Union Depot
Year: 2021 Medium: Exterior Latex
In 2021, Dwelling Place, with support from Downtown Grand Rapids Inc. curated the Heartside Historic Mural Project centered around highlighting un-sung history of the Heartside neighborhood through the addition of five murals created by local and Michigan-based artists. Jasmine Bruce was one of 5 artists to take part in this debut project. Her mural honors Grand Rapids’ very own 1800s Union Depot Train Station.
Artist Statement: People from all walks of life, whether coming or going, passed through the depot. It was a community of station masters, passengers, switchmen, hack drivers and checkers. Mixed between the morning sun were nomads, lovers, criminals, travelers and conmen exchanging change, chat, goodbyes and hellos. People of all ages, races and backgrounds symbiotically flowed through the depot, sharing brief moments of harmony and chaos. Lost pocket books, cigarette butts and chef Lamos’ famous clam chowder. The city’s cadence, an endless flow of “All aboard”.
The Union Depot, located at 61 Ionia, was the heart of the city from the 1890s through 1960s. An icon of Grand Rapids, people from all walks of life, whether going or leaving, passed through the Depot as they were arriving and immigrating into Grand Rapids. A Georgian Revival building of two stories, it was built in 1900, closed in 1958 and demolished over 1958 and 1959 to make space for a highway. It was a hub serving a few railroads going to different points in Michigan and the Midwest. Read more here
