a Big Week Indeed!

Matthew and I have both returned from three days in Detroit, where we signed the contract with the State Land Bank and wrote them a big check for the back taxes on a home that Laveda will be moving into just after the new year. Ironically this is the same day that our fundraiser ended. And as many of you already know, we DID meet our goals with the generous help of 53 patrons. Thank you VERY MUCH! We were also donated a truck for the production, during our month long stay in Detroit.

We're also excited to announce that we are planning a food and blanket drive for the first week of January. Jean from United Peace Relief Detroit is going to be schooling us in setting all of this up. Slows BBQ has donated 3 large enclosed tents and some industrial heaters as well. We are hoping to get some picnic tables donated also, so that our makeshift shelter can be a resting place for the homeless and hungry to come in out of the cold and get some warm soup.

While in Detroit we also met with Erica Hill, the Special Events and Film executive working at the mayor's office. I have to say like so many experiences we have had in regards to this project, our meeting at the City Level was also well received, and seems that there have been no hitches whatsoever.

After two full days of business we attended a holiday shopping party at a local design shop where I met a University of Detroit student of architecture. I have to say it was quite refreshing to be grilled on our project. This young man had a bit of interest in our project but also big concerns regarding the validity of our deconstruction -- after all, our house IS going to be sprayed with water during sub zero temperatures. To clarify, the plan is to chip all of the ice off of the house within a week of icing it. This is to preserve the exterior wood as best we can, and to make sure the state of Michigan follows through with their intention of deconstruction over demolition.

So as long as Mother Nature comes through on her part, our tentative date for the Ice House Project is January 18th, Martin Luther King day.




We also did an interview for London based Dazed and Confused magazine. With the help of Faina Lerman and Bridget Michael, I was able to capture this 4 second exposure while shooting images for the magazine.

Gregory Holm

Updates, and Heading Back to Detroit

Much has taken place in the last few weeks. We have now hired Ryan Widger, a great friend and very talented artist, to work with us as our producer and media consultant. After discussions with various non profit groups that had an "interest" in working with us, we decided on a grass roots organization located in Detroit. United Peace Relief Detroit is more concerned with direct action to help the local community instead of publicity. We have scheduled a meeting next week to discuss the food and clothing drive which we will be working on with them some time near the Christmas holiday. One of the added bonuses of working under their umbrella is that donations are tax deductible.

The upcoming week's schedule in Detroit is full of appointments already. Our plan is to inspect the house we'll be using with a structural engineer, in case any reinforcements are necessary. In addition, we will consult with Erica Hill, executive assistant to the mayor in the department of special events and film...which brings us to Larry, our latest addition to the project. Larry is our "water guy." He's worked on special effects for movies and commercials for 20+ years, and it looks like we're on the same page with Ice House Detroit. Finally, we will be handing a check to Laveda Hoskins, so that she and her family can move in to their new home right after the new year.

To address the question so many have been asking, "when is the house getting iced?", we're hoping for early January. The final dates chosen will depend on humidity, temperature, and snow.

Last but not least, we'd like to mention that this is the last week to fund our project on Kickstarter. If you're new to our blog and project and would like more information, please take a look at our project description. Thank you again to all who've donated so far. For those of you that have been following the project, sending us emails, and sharing your stories, we'd like to encourage you to be a part of our project by helping make it happen.