swampspace the un-gallery

New Deluxe Location

2012-03-03T08:39:00.004-08:00

Swampspace Gallery

is pleased to announce

Failing Upwards

a christening before the launch

A soft opening at our

new deluxe location!

Sunday March 11th 4-10pm

Where the Sidewalk Ends

There is a place where the sidewalk ends
And before the street begins,
And there the grass grows soft and white,
And there the sun burns crimson bright,
And there the moon-bird rests from his flight
To cool in the peppermint wind.

Let us leave this place where the smoke blows black
And the dark street winds and bends.
Past the pits where the asphalt flowers grow
We shall walk with a walk that is measured and slow,
And watch where the chalk-white arrows go
To the place where the sidewalk ends.

Yes we'll walk with a walk that is measured and slow,
And we'll go where the chalk-white arrows go,
For the children, they mark, and the children, they know
The place where the sidewalk ends.

shel silverstein

150 N.E. 41 Street Miami Design District

FebruFest

2012-02-17T05:03:00.000-08:00

The old Boat Show is now the Yacht Show... and it is still bigger than Basel for sheer number of obnoxious pomp and circumstance.

The Design District is pounding with the wrecking ball scheduled demolition of obsolete architecture like hell yeah, this gem where legend Willy Chirino once recorded hispano-hits making way for Luis Vitton and a Wall Mart in Midtown.

Yet with the recent untimely Palm Beach Art Fair and Art Wynwood one can wager others still have boat-loads of mula left over to buy that uber sleek yacht you've always wanted.

Graffiti (and a luxury car) go up in the bastion of civility, the Palm Beach Art Sleeper.

Media is celebrity worship, with an emphasis on acceptable behavior.

Shopping carts laden with generic cash... at the art fairs.

I want one.

Light for Sale.

Brahman begs the Question, is my body ready for the body shop?

S & S Diner next to a fail.

Double Fail actually equals success across from Arsht.

Bridge Red knocks it out of the North Miami courtesy of Sherri Tan.

Not a blurry photo, Gentle giant Bob Thiele's studio.

Swampspace wraps up six glorious years of serving the community with a kick-ass class-act group-show that was not quit politically correct, it was the grand finale and genesis for the phoenix incarnation of the next swampspace.

Be On The Lookout for general brash goodness with the swampstyle you've come to expect.

And be sure to catch Jessy Nite rockin shockin down the street at Primary Projects.

Last Call Wreckin' Ball

2012-02-03T18:28:00.000-08:00

Swampspace Gallery

presents

Last Call Wrecking Ball

a collective retrospective

Join the Community of Design District Artists to Commemorate a Decade of Emergence and Fruition.

Opens February 11, 2012

6-12 pm

Cristina Lei Rodriguez - Wendy Wischer - Nektar De Stagni - Naomi Fisher - Frances Trombly - Jim Drain - COOPER - Leyden Rodriguez - Friends W U - R & R - Bhakti Baxter - Jason Hedges - Daniel Arsham - - Domingo Castillo - Nicolas Lobo - Martin Oppel - Adler Guerrier - Tao Rey - Daniel Newman - David Rohn - OliSan

Season Premier 2012

2012-01-04T11:11:00.000-08:00

Swampspace Gallery

Season Premier 2012

Southernmost Situations

presents

Free Key West

opens Saturday January 14

6-12 pm

3821 NE 1 Court

Miami Design District

Junkuary Jam

2012-01-04T09:21:00.000-08:00

MacroMicro

It is no small wonder that an unassuming item or person can have tremendous value . Such is the case with this pocket sized symbol of Charlotte Bornte's ruminating genius, creator of the diminutive feminist heavyweight Jane Eyre.

Dr. Frankenstar Power

Likewise it is not easy pinpoint how exactly a spark of genius is ignited, and more so where or how it is sustained for a lifetime. In the art world it obviously helps have a pedigree, a purse, and a respected critic for a partner. With all that it is also imperative to keep an eye on the sublime and a finger on the pulse of elegant non-objectivism. Helen Frankenthaler did just that; no wonder so many homely artists tend to emulate her.

Art Nights at the Mall

With increasing focus the swamp can be defined by its own highs and lows.

At one end of the spectrum there is a glorification of touted refinement from a culture that is sustained by characters who identify or appropriate our loose knit arts community. At their low end is a failed world built modern on hype and consumerism. On the high end is clarity and swampy liberation.

Occupy Cave

It is not hard to find our way past the clutter of artificiality. Even in the worst of times, the young will court, dance and trip head over heals. Such is the power of the love of art.

Legal Rehab

Even today among the ruins of Downtown, there is a transformation of which legality is undeniable. With inalienable right, the arts community is contributing significantly to the revitalization of a city lost in the tropics.

A Head of Time

Where there is push there is pull. Gains made are not always set in stone as we see in the destruction of the Midtown World Gardens. This city block was to be a magnificent passive park for the good of public commons. What happend ? Do we really need another MoviePlex.

Midtown Quiz

Q: Why does man kill trees? A: Because trees can not run away.

Much Ado about Street Art

Meanwhile back in colorful old Wynwood, the walls are closing in and Tony Goldman is doing well.

