After nine months of distracting passing motorists, the thousands of vintage Rolling Stone covers coating 1444 Michigan Avenue are finally coming down. But we have good news! According to the building's owner, Anthony O'Donnell, the collage had to bite the dust so that he could begin a complete restoration of the building's exterior. Like a giant, century-old onion, this building has many layers--the Rolling Stone collage was just the first to be peeled off. Want to see what's hidden under all that yellow paint?
On a large portion of the exterior, the bricks were originally finished with a white glaze. We snapped a couple pics of the spots where the glaze is visible. In order to preserve the original finish, Anthony's crew will be scraping the old yellow paint off by hand, which sounds like a pretty awful chore. He estimates the exterior will take about a month to complete, while the ongoing interior renovation will continue through the winter.
Anthony lives on the second floor. In our original post about the collage in March, he mentioned that he'd like to see a cafe or gallery in the first floor retail space. Today, he's "still brainstorming" what kind of business might belong there. We don't blame him for taking his time-- deciding what should occupy the storefront below your historic Michigan Avenue apartment sounds like a decision worth savoring.
· Every Building Must Get Stoned! A Facade Gets Slathered In Vintage Rolling Stone Magazines [Curbed Detroit]
· Jennifer Quigley's 'Rolling Stone' Building in Detroit [Rolling Stone]
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