"Dog Days: August's Second Saturday Art Walk" in Miami New Times

By Carlos Suarez De Jesus
published: August 09, 2012
Carlos Gámez de Francisco's Glasses for Face Shape and French Mustache
Carlos Gámez de Francisco's Glasses for Face Shape and French Mustache

Despite a notable spike in new gallery shows opening in Wynwood this summer, August remains the sleepiest month of the year for most dealers. In fact, folks who venture out to this weekend's Second Saturday culture crawl will discover that many top-tier programs — including Fredric Snitzer, David Castillo, Dorsch, Pan American Art Projects, and Diana Lowenstein Fine Arts — are closed during the art walk.

In part, that's because collectors tend to flee the 305 as the mercury soars. But it's also because August gives galleries a chance to prep for the big season openings in September, when they crack out the big cannons in anticipation of December's Art Basel and its satellite fairs.

That doesn't mean you won't find some fresh exhibits worth visiting this weekend, though — all with the bonus of snagging a parking space more easily than you would on the average Second Saturday. For galleries that brave the August lull, it can be the perfect time to command eyeballs in a relaxing environment.

"There might be fewer collectors here for the summer, but we still have visitors coming to learn, enjoy, or just satisfy their curiosity," says Elaine Minionis, co-owner of the Lunch Box Gallery, which will be open this weekend. "We've all worked so hard to build the reputation of this area in relation to art content. Where does that go when newcomers visit and they find almost everything closed? It's a waste of opportunity."

Fortunately, a trio of shows — including one at Minionis's gallery — represents anything but a blown chance. Among the best offerings opening at 6 p.m. Saturday are a conceptual duo exploring third-wave feminism, a sprawling photography show featuring the work of 14 international artists, and a solo exhibit by a young Cuban painter whose vision of the French monarchy's waning days offers scathing commentary on absolute power.

With the presidential election season rising to a boil that's hot enough to match the blistering North Miami Avenue asphalt, the Magic City's premier alternative art space features two artists drawing inspiration from a Republican blowhard.

"Female Hu$tle," a collaborative project by Heather Miller and Rosemarie Romero at ­Locust Projects (3852 N. Miami Ave..; 305-576-8570; locustprojects.org), was created partially in response to the furor that erupted earlier this year when Rush Limbaugh called Georgetown University law student Sandra Fluke a "slut" and a "prostitute" after she testified about contraception before a congressional committee.

Miller and Romero, both MFA students at the University of Florida, write that they want to "explore a complex and contradictory dialogue about objectification and identity." To that end, Romero's Porn Nails is an actual nail salon in the gallery, where the artist offers custom manicures for women and girls "in exchange for conversations in relation to love, sex, and work specific to the geographic region of South Florida."

Romero says she wants to explore female stereotypes by employing camp and parody to transform negative labels of women into positive ones.

"I'm Dominican, so I will be performing as a Latin nail manicurist named Chichi and will be in the gallery on roller skates and wearing a platinum wig," she says. "I will be playing with the whole idea of the 'Miami girl' image in a beauty-parlor setting, making cafecitos and cortaditos on a hotplate for my clients."

The artist, who grew up here and often skated to Miami booty bass tunes at Thunder Wheels in Kendall, says Limbaugh's comments where offensive and hurtful; the project is also a way for others hurt by such language to reclaim the insults.

"I felt for her," Romero recalls. "After I finish giving participants their manicures, I will be taking portraits of them with a Polaroid for a large wall collage created as part of the project. They can then write the words bitch, slut, or other phrases on their pictures to reclaim negative female stereotypes as words of empowerment or pleasure."

Miller, meanwhile, has taken over the front gallery and storefront windows facing North Miami Avenue to present Gold/Mirror, a series of human-size sculptural/photographic works depicting female bodies painted gold, with their absent faces replaced by mirrors. Phrases such as "I will not become fettered to the role that you assign me" and "I will live with intention" cover the floor around the exhibit.

The work explores objectification as a means of empowerment and challenges feminist stereotypes, Miller says. "I use my body as bait to draw the viewer into my work. I create objects that transform the body in order to counteract the gaze. The sculptures are both retaliatory and celebratory," she explains.

