

Howard, who holds a Master of Community Development (MCD) degree from Detroit Mercy, said her journey began while she was serving as a facilitator at the nonprofit family counseling agency Black Family Development.

“This role introduced me to the vibrant world of community connections, where I collaborated with families, schools, churches and sports teams to support the growth of children. I absolutely loved seeing how evidence-based practices made a real difference.”

She transitioned from that role to later join the Eastside Community Network, a nonprofit in the Detroit neighborhood where she grew up.

“It felt like a full-circle moment — my childhood was already rich with community development, even before I knew what to call it,” Howard said. “It’s truly a passion and purpose for me, especially in my current position,” she said.

The MCD program at Detroit Mercy was a natural progression for the ReBUILDetroit scholar in her academic pursuits.

“UDM’s unique blend of academic rigor and community engagement perfectly prepared me for my role at City Walls and any other role that I will have in the future,” she said.

Through this journey, Howard has developed a passion for public art and a desire to celebrate the creativity of Detroiters. Her key commitment at City Walls is to foster local talent and create meaningful community experiences.

“My deep-rooted connection to Detroit is a part of my passion for my work at City Walls where I'm fortunate to collaborate with talented colleagues across various departments to ensure that our projects resonate with local residents,” she explained.

Building on the framework of the City Walls murals project was the DCLEATED initiative in which City Walls, Detroit Medical Center, Spacelab Detroit and Visit Detroit collaborated to celebrate the 2024 NFL Draft in Detroit. In this project, 20 giant football cleats were fabricated and then painted by local artists to raise awareness for important Detroit-specific causes. The cleats were displayed throughout the city during the draft and the venture raised more than $85,000 to benefit the charities selected by City Walls and the artists.

“Connecting with the artists and meeting the passionate leaders behind these causes is an experience that'll inform our community engagement going forward,” Howard said.

Another project spearheaded by Howard is a residency project called Detroit Artist Apprentice Program (DAAP) and it project provides local artists with studio space and resources to develop new work. It also connects experienced artists with emerging talent to foster growth and collaboration within Detroit's artistic community. Upon completion of the residency program, the mentees will then create three murals within certain city workspaces. Inspired by Aristotle's "The whole is greater than the sum of its parts," the philosophy of DAAP is the greatest potential is achieved through connection.

“Just like the components of a car, our collective power ignites when we work together,” said Howard.

The energy in Detroit and responsiveness to these projects by the artists and the community is palpable.

“The reactions to completed murals will forever make me smile, from the audible gasps of awe to the palpable energy that fills the space,” Howard said. She is eager to introduce Detroit’s residents to an wider range of artistic expressions, perhaps including more abstract works.

“And let's not forget the practical side of things,” she added. “Murals are magnets for people. Residents and visitors alike are drawn to their colors and stories. This can boost local economies, revitalize neighborhoods and create a more vibrant and welcoming city.”

The City Walls team is engaging with the Department of Neighborhoods on the Neighborhood Signs Project in which 60 registered neighborhoods across Detroit will receive unique welcome signs to highlight their communities.

Also in the works is a partnership with a group called BuildSubmarines on a “We Build Giants” mural project, where a local artist will be commissioned through the open call process to design a mural that spotlights Michigan’s skilled trade workers and salutes Michigan’s manufacturing workforce.

Through her work, Howard brings people together to create something special that captures the spirit of a vibrant Detroit and puts it on display. In her view, these pieces “will challenge our perspectives, spark conversations and enrich the landscape in Detroit for years to come.”

Top mural — Immigrant Arrival by Pat Perry, 2498 Vernor Highway, Detroit; Second photo — The Spirit by Waleed Johnson, 7930 Mack Ave., Detroit; Third photo — City Walls by Jake Dwyer, 8125 Mack Ave.

— By Julie A. Erwin. Follow Detroit Mercy on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and Instagram. Have a story idea? Let us know by submitting your idea.