Bri Hayes

Bri Hayes is a multidisciplinary artist, educator, and director of detroit contemporary. Her artwork explores themes of community, identity, surrealism, and social justice. Her two most popular bodies of work are Detroit is the Blueprint and The Revolution Will Not Be Televised. Hayes has exhibited at galleries throughout Detroit such as Galerie Camille, Scarab Club, Detroit Artists Market, and more. 

Hayes graduated from Oakland University in 2022 with a degree in K-12 Art Education. She uses her degree to educate a small cohort of students in non-traditional settings such as workshops, studio visits, and talk shows with local creative professionals. She recently worked as a producer for the children’s talk show, Mixture of Four, which is hosted by four sixth graders who interview and collaborate with Detroit creative professionals whilst highlighting important arts & cultural areas in the city. Hayes also began a K-12 youth art program, Play Is Process. Play Is Process is an art education program designed to foster creativity, critical thinking, and expression among Detroit's youth. Through workshops with experienced artists and educators, students will delve into various artistic disciplines, including drawing, painting, sculpture, mixed media, photography, and more. Each workshop is crafted to help students explore new art forms, embrace creative risks, and understand art’s role in personal and social identity.

She believes there is great power and importance in representation and education. As director of detroit contemporary and president of the Contemporary Art Institute of Detroit, she has a vision to transform lives through arts & cultural programming and education opportunities at detroit contemporary and beyond.