In this video, filmmaker Ryan Clancy takes us inside Detroit’s Lafayette Park neighborhood, home to the world's largest collection of buildings designed by Mies van der Rohe.
Due to the redevelopment of Detroit and the surging popularity of mid-century design, home prices and cost of living in the neighborhood have dramatically increased in just 5 years time – leaving the community on the cupse of turnover. Seeing the need to document Lafayette Park before it changes for good, Clancy uses his camera to capture the diverse group of existing residents in their homes, highlighting their relationships to the timeless architecture.
Primarily known for being the largest collection of Mies Van Der Rohe designed homes in the world, Detroit's Lafayette Park is usually the subject of Architectural interest, leaving little said about its socioeconomic climate. This project narrates the experience of living in an iconic and rapidly changing neighborhood. The area has been influenced by a grim past and faces an uncertain future, making this footage a valuable documentation of a fragile moment in time. As a result, "A Poem of Glass and Steel" questions the worth and sustainability of beauty and community.
To learn more about the film, visit the official website, here.
AD Classics: Lafayette Park / Mies van der Rohe
Mies van der Rohe's Lafayette Park Named National Historic Landmark
