Venturing to Detroit, Katie Olson ’17 found herself in the thriving art scene of the city. She worked as a Production Assistant for Mutual Adoration, a small business “that transforms reclaimed wood from local structures and other salvaged materials into furniture, custom installations, and small production goods.” While at Mutual Adoration, Katie was able to use both her past experiences at Crown Point Press and her studies as a Visual Arts major at Antioch to greatly contribute to the work at Mutual Adoration. Daily tasks included prepping materials, sanding, painting, assembly of frames and more! She expanded her learning in woodworking but also, through getting involved in the Detriot community outside of her work hours, Katie was able to interact with local artists,” gallery owners, curators, and professors” and even volunteered at “Afterhouse, a project started by faculty at University of Michigan who are renovating a partially burned down building into a functional greenhouse in the neighborhood that she lived in.” Katie truly embraced what co-op is all about by applying her learning both from classroom studies and past work experiences, and getting out to explore her new community, meeting new individuals in the arts, and volunteering to build up the area around her. Great work, Katie!
*excerpts taken from Katie Olson’s blog assignment