For a compelling photo-based show that would command attention any time of year, visit the Lunch Box Gallery (310 NW 24th St., Miami; 305-407-8131; thelunchboxgallery.com), where "Summer Photo Show 2012" features scores of stunning images from 14 international artists.

Now in its second annual edition, the exhibit includes entries from all styles of the genre, including mixed-media works employing photography. On view is everything from conceptual and documentary photography to narrative photography, photo essay, iPhoneography, and photo collage.

Look for Noah David Bau's portraits of young professional muay thai boxers at a training camp in Bangkok's most notorious slum. In works that are at once searing and compelling, the Boston artist captures images of boys who have been orphaned or discarded, subjected to grueling workouts and brutal physical punishment, and trained to be merciless.

Another artist worth attention is Miami's Lissette Schaeffler, who focuses her lens on the Magic City's seedy hot-sheet motels. For her By the Hour series, she snaps haunting photos of empty pay-by-the-hour sex dives, inviting viewers to an encounter with the sordid landscapes of the illicit quickie rendezvous.

"The show we had for the summer in 2011 was highly crowded," Minionis says. "There is no excuse for not putting on a show — or even more, a good show — because it's summer... Besides, our particular purpose is not only about selling but also about educating people about the art form and its latest trends, bringing a deeper appreciation."

At Hardcore Art Contemporary Space (72 NW 25th St., Miami; 305-576-1645; hardcoreartmiami.com), a visually striking solo show by young Cuban painter Carlos Gámez de Francisco appropriates the opulence and decadence of the last French monarchs while referencing his life in Cuba during the island's "Special Period," the economic crisis that followed the fall of the Soviet Union.

Curated by the Aluna Curatorial Collective, Adriana Herrera, and Willy Castellanos, the exhibit, titled "Radical Genealogy: The Decline of Dauphins, Courtesans, and Hounds," features animations, paintings, and drawings that aim to explore "the relationship between the Eros of power and the threat of destruction." On view are provocative, richly textured images of a stuck-up Robespierre, the last words of Louis XVI, and Marie Antoinette on the way to the guillotine.

Herrera, who is also an independent curator and an art critic for El Nuevo Herald, says, "Black humor serves as the narrative thread linking pictorial scenes in which the bloody and the absurd converge in ostentatious fashion."

"Artist Lynn Golob Gelfman’s work shimmers, flows at two Miami shows" in @miamiherald

Posted on Sun, Aug. 12, 2012

By Anne Tschida
Special to the Miami Herald

 

On opposite ends of town, the shimmery fluid abstractions crafted by locally based Lynne Golob Gelfman combine to create a large survey of the work from of one of Miami’s most interesting – though sometimes overlooked – painters.

Gelfman’s compositions, which can be found in a number of museums across the country including here in Miami, are references to the never-static natural environment that surrounds us -- but not literally. Through repetitive markings and variations of one color scheme within each frame, the paintings seem to flow and shift, reminiscent of waves, clouds and sand, in perpetual states of change and formation.

So the titles of the two exhibits up for the summer are more than appropriate: scapes at the Frost Museum of Art at FIU, and sand at the Alejandra von Hartz Gallery in Wynwood.

Because of the subtlety to these compositions, the slightest change in light or in viewing positioning can transform the dynamic of the whole piece, which becomes clear when visiting the FIU show, spread through two rooms on the top floor. This location allows for natural light to shine in from a roof sky-light during the day, especially in the second room where several large paintings that first appear sandy- and dusty-colored hang. But move in closer, step from side to side, and the metallic material that Gelfman has applied to these works make them glimmer and gain a luminescence that at first, from a distance, is imperceptible.

That gets to the essence of why Gelfman’s paintings are so seductive and engaging: they are about movement, color, patterning and illusion more than studies in representational landscapes. Unfortunately, artificial light is not as generous in allowing some of this detail to shine through, so it’s great that some of these works get that exposure.

The most recent works -- found in the dune series at the Frost -- are based on Gelfman’s trip through one of the most fascinating ecological and geological outposts in the world, the Lençois Maranhenses in northeastern Brazil. Covered in undulating, white sand dunes that are interrupted by turquoise lakes, there is virtually no vegetation in this strange amalgam of desert and water. The vistas are endless and -- thanks to natural forces such as wind -- the sand is always shifting; like them, the paintings leave the impression that they go on forever and simply won’t stand still. To underscore this idea of limitlessness, in many paintings Gelfman lets the paint drip over to the sides, a signature mark of hers.