Casa de Grande Nuts

I was fortunate to stumble into the distinguished Enrique Martinez Celaya having a 5Guys burger with his curator. A fellow cuban painter and professor of all things impressive, Enrique was as expected nothing less than charming and demure. For sure Wynwood is much improved with Celaya's Whale&Star enterprise in town... non more pleased than our very own self -appointed arbiter of markets Snitzer.

Nearby neighbors throw up a bit of their own beautification. No sign permit needed.

Ouch, Out of the Back of the Truck Sale?

At the end of the day, the best things in the swamp are the ones left alone.

What on Earth

2011-12-16T19:56:00.001-08:00

After another brilliant Basel flashow the neon lights of Miami Beach are dimmed. But soon enough we again fire-up them old holiday season illuminations. Like a mirror of South Beach before the Arts Awakening, the neighborhood of Wynwood has also molted dramatically. Over on the mainland in the past decade, 'Little PuertoRico' has been transformation beyond the beyond. For better of worse with the year closing, perhaps some ruminations on art's place in the swamp are in order.

Watching paint dry one would think shazam-things just don't happen fast enough. But the truth is things are always changing. This is why God invented the 20% Off Sale; invented to further the flow of events. But where there is movement there is wear n tear and oftentimes some unintended transmutation. Such is the weirdness of Wynwood.

Nothing happens all of the sudden; Otto Von Jr. of South Florida proves well versed in Design District cyclical cynicism, when we discussed with elegance how moldy bricks and mortar are giving way to gleaming kubrickian faces, spaces and towers of blinding modern luxury .

Quite the conversation piece at the Design Miami Fair Entrance, this year's very pleasing Pine Lumber Sculpture Conversation Cage now disassembled and loaded on a truck in route to storage on NE 36 street.

But this post is about a neighborhood in the final throes of an ambition gone wild, the focus of the December dispatch is what on earth has happened over there in Wynwood. Like the Gold Rush of Cali past, this unassuming working class neighborhood was intended to become a museum of street art. Instead Wynwood today is a colossal hodgepodge of mash culture anthropological technicolor public venting on a scale unseen since graffiti exploded on the NYC scene 30 years ago. There is an explanation.

Here below is a primer for property owners and would be muralists of all stripes.

If you own a building in this neighborhood (or anywhere else) make haste arrange with an artist of your choosing to commission a work of art lest the place be plastered with uninvited tags and throw-ups.

I will not blame the higher forces for what on earth has happened, but i will say indeed a bodacious bomb of belligerence sure as hell went off in this pocket of floundering Puerto Rican culture and identity. Wynwood is in need of paint... mostly white.

LA's only Retna, Top to Bottom of course.

The site of the impetus swarm the original Locust Project thrives on auto-pilot while the new incarnation in the Design District searches of the next level of re-invention and a new home amid the ruins of self mutilating cut concrete and steel jumble.

Kinda lika OhWow Version 2.0 just less original.

Crass for Clunkers, we Wynwood your ride.

Unstoppable overexposure. Many locals don't visit SoBe anymore either.

Rays of sunshine in a storm of hard. A non-arts business gets w the program.

Southbound from 29 street, N.W. Second Avenue is where the Street Art Circus begins.

But venture just a block off the beaten path and you will see the detritus of a city in shambles from economic instability and lopsided public policy. How little can i get that for...

Venture far beyond the areas of concentrated efforts by our dynamic developers like Goldman and Robins, Miami is on the brink of cultural bankruptcy where despair is just a red-light ticket away and most folk cling to the comfort of their couch except those who brave the pavement on Art Walk Second Saturday in Wynwood.

Not all graffiti is sanctioned, thank the Lawd. When will the endless roadwork end.

North of Wynwood the swamp is as it should be, unchanged for decades.

While the intelligential set politely discuss the nuanced broad trends in this current arts awakening, infusing the anointed few with visual and performing arts funding is their true focus. For better or worse the mass culture folk are not waiting for permission from the adults. Artists are taking to the street with paint cans and expressing visions of their place in the swamp. Question begs, when is enough enough; to what end is the Wynwood blossom a whither.

This holiday season, everybody has one. What's your Brand?

the Bucky Stops Here

2011-11-06T08:59:00.000-08:00

Swampspace Gallery

presents

The Ephemera of ABMB

an event horizon

Opens

November 29 - December 4, 2011

"Now there is one outstandingly important fact regarding Spaceship Earth, and that is that no instruction book came with it."

Buckminster Fuller

Miami was once resplendent swamp sparsely inhabited by resilient enigmatic characters

whose visions transformed the tropic into a mecca for modern living.

Ten years ago the interruption achieved temporary singularity

with the arrival of Art Basel Miami Beach.

Today Swampspace is pleased to announce

Bucky's Seven Year Itch in the dawn of

technological singularity.

Proceeds Benefit DASH

Miami Design District

3821 NE 1 Court - Miami, Fl 33137 - swampstyle@gmail.com

blogtoberlust

2011-11-05T17:57:00.000-07:00

A bit tardy with an October post due to a medical emergency #$%&@ mortality averted, here is the belated commentary.

