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No Strings artists gather with U-M researchers and Poverty Solutions staff. 

Contact: Karissa Knapp, ktknapp@umich.edu

ANN ARBOR — How would you spend an extra $528 each month? What if your answer was met with criticism? People who receive traditional public benefits are often met with scrutiny, distrust, and suspicion from bureaucrats and the general public alike. Guaranteed income is working to flip that script.

A new traveling art exhibit called No Strings, curated by University of Michigan’s Poverty Solutions, showcases art by six U-M students that illustrates quotes from participants in the Guaranteed Income to Grow Ann Arbor (GIG A2) pilot program. Participant stories include using some of their monthly guaranteed income payments to provide resources for their kids, improve their mental health, support their entrepreneurial activities, and connect with their family and friends.

Poverty Solutions Director Kristin Seefeldt speaks at a celebration for the Guaranteed Income to Grow Ann Arbor (GIG A2) pilot program and the opening of the No Strings art exhibit at YORK on April 29, 2026. (Michigan Photography)

Poverty Solutions Communications Director Lauren Slagter

“Surveys show GIG A2 participants spent the monthly payments mainly on necessities like food, housing, and household supplies. This exhibit zooms in on specific uses of the money that were especially meaningful to the guaranteed income recipients. The goal is to prompt people to think about the significance of no-strings-attached cash that trusts people to know best how to meet their own needs,” said Lauren Slagter, director of communications and public engagement at Poverty Solutions, who curated the exhibition.

Funded by City of Ann Arbor and Ann Arbor Area Community Foundation, GIG A2 was a two-year pilot that provided monthly payments of $528 to 100 Ann Arbor entrepreneurs and gig workers with low incomes, from January 2024 through December 2025. Another 100 people from the eligible applicant pool participated in a randomized controlled trial, while receiving a small monthly stipend. U-M researchers are continuing to evaluate the impact of GIG A2, and they will publish a final report later this year.

“While social science research methods are crucial to our understanding of a guaranteed income program’s impact, there are many other ways to communicate those impacts to others. We want to share the research findings as well as explore the narratives around public benefits, and art sparks conversations that probably would not occur just by looking at charts and graphs,” said Kristin Seefeldt, lead researcher for GIG A2 and faculty director of Poverty Solutions.

GIG A2 participant Joe Woods

The No Strings exhibit opened on Wednesday, April 29, at a celebration of GIG A2 held at YORK’s Space. About 100 people with ties to the pilot program – including GIG A2 participants, city officials, U-M researchers, and community partners – gathered to reflect on bringing guaranteed income to Ann Arbor.

In his remarks at the event, Ann Arbor Mayor Christopher Taylor said, “ We know that we live in a system that is rife with injustice, and we know that it is our obligation, where we can, as we can, to counterbalance it. … This is the vision of this program, and indeed guaranteed basic income as a movement. … I’m just so pleased and proud that we were able to … be one small building block in what I certainly hope is a movement that extends far beyond our beautiful little city.”

GIG A2 participant Joe Woods shared how the monthly payments allowed him to launch his Joe’s T-Shirts company, visit his mom in California for the first time in years, and secure stable housing. U-M School of Social Work Dean Beth Angell discussed the role of art in social commentary, and the student artists shared how they developed their art pieces. Local artist Katie Hammond facilitated three workshops with the student artists to help them conceptualize their pieces and provide technical guidance.

Ann Arbor Mayor Christopher Taylor

“I’m honored to be part of the No Strings project. As a self-employed artist, I strongly believe in the power of guaranteed income. Hosting the workshops at my studio was especially rewarding and deeply aligned with my values—an opportunity I don’t often get,” said Hammond, who owns Ann Arbor Artist Studios. “Mentoring the University of Michigan students, most of whom were non-art majors, was a really enjoyable experience. Their diverse perspectives brought depth to the project, and I was truly impressed by the quality of their work.”

The artists are:

• Mia Echlin, BA Law, Justice, and Social Change + Urban Studies ‘28
• Lila Hudgins, BA Art History ‘26
• Emma Ostermeyer, BA Art and Design ’26
• Lauren Parker, MPP ‘26
• Mrinaalika Sivakumar, MPP ‘27
• Victoria Sung, MS Information and UX Design ‘27

The public can view No Strings at:

U-M School of Social Work Dean Beth Angell

• YORK, 1928 Packard Street, Ann Arbor: April 30-May 7
• Ann Arbor Artist Studios, 4844 Jackson Rd., Ann Arbor: May 30-June 26
• Ann Arbor Downtown Library – screen in the lobby, 343 S. Fifth Ave., Ann Arbor: June 1-July 24.

Visit NoStringsGuaranteedIncome.org to see a digital version of the exhibit, updates on where to find No Strings in the Ann Arbor community, and an opportunity to submit your responses to the art.

Poverty Solutions hosts a celebration for the Guaranteed Income to Grow Ann Arbor (GIG A2) and the opening of the No Strings art exhibit at YORK on April 29, 2026. (Michigan Photography)