Jose de Diego Middle School

With shrinking education budgets, the Jose Diego Middle School currently has no music or art programs. The school, located in the Wynwood arts district, Miami, FL,. is surrounded by outdoor urban art; but students can't learn how to paint. That may be changing. A local mural project to establish a new arts program for the school was reported in the Miami New Times. You can read the full story by going to this link.

Here is one of the images by Miami artist Santiago Rubino.

 [Image and story copyright Miami New Times].

Last chance to see Rolando Chang Barrero

The current exhibition, Mi Pajaro:
recent works from Rolando Chang Barrero
will be closing Dec. 12.

Be sure to come by this week if you haven't yet seen this show.

Find out more about the artist here.

Talented 3d art

Please check out this interesting entry at Bored Panda for a very talented 15 year old making 3d illustrations.
Here is an example of artwork they posted.

Local gentrification and art

Right to Wynwood from Right to Wynwood on Vimeo.

Current exhibition: Rolando Chang Barrero

Rolando Chang Barrero
Mi Pajaro: recent works
  Oct 28-Dec 12, 2014

Free and open to the public

Hours:
Mondays - Wednesdays:  8:30am - 11:00pm

Thursdays: 8:30am - 9:00pm

Fridays: 8:30am - 5:00pm

Saturdays: 11:00am - 5:00pm

Sundays: 12:30pm - 11:00pm

For more information call

561.799.8530

http://www.ActivistArtistA.com

http://www.flickr.com/photos/activistart... 

http://facebook.com/Roly.Barrero 

Birds are Nice installs new mural

Little Panda   

The science: The Giant Panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) has the conservation status of EN (Endangered). They are also considered to be conservation dependent; which means their survival is dependent on captive breeding. It belongs to the order Carnivora, however most of its diet consists of bamboo. The giant panda lives mainly in the Sichuan province of China. As a result of land use changes (farming), deforestation and human encroachment, the panda has been driven out of the lowland areas where it once lived. They have historically been a target for poachers.

The panda is one of the most cared for species, with 40 reserves in China. It is also one of the most iconic species for conservation. Not everyone agrees that all the money spent on this species is deserved. There are not enough natural habitats left to sustain increasing captive bred populations. Wild panda population estimates vary anywhere from 1600 to 3000. There are approximately 266 in captivity. Estimates are not confirmed and the IUCN does not feel the population is stable enough to change their status from EN.

The art: Little Panda represents the plight of the endangered Giant Panda (discussed above); but also is a symbol for the fate of humans and the planet itself. The color red is one of the main colors in the work of Birds are Nice (BAN). It represents the IUCN Red List of Endangered Species; but also is a warning sign of danger…impending loss of ecosystem services needed for humans to live comfortably (clean air, water, etc.). Children are a constant thread in her work. They represent hope for the future.

BAN chooses to work in vinyl because of the ephemeral aspects of it. This  signifies the fragile ecosystems and how fleeting life can be. Also having loved stickers since childhood, she states that "making GIANT stickers is so FUN!!" (And you can stick them around town without getting caught!)

The artist: Birds are Nice (BAN) is a visual artist and biologist studying wild dolphin populations. BAN lives in South Florida. Her work combines graphic elements with various printmaking techniques combined with illustration, sculpture and video. The work has a style rooted in the comic book genre, along with strong influences from Robert Rauschenberg. ​

​Birds are Nice has a BFA in ceramic sculpture (Florida Atlantic University) and a MSc in Wildlife and Ecosystem Health (University of Edinburgh, Scotland).The main focus of her work is to illustrate the links between biodiversity (including endangered species), healthy ecosystems  and human health. Children are a reoccurring theme in the works of Birds Are Nice. Nietzsche said, “The child is innocence and forgetting, a new beginning, a sport, a self-propelling wheel, a Sacred Yes”. Adults tend to over analyze everything. BAN’s work strives for the simplicity of that childhood innocence.

www.birdsarenice.com

Artist spotlight: Kenichi Yokono

Japanese artist, Kenichi Yokono uses iconic imagry in a very contemporary style using the traditional woodblock. Although the wood blocks are functional,Yokono paints the blocks and exhibits them without ever making prints. You can read more about this artist here at Mark Moore Gallery , or by visiting his website here.

