City of Detroit selects local artist Austen Brantley to design new Joe Louis “Outside the Ring” statue on Joe Louis Greenway

2024
  • Brantley, figurative sculptor from Detroit, also created the sculpture of the late Lt. Col. Alexander Jefferson for Jefferson Plaza in Rouge Park.
  • Artists from Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo, Minneapolis and Walnut, California applied.
  • The new statue will highlight Joe Louis’ barrier-breaking golf career.
  • The statue is set to be unveiled in August 2025, the anniversary of the first Joe Louis golf tournament.

 

A panel of judges that included a professional golfer, business leader, architect, foundation executive, respected artists and the Joe Louis family have selected Detroit artist Austen Brantley to sculp a new statue of sports icon Joe Louis. 

Brantley, a self-taught figurative sculptor from Detroit whose work lives at the intersection of African and Greek cultures, most recently created the sculpture of the late Lt. Col. Alexander Jefferson for Jefferson Plaza in Rouge Park. Brantley has said that his art is inspired by African and classical art, and he wants to continue the traditions of the Harlem Renaissance.

Detroit artist Austen Brantley
Detroit artist Austen Brantley

 

Artists from Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo, Minneapolis and Walnut, California vied Detroit artists for the commission.

Members of the judging panel were:

1. Joyce Barrow Henderson, daughter of Joe Louis

  1. Dr. Hubert Massey, master muralist and mentor to hundreds of young artists
  2. Taylor Childs, Detroit artist
  3. Karen Burton, architect and co-founder, CEO and Community Manager of Spacelab Detroit
  4. Arnold Boyd, President and CEO of Arnold Boyd Transportation 
  5. Joe Hooks, professional golfer
  6. Akua Hill, Director of Arts and Culture, the Gilbert Family Foundation

The statue, commissioned jointly the Office of Arts, Culture and Entrepreneurship (ACE) and the Joe Louis Greenway Planning Team, will focus on Louis’s life “outside the ring” to honor his work desegregating American golf. He was the first African American to play in a PGA-sanctioned tournament.

Louis began playing golf in 1935 and became a major supporter of the United Golf Association (UGA), the African American organization that conducted tournaments nationwide. He soon launched the Joe Louis Open golf tournament, which would become one of the major annual events in Black sports nationally. Between 1941 and 1951, eight Joe Louis Open golf tournaments were held in Detroit and attracted top black golfers from around the country, while providing greater exposure for them and the sport of golf. Louis put up the $1,000 prize money. The first Joe Louis Open was held at Detroit’s Rackham Golf Course in 1941 on August 12, 13 and 14, the weekend before the annual UGA national championship.

The statue is scheduled to be unveiled in August 2025 on the anniversary of the first Joe Louis Open Golf Tournament. This statue will be another feature on the 30-mile Joe Louis Greenway that extends from the Detroit Riverfront to Highland Park, Dearborn and Hamtramck. It is among many projects Detroit ACE is undertaking to increase the number of public art pieces that highlight Detroit’s rich African American history.

This project also continues efforts to beautify neighborhoods across the city as part of Mayor Mike Duggan’s Blight to Beauty initiative. ACE also is transforming nine residential and commercial alleys into beautiful gathering spaces for Detroit residents.

Detroit ACE partners with organizations across the region to enhance and grow investment in the fine and performing arts, culture and history with a special focus on artistic entrepreneurship and support for the city’s creative workforce. Follow ACE @detroitcityarts on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.