“Sixto Rodriguez: Laborer and Poet” mural

01 / The story of this place

Make time for these

Detroit muralist Nicole Macdonald painted 'Sixto Rodriguez: Laborer and Poet' on the side of the Iroquois Apartments on Trumbull Avenue, across the street from Wayne State University. The mural portrays singer-songwriter Sixto Rodriguez, the Detroit-born musician whose obscure early-1970s folk albums became unlikely hits in South Africa decades before he learned of his fame, a story told in the Academy Award-winning documentary Searching for Sugar Man. Macdonald, known for large-scale portraits of Detroit musicians and civil rights figures, chose the building for its visibility along Trumbull near the city's Cass Corridor and Woodbridge neighborhoods, areas long tied to Rodriguez's working-class Detroit roots. The mural is one of several public tributes painted around the city after Rodriguez's rediscovery brought new attention to his career, alongside a second mural completed on Vernor Highway in 2020. It continues to face traffic on Trumbull Avenue as a piece of the city's street art.

1. Painted by Detroit muralist Nicole Macdonald
2. Portrays Sixto Rodriguez, Detroit-born singer-songwriter
3. On the Iroquois Apartments, Trumbull Avenue, across from Wayne State
4. One of Detroit's several public tributes to Rodriguez