20% Off Special

There was a time in Miami's past art history where a handful of interested parties were the only ones concerned with the appreciation and capitalizing of art. Today the circle of friends may be bigger but so is the multitude of the uninterestd. For a thorough briefing of hysterical presidents look no further than the gracious Helen Kohen's moldy Vasari Project, an accumulation of local art industry ephemera organized by our public library system.

Ad Space Available

As Miami today leaves behind the ancient history of art and prepares for the bold uncharted now-ness of the tenth outrageous recurrence of another outlandish Art Basel Miami Beach fair, there is an air of rancid anticipation. Some would like us to regard fine art as a matter of life or death, but that is just not the case. Art may be perceived indispensable much of the time but it will never shed its frivolous nature. If a priceless painting is crashing down, get out of the way.

Hubble Bubble Trouble

Don't get me wrong. I am one of those who live, breath, eat, sleep, talk about and actually make art all twelve month of the year. But honestly the white gloves of a museum pale in seriousness when compared to the latex gloves of a hospital. A pricy Anish Kapur wall sculpture can also be seen as just a really fancy shaving mirror for the well heeled of golden beaches.

Full Moon Rising

A collection of distressed sports balls can take on the value of precious cultured pearls. Their epoxy luster drip with the rich new expression of what art is. What determines their shape is the secret nourishment of intention and purpose, of function and fact. Contemporary art is like the fad diets of south beach where a steady diet of deep art appreciation is the sustenance of champions.

Classy Kabuki

In light of the lust for celebrity and a willing submission to rigid social structure, our current cultural machinations border on farcical. The rule of vanities is that all to often it is really easy to find ample example of self imposed labeling and prescribed behaviourism. Who among us is saving their fifteen minutes of fame for just the right moment as timing is indeed everything.

Anthropopulists

To be fair, Miami is loaded with fascinating oddities and unique personalities in a constant stream of events. It takes a special kind of sleuthmanship to inform and archive our ongoing social mania trivia. Just ask the persistent and consistent folks at Soul of Miami.

Allas, a word or two,

A pan-headed screw,

Don't call us Cheapo,

Cause we shop at the Depot,

Economy of words,

Is not just for nerds,

Anymore.

Mystical and the Mister

Miami's own hieronymus bosch Franky Cruz and modern day bucky fuller Robert Chambers at Baxter's Book Party, Diet Gallery Wynwood.

Wish Upon a Star

A lovers kiss adorns Inflorescence. Available at Diet.

september salad

2011-09-14T17:18:00.001-07:00

Broccoli or Cauliflower ?

Destiny is a powerful thing. When Walt Disney met Salvador Dali in 1940, they hatched a joint venture to animate something. It took 50 years to complete the collaboration from storyboard to wikipedia entry.

Such is the the vicious complications that art and science invariably create by their mechanisms for change. Such is the ebb and flow of gentrification and cyclical ideas. Miami is no exception.

Harry Bedknob, Potter Broomstick

Be it by magic or slight of trickery, the power of art is undeniable. So what exactly is the best case scenario. Back in 1992 South Beach was a tolerable place, primed and percolating for another phantasmic transformation. Today not so much and suffice to say, "glad it is there" but we only go when clients call. Same can be said for Wynwood arts district, "glad it's there" but with crowds in the thousands on art walk nights, we only go when absolutely needed.

Cool is the New Provocation

More recently, when the personifications of Design District and Wynwood joined forces to advance this arts awakening, it took less than six years to see a fruition of noteworthy acclaim. The Goldmans, Rubells and Robins and Snitzers and Dorsches and Scholls, the Dade and Broward and Dumbos from coast to coast, it is not only the swamp that has morphed into a bona fide cultural mecca. Art Crawls are creeping into every town from middle america to Istanbul Turkey. Art along with the other distractions such as sports and hollywood, keep the masses insecure and preoccupied to the satisfaction of those behind the curtain of machinations.

But distractions can only sustain so long as cries for attention are muddled by jazzy flashy information. Two powerful pieces at Primary Flight typify the times. They are the above canvas of surprising depictions in a most unusual style and this drawing of a rose-encrusted icon. Powerful works that supplant the power process for the hungry artists and bewildered patrons.

Boots on the ground, Big Brother Big Sister of greater Miami joined with several artist and the Design District family to raise awareness of the need to support our youth. The event called Currently Under Improvement focuses on the betterment of community and the responsibility art has to social relevance.

Sag-a-delic Chic

The third cousin of art and science is Fashion. So when two swampy luminaries join forces you fashionistas are sure to take it to the club the bank and down the runway. Nektar De Stagni and Danny Santiago Vintage Market in the Design District.

TED Down Under

Super proud and congrats to the fellas at Coral Morphologic for their findings and melding of art and science. Collin and Jarred are two very swampy superstars.

YESterdayVille

Curious George Sanchez Calderon is at it again with his unique vision of the swamp. His artist run venue Tomorrowland featured the video works of illusive and illuminating Daniel Newman. Other shows will follow through the end of Basel 2012.

Goldie Guy David Rohn performance and installations are like an outrageous fairy tale gone swampy at the hypnotic Carol Jazzar Contemporary in Miami Shores.

Rockin n Rolling with Meatball. Hold on to your bladder as Robert Lorie blows them out of the swamp with a powerful landscape paintings and comical inflatable installation at the Little River Yacht Club.