Other works flow in a less horizontal movement and suggest aerial views of a landscape, a metropolis, or ruins. Such is the case in the first room at FIU, where a number of paintings were inspired by a trip to North Africa, a parched land dotted with remnants of numerous ancient civilizations. These feel more like excavations than reflections.

Gelfman has also been influenced by a Japanese aesthetic, which is apparent in how her use of muted colors leaves a contemplative residue; and her extensive time spent in South America. (She lived in Bogota, Colombia for a time.) But the New York native, a Columbia University MFA graduate and long-time teacher who has made Miami home, seems to be most impressed over time with the nature directly around her, particularly the action of the tides, waves and sand that she observes daily with early morning walks along Biscayne Bay near Old Cutler Road.

Examples of this make up a part of the sand show at Von Hartz. These smaller works, in shades of greens, blues, purples and often in a grouping, are unmistakably references to these surroundings, although still planted in abstraction. The blues sparkle when passing by them, as the sea does when the sun hits lapping waves; while the greens might suggest the kinetic state of the shore-line sand as the waves constantly run over it and then retreat. As the sun’s light passes through clouds, bounces off waves, and glints off sand crystals, the motion never stops in this micro world.

As the artist explains, some of these works in groupings are frames that together tell a visual tale, whereas some of the larger-scale paintings are all-inclusive and stand alone. Both are represented. One especially intriguing series is comprised of two rows of small paintings, five in each, all in variations of white. As Miamians are well aware, hot mid-day heat can turn the world white – so called white-heat, washing out the subtle colors that can be observed at softer times, in early morning or twilight.

This series seems to detail that intense time of the day, when the sky, the water, the sand can fade to white. In the first couple of frames, some distinct color still emerges, until it almost all is erased by the last panel. “These are almost like drawings,” says Gelfman. “I like how the paint disappears into the surface,” becoming smooth and monotone.

Smooth in this case is literal. While nature, perspective and illusion make up part of the picture, Gelfman’s work is also about process. These compositions can appear so tactile – like tapestries at times – that viewers inevitably want to touch them. And because she does indeed sand her works and employ other techniques, she manipulates the surfaces of her paintings in such a way that when actually touching them (if you do, do it gingerly), they come as a surprise. Some are as soft as baby skin, others rough; at times her intense process has ripped the canvas. She uses acrylic, oil, sanding machines and unrevealed techniques to create her pieces.

Several years ago, in almost direct reference to the process of her work, Gelfman titled her shows in New York and at the Fredric Snitzer Gallery resist and react, emphasizing the push and pull of the imagery as well as the actual texture of the works.

Her patterning, in fact, can make the natural and man-made worlds overlap. At times the paintings can look more like woven textiles – or, conversely, vague images of a chain-link fence, the ultimate urban structure that unlike sand under waves, is immutable. As Gelfman says, “illusion is part of the work.”

On the back wall at the Von Hartz gallery, several very different works have been displayed. Called discs, they are circular molds on paper of a sanding-machine wheel, which Gelfman has used throughout the years. But they are also portals into the process of creation: the abrasive power of a sander helped form her imagery, while the abrasive power of nature helped form our environment.

While gentle and meditative on one level, the deeper one probes Gelfman’s work, the more complex it becomes -- waves, dunes and clouds are awe-inspiring, but both because of their beauty and their potency. Gelfman would have us explore it all.

via miamiherald.com

 

"The District Factory comes alive every second Saturday" in @miamiherald

Posted on Wed, Aug. 08, 2012
 By Alexa Lopez
aklopez@MiamiHerald.com
Jewelry by designer Susie Rekechensky of Phairytale Jewelry.
ALLISON DIAZ / FOR THE MIAMI HERALD
Jewelry by designer Susie Rekechensky of Phairytale Jewelry.
Wedged between art galleries and furniture boutiques in the Design District sits a nondescript white warehouse that comes alive one Saturday a month with local artists, jewelry designers and fashion mavens.

