Ryan Patrick Hooper

Special to the Detroit Free Press

A new art installation inside downtown’s empty State Savings Bank is a literal reflection on Detroit’s grand architectural past.

“Mirage Detroit” is the site-specific work of award-winning artist and filmmaker Doug Aitken, who is known for his wide-ranging immersive, experience-based works that have been exhibited around the globe.

The new installation will open to the public on Oct. 10. The opening will grant a rare opportunity for the public to step inside the 70,000-square-foot State Savings Bank, which has largely sat empty for decades.

Additional details regarding an opening reception for the project and regular touring hours are forthcoming.

For his first Detroit-based project, Aitken created a sculpture in the form of a ranch-style suburban home inside of the former bank building at 151 W. Fort St. A century-old bank vault anchors the space as a remnant of the building’s past life.

Completely covered in mirrors, the installation reflects a choreographed light installation as well as the interior details of the Beaux-arts building. Originally built in 1900, it includes a white marble interior and arched Roman colonnades.

The building’s two-story arched windows have been darkened to create a unique lighting experience that adds another artistic variable to “Mirage Detroit.”

In collaboration with Aitken, the lighting was designed by Andi Watson, a renowned lighting and stage designer best known for his work with Radiohead. (Watson also recently designed the lighting at new downtown club Deluxx Fluxx).

Aitken’s installation creates a jarring juxtaposition in which it’s tough to tell where a mirrored contemporary art sculpture begins and turn-of-the-20th-Century architectural details end. It's a similar concept to Aitken's 2017 installation in the Coachella Valley, which also involved a mirrored house, though the setting was in a desert.

The interior of the State Savings Bank has been restored in recent years by the building’s current owner Bedrock, which funded the project alongside the Quicken Loans Community Fund.

A Bedrock representative listed a new roof, restored windows and restored plaster ceilings as part of the renovations to the State Savings Bank in addition to new bathrooms and mechanical systems.

“Mirage Detroit” was produced by downtown art gallery Library Street Collective, which regularly collaborates with Bedrock on public art projects in downtown Detroit.

“In many ways, ‘Mirage Detroit’ will become its surroundings,” says Library Street Collective owner Anthony Curis. “It will reflect and intensify one of the city’s greatest historical and cultural contributions — its grand architecture.”

The installation will host an array of cultural programming over the next few months including concerts, lectures and educational programs in collaboration with area art institutions like the Cranbrook Art Museum, the Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit (MOCAD) and College for Creative Studies.