The techno music booming from the speakers could not be subsided as pedestrians peeked in the different pavilions displayed in Liberty Plaza.

This year, a ten-day festival created by the Ann Arbor Art Center called POP-X took place downtown at Liberty Plaza. The event featured numerous artists from various backgrounds who were given their own space to display contemporary art.

POP-X consisted of an arrangement of walk-through pavilions. Each artist had a different theme of contemporary art, some of which were interactive. “Through this [exhibition], we wanted to highlight different artists in town and make the arts more accessible by putting it in a highly public place,” Omari Rush, Project Director of POP-X, said.

Though this is the first year of the festival, Rush hopes that it will attract more artists and add to the artistic environment this town provides. Another hope, is that this exhibition will create a sense of curiosity among the citizens of Ann Arbor, thus stimulating the economy by bringing more people downtown.

The reactions of POP-X have been positive. With other activities that go on in Ann Arbor such as the Summer Festival and Sonic Lunch, this exhibition, being in the fall, will hopefully continue to entertain the public. “People like the way that this adds one more thing to our community that makes it a more dynamic place to live, work and play,” Rush said.

Brenda Oelbaum, Social Practice Artist and Creator of the pavilion “Take Your Troubles to Market,” sits day in and day out, embroidering numbers onto black velveteen bags. The idea came from her grandmother. “If we all put our problems out in the street in bags, we would reach for our own after seeing what everybody else had put out there,” Oelbaum said.

This idea has blossomed into an interactive exhibit, where she encourages people to read the problems of others, as well as share their own. “It makes them feel less alone or feel some relief about their problems in comparison […] they should walk out feeling a little lighter,” Oelbaum said.

However, Oelbaum is concerned about the location of the exhibition, she feels the homeless — who usually occupy Liberty Plaza, feel ousted. “It’s great that we all get to use it for this 10 days, but I think it’s sad that they feel like: hurry up and end this already so we can go back to our lives as usual,” Oelbaum said. She doesn’t want to take up their space, but also wonders if it belongs to just them.

At the front of the exhibition was a pavilion called “The Picnic” created by the Ann Arbor Women Artists (AAWA). Their space is a multi-media display with influences from Judy Chicago, and her installation of “The Dinner Party,” with an overlying theme of art nouveau. “We wanted to combine those two things, so the art has the flavor of art nouveau, and the installation is themed after ‘The Dinner Party,’” said Deborah Campbell, Volunteer for the Ann Arbor Women Artists.

The AAWA spent many hours creating this multimedia space, complete with sound, paper mache and glass blowing. As one steps into this display, they instantly hear the sounds of birds and bees, and are greeted by butterflies.

For the AAWA, this exhibit has been about having fun. They get together multiple times a week, and relive their second grade memories of paper mache.

Towards the back of the exhibit is a pavilion by the artist Chaz Miller. His vision was to create an exhibit that centers around the concept of a butterfly. In the installation Butterflies represent the act of migration and immigration.

In one piece, there are panels that depict people and inventions that are from Detroit, such as Joe Louis and the streetcar. “One thing that’s going to be unique about our mural is that it’s going to be comprised of the windows, the people in the windows are going to be comprised completely of selfies,” Steve Bryant, accomplice of Chazz Miller said.

Another piece in Miller’s exhibit is a large American flag made out of wood with signed finger-painted butterflies. This active art piece is supposed to represent the diversity and variety of cultures in the United States. “We call our flag the ‘Wings of Liberty.’ You see, we are ‘one mind one love,’” Bryant said.

Public participation is important in this exhibit, such as the finger-painting and selfie uploading. There is another activity, which allows anyone to create their own butterfly. White wooden butterflies were scattered about on a table that people could paint and put up in the installation. Miller is a firm believer that everybody has the ability to create art. One goal for them is to place the differently designed butterflies around the city. “We are a community. Our organization and art is for the community, art for the people,” Bryant said.  

The Ann Arbor Arts Center has a long-range plan for this festival. The first year, since it was somewhat experimental, kept the exhibitions all in one place and built the same way.

Rush has many ideas of how they can expand this project, one being that they will start to scatter the pavilions throughout the town. “By year four we hope to have each structure be different and each represent an architect and artist collaboration” said Rush. “So the outside mirrors the inside. They talk to each other,” Rush said.