Editorial

MIAMI’S OWN WET HEAT
By Carlos Suarez de Jesus

The Wet Heat Project creates spirited documentary films, web destinations and events that explore an in-depth experience of the contemporary arts and artists of Miami, capturing history in the making… One story at a time. In the fast-paced Wet Heat video trailer, a rooster sharpens his spurs on the concrete pavement outside a Wynwood warehouse as artist Brian Burkhardt enters his studio … +

Editorial

RUS Miami
By Carlos Suarez de Jesus

Three artist collaboratives explore the city’s solild waste.  On a sweltering summer afternoon last month, a City of Miami fireman hosed down dozens of inner city kids trying to cool off during a raucous back to school party, from the ladder of his fire engine. A few yards away, at the Athalie Range Park on NW 5th Avenue and 62nd Street, a … +

Editorial

Wynwood: A retrospective
By Anne TSchida

In 8 short years, Wynwood went from total obscurity to internationally recognized arts hub – and now, it may be on the verge of a new journey once again. As Art Basel Miami Beach hits the sands for a 7th year, and as the global economic earthquake starts to give even the art world tremors, it seems a good time to take … +

Editorial

MDC Art Gallery System
By Fran Robbins

As South Florida changes and grows, so, too, does Miami Dade College, one of the nation’s largest educational institutions. And one of the finest examples of how it’s improving to meet the needs of the community is its vaunted Art Gallery System, a completely integrated museum-classroom-conservatory network that offers visual arts in every possible form. From its start years ago as a … +

Editorial

Tere O’conner’s Rammed Earth
By Manuela Gabaldon

The space shifts, the audience collaborates, there is no permanent stage, no scenery, and at times the room’s complete silence is only disturbed by the sound of dancers’ uninterrupted footsteps; there is nothing conventional about choreographer Tere O’conner’s Rammed Earth, a unique portrayal of the relationship between architecture and the language of dance. A combination of O’conner’s choreography and skillfully tactical lighting, … +

Editorial

Curator’s Voice
By Manuela Gabaldon

The desire for application or expression of human creative skill is as perpetual and basic as our instinct for survival; whether we call it Art or not is where the triviality of it lies. Photographers, painters, and musicians, the obvious artists among us, are usually accredited for the presence and endurance of the arts. But what of its not so obvious propellers? … +

Editorial

O.H.W.O.W.
By Manuela Gabaldon

Our House West Of Wynwood (O.H.W.O.W), a free spirited space for every type of art medium located, you guessed it, west of Wynwood, lends itself to the display of everything and everyone art; from photographers, musicians, writers, poets, filmmakers, skaters, and performers, to curators, designers and “creatives” alike. Its surroundings are as eclectic as the art it exhibits. Evocative of creative director … +

Editorial

CIFO’s The Prisoners Dilemma: Selections from the Ella Fontanals-Cisneros Collection
By Manuela Gabaldon

The international exchange of culture and education in the arts has been a constant in the history of the civilized world. This exchange is one of the only worldwide practices that has not yet been lost or transformed in the midst of countless wars, economic crises, and the always-growing hunger for power. The fortunate survival of the arts and the insatiable desire … +

Editorial

Florencio Gelabert ‘s “INTERSECTIONS” At The Patricia and Phillip Frost Art Museum
By Manuela Gabaldon

Everything today is “Green”; everyone seems to be concerned with the depletion of our natural resources, deforestation, offshore drilling, and recycling, right? Wrong! This is how it seems to most of us; we are under the impression that the problem is “being taken care of”, while the reality is that not everyone is concerned with our planet’s well-being and the conservation of … +

Editorial

David Castillo Gallery
By Mia Opalka

Art -Baseling with David Castillo Gallery By Mia Opalka In the face of a global economic crisis, art is probably the last thing on the minds of the general public. But with Art Basel Miami Beach right around the corner, it’s hard not to wonder how it’s all going to pan out for local galleries this December. For Wynwood’s David Castillo Gallery, … +

Editorial

The Rewind/Fast Forward Film and Video Festival
By Manuela Gabaldon

With its unique ability to communicate ideas through the projection of moving images and sound, over the years, film and video have rightfully claimed their place in the art scene. This year’s 6th annual Rewind/Fast Forward Film and Video Festival, presented by the Louis Wolfson II Florida Moving Image Archive, solidly commits to this medium through an array of Widescreen classics and … +

