the museum of contemporary art detroit (mocad) is pleased to announce : this is not detroit, a solo exhibition by the copenhagen-based artist tal r, opening friday, may 11, 2018. the intricate, multipart installation manifests the artist’s fantasy of detroit, acting as a meditation on dream places, identity, and whimsy. the exhibition will remain on view through sunday, july 29, 2018.

seven large-scale paintings, rendered in a rich and moody palate of blues, depict the artist’s vision of specific detroit neighborhoods. the abstract works use primitive shapes and symbols to investigate the visual language of displacement and place. waves, ships, and city buildings, drawn with short energetic brushstrokes, populate these insular worlds. the formal, hard-edged palette suggests that this world is perhaps sturdier than the one we can see around us. these unique imaginings invite viewers to reflect on detroit as a place, and as an idea — a parallel dream space.

for the exhibition, tal r has written a one-of-a-kind, 52-page detroit newspaper, which will be distributed to the public at the exhibition. : this is not detroit is tal r’s sincere investigation of american iconography from his studio in denmark, inspired by kaftka’s amerika, a novel he wrote without ever having visited america. all works in the show, including the paintings, will be completed in detroit, at mocad, as part of the artist’s immersion in the space. the newspaper will comprise a physical element in the show, displayed beside a papier-mâché wall in the gallery.