Dubbed The District Factory, the maze-like space pops up during the Design District and Wynwood Second Saturdays Art Walks, when between 30 and 40 local designers set up booths to sell their handiwork. A DJ spins club-style beats as a film projection of a local artist’s work plays on the wall behind him. Meanwhile, a pop-up restaurant Phuc Yea! (pronounced fook-yay) serves up Vietnamese finger foods like gỏi cuốn, or summer rolls, rounding out the Saturday night vibe.

At the core of The District Factory’s mission is curating fashion-forward designs that “you can’t get down the street at another boutique,” said Grace Castro, who created the monthly event in April with fellow designer Chelsea Conklin.

“Art Walk is all about art, but who doesn’t love shopping?” Castro said. “And when you can’t afford a $5,000 piece of art, you can walk away with a cool ring that’s original and unique.”

Castro and Conklin were first introduced by The District Factory’s property owners, who recognized the two shared a vision. Castro and Conklin each produced market-style events at the Palm Lot — the building in which The District Factory is held — where local artists and designers could sell their products. Castro ran Arboleda, a vintage and handmade crafts festival, and Conklin created Launch Arte Market, where local artists, designers and entrepreneurs could sell their goods. The two now run their own separate joint venture businesses, UP HEIGHTS and PLAT4M respectively, specializing in creating outlets for emerging artists and entrepreneurs.

The participating vendors at The District Factory enjoy meeting new customers, as well as interacting with fellow designers and artists.

“It’s not that competition feel — I like that togetherness feel,” said Aria Nero-Seder, a jewelry designer. “The District Factory is trying to build a more creative Miami.”

Here are a few of the participants:

Aria Neror

Everyone at The District Factory has a story.

For Nero-Seder, 38, of Miami Shores, her namesake jewelry collection Aria Nero was a result of recognizing her creative abilities after being involved in the retail industry for more than 10 years. Nero-Seder left her management position at the Barney’s CO-OP in Miami Beach about six years ago to become a “mompreneur” and give birth to her daughter. Now, she designs full-time and does freelance retail work, like helping the shops at the Biltmore Hotel with merchandising.

Nero-Seder said her pieces “stand out.” Her necklaces and bracelets create a nostalgic feel with vintage chains, old brooches and other materials she finds at garage sales and thrift and vintage stores.

Nero-Seder’s collection of pieces ranging from $30 to $500 is featured at the Biltmore, local boutiques and the Miami Art Museum, where most of the higher-end pieces are for sale. “I’m a designer, I’m the assembly line, I make everything, I design everything,” she said. “You have pieces that are handcrafted and unfortunately you can’t compete and sell them for $20.”

Nero-Seder’s newest design venture is in collaboration with her sister, Deirdre Nero, a local lawyer who has Alopecia Areata, a disease resulting in hair loss. The sisters’ “B.A.L.D.” line, which stands for “Bad Ass Lawyer and Designer,” will showcase earrings with a more mainstream flair aimed at making the statement that “You’re beautiful with or without hair,” Nero-Seder said.

The first pieces of the B.A.L.D. collection will be featured during The District Factory’s August events. Fifteen percent of B.A.L.D. sales will be donated to Alopecia Areata-related charities, including The National Alopecia Areata Foundation and The Global Alopecia Mission.

For more information about the Aria Nero and B.A.L.D. collections, visit arianero.com.

Phairytale

Similar to Nero, Susie Rekechensky of Phairytale Jewelry, 38, brings together thrift and vintage materials to “give a heartbeat back to things that have been dormant for a while,” Rekechensky said.

Rekechensky revives these pieces not only by reusing discarded jewelry, broken chains and old coins for her collection of necklaces, earrings, rings and bracelets, but also by embedding something special within most items: a chunk of a healing stone.

A couple of years ago, Rekechensky began going to an acupuncturist, who gave her a quartz crystal to carry around in her bag.

“I don’t know if it was just a mental thing, but I started to ease off the stress,” Rekechensky said.

Now, most of her pieces are home to a piece of fluorite, rose quartz or tiger’s eye.

“It creates a special connection with the piece,” Rekechensky said. “Your jewelry is really the heartbeat of your wardrobe, and I really like to give that rhythm to every piece of Phairytale Jewelry.”

Rekechensky was introduced to vintage as a little girl by her mother’s best friend, who worked with antiques. Rekechensky frequented estate sales, and her mom’s friend passed along hand-me-downs, once leaving 6-year-old Rekechensky with a pair of high-heeled cowboy boots.