upcoming exhibition: Rolando Chang Barrero

Roalndo Chang Barrero
Mi Pajaro
Oct. 27 - Dec 12, 2014

  

This exhibition is free and open to the public. Check for hours here

Artist spotlight: Dylan Egon

Dylan Egon was born in 1966 in New York City and is currently based in Jersey City, NJ. He studied Anthropology and Archeology at Spring Hill College in Mobile, Alabama and later studied Film at City Tech University in New York. Egon works in a variety of mediums (collage, assemblage, sculpture) and often uses objects from his vast personal collection as focal points in his work. In a review for The New York Times, Benjamin Genocchio referred to Egon's work as “sites of cultural compression, fetishization and wonder.” (this description was borrowed from the artist's page on the Jonthan Levine Gallery website.) All images copyright of the artist and the gallery.

The art world

Kelly Rogers Ecoart now on display

Art meets science with Gainesville Ecoartist Kelly Rogers. On display for the fall semester.
Stop by to learn about her work and the ecology of bees. Kelley traveled to different locations with her bee backpack to learn about bee migration and the environment.

Please visit her website to learn more about her work.

Also learn what other ecoartists are doing in South Florida by visiting this website.

Learn about native bees by reading this great guide. Stay tuned for more information and planned events related to bees on campus and in community.

Artist spotlight: Morley

"Morley is a Los Angeles-based street artist who specializes in typographic posters which he wheat pastes within the urban landscape." (taken from  his webpage).

He gives some unique perspective on many of life's everyday issues. You can learn more about Morley on his website here:

Artist spotlight: Alex Yanes

Learn more about this Miami artist by going to his website here.

Artist spotlight: Sophie Standing

Taken from the artist’s website: “Sophie Standing was born in England and grew up in Hampshire. She studied wood, metal, ceramics and textiles at Liverpool Hope University. In 2003 Sophie moved to Cape Town, South Africa and is now living in Karen, Kenya. Sophie’s textile embroidered art is inspired by the flora and fauna around her in Africa and combines this with her passion for fabrics and textiles. Her one off pieces are created by appliqueing an intricate collage of fabric onto the canvas where her image is already sketched out. She then draws the details over the top of the fabric with her sewing machine using many different coloured threads”.

Local exhibition worth seeing @Dimensions Variable [Miami]

Heart Strings- Goran Tomcic July 12 - August 22, 2014 Reception Saturday, July 12, 7 - 10 pm

(Taken from email correspondence with Dimensions Variable)

Dimensions Variable presents Heart Strings, an exhibition by Berlin based artist Goran Tomcic. The exhibition runs from July 12 – August 22, 2014. The reception will be held on Saturday, July 12, 2014, from 7 – 10 pm. Fifteen years after leaving Miami where he served his two year tenure as Director of Wolfson Galleries at Miami Dade College, Goran Tomcic returns with an exhibition of his work at Dimensions Variable. Heart Strings is an installation composed of twelve corresponding works, all made with the three materials: hanger wire, fishing line, and Mylar sequins. During the tedious process of nearly a year, thousands of strings with heart-shaped sequins as well as the other shaped sequins (leaves, flowers, shells, cubes and circles) were made and then assembled into the hanger wires displayed as wall and suspended collages. Known for his commitment to process, Tomcic has earned acclaim for his ability to discover the inherent physical characteristics of the objects and materials and transform them into art. Tomcic’s large-scale installations and objects had been shown extensively in the past 15 years both in United States and Europe. He currently lives and works in Berlin, Germany.

Biography Goran Tomcic is an artist and writer. Born in former Yugoslavia in 1964, he is Croatian and US citizen, and currently lives and works in Berlin. He holds an MA in Curatorial Studies from the Center for Curatorial Studies at Bard College (1996). Since 2000 he has shown his art internationally and is a recipient of the Pollock-Krasner grant (2007). His poetry and art criticism has been published internationally from the mid 80s.

Location Dimensions Variable 100 NE 11th Street, Miami, FL 33132 United States Open by appointment dv@dimensionsvariable.net 305-607-5527

Artist Spotlight: Chris B. Murray

A graduate of the RIT - Rochester Institute of Technology N.Y. with a degree in  illustration; Chris now lives in Philadelphia. He does both commercial and gallery work and has won many awards. You can learn more about him at his website here.