On the occasion of the 10th Saint Etienne International Design Biennale, Akoaki curated Out of Site, a 10,000 square foot carte blanche exhibit addressing Detroit's transforming urbanity. Leveraging the curatorial opportunity to bring thirty plus Detroit artists, residents and activists to the design festival in France, the exhibition foregrounded the evolving ideas, activities, and resourcefulness of the city's inhabitants. Staged against the backdrop of three full scale installations deployed first in Detroit and subsequently transplanted to France, the exhibit was animated with ten days of public programming: performances, conversations, workshops, pop actions and other experimental encounters.
OUT OF SITE
Saint Etienne, France, 2017
Exhibition Curators: Anya Sirota, Jean Louis Farges
Biennial Curator: Olivier Peyricot
Design Team: Jonathan Watkins, Sam Okolita, Patrick Ethen, Taylor Montgomery, Ian Donaldson
Production Team: Jonathan Watkins, Lindsey Karasik, Sam Okolita, Patrick Ethen, Taylor Montgomery, Lindsey Karasik, Ian Donaldson, Christopher Holder, Zioma Farges-Sirota
Photography: Anne-Laure Lechat
This project was made possible through grants from the Knight Foundation, the Community Foundation of Southeast Michigan, Ford Foundation, Creative Many Michigan, Lear Corporation, University of Michigan Office of Research. Additional support provided by the Cité du Design, the Saint Etienne International Design Biennale, Design Core Detroit, and Taubman College of Architecture + Urban Planning. Special thanks to Josyane Franc and Olivier Peyricot.