October will be the last quiet normal month before dear swamp is once again slimed by Art Basel and the ridiculousness of the season. Who will be crowned the most beautiful, Dali or Disney?

augustus art walkus

2011-08-18T18:07:00.000-07:00

Ten years ago, art was a three letter word in South Florida. Today every enclave worth its sassafras has something akin to culture night. Broward has FAT, Tampa has third friday and so forth. Like sporting events, a focus on the arts is mostly an innocuous distraction, but from what.

One year ago, Wynwood was a food-truck free-zone. Today multitudes of 305'ers munch merry nocturnal contemplating contemporary art once a month. I guess it beats wandering like consumer zombies in the retail malls . Such are the predictable stages of gentrification. I am all for the net plus, just don't expect the neighborhood residents to be as agreeable.

Today as ever, timing and Tiki are everything. On the surface, art relies on the well heeled who are attracted to emerging markets like flies to Chihuli glass. In their leap of faith, those with expendable income gobble up the meats of consensus and toss the spuds under the table, all with the optimism of gains, while the specter of dissolution casts a beguiling shadow shared by all interested parties. The routine is a roulette.

Modern is as modern does. This August has been seasonally over-ripe. What winters are to the north pole, summer is to the swamp. The record-braking heat index makes for some delirious antics. Best to find shade during day, nihilism by night.

Salvador Dali, for all his mustache waxing and mescaline adventures was perhaps the Walt Disney of dementia. In his fascinating world there were no second saturdays or food trucks, there were inner circles of brilliance just like today in Miami. But we are still waiting for a singular pivotal figure, our own gold-plated egg-laying Egret.

Polynesian Opening

2011-08-12T05:09:00.000-07:00

Swampspace Gallery

presents

* Vaikai *

Tiki Sentiment in the Summer of Kitsch

Opens August 13th 7-11 pm

Design District Art Walk

VaiKai ( kitsch for vacation ) is focused on the aesthetics of sentimentality for the Polynesian protoplasts know as Tiki and Marikoriko. Like Adam and Eve and their biblical mythological quest for knowledge, these iconic creatures of the South Pacific serve as original reminders of our long lasting yet uncertain relationship with Prometheus the greek god who stole fire from Gawd almighty and gave it to us mortals.

Fry in July

2011-07-11T08:13:00.000-07:00

"I am not afraid of resistance, conflict, contradiction or complexity."

Thomas Hirshhorn

Guaranteed, July in Miami is again punctuated by the Perrenial Philosophy of nationalistic fireworks and the heavy down-pours of rain that extinguish both while nourishing the swamp. With recurring notions of understanding what actually happens on the sweltering ground, art walkers at large appear to be morphing from mere appreciators of fringe activities focused on objects and deeds of creative expression to the actual recipients of the attraction. In other words the crowds are the show.

On the road to the beaches, a greige veil of stormy forecast hangs in the air like an electric blanket dialed to High. Day is the time to find shade, night is the time to get your art on.

The broad strokes the season is upon us, not the tourists but the tumultuous trampling of never ending roadwork that manifests our preoccupation with tomorrow. To survive the onslaught of summer one must learn to wade through its economic molasses and microwave climate. Like the roots of mangrove and the formidable foliage of a mighty banyan, surviving the tropics with grace requires more than A/C. It requires a purpose. Mine is Art.

Double Decker Depot. Tourist busses sit idle at the Towing yard in Wynwood.

It's the People, Stupid.

With plenty of exceptions, the art world is in Europe. From Venice to Berlin, those aficionados with the means abandon the swamp for more hospitable pastures, do so. Be it here or at Big Basel, art's contagious effects continue. It is the discipline without borders.

People Walk, becoming the art to attend Grela Orihela's show @ Praxis in Wynwood.

People Talk, fluent conversationalist Peter Menendez sports a scholarly beard apropos to Lobo @ De La Cruz in the Design District

Shadowy World, the artist insinuates upon Arrow's new media @ De La Cruz.

Prime real estate, an exterior wall courtesy of Snitzer's rather swampy courtyard @ ground zero Wynwood.

Your Ad Here, clever bus bench for the latin manhattan @ Praxis.

Mette Tommerup's delightful style only compliments her casual seriousness.

Her mentoring influence can be seen in Desiree Almodovar's SCALE currently in swampspace gallery.

Jim Drain projects like the gentle giant that he is. Late night vintage videos on the ceiling courtesy of Kathryn Marks @ The End in the Design District.

Call to artist: "How can I give a form that resists historical facts? How can I give a form that goes beyond the here and the now? And how can I make a trans-historical work, in my time, in my history, today?" Thomas Hirshhom

Swamp Scale

2011-07-01T12:53:00.000-07:00

Swampspace Gallery

presents

Desiree Almodovar

S C A L E

Opening Friday July 8th

6 -10 pm

A painter paints pictures on canvas. But musicians paint their pictures on silence.

~Leopold Stokowski

"If I were not a physicist, I would probably be a musician. I often think in music. I live my daydreams in music. I see my life in terms of music."

- Albert Einstein

3821 NE 1 Court

Miami Design District

UPDATE:

Thanks to the busy folks at Beached Miami for their swampy mention.

