Detroit Transect — Cornering (2014 DOWNIE KAISER)

Cornering (16 min) is a section of the Detroit Transect suite of 3D films by Marc Downie and Paul Kaiser. Detroit Transect forges a new kind of visual documentary radically different from the conventional documentary form.

The film exposes the residential sections of Brush Street from East Grand Boulevard in Detroit to Buena Vista Street in Highland Park from the unusual angles obtained by rounding the corners at every intersection and traversing those alleyways not blocked by debris or undergrowth.

The effect of parallax is greatly intensified in 3D, sharpening perception of the striking juxtapositions to be encountered there: backyard grills and barking watchdogs; abandoned houses with sunlight pouring through broken doors and windows; yards mown and manicured as well as overgrown and reverting to prairie.

Detroit: Transect

Our artists’ statement and a well-illustrated account of the sections and methods of the entire Detroit Transectproject is provided in this PDF document (18 mb).

Support

The executive producer was Dennis Scholl. Support provided by the Witt Residency Program at the Stamps School of Art & Design, University of Michigan and by

In early 2015 this artwork was acquired by MoMA for it permament collection.