This episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast features an interview with artist and educator Michael Townsend. Michael is the founder of the Tape Art movement and for over 30 years, he has created hundreds of ephemeral murals and community projects around the world. His work includes the 9/11 Hope Project, the invention of the BOOM! Projector, and the now-legendary documentary Secret Mall Apartment.

Artist/activist MICHAEL TOWNSEND is from Providence, Rhode Island, and was developing his TAPE ART project when a major redevelopment in the city center was going to make him homeless. When the ginormous new Mall was being built, he thought he had spotted what seemed like an unused space behind the main construction.

Adriana Valdez Young and Michael Townsend were part of a rag-tag group of artists who built a secret apartment inside a shopping mall in the early 2000s. Their story is now told in the Netflix documentary, Secret Mall Apartment.

Through its exploration of artistic integrity, community displacement, and creative rebellion, Secret Mall Apartment transforms an urban legend into a profound social commentary.