Secret Mall Apartment

If you’re a millennial that remembers the days of YouTubers vlogging their attempts at the 24 hour Overnight Challenge, or miss the vibes of the early 2000’s, Secret Mall Apartment will tickle your nostalgia receptors. This documentary looks back fondly as a group of artists recall their incredibly successful secret project in the Providence Place Mall in Rhode Island.

From 2003 to 2007 eight artists, Michael, Andrew, Colin, Adriana, Greta, James, Jay, and Emily created a sanctuary of sorts to commune, create, rest, and exist freely. They documented a significant amount of their adventure giving us more than just a peek into how the secret apartment came to be. Captained by Michael, the artist behind the vision of the secret apartment, each artist followed gleefully with boldness. Like the other artists that took refuge in the apartment, Michael was discouraged by the gentrification of his neighborhood for the sake of a highly commercialized mall that cast a massive shadow over the local small businesses and community. Utilizing the space prior to purchase, Michael secretly exhibited installation work in the burrows of the abandoned architecture of the neighborhood, along with a local band who played underground shows in the available space. In the eyes of business, this was free game and quickly purchased for profit to build the mall. Lives were altered, homes were affected, communities were changed forever once construction commenced. Watching, observing, and quietly keeping note, Michael noticed a gap in the architectural design of the mall. Once up and running he set out to see if his theory was true. To his hopeful curiosity, he found a small space tucked in the hollows of the mall that could be accessed via a few odd but creative paths. 

Much like any artist before starting, the blank “canvas” in front of him whispered what it desired to look like. With intentional planning and careful execution, a couch was snuck into the apartment up a tall steep ladder, then a coffee table, a television, and a PlayStation. Soon came more artists and more furniture like, a china cabinet, a table and chairs, and eventually the rest of the cozy features that made a dusty concrete pocket a familiar space to retreat. It wasn’t until they decided to build a small wall with a door to seal the deal that they almost got caught. Maneuvering a few tons of cinder bricks and cement, from the home improvement store, to a small car, to the mall parking ramp, through a back door, up flights of stairs, to the apartment space, the artists worked fervently, diligently, and hastily to get the project done. Mall security caught a few lugging cinder bricks through a back door and Michael faced them boldly. With no excuse or explanation prepared, he quipped a clever lie and security was on their way, leaving them all to continue about their secret business. Reflecting back on this moment the artists understood the privilege they had in that moment, acknowledging that if a person of color was found doing what they were up to, things would have ended completely differently. Not passing it off as “luck” the lot of them called out the moment for what it was. 

Growing as creatives over the years, working on art, and supporting each other’s work, the artists bonded in the secret apartment in the Providence Place Mall. Sleeping, making waffles, and growing closer to each other each day, the haven was well loved and lived before a break in caused the artists to question everything. Directed by Jeremy Workman and produced by the director and Jesse Eisenberg, Secret Mall Apartment is an absolute must watch documentary about New England’s best secret installation and performance art. Get ready to slip on your low rise jeans, a polo shirt, and crack open a can of Surge, because the secret is out.