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Queer typographer Mark Addison Smith‘s exhibition “You Look Like the Right Type” is on display through Friday at the College for Creative Studies’ Valade Family Gallery in New Center. The artist is showcasing more than 300 illustrations of conversations he’s documented over the last 15 years focused on themes of queer identity and activism, among others.
I talked with Smith, who is also a design professor for the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, on how he started this unique project, how he decides which quotes to put in the exhibit and what he hopes visitors take from the show.
Editor’s note: This interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.
BridgeDetroit: How did you get the idea for “You Look Like the Right Type?”
Smith: I was living in Chicago, and it was 2008. I had just graduated from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. I did my graduate studies there in visual communication design and I was teaching a class I had been thinking about a portrait series that would involve hand lettering or language that would reveal the characterizations of people, but I didn’t quite know what that would look like.
This young woman approached me one evening. I was in the Downtown (Chicago) Loop and I was going to the subway and she came up to me out of nowhere and asked me if I had a cigarette. I’m not a smoker, so I apologized and said, ‘Oh, I’m sorry. I don’t have one.’ And then she looked me up and down, snapped her finger, and said, ‘Ah, you look like the right type.’ And then she ran down the street. I got on the subway, and I thought about our conversation and in that moment something snapped inside my brain and I raced home and I drew our conversation.
That became the central focus of a larger project called, “You Look Like the Right Type,” in which I draw overheard conversation fragments from people around me. I’ve been doing that every single day since I met that stranger and that was Nov. 23, 2008. I’ve never missed a day of drawing other people’s words and I have an ongoing archive now of over 6,000 drawings. Then those get combined in gallery spaces which is currently on display at the Valade Family Gallery as large conversations between strangers who have never met or necessarily exchanged words outside of the space that I curated together for them to meet and talk about a topic.
BridgeDetroit: Where do you go to collect and write down these conversations?
Smith: I often find quotes in restaurants or riding the subway here in Chicago or when I lived in New York. The subway is a really great space for getting juicy quotes. I’m a professor, so there’s a lot of language and exchange of conversations and critique in the classroom and a lot of things happening that are fascinating … that people are saying about the current climate, the cultural zeitgeist. I could be standing in line to go to a movie and somebody behind me says something amazing. A lot of times, I’ll be sitting in my apartment and somebody will say something on the street. I never know where the next great quote is going to come from.
When the lockdown happened during the early months of COVID and we couldn’t leave our homes and gather together in public spaces — that was a challenge. Those early days, I really leaned into waiting for somebody to go outside to walk their dog or somebody washing their car down on the street below. But then, I started inviting strangers to hold conversations with me on Zoom, and I reached out to strangers who inspired me in some way, whether they were someone I followed on Instagram that I wanted to talk about their art practice, or something they did in their own world. That became my way to get my daily drawing.
BridgeDetroit: Did the people you talked with on Zoom know that their words might be part of your project?
Smith: When I approached people, I informed them about my art practice and they consented to the Zoom call, knowing that everything they said could be material for a drawing. I typed quotes, transcribing what people would say in real time. I would get so much material from those that I started developing visual essays.
Some days, I would have 15 drawings from one conversation and they became these little mini chapters of drawn typography to tell a person’s story about how they were dealing with the pandemic. It was a way for me to feel connected with people during a time when we were so isolated.
BridgeDetroit: How do you decide which quotes are going to be part of the exhibit? Do you have particular themes in mind?
Smith: It might start with one drawing that really catches my eye, that opens up space for a topic and then I will start pulling drawings that relate to that theme. When you go see the show, you’ll see a huge, orange installation of 127 drawings. The title of that one is “He’s One of Those.” It’s a new installation from 2024 and it’s rooted in queer identity and community action and activism. All of the quotes in that cluster are through this lens of queer identity and finding ourselves and how we find our people.
BridgeDetroit: What do you hope visitors take from the exhibit?
Smith: An idea that creativity or a creative source can be found in anything. And then, this idea about building a daily practice and taking time each day to do something that’s really thrilling for you, that really moves you and makes you feel alive.
If I can take even just a few minutes each day to draw, to listen and to create…that makes me feel alive. That’s been a really big key for me for building an ongoing practice that’s now over 15 years long.
Enjoy the rest of your week, Detroiters!
Cheers,
Micah
313 Scene
- Detroit rock group MC5 was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Oct. 19 in Cleveland. Others honored during the ceremony include the late Motown songwriter-producer Norman Whitfield and Motown executive Suzanne de Passe, who received the Ahmet Ertegun Award for Lifetime Achievement. (Detroit Free Press)
- After debuting a day late, Comedy Central series “Detroiters” is now available to stream on Netflix. Starring metro Detroit natives Tim Robinson and Sam Richardson as partners in a small Detroit ad agency, the comedy ran for two seasons before getting canceled in 2018. (Detroit Free Press)
- WDIV-TV news anchor Devin Scillian announced last week that he’s retiring after 30 years working at Channel 4. His last day is Dec. 13. He’s also the newest member of The Center for Michigan’s board. (Detroit News)
What’s Going on in the D?
- Capital B and Outlier Media are partnering for a Black Political Power Tour from 5 to 9 p.m. Thursday at Spot Lite. The event will feature panel discussions on crime and community relations and the cost of living in Detroit. The event is free but people can register on Eventbrite.
- Author and Grand Valley State University Professor Louis Moore will be at Source Booksellers Friday for the release of his latest book, “The Great Black Hope.” The book tells the stories of Vince Evans and Doug Williams, NFL players who became two of the first Black quarterbacks in the league during the 1970s. The event starts at 6:30 p.m. and tickets begin at $31 on Eventbrite.
- Asibara Forest is hosting its second annual U-Pick Pumpkin Patch Party 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, 20165 Charleston. Cider, donuts and games will be part of the free event.
- Boo Bash in Parker’s Alley takes place from noon to 4 p.m. Saturday. Families can trick-or-treat at various businesses in the downtown alley such as Bon Bon Bon, Cannelle and Detroit Water Ice. The free event will also include face painting, games and crafts.
- The city of Detroit is hosting its Halloween party Scarefest 6-10 p.m. Saturday at Palmer Park. The free event will feature zombie trails, rides, food trucks and more. The park will also serve as an early voting site.