“That’s where the love and care for the vintage stuff came from,” she said.

Then, about four year ago, Rekechensky became inspired by little shops in New Orleans while on vacation there. After 15 years as a graphic designer, she started her own jewelry company and has continued doing print and web design for a marketing agency four times a week. She also designs the promotional pieces for Phairytale.

Rekechensky sells her pieces online and at The District Factory, and also creates custom pieces for her clientele, who often bring her beloved family heirlooms to incorporate into a new piece.

For more information about Phairytale Jewelry, visit phairytalejewelry.com.

Lisu Vega

A common thread among the designs featured at The District Factory is that many have been recycled from mainstream, old or wasted materials to create one-of-a-kind products.

Eco-friendly designer Lisu Vega, 32, uses this technique by creating her own fabrics of silk, charmeuse, chiffon and cotton.

“Everything is unique,” said Vega, who lives in Midtown and moved to Miami-Dade County nine years ago from Venezuela. “Every piece is a baby for me.”

Vega designs a line of women’s clothing fashioned with trendy designs, like tribal prints. Then, she creates colorful and textured accessories pieced together with scraps of her used fabrics and stones.

“We try to keep art style in all the designs,” Vega said.

Vega has been experimenting with different materials for about 14 years. Her work has been featured in numerous exhibits around the world, and her fashion designs have been showcased at Miami’s Eco-Art Fashion Week and Miami Beach International Fashion Week.

Her most recent project is Trip Hope, a T-shirt collection for newborns up to children age 10, which she designs with her husband Juan Henriquez. Their inspiration was their 4-year-old son.

“We tried to put all concepts in one name: hope; explorer,;imagination,” Vega said. “The kids love it because they feel identified.”

For Vega, The District Factory offers a supportive network of designers and new contacts.

“Usually when you’re a new designer in the market it’s really hard because everything costs so much money,” she said. “For me, those people are like my family.”

For more information about Lisu Vega’s collections, visit lisuvega.com.

Juan Henriquez

Vega’s husband Henriquez, 31, credits The District Factory for being the “first step for artists to be recognized” in the Miami area.

“I think the great thing about this event is that local artists have the chance to be seen, to show their work,” said Henriquez, who arrived in Miami from Venezuela six years ago. “That’s one of the most important things happening in Miami, which is a city that is step by step opening its doors to artwork.”

Henriquez, who has been involved in art for more than 15 years, is an abstract artist who will be featured Saturday at The District Factory. His work has been displayed in various museums and events around the world, including last year’s Miami Beach Art Basel.

On Saturday, he will exhibit between five and eight of his paintings, which will be up for sale. The pieces range between $500 and $4,000.

Henriquez often works with acrylic paint and crayon on wood or canvas. Lately, he has been dabbling in digital art printed on metal or plastic, as well as etching. He said that his artwork features unrecognizable figures of people, objects and animals.

“I would not define each drawing in a specific language because I don’t want to get defined that way,” he said. “It’s just expression. It’s just art.”

For more information about Juan Henriquez and his artwork, visit juanhenriquez.com.

© 2012 Miami Herald Media Company. All Rights Reserved.
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"A well-deserved nod to the Bass" by Anne Tschida via Notes from the Bass Museum - George Lindemann Jr

The park and the Bass Museum.

Wynwood gets most of the attention these days as the art hub of Miami. And rightly so, as the amount of galleries and studio spaces far exceeds any other place not only here, but in the Southeast and likely any place south of New York. The newly formed ArtPlace, a national collaboration of foundations, banks and government agencies that has begun giving significant grants to help develop art districts, has just awarded the Wynwood Arts District a business development grant of $140,000 to upgrade the neighborhood, and awarded a whopping $385,000 to the The Light Box at Goldman Warehouse, the Miami Light Project’s new home in Wynwood.

But a little overlooked in this all is the art neighborhood surrounding the Bass Museum, a Knight Arts grantee, on Miami Beach. It too just got an ArtPlace grant in the not-small sum of $225,000. While Wynwood is the hip and gritty placeholder for contemporary art, the area around the Bass is in all honestly a better place to develop a pedestrian and art friendly community.