JuneBuggin'

2011-06-13T18:44:00.000-07:00

June Art Walk in the Design District was a cool precursor to more hoppity hop art ahead in the swelter of another swampy summer. What longtimers warmly refer to as the melting rainbow flavored crush of heat on the rocks that is at the core of tropical living. If you can stand the Inferno, June is the time to recycle your rabbits.

You might ask, " What does that mean?" and the answer would be "mind your own bees-wax".

The lead-up to June Art Walk held rejuvenating promise for the marking of another passage in time that storm seasons in the tropics deliver. Marlon Preuss, Jeiddy Lopez and Chris Valencia were a treat to behold as their collective effort manifest in a whimsical yet monumental mural devoted to, you guessed it, recycling rabbits.

But after the official end of school mayhem and before opening of Recycle Your Rabbits, the mythical fourth annual teen dance party took place near the rear of swampspace.

It was the stuff of legend. Where do kids go when they are too old for chucky cheese and too young for south beach? They go to uncle swampthing for a good old fashioned rent party.

Forever young old-timers on a date wander in to find a spot on the slippery dance floor.

Chillin' Saturday night at the District.

Swamp's own surest young rappers, Metro Zu tearing up the sidewalk with lyrical deftness.

Excellent fancy foot geezer passerby delivers a convulsive break dance for everyones amusement.

Chris earns a new skateboard...

Swampy Rabbits

2011-05-25T10:27:00.000-07:00

Swampspace Gallery

is pleased to present

Marlon Preuss

Recycle Your Rabbits

celebrating with an accumulation of non-traditional art

3821 NE 1 Court

Design District

Art Walk

May Flowers

2011-05-19T09:13:00.000-07:00

Tamara, Lulu and Rabekak....... WOW !

Vernissage 2011

Each year the Fashion Club at DASH senior high school puts on a big show. Their instructor, the very particular Ms. Rosemary Pringle, has a gift for taking "freshmen" through four years of a fashion education. Stitch by stitch she builds the confidence and self esteem that awkward girls need to become elegant intelligent graceful women. To see the feminine power process realized is like watching a bouquet of fragile rose buds bloom with Rembrandt rainbow spender.

This is her gift for all who value Girl Power.

Sock Hip

Bobbys and high heels are a telling image for the rite of passage, the passing of time when girls shed their childish garb and step out strutting in six inch pumps.

Project Runway

This year the show was held at the magnificent atrium of the Moore Building in the Design District. The place was alive with an estrogen fueled frenzy of shimmering faces glowing with the thrill of a thousand butterflies dancing in the young model's belies.

Adrian Bonvecchio

Elegance is not the prerogative of those who have just escaped from adolescence, but of those who have already taken possession of their future. Coco Chanel

Rachel Zaretsky - Iaona the Bean Stock

Delaney Power

I'm tough, I'm ambitious, and I know exactly what I want. If that makes me a bitch, okay. ~Madonna Ciccone

Luisa Castaneda - Roots Classic

I am not interested in celebrities with their free dresses. I am interested in clothes.

Bill Cunningham

Caitlin Farradas - that was Rich

Melissa and Adiley - Red means Go!

We must never confuse elegance with snobbery. Yves Saint Laurent

Caitlen and Victoria - Plastic Bag Prom Gown.

Andres Quintero - not the girl next door

Your dresses should be tight enough to show you're a woman and loose enough to show you're a lady. Edith Head

Andres - Purpose Walking

All I want are high heels, high heels. If I was a girl, I'd wear a lot of high heels. High, stiletto heels. Isaac Mizrahi

Spicy Juju Girls

I don't design clothes, I design dreams. Ralph Lauren

Carolina Fernandez - Swany

There was even a ballerina outfit made from an antique pattern !

Yadiany Garcia - Street Casual Guantanamo Orange Jumper.

Hillary Chandler - Extra Small

Vanessa Zakroisky for Dudes

We've begun to raise daughters more like sons... but few have the courage to raise our sons more like our daughters. ~Gloria Stein

Kahdija the Great

Red is the ultimate cure for sadness. Bill Blass

A Barbie Doll Moments

Mini-Lu modeling Stephanie Dryfos

Vanessa - from Planet Barbie

Luisa Castaneda - Tender Fruit Neck Net

Rebecca Palmer - When pointy head gear is ok.

Grace Suarez - Grandma's Got a brand new bag.

Women belong in the house... and the Senate. ~Author Unknown

I see my body as an instrument, rather than an ornament. ~Alanis Morissett

Briana Williams takes the victory walk.

Lucia Del Sanchez

Setting the bar high for the balcony girls in the wing.

Our Brown Knight

2011-05-12T13:03:00.001-07:00

Doing the math, we here at Swampspace Gallery are comforted to be in the company of 1,244 brethren artists and non-profits that were recently informed of their misfortune at the edge of the coveted funding trough of the eternal wellspring that is the Knight Arts Challenge.

Dear Mr. swampthing,

Thank you for taking part in the Knight Arts Challenge. We have reviewed your idea: Reconsidering Swampspace, the Un-gallery.

We received close to 1,300 ideas for the arts in South Florida. Out of those, we have selected 56 finalists. Unfortunately, your idea did not make it to the final round this time. Please understand that due to the large number of applicants, there were more great ideas than we could possibly include. This is in no way a reflection on you, your organization or the quality of your project.

