Elene Usdin

Back from a month stay in Detroit! I left with the idea of making a series of portraits, as well as a very personal inventory of the cities and places crossed. I already knew Detroit from staying there in 2014 for an exhibition of my work at the Museum of New Art. In September 2017 I found a place at Pony Ride, an enormous space dedicated to creation, located in Corktown. Established in 2011 as a non-profit, the space connects a large number of residents, artists, entrepreneurs, and designers all in the spirit of communal assistance and sharing. Being in good hands I let myself be guided by serendipitous meetings and wanderlust. In the course of one month, in this contagiously creative and energetic city, I was able to realize a large number of portraits of Detroiters, musicians, bike-riders, artists, workers, retirees etc…. without predetermined notions of genre, class, or typology, I photographed them at home or in their favorite places in the city. With artists met on site, we organized photo shoots at the Russel Industrial Center, as well as diverse spots in the city.