A Local Artist's Guide to Detroit's Black History

Courtesy of Visit Detroit/Rebecca Blanton

“We are a love city,” says rising Detroit artist Taylor Childs. “The stories live in the communities.”

She would know. Childs lives just south of the Avenue of Fashion district on Livernois and was born into a family that lived in Wildemere Park (not far from Rosa Parks’ home) and ran the Apex Bar in the North End, an important cultural site.

The legendary blues venue, where John Lee Hooker played his first Detroit show in 1943, has since closed, but its location on the edge of Paradise Valley helped define the district as a hub of Black entertainment and business. “My family has lived in Detroit since the Great Migration,” she says. “We’ve been everywhere … [there are] so many stories entrenched in those streets.”

Since her teenage years in the early 2010s, Childs has been busy telling those stories through her art, first as a poet and then as a painter—with the thread of fiber arts that’s become her signature. In 2025, she received the Gilda Award from Kresge Arts in Detroit.

But she doesn’t hesitate to note that she stands on the shoulders of those who came before her. “I’ve known Sabrina Nelson since I was a little kid; she was one of the prominent people in the community supporting me as a child,” Childs says. “Hubert Massey—I was one of his students, doing murals with him … these elders who did not care about being appreciated or not; they kept on going because they love art and they love stewarding talent.”

Part of Childs’ mission is to continue the work of building Detroit’s cultural heritage, “because history and place are so important.” Dive into the historic Black districts of Paradise Valley, the adjacent Black Bottom neighborhood, and beyond by following the artist’s work and her perspective on the “new and OG places that make Detroit a generational melting pot.”

Attend the Detroit Month of Design

“Everyone talks about Detroit summers,” she says, citing the Concert of Colors in July. But in September, Design Core’s Detroit Month of Design takes over venues across the country’s first and only UNESCO City of Design.

Childs says the event is “a great starting point for people.” As the community arts director of the W.I.S.E. Partnership, she’ll lead a mosaics project and host her annual fashion show during the Month of Design.

Catch live music at show bars

Given her family’s roots in a bar on Oakland Avenue, it naturally follows that Childs has an affinity for Detroit’s show bars (historic venues that combine a cocktail lounge with live entertainment and are now enjoying a revival) and the nearby businesses. “I love Aretha’s Jazz Café,” she says. “I used to do poetry there, and a lot of people don’t know that they have a lot of programming.” Griot Music Lounge and Cliff Bell’s are two other favorites that mix live music and good vibes.

Where to eat and drink in Paradise Valley

The artist has an abundance of ideas for local spots near what used to be known as Paradise Valley, where the food, cocktails, and atmosphere are uniquely Detroit. SavannahBlue brings Southern flavor to Northern soul food.

Fixins Soul Kitchen “is new but a lot of people love it,” she says. Meanwhile, the Elephant Room’s eclectic charm includes tin ceilings and retro pub fare.

Explore the Sugar Hill Arts District and beyond

Childs says it’s worth the five-minute drive north to check out three other kinds of arts experiences. “I love the beautiful collection at the N’Namdi Center for Contemporary Art.”

Nearby, visit the boutique of Detroit designer Tracy Reese, Hope for Flowers, where Childs once taught art classes. The likes of Michelle Obama, Taylor Swift, and Sarah Jessica Parker have all worn looks designed by Reese. Then, in the same building, tend to the art of the body at Cure Nailhouse, an experimental space that turns manicures into an art form, all while you sip coffee or a cocktail and peruse the gallery.

To add art to your wardrobe, pick up one of Taylor Childs Studios’ creations or head to Vintage Eastern Market, which Childs says is expertly curated.

“No matter how big the new buildings get,” Childs says, referencing the Hudson’s development, “the community is what held Detroit together and it’s what’s going to sustain us. We are who we are. We’re not going to shrink.”