We hope you will consider applying again next year when, once again, we'll look for the best arts ideas in South Florida.

Thank you again for the time, energy and talent that went into your application.

Sincerely,
John S. and James L. Knight Foundation

Scene from MT Your Pockets Show ....

Scene from Milk, Honey, Thugs n Money Show...

Going Green

Honestly, who would give perfectly good clean money to a guy that looks like creamed spinach with over-caffinated eyes.

150 words and less

Swampspace Gallery exists to encourage participation in the betterment of the arts community that inspired its creation. It seeks to empower its audience with an increased awareness of how contemporary art leads to civility and understanding of commonalities. Swampspace compliments re-vitalizing ventures by maintaining a visible presence within Miami's transformative art and design vicinity. Swampspace has presented consistent alternative exhibitions focusing on a growing interest in unique art from the heart of the Design District.

The Swampspace Promise: To Do Better Next Year.

Poetic Pics of April Art

2011-04-12T19:24:00.000-07:00

Bhakti Baxter surveys the damages at Abra Palabra.

Serving cafesitos and MinTreats for a good cause.

The other Jessi Jackson entertains behind the curtain.

Liz Tracy and her perpetual goodness after a sloppy well deserved dunking.

Other nomadic families join the Hollingworths of Transit Antenna.

Mateo gets a lift and a lesson on the art of aerosol.

Fine ladies of Dacra model with Hugo's moped.

Tremors of the aftershock from April's Art Walk.

Late night thoughts arise from vintage markers at Abra Palabra.

several swampy openings

2011-03-30T11:35:00.000-07:00

SWAMPSPACE Gallery

ABRA-PALABRA

by Bhakti Baxter

Opening: April 9th, 2011 12noon - 12 midnight

Swampspace is pleased to present ABRA-PALABRA by Bhakti Baxter, a project that invites people to relax and consider the special arrangement of words in recognition of O'miami during National Poetry Month.

ABRA-PALABRA is a place where visitors can read, write, and display poetry. We provide books, paper, pencils, chalkboard and comfortable furniture for those participating.

ABRA PALABRA acknowledges how a rhyme, a joke, or a simple phrase can evoke meaning and unravel mystery in our

lives.

ABRA-PALABRA cordially invites you to participate in this unique literary experience in the heart of the Design District over a cup of coffee and enough time to extract a poem from the most profound depth of your heart and soul.

“The right word may be effective, but no word was ever as effective as a rightly timed pause.”

Mark Twain

"A horse is a horse of course, unless the horse is the famous Mr. Ed."

Also of special interest is the much anticipated Transit Antenna Fun Fair courtesy of Artlurker and of course be sure to cozy up to the work of Agustina Woodgate at Spinello gallery.

Art Marches On

2011-03-19T12:41:00.000-07:00

The Know Show theme by definition has a built-in failure mechanism that was evident at the March Art Night in the swamp. By now most South Florida communities have adopted the casual ritual of family night at the art venues. It is encouraging to read that folks want more than teevee 24/7. An art experience offers anyone willing a salvo for the pressure of daily drudgery. Knowing is to surveillance cameras what Feeling is to Books.

Lulu at Lowenstein

Diane Lowenstein gallery in Wynwood opened with a charming show "ComePly" by local youngsters collaborating with Mr. Loveland from New World. The emerging artists are very knowing in the art of feeling.

Annabell with Bonvecchio at Lowenstein

Asher Mones Video at Lowenstein

These fine ladies appear delighted by the provocative video projection featuring the pair of shoes on display. New media defies the articulate, basically you gotta go see it.

Back in the leafy Design District, strollers were treated to Typoe the Michelangelo at Locust Projects. Also of particular note was the very sentimental Caterina Jaramillo at Dimensions Variable. With "You Are Always Here" Caterina lays bare the emotional components of loss and materialism.

Art is many things. One of them is finding solace in the company of strangers.

The Know Show

David Rohn at the KnowShow

another swampy opening

2011-03-07T18:00:00.000-08:00

The Know Show

To Prepare Ourselves for Understanding

Opening March 12 7-11pm

Developing the Concept of Knowing

In today's non-linear, dynamic, complex world, art can no longer rely on the logic of the past to win future audiences. As we move away from predictable art patterns susceptible to logic, artists are increasingly reliant on their "gut" instinct, an internal sense of "knowing." To prepare ourselves to understand current situational assessments and potential influence, it is essential that we learn to identify, interpret, make decisions, and take appropriate action to create consensus utilizing this sense of "knowing."

The Know Show will focus on the cognitive capabilities of observing and perceiving art, the cognitive processing that must occur to understand the external world and make maximum use of our internal thinking capabilities, and the mechanism for creating deep knowledge and acting on that knowledge, the Self as an Agent of Change.

selected works from the permanent collection

3821 NE 1 Court - Design District

Company Loves Misery

2011-02-27T09:21:00.000-08:00

" Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free"

Emma Lazarus

Are you one of the hundreds of artists or 501Cs whose ideas have been rejected and denied funding by philanthropic behemoths nationwide?

Not ready for prime-time? No Problem.

