Secret Mall Apartment

JEREMY WORKMAN | USA | 2024 | 1'32"

A secret home in a public place.

Secret Mall Apartment tells the true story of eight young Rhode Island artists who, in 2003, covertly constructed and lived in a hidden apartment inside the Providence Place shopping mall, remaining undetected for four years. Led by artist Michael Townsend, the group documented their experiment as they transformed an unused space into a functioning home. What begins as an audacious prank gradually reveals deeper motivations: a response to gentrification, a critique of consumer culture, and an exploration of art as lived experience. Through archival footage and present-day interviews, the film moves beyond the initial stunt to explore creativity, community, and resistance within commercial environments, asking what the project reveals about belonging and the value of public space.