By Peter terHorst
When Larry and Lucie Nisson were living in Ann Arbor in the 1970s, they were smitten by the city’s architecture and natural beauty. They lived on West Jefferson Street and then Granger Avenue before they found their forever home in 1979. Located at 1227 Lutz Avenue in the Eberwhite neighborhood, it was built in 1923, surrounded by old trees and friendly neighbors.
Their days and weeks were devoted to their careers as clinical social workers. But their love for Ann Arbor drew them increasingly toward the arts.
Lucie and Larry Nisson
“We would walk downtown all the time,” Lucie said. “And there was a mosaic studio in an old house on Ashley. One August evening it was dark but I could see the teacher's mosaics. And I just immediately said, ‘Oh, I'm going to do that.’”
The next day Lucie called the studio and found out they offered classes. She signed up.
“I knew that was my thing,” she said. “It was like it was meant to be it.”
Larry, who loved glass and had been making stained glass in his free time, was able to help Lucie get started.
“I had the tools, and the whole room was set up for cutting glass,” he said. “Which made it easy. She didn't have to buy anything.”
Larry’s journey with glass continued to evolve.
“Maybe 20 years ago, I Googled glass blowing,” he said. “I found a studio in Ypsilanti, and I went and took the class. I was hooked.”
The couple are prolific producers of glass art and have adorned their home with stained glass, mosaics and blown glass. They undertook a major renovation in the early 2000s, which allowed them to display even more art. It even extends into the backyard.
“We added a bunch on,” Larry said, pointing to the master bedroom and the kitchen. “Out back, there was a big pile of dirt after all the work. We were at a friend's house, and I saw their water feature. We have to have one of those, we told ourselves.”
The tumbling water and its surrounding rock and driftwood garden became the perfect location for more glass sculptures.
Beyond their personal commitment to artistic expression, the couple are also focused on public art. Their involvement was prompted by the controversy surrounding a $750,000 water sculpture commissioned by the city and dedicated in 2011. Repeated failures and repairs, and the fact that the artist was not local, contributed to the eventual demise of the city’s Percent for Art capital-project spending program in 2013.
“Larry and I would go on trips to different places and there always was public art, but in Ann Arbor it just had a smattering,” Lucie said. “And so, we decided that would be our focus. Our charitable giving would be for public art. And not only public art, but also aspects of making Ann Arbor into an art town. That was the goal.”
In late 2012, the couple co-founded the first Westside Neighborhood Art Hop. “A cross between an art walk and an art fair, Art Hop sprouts up throughout Ann Arbor's lovely historic West Side neighborhood every June,” the event’s website says. “Our artists are mostly local, ranging from relative beginners through to experienced professionals.”
“We believe in supporting the arts, and so we started Westside Art Hop with Sophie Grillet and three other artist neighbors,” Larry explained. “Sophie is a major force with Art Hop.”
Lucie added: “It started with seven artists, and now we have 90 artists and 33 venues.”
The Nissons were also instrumental in launching Ann Arbor Art Center’s Lucie and Larry Nisson Art in Public Program, which launched in 2018. A2AC’s website says, “By expanding the reach of public art—from murals and sculptures to planters and alleyway activations—the A2AC remains dedicated to elevating Washtenaw County as a premier destination for creatives and art lovers.”
“The idea is that you show people what's possible,” Larry said. “I can say to you, ‘Oh, this is magnificent.’ But until you look at it, experience it, it’s not the same. We're trying to show people basically what art can do. Art nourishes your soul.”
Their next vision? Art in yards.
“It would be cool if families made art and put it in their yards, with parents and kids doing this together,” Lucie said. “We would like to see it grow. And the Old West Side is a perfect place because it's so walkable.”
“Art adds positivity,” Larry said. “And that's what we're trying to do. We have a wonderful neighborhood, and people are trying to make it even better, which is part of what makes Ann Arbor so great.”