Weird Homes Tour – Detroit

You may know Detroit Artist’s Test Lab as a gallery and artist incubation space. You may NOT also know it as the home of Glenn Urquhart and Kira Kessler.  Originally built as a dance hall in 1922, the sight held office equipment when they got their hands on it. Despite not having much building experience Glenn and Kira decided to do much of the work themselves.

During construction, they wanted to focus on rehabbing and upcycling everything.  The kitchen counter comes from a bowling alley. The cheese graters above serve as light fixtures. Tool boxes hold the cutlery. Storage units hold their clothes and car side mirrors act as sconces.  If all this sounds a little too industrial for your taste, you’d be happy to find art EVERYWHERE.  A baby grand piano even proudly stands in the bathroom.

The public Detroit Artists‘s Test Lab space serves as a great resource for Detroit’s aspiring artistic entrepreneurs.  Inside you can find everything from gallery and performance space to offices and business development workshops. Be sure to swing by their vending machine filled with their artists’ own work for a truly unique souvenir.