Congratulations to all for there is now a place where your ideas can be shared with other losers whose bad luck has trumped their talent.

It's OFFICIAL Swampspace Gallery announces:

The Swampspace Arts Challenge 2011.

Here is how it works:

When you submit your ideas to any competition nationwide,

you can also copy/paste them in the comments box right here at this Swampspace post.

We will publish all submissions in the hopes of garnering popular support for your idea by way of reader feedback.

What you need to know:

If you are 50 years of age or older, you will be treated like a very impotent person by sheer nature of your protracted suffering for arts sake. If you are between 29 and 49, you will be considered an emerged artist and held to public scrutiny.

All other entrants are also welcome in our effort to build an anthropological repository via this casual survey of individuals in the Miami Arts Movement .

Our mission:

Swampspace Gallery exists to encourage individual participation in the advancement of the contemporary art by maintaining a visible presence in prime real-estate. Swampspace is a non-commercial entity dedicated to the dissemination of empowering principals for unrecognized artists seeking solace.

No idea is too small or defeat too big... so your comments at swampspace are a welcome treat.

The caviat:

Just as with the FB decency policy, we will not include really, truly offensive material.

Congrats to YOU,

everyone is a winner at swampspace.

wiki-KIWI-bonga

2011-02-18T07:55:00.000-08:00

Artic Attire Required

Winter in South Florida is our pay-off season. Day temperatures are tolerable and the cool nights are divine. One can easily spot snowbirds who flock here to get away from global warming by parading around our artzihoods in tee-shirts while locals dress conversely in bundled garb that suit their thinned blood. Where else but in the swamp can we enjoy art mid winter al fresco.

Legendary Delaplaine and Norma Jean

During the latest Art Crawl, at the newly minted KIWI Gallery in Wynwood, it was easy to tell "whos who" but the pressing question was "who is what".

Fame by Frame

The inaugural exhibition at this latest of bandwagon galleries is titled Warhol + Indiana, the fine art photograph by William John Kennedy of pop art giants in their early days when everyone was undiscovered and really really interesting. Four decades later Kennedy has compiled a picture story in black and white and read all over. In my small mind Andy is an art god... Indiana not so much.

Here is a portrait of the very Kennedyesque William John back when film was king and cool came from within not without.

Kennedy's work chronicled his times with uncanny sensitivity and honesty, as did another great photographer Bruce Davidson.

2011 Kennedy still kickin' it with our very own voluptuous art world ambassador DM Baptiste.

Wizard of Gloss

To get the party started local SOBE legend Louis Canales brought us Joey Arias of Billy Holiday channeling legend. Joey is an old pal and when he taps his 6 inch heels three times, party goers are transported to her Kansas, a place where dreams come from.

Real Girls Crispi, Merle and DM..

Mrs. Swampthing shares beauty secrets with the hired help.

Joey Arias hams it up with incurable gallery goers.

While Wynwood wallows in the sultry excesses of popular attention and illusive revenue , it should not be unsettling to observe the now reliable barometers of gentrification. The scripted stages pique predictably in an ever shrinking cycle aptly heretofore unnamed. I call it YesInMyBackyardism.

ready, set, LaunchArte

2011-02-06T04:28:00.000-08:00

The Miami Design District Greens is hosting a open-air street scene for day-time wanderers.

Stroll among the Artistic Vendors and munch from a selection of popular Food Trucks, every Saturday from sunrise to sunset.

My rooster may be MIA but the Launch Arte Market is here to stay!

Young Arts 2011

2011-01-27T16:38:00.000-08:00

Heady Hitters

With regard to art, one could argue that Miami is still in a gestative stage, but you would not know it when visiting the Martin Z. Margulies Warehouse. Margulies is one of the few paleontologic collectors responsible for the oft indescribable Miami Arts Movement. He is a savior of the swamp.

Medicart

The collection is awe inspiring with a wealth of art spanning decades. This scene of the "superhero nursing home" is one of my all time favorites and rather poignant as i grapple with my own aging mother.

Crowd Pleasers

Recently Marti's Warehouse was once again the site for the gathering of interested parties from the annual Young Arts Week courtesy of the National Foundation for the Advancement of the Arts.

Silhouettes of Smiles

And what a week it was for 150 high school seniors from across this great nation. Each year the best of the best are brought together to celebrate their achievements and usher in the next generation of artist, writers, musicians, performers and photographers. They all stay at the airport marriott for a week of performances and exhibitions that are real crowd pleasers. They also "compete" for the prestigious Presidential Scholars Award.

Wellspring

So into the tunnel of infinite possibilities and promise we go.

Here are just a few vignettes from the 2010 finalists visual arts exhibit.

Swamperfect

This photo 100% dreamy.

Points of Lumens

The NFAA Young Arts program and the Margulies Collection are a very good fit.

As the night wore on the lights were dimmed to a twinkle and the comfort seeing firsthand the manifestations of a collective effort in the part of key individuals that has enabled Miami to morph into an Arts Awakening for the betterment of our community beams like a beacon.

Phallic Foundations

Margulies is on of the Cultural Pillars that buttress the Tropical Lean-to that is Miami.

