By reconnecting people to the notion of craftsmanship and the processes through which objects are made, new possibilities emerge and stronger communities are formed. It was with those intentions in mind that  The Steel Yard was founded by Nick Bauta and Clay Rockefeller in 2001. This former steel and iron industrial site serves as a catalyst for urban regeneration and community growth through creative approaches.

The Steel Yard initially started off as a shop where metalworkers could use welding or foundry equipment. It later expanded to become an educational and multidisciplinary arts facility where individuals from different backgrounds can learn and work together. Additionally, some of the spaces are used for open houses, workshops, demonstrations, exhibits, and performances. Outside the main building, smaller spaces have been restored or added as small business incubators.

A lot has been written about Detroit in recent months: unemployment, bankruptcy, and a failing auto industry. When arriving there, one would surely compare reality to what has been said in the media. But Detroit is a city in transition rather than a dying city. It looks like a semi-empty canvas or an experimental ground that could be embraced by artists and designers. Empty factories lined up in the distance as we drove through the city. Incredible relics of American industrial architecture and modern housing structures are waiting to be found in Detroit. This city has a potential to become a true 21st century American city through regeneration and new design thinking.

Local regeneration projects are mushrooming in Detroit. Last month, the Taubman Center (former GM Technical Center, pictured above), in downtown Detroit, reopened its doors as the new design campus for the College for Creative Studies. The Argonaut building, designed by Albert Kahn, is 80 years old and offers 760,000 square-foot of space. This adaptive re-use project not only intends to educate students from middle, high school, undergraduate and graduate levels, it also hopes to transform the economy of Southeast Michigan and renew Detroit. The Taubman site created 200 new jobs and will bring more than 2000 people to the area on a daily basis, giving an opportunity to provide new customers for local businesses. If you would like to learn more, Chad Reichert, our ‘guide’ while in Detroit, shares his thoughts about the city and how its local community is taking creative steps towards recovery, in this written piece: If you rebuilt it, they will come

Detroit is following the green movement like other American cities with NGO’s such as the Greening of Detroit. It is also looking at design as a tool for social change. Project M recently initiated Plot 63, a project involving a group of designers and local communities. In one week, they transformed a vacant city lot into a community gathering place in Detroit’s North End. Another example is Design99, a retail space that works with experimental design and architecture and attempts to make contemporary art more accessible to the public. The founders of Design99 are also behind Power House Project, a social art project that started with the purchase of foreclosed home in a neighborhood in crisis. “Can super efficient and self-sustained homes be achieved for under $99,000?” is one question. Another is: “what would happen if people moved to Detroit?”

Taubman Center image credits: © College for Creative Studies

Some locals in Omaha think that their city is of one of America’s best kept secrets and want to keep it that way. Others wish that more people stopped in Omaha (instead of just flying over it) because there is more to the city than Mutual of Omaha, Omaha Steaks and Warren Buffett: Omaha is also a creative incubator and the Silicon Prairie of the region.

Omaha is a small city made of contrasted districts in the downtown area. The real surprise for us was to discover the Old Market District after a long drive from Colorado. The Old Market is authentic and delivers an old Western charm that can no longer be found in a majority of American cities.

Omaha seeks to bring its population back on the streets and revive the city center. Inspired dining venues such as M’s Pub or The Boiler Room are local favorites in the area and prove that restaurants that blend design with fine food are an integral part of a city’s appeal. A number of affordable urban living developments surrounding the market are attractive alternatives to suburban neighborhoods.

The world renowned Bemis artist-in-residence center (pictured above), set up by Ree Kaneko in the early eighties has had considerable influence on the creative character of Omaha and helps to diversify the local population (we spotted a couple of young Japanese artists struggling to order steaks at M’s Pub). The recently opened Kaneko Center is another initiative that explores new creative possibilities for Omaha (see our blog post and video), and we heard that a new design school may also be seeing the light of day in a few years time.

Tim Bessell details his rise to how he became a master surfboard craftsman for Cities x Design.

The Modern Phoenix Neighborhood Network is a website featuring a collection of photographs, articles and discussion about mid-century modern architecture in Phoenix, Arizona.

Marlen Grove (pictured above – first 5 from left) is a neighborhood in Phoenix where mid-century modern houses have been preserved and restored in different ways.

We drove across Lake Pontchartrain to Covington in the north of New Orleans to meet with Nancy Sharon Collins. Nancy is Director of Special Projects at AIGA New Orleans and is currently working on The History of Graphic Design of Southern Louisiana, a digital and physical repository of engravings and other printed graphic works from the region.

Nancy showed us some of the early pieces from her growing archive. She is working to raise awareness on the importance of graphic design’s heritage in Louisiana and hopes to share her valuable findings and research in the future through exhibitions and a feature film in partnership with LSU’s Center for Oral History

Nancy’s studio archiving space.

Engraved ‘calling cards’ are a disappearing tradition but can still be ordered in a few places close to New Orleans.

Link | Trailer | Nancy Sharon Collins Stationer