DETROIT, MICH.- DLECTRICITY, Detroit’s new, free outdoor nighttime light art festival, will host 35 local, national and international artists whose cutting edge works of art and installations will illuminate the historic architecture of Midtown on October 5 and 6, 2012. Visitors of all ages will see an impressive selection of artists who will light up Midtown Detroit and transform the Woodward corridor, and also enjoy family-friendly activities, food trucks, concerts and block parties during this free, two-night first-time event. A complete listing of DLECTRICITY artists and events may be found at www.DLECTRICITY.com.

“The remarkable events and amazing cultural and architectural assets of Midtown has always been at the core of the revitalization and growth of the neighborhood,” said Sue Mosey, president of Midtown Detroit, Inc. “We want DLECTRICITY to capture everyone’s imagination for what’s possible.”

To experience DLECTRICITY, visitors can walk, bike or drive through Midtown or take a free shuttle bus along the festival route. Visit www.DLECTRICITY.com to download the program guide and map. Shuttle pickup/drop off points on the program and map are marked with an “S” and will continue throughout the event.

World-Renowned Local and International Artists
Detroit is the latest city to become an international art destination and DLECTRICITY will feature works by Detroit's own art community, national and international artists from locations as far as Japan, Iceland, and Berlin, as well as New York, Los Angeles and Seattle. Renowned artists and artwork to be featured at DLECTRICITY include Evan Roth, The Legacy Lives On; NBNY, Garfield Lofts Projects; Jacco Olivier, Whale; Tabaimo, dolefullhouse; Sarah Rara, A Ray Array; and Yvette Mattern, Laser Starship. Other featured artists, performers and designers include Biba Bell, Marcos Zotes, Graem Whyte, Melanie Manos, RogueHAA, D MET Design, and more.

DLECTRICITY will feature 35 projects throughout the Woodward corridor located at the Detroit Institute of Arts, College for Creative Studies, Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit, Detroit Public Library, the Rackham Building, Michigan Science Center, Sugar Hill Arts District and more.

Bring the Family
DLECTRICITY has great, interactive art installations the whole family can enjoy. Don’t miss Frontier Town: A Tent Camp for Children in the Urban Wild, where kids of all ages can enter into a circle with glowing tents and explore a magical shelter of light and fabric; and menotme, a luminous, playful, responsive form activated by squeezing, which causes it to purr, giggle and burp. At the Detroit Institute of Arts, enjoy puppet performances Mama Three Eyes and Yaga Baba by Tom Carey. Mama Three Eyes is a shadow puppet play exploring the myths and legend surrounding the mysterious, monstrous, and yet motherly Hindu goddess Kali. Yaga Baba is another shadow puppet performance based on the Russian fairy tale Baba Yaga.

Special Events throughout the Weekend
There are many special events happening during DLECTRICITY, including:

• Friday, October 5 – Mix @ the Max. Join the Detroit Symphony Orchestra (DSO) for some mixing, mingling, networking and listening with a 6 p.m. Happy Hour and 7 p.m. concert at the Max M Fisher Building. Tickets available at www.DSO.org.

• Saturday, October 6 – The DSO will present Cirque de la Symphonie. This live concert will be simulcast projected on to the outside of the Max M. Fisher building along Parsons Ave. This is the first-ever, larger-than-life, movie-style “MaxCast” projection onto the walls of the Fisher building. Parsons Ave. will be blocked off to create a street party atmosphere. This event is free and open to the public.

• Sugar Hill Block Party, October 5-6 – Detroit’s latest arts neighborhood that houses MOCAD and the N’Namdi Center, is the DLECTRICITY hub for fun and entertainment – indoors and out. Enjoy live music performances, unique video projections, fire & light spectacles, a beer garden and full bar, food trucks and refreshments from The Whitney.

First-ever Detroit Light Bike Workshop & Parade
DLECTRICITY’s first ever Light Bike Workshop & Parade will debut on October 6 starting with a Q & A session at 4 p.m., a workshop at 5 p.m. and finally the parade at 7 p.m. Sky Yaeger, one of the few noted females in the bike design industry, now designing for Detroit brand Shinola, who manufacture consumer products including watches, bicycles and leather goods, will hold a question and answer session before the workshop. Then, learn how to “light up” your bike with OmniCorp Detroit at the workshop and the Parade, a 3.75 mile bike ride around Midtown. Starting at the Southeast corner of 2nd St. and Warren Ave, riders will cruise through Midtown showing off their uniquely lit-up cycles. Guests of all ages are encouraged to join the bike parade. The events are free and open to the public.

Mobile Art Projects
Make sure to look out for these three mobile art projects making the rounds through Midtown: The Ice Cave, Share Detroit (Rheostat Ride) and Dawn of Man. The Ice Cave by Graem Whyte is a mobile faceted sculpture that is an intimate immersive environment in its closed state, and an open air pavilion and performance venue when open. Share Detroit (Rheostat Ride) by Thick Air Studios (Sam Newman, George Vidas, Sylvie Demers, Jane Orr, Zane Hettinga) is a luminous dance of neon-equipped bicycles across the entire festival’s footprint; and Dawn Of Man by Space Monkey Detroit, a formerly employed leading NASA aero-mathematician, Space Monkey, now prefers to spend his days traveling, inciting dance parties wherever he goes.

DLECTRICITY will be held Friday, October 5, from 7 p.m. to Midnight; and Saturday, October 6, from 7 p.m. to 2 a.m. DLECTRICITY will coincide with the 5th Edition of Detroit Gallery Week and the Mid-America College Art Association Conference.