This story is from Planet Detroit’s Neighborhood Reporting Lab, where community reporters write about health and climate issues in their neighborhood. Neighborhood Reporting Lab is supported by the Americana and Kresge Foundations.
Detroit artist Raffa Reuther aims to transform their Woodbridge Community into a haven for creativity– one artist at a time.
In April, the Woodbridge resident and non-binary and queer artist opened Secret Garden Art Cafe, a space tucked into the neighborhood and designed to be a spot for people to gather and enjoy making and experiencing art.
Reuther is a Detroit-based non-binary and queer artist who formerly ran the sustainable fashion brand: Raffa Workwear for five years.
The throughline for Reuther’s work is repurposing. Previously, this manifested in a sustainable clothing endeavor; Reuther ran the sustainable fashion brand Raffa Workwear for five years. Now Reuther is focused on repurposing space – re-envisioning their backyard and studio to create community. Since closing the clothing company, Reuther said they missed the “creative flow time” but also realized they missed “creating things without an end goal.”
The space features repurposed materials and draws inspiration from similar spaces in Brooklyn and Manhattan. New York.
“They are filling a need in their community that’s being responded to,” Reuther said about the New York Space. “Everybody in any city deserves that – not just New Yorkers. I was like, what’s the Detroit version of this, and that’s what I’m going for.”
Angie Gaabo, Director of the Woodbridge Neighborhood Development, said she looks forward to experiencing the project.
“People love that we’ve got a lot of artists and art here, and celebrating that and having shared experiences as a community is what we should be doing,” Gaabo said. “It’s what people want to do here, and it makes me think of the porch concerts we do in the Fall.”
Reuther has made the Woodbridge house a home for the past five years, renovating the backyard and garage for this project. The space is decorated in bright pops of green and blue. Reuther finds the trellis, home to tomato vines, to be one of the most beautiful aspects of the backyard cafe area in the summertime.
The house has a long history of creativity. Built in 1894, over time, it housed a family of architects and, before that, a family of artists who performed in the space. Previously, the space functioned as an informal queer bar and clothing event pop-up space. Reuther plans to open the space to reservations for up to ten people on one or two weekends per month. People can reserve a slot for a couple of hours to use a certain medium, such as pastels or paints. Reuther plans to repurpose art supplies as much as possible, sourcing from materials swaps or Arts & Scraps. Alcohol will not be available.
Reuther moved to Detroit from Chicago, but their family has a deep history rooted in Detroit. Their grandfather, Roy Reuther, and great-uncles Walter and Victor Reuther were instrumental in the rise of the United Auto Workers. Reuther explores their family history in the city while making their own footprint. Their goal is to connect with the city’s creative community.
“Some of my best memories with my friends are when we’re just kind of playing around making something together, which takes on so many different forms,” Reuther told Planet Detroit. “This is what inspired the Secret Garden Art Cafe. The Art Cafe was a natural next step for the space.”
Amina Ahmed attended a recent launch party. She found out about the space from a friend who learned of it from the Fiber* Club newsletter. It is nice to have a space to engage with the community and another activity to be therapeutic. It’s like a third space, I would say,” Ahmed said.
Angelina Starceski learned about the space through social media. “I think there’s a gap when it comes to spaces like this in the city,” she said. “You come either solo or with friends and create low-stakes art in a relaxed, beautiful space. This fills a need, and that is really exciting. It’s cool to gather with people, and it’s not a bar.”
Reuther hopes that the community can learn what this space can do for the neighborhood together. They hope that in the next few years, the neighborhood will continue providing a community space where no transactions are happening.
Long-term, “the goal is to start working with local artists in the community who would be interested in skill-sharing and teaching a specific project,” Reuther said.
Projects might include painting and teaching people how to frame a canvas or building a simple chair.
“I think those discrete workshops or mini-classes are a great way for an artist to pick up some cash and build a following without having to have all of the money to invest in space and all of the overhead,” Reuther said.
Reuther notes that art is a political endeavor.
“That’s a huge part of art history that inspires me. It’s like protest art, quilts, banners, and flyers, which has such a rich history. I was like, where do those things get made?” they said. “I also think there’s something beautiful about people coming together to do that.”
They embrace their queer identity as a key aspect of the project.
“It is inherently political that I am queer. This is queer-run, and that’s its history, and I want that to be integral to the spirit.” Reuther said.
If you want to visit the cafe, you can follow the Secret Garden Art Cafe on Instagram to learn more.