Editorial

New Theater’s “As You Like It” By William Shakespeare
By Manuela Gabaldon

It is not the largest theater on the most illuminated Broadway-like street, it stands alone and unpretentious, warm and inviting, charming and unexpected; New Theater in Coral Gables is curiously small for the worlds that come alive within its walls. A lively team, lead by Artistic Director Ricky J. Martinez and Managing Director Eilleen Suarez, has made it possible for this multicultural … +

Editorial

Butter Gallery
By Manuela Gabaldon

Cozily located in the heart of Coconut Grove, Butter Gallery offers a diverse selection of art to locals and visitors. This engaging space houses paintings from veteran artists such as Ramirez Vallejo (Colombia) and Francisco de la Torre III (Cuba), to the newer talents of Ross Ford (New Hampshire) and Gustavo Oviedo (France). Francisco “Paco” De la Torre IV, owner and curator … +

Editorial

The Frost Museum Thirty Years On
By Fran Robbins

It started out thirty years ago as The Art Museum at Florida International University. This November, it is reborn as The Patricia & Phillip Frost Art Museum, a huge and hugely improved space to show off some of South Florida’s finest, most intriguing exhibits. The Frost boasts a new director and building site and will be charged with bringing a higher level … +

Editorial

Taking Flight: Ongoing exhibits at Locust Projects
By Mia Opalka

Before Wynwood was synonymous with the arts, three local artists – Westen Charles, Elizabeth Withstandley, and Cooper – got together and started an alternative space where their peers could create work without having to deal with the pressures of producing art for a commercial gallery. Ten years later, Locust Projects has grown from a grassroots, artist-run space to an official non-profit organization … +

Editorial

Jorge Barlett. Living Life as Art
By Anne Tschida

Until he died, Jorge Bartlett lived his art. The performance and visual artist in fact morphed into a persona he called Art Kendallman (a.k.a. KMAN) – he was a man, he lived in Kendall, and he was a piece of art. This is what he had recorded on his Website, under the heading “My Complete Profile”: About Me: Art ; Interests: Art; … +

Editorial

Untitled. About biennials and art fairs

For most of us thinking Art Basel Miami Beach week as the busiest time for the arts ever, well… it may have been so far, but getting outside of Miami for another art fairs gathering could prove us wrong. Although the first week of December in Miami seems to be getting out of hand (24 art fairs in 2007), it’s just a … +

Editorial

The Miami and Fort Lauderdale Gay & Lesbian Film Festival
By Manuela Gabaldon

Every year, the Miami Gay & Lesbian Film Festival presents original and touching films by veteran and emerging directors. Innovative and bold, this film festival has proven its success with its growing popularity over the years. This year, the MGLFF has spread to serve its Broward and Palm Beach county supporters with the launch of the Fort Lauderdale Gay & Lesbian Film … +

Editorial

Teatro 8’s Lorca con un vestido verde (Lorca in a green dress)
By Manuela Gabaldon

The Hispanic Theater Guild presents, Pulitzer Prize winner Nilo Cruz’s, Lorca con un vestido verde (Lorca In A Green Dress) this month at Little Havana’s own Teatro 8. Captivating performances, engaging music, and a passionate appreciation for Federico Garcia Lorca’s life make this Spanish version of the play wonderfully entrancing. Directed by Rolando Moreno, this retelling of one of Spain’s most celebrated … +

Editorial

Fotomission's Annual South Beach Photomarathon
By Manuela Gabaldon

There is a group of people in Miami that dedicate their lives to social consciousness through the photographic medium. These photographic activists are supported by an organization that prides itself on its volunteer based community and its mission to promote positive social change through the art of photography. This non-profit organization is aptly named Fotomission. Events, publications, and exhibitions of new talent … +

Editorial

Diaspora Vibe Gallery: Women’s Work
By Manuela Gabaldon

I arrive at the Diaspora Vibe Gallery, which lends its space to the exhibition of promising Caribbean and Latin American emerging artists, on a Tuesday afternoon. The gallery feels unusually lonely today, as Jamaica-born owner, Rosie Gordon Wallace, and her team prepare to leave for their 2nd International Artists Biennale in Phillipsburg, St. Maarten (April 16th-23rd) where artists from Cuba, Dominican Republic, … +