Mangulabnan 1

E2: Ryan Mangulabnan

Dr. Hudsons HON 100, 11/11/16
Talk to the Fist
Although only in its third decade of existence, Robert Grahams Monument to Joe Louis
is already a timeless piece of public art. The monument is the quintessential piece of urban form
because it is the heart of the city of Detroit and has reflected ways of seeing in the hearts of
people ever since its inception. Since its controversial grand opening, the piece has inspired
debate and has had a lasting impact upon the city. This reveals how the monument is at the heart
of the identity of the city and the people in it.
The most unifying quality of the Monument to Joe Louis, known to locals as The Fist, is
that it demands interpretation from the community, which in turn reflects the hearts of its
interpreters. Joe Louis was a powerful public figure, an internationally recognized black man
who wrote that he carried himself as proper and equal as any white man and as a patriot who
knocked out Nazis to inspire American soldiers1. Grahams abstraction of the human form pays
homage to this while leaving the monument open to interpretation2. At the grand opening of
his monument in 1986, an immense backlash revealed the deep racial divides lingering in the city
decades after the boxers rise to fame. Contemporary newspapers reported that some disliked
how the work looked too much like a symbol for militant black power, while others were
angry because the monument was not the entire figure of Joe Louis3. Although some were
repulsed by any hint of Black Power, Joe Louis son spoke from another way of seeing,
1 Foy
2 Martelle
3 Risen

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recognizing that this is a monument to symbolize what my father stood for:4 patriotism
conjoined with a thirst for racial equality. These ways of seeing reflect the conflicts within the
hearts of the people of Detroit. The monument is such an effective piece of urban form because it
reveals the stories and thoughts of those around it.
The Fist is truly the heart of the city because it is a home that brings people and their
experiences together. Located in the center of Detroits most prominent intersection, all
downtown traffic stops at the piece. Like blood flowing through the veins of the city, the cycle of
traffic flows to and from its heart at The Fist. The bronze behemoths form hints at this
presence. Pulsing from the clenched fist are two veins, running parallel with Woodward,
extending out into the city. Graham placed his piece here with a purpose. He believed that the
sculpture would be energized by its location at the bustling crossroads, knowing that the piece
would become an important part of Detroits identity5. This identity would later shift to different
tones reflecting future societies, but the piece is so successful because it has allowed for people
to put their own context behind it. A replica of Joe Louis fighting stance (which exists in the
Cobo Center) would surely teach people for generations about the history of an American hero,
but The Fist, a symbolic heart of the city, will teach people about themselves and their place in
the city for years to come.
Grahams monument is the zenith of urban form because for the past thirty years, those
who have interacted with it find a meaning that is relevant in their lives. When questioned if The
Fist is a definitive symbol for Black Power, Graham responded by saying People bring their
own experiences to the sculpture, thus the meaning is active and reciprocal to those around it. In

4 Risen
5 Graves

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2004, continued racial divisions were once again brought to light when two men dumped white
paint on the monument in response to the deaths of two white officers6. Reporters told the story
of White Supremacists ruining a symbol of the unifying power of equality, but the wrongdoers
excused themselves by saying they targeted the fist because of its violent imagery and wanted
to unclench it7. Following the vandalism, Professor Richard Marback of Wayne State
University was asked about the meaning of the fist, just as Graham was initially, and responded
with the concept of giving the object its due. We cast ourselves into the bronze monument to
see reflections of our own stories.
Similarly, The Fist has come to represent for many a unified way of seeing, as evident by
its use in Chryslers famous 2011 Super Bowl commercial. The image sells the identity of
Detroit as a town forged by the hottest fires that make the hardest steel, a rallying cry behind
the tenacious spirit of its people8. In the present, The Monument to Joe Louis is to many a symbol
for the people who continue to fight to end prejudice, disparity, and suffering. It has become the
beating heart of the city because the citizens hearts are beating for a better day.
When Robert Graham was commissioned to make his Memorial to Joe Louis, he made a
bold decision. Instead of replicating holistic human form, he cast a fist into bronze and created an
iconic piece of urban form. Through the reflective piece we can see our own perspectives and
share in the history surrounding ourselves and the city. Through this shared experience, the cold
bronze memorial can teach us the lessons that we can use to build a better future upon.

6 Marback
7 Marback
8 Chrysler

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Works Cited
Chrysler. "Eminem Super Bowl Commercial - Imported From Detroit." 5 February 2011.
Youtube. Commercial Video. 6 November 2016.
Graves, Donna. "Representing the Race: Detroit's Monument to Joe Louis." Webster, Harriet
Senie and Sally. Critical Issues in Public Art: Content, Context, and Controversy. New
York: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1992. 215-227. Print.
Risen, James. "Is It Thumbs Down for Fist' in Detroit?" Los Angeles Times 16 October 1986.
Print Newspaper.
Foy, A. "Joe Louis's Talking Fists: The Auto/Biopolitics of My Life Story." American Literary
History, vol.23 no. 2, 2011, pp. 311-336. Project MUSE, muse.jhu.edu/article/431425.
Marback, Richard. "Unclenching the Fist: Embodying Rhetoric and Giving Objects their
due." Rhetoric Society Quarterly 38.1 (2008): 46-65. ProQuest. Web. 10 Nov. 2016.
Martelle, Scott. Detroit: A Biography. Chicago: Chicago Review Press, 2014. Print.

Observations and Photographs taken at the site:

The fist is big. Like as long as a car or two. It is a massive piece of metal that kind of looks like a
battering ram. It faces Canada, not really aggressively but it kind of looks like if you look down
Woodward that the whole city leads up into the fist. There are people taking a selfie with it but
there are way more people who just drive by. Its underneath the light so a lot of traffic builds up

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around it. It works in conjunction with Hart Plazas Labor Transcending if you want to make it
about labor. I love the conceit with the fist being a heart from which the valves of traffic flow.
Theres a lot to work with here.

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