With the completion of the park that rolls out from the front doors of the museum and runs over to the actual sand beach, this is simply a nice, comfortable place to walk and take in art. The temporary sculpture park in this area that took place during last December’s Art Basel was a taste of things to come. With this recent grant, the Bass will instigate the ”TC: Temporary Contemporary” public art projects program, which will bring well-known contemporary artists to the Beach to create site-specific installations in the 40-block area being called “City Center/Arts District.” These will include sculpture, sound installations, video and other interactive works that will try to engage the passersby.

And unlike Wynwood at present, it’s likely that many people will indeed experience the art, as there is a constant stream of pedestrians, local and visiting, who actually walk around this area, a beach-front district that is unique in the country.

Even before the outdoor art takes its place, you can get a good feel for the potential that ArtPlace has recognized. Walk to the museum from the Miami City Ballet’s home, or from the fabulous Frank Gehry-designed New World Symphony building, or even from the Art Center/South Florida on Lincoln Road — really, you’ll enjoy it. And then make sure you visit the wonderful Charles Ledray exhibit currently on display at the Bass, which runs through August 12. His works  — ceramics, knitted objects and the like  — are often described as “exquisite” and especially, “exquisitely crafted.” In his case, it’s not an exaggeration.

Link: A well-deserved nod to the Bass

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"Britto's new Wynwood space 'bombed' by graffiti" in @MiamiHerald

The incident is the latest in a series of vandalizations of Britto work around Miami.

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As expected by many, someone graffiti "bombed" controversial Miami-based artist Romero Britto's new Wynwood space over the weekend.
As expected by many, someone graffiti "bombed" controversial Miami-based artist Romero Britto's new Wynwood space over the weekend.

By Yuval Ofir (Yo Miami)

Public art by Romero Britto, the artist most identified with Miami around the world, is a frequent and easy target for graffiti bombers. His "Beach Ball" in Miami Shores, a sculpture sporting Britto's trademark bright colors and pop-art patterns, got the treatment last June when some blunt vandal scrawled the words "Not Art" across it with red spray paint. Then, in July of 2011, someone -- maybe the same someone -- tagged the same sculpture with the words "Meaningless Bliss" and "error".

The latest: This past Saturday, the day of Second Saturdays Art Walk, someone who apparently goes by the name "C Dog" tagged Britto's new Wynwood space, at 146 N.W. 25th Street, in huge white letters.

Update: Britto has responded by painting over C Dog's scrawl with a burst of color, sunny imagery, and a bit of advice: "Make Art Not War".

 

 

via miamiherald.com

 

"Miami Beach and Wynwood Arts District to Get New Infusion of Funds for Creative Placemaking, Thanks to ArtPlace Grant" - Notes from the Bass Museum - George Lindemann Jr

Susan Philipsz | By My Side, 2009 | Two-channel sound installation 3 min, 5 sec, played every 5 minutes
Courtesy of the artist and Tanya Bonakdar Gallery, New York

Miami, FLA (June 12, 2012) - Public art, safer streets, new gallery and studio space for artists are coming soon to the City of Miami Beach and Miami’s burgeoning Wynwood Arts District, thanks to a substantial grant from ArtPlace announced today.
 
“The Miami projects receiving ArtPlace funding exemplify the best in creative placemaking,” explained ArtPlace’s Carol Coletta. “They demonstrate a deep understanding of how smart investments in art, design and culture as part of a larger portfolio of revitalization strategies can change the trajectory of communities and increase economic opportunities for people.”
 
One notable ArtPlace grant goes to the Bass Museum of Art in Miami Beach for “TC: Temporary Contemporary,” a public art projects program that will bring recognized contemporary artists to create temporary, site-specific artist projects within the City Center/Arts District, a roughly 40-block district located within the South Beach area of Miami Beach.
 
The program is intended to activate the urban landscape with art, surprising and engaging residents, visitors and passers-by with outdoor works of art in unexpected places. Sculpture, murals, sound installations, video and other interactive works of art, will interrupt people’s daily routines and encourage thoughtful interactions with the city and its communities. Public art becomes a catalyst to appreciate the unique character of Miami Beach.
 
