In August I travelled up to Hamtramck (a city 2 miles square within Detroit) to start a month-long residency at Popps Packing. It was a fantastic experience. Amazing hosts, amazing space, amazing fellow resident Whitney Sage and amazing introduction to the art scene of the greater Detroit Metro area. We had an Open Studio toward the end of my stay which was my first opportunity to show this work in America and to people who had first hand experience of Juggalo culture. That was actually quite daunting for me, not least because a lot of people in attendance were – are – successful artists in their own right.

The work was really well received and opened up so many new dialogues about the subculture and what it reflected about the larger social environment. It was also wonderfully refreshing to hear so many enthusiastic anecdotes about chance encounters with Juggalos. Every story cast the Juggalos in question (unexpectedly to the teller it seems) in a positive light.