The Wynwood Arts District is a once desolate neighborhood of roughly 96 city blocks located just north of downtown Miami that has been undergoing unprecedented transformation through the visual arts over the past decade. Owing to the recent, global economic downturn and the sheer size of the arts district, Wynwood has seen increases in crime even as the district attracts more visitors. The Wynwood Arts District Association (WADA) sees the creation of a BID as key in improving the walkability and safety of the neighborhood and establishing the Wynwood district as the epicenter of the arts and creative businesses in Greater Miami.
 
WADA will receive a $140,000 grant from ArtPlace, a new national collaboration of 11 major national and regional foundations, six of the nation’s largest banks, and eight federal agencies, including the National Endowment for the Arts, to accelerate creative placemaking across the U.S. To date, ArtPlace has raised almost $50 million to work alongside federal and local governments to transform communities with strategic investments in the arts.
 
“Across the country, cities and towns are using the arts to help shape their social, physical, and economic characters,” said NEA Chairman Rocco Landesman. “The arts are a part of everyday life, and I am thrilled to see yet another example of an arts organization working with city, state, and federal offices to help strengthen and revitalize their communities through the arts. It is wonderful that ArtPlace and its funders have recognized this work and invested in it so generously.”
 
ArtPlace is making another investment in the Wynwood Arts District in the form of a $385,000 grant to The Light Box at Goldman Warehouse. Funding will support the activation and stabilization of the multidisciplinary cultural center, which supporters call a true home for artists in the community. This 12,000 square foot space includes a shared workspace, a flexible 150-seat theater, an ample rehearsal room, galleries and shared meeting space.
 
ArtPlace received almost 2200 letters of inquiry from organizations seeking a portion of the $15.4 million available for grants in this cycle. Inquiries came from 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, U.S. Virgin Islands.
 
In September, ArtPlace will release a new set of metrics to measure changes over time in the people, activity and real estate value in the communities where ArtPlace has invested with its grants.
 
Participating foundations include Bloomberg Philanthropies, The Ford Foundation, The James Irvine Foundation, The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, The Kresge Foundation, The McKnight Foundation, The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, The Rockefeller Foundation, Rasmuson Foundation, The Robina Foundation and an anonymous donor. In addition to the NEA, federal partners are the departments of Housing and Urban Development, Health and Human Services, Agriculture, Education and Transportation, along with leadership from the White House Office of Management and Budget and the Domestic Policy Council. ArtPlace is also supported by a $12 million loan fund capitalized by six major financial institutions and managed by the Nonprofit Finance Fund. Participating institutions are Bank of America, Citi, Deutsche Bank, Chase, MetLife and Morgan Stanley.
 
A complete list of this year’s ArtPlace awards can be found at artplaceamerica.org
 
About the Bass Museum of Art
Located in Miami Beach, the Bass Museum of Art offers a dynamic year-round calendar of exhibitions exploring the connections between contemporary art and works of art from its permanent collection of Renaissance and Baroque paintings, sculpture, textiles, Apulian Vessel Gallery and Egyptian Gallery. Artists’ projects, educational programs, lectures, concerts and free family days complement the works on view. Additionally, the museum opened the Lindemann Family Creativity Center in January 2012. The center is the home of the museum’s IDEA@thebass program of art classes and workshops. The museum was founded in 1963 when the City of Miami Beach accepted a collection of Renaissance and Baroque works of art from collectors John and Johanna Bass, the collection was housed in an Art Deco building designed in 1930 by Russell Pancoast. Architect Arata Isozaki designed an addition to the museum between 1998 and 2002 that doubled its size from 15,000 to 35,000 square feet. Most recently, the museum selected internationally acclaimed Oppenheim Architecture + Design to lead its first phase of design and renovation tied to the 2010 completion of Miami Beach’s Collins Park. Oppenheim redesigned and relocated the museum’s arrival area to flow from and into the new park on Collins Avenue. For more information, please visit www.bassmuseum.org.
 
The Bass Museum of Art is generously funded by the City of Miami Beach, Cultural Affairs Program, Cultural Arts Council; Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs and the Cultural Affairs Council, the Miami-Dade County Mayor and Board of County Commissioners; John S. and James L. Knight Foundation; and sponsored in part by the State of Florida, Department of State, Division of Cultural Affairs and the Florida Council on Arts and Culture and the Bass Museum of Art membership.
 

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