December Art Crawl

2010-12-25T17:06:00.000-08:00

Friends of MAM

The Miami Arts Movement is in no apparent rush in the aftermath of Basel 2010. Like Russell Crowe in the film "a beautiful mind" our bewildered community has morphed into a schizophrenic prodigy. And like any good cypher, decoding the cryptic crossword puzzle that is the Miami Arts Movement will take a Mt St Hellen of hackers. Simply put, is it possible to formulate a cohesive analysis from within? I don't think so.

Design Desert

This post may be a bit tardy but what's the rush when the mayhem and frenzy of ArtWeek 2010 gives way to tumble weeds and dust bunnies of the swamp.

Wreck the Halls

Wynwood Second Saturday was a scuttle of locals and first-time art enthusiasts of inditerminate origin. The wandering crowds behaved predictably with the now scripted kabuki that galleries foster. There were some notable observations and anomalies worth e-ink. Here goes.

Stranger than Faction

The caliber of street art has risen to the level of intrigue with mind-bending monumental sanctioned murals.

Dorsch Doors

While several of the blue-chip were predictably closed for the Artwalk, others were opened in what can be characterized as auto-pilot openings.

Mash Up n Down

There is something captivating around every corner. With no shortage of talent and a willing mass of property owners eager to avoid getting bombed, murals are going up constantly.

Going Golen

The Harold Golen Gallery is a precious rhinestone in the pirates booty of Wynwood galleries. I love Harold's keen eye for the best low-brow stuff available. He is a soldier and an admiral in the cultural war.

Sinatra Smarts

Great new york city vignette mural at the Goldman wall, can't say who did it?

501 See

The Catch is a not-for-profit collaborative endeavor brought to us by a group of very enterprising DASH seniors. Well worth the visit on the next go-round in January. Here are some scenes from the grand opening of the CATCH...

Angels with dirty faces, the Kids are all right.

Decaff Comish

The Question is, How did they manage to get off-duty Commissioner Sally Heyman to park her coffee truck out front? She has a commendable voting record and reps my district w likeminded principle so I would do an entire post on this but best not to rattle the forces that be. Suffice to say for a lady that peddles my all-time fave elixir, she has a big problem w second hand smoke... even in windy wynwood outdoors. The truck and it's trafficer could use a bit of paint-staking upgrade, if you know what i mean.

Spino enjoys a cup of java with gallery goers.

Butter did good with this whimsical piece. again who did this?

Kill the Book

The "book tree show" though very impressive on the level of ambition and panache, is particularly disturbing for anyone who actually respects the bricks and mortar of literature. This is a disturbing show that relies heavily on the demise of literacy in the age of information. If these popular works are an attempt to put humpty-bookty back together, then it fails not just environmentally but also mentally responsibly. I actually like the assemblages but left the moneyed gallery with a sense of morbidity for intellect in general.

OMGallery

This place takes the cake. You know the routine, intrepid venues lay the groundwork, flashy vapid bandwagoneers follow.

Food Truck Art Mess 2010

Mrs Swampthing Approved

2010-12-09T05:40:00.000-08:00

Grolsch, USA

Proud Sponsor of the Swampspace Gallery

Wishing You a Merry Holiday Season

The proprietor would like to thank the Grolsch Girls for their visit,

making the Kissing Booth Show a smooching succcess.

riot @ kissing booth

2010-12-03T09:48:00.001-08:00

Candyland

The ether of the Design District was aglow last night with transcendent splendor of Friend With You park and N.E.R.D. concert. Eager spectators waited in line for some time with the aim of getting inside but Fire Marshal Bill kept many out back over at swampspace craning their heads over the event fence.

The Menu

ABMB - 2010

The Kissing Booth Show at Swampspace Gallery

A Fundraiser for Design and Architecture Senior High

Bocaditosamplers

--------------

1. Pity Kiss Pay Any Price

2. Nerdy Teeth Bump 1.oo

3. Peck on the Cheek 1.oo

4. Smack on the Lips 2.oo

5. Hollywood Smacker 3.oo

6. Brown Nose Smooch 4.oo

7. Hit and Run 5.oo

8. Rock Slobber 6.oo

9. Euro Air Kiss 5.oo

10. Alien Mind Meld 5.oo

11. French Chocolate Market Price

12. Blessing on the Forehead 1.oo

*All kisses include a Breath Mint and a Sanitary Wipe.

**Complimentary Grolsch Beer While Supply Lasts.

The kitchen ran out of French Chocolate so curious participants attempted a sample of the Nerdy Tooth Bump ...

Things got feathery when Johnny the resident rooster awoke to peck his way up the plank of honest recreation by selling a few Pecks on the Cheek.

Polaroid moment for unidentified visitors...

It's One Leg Up for Robert Meatball after a few good stiff drinks from down the street...

At half past midnight Dear Rain Drop watched the fence come down...

Ethereal Park

At day break the scent of grolsch and wet heat quickly evaporated to lift the veil of night from a new day of sophisticated walking in a new pair of Natives.

Low and Behold

It takes twin Clydesdales to parade about on this Humdinger of a carriage for another day in the Basel Bonanza.

The Kissing Booth Show

2010-11-20T04:34:00.000-08:00

FOR IMMEDIATE RELIEF 11/20/2010

Who: SWAMPSPACE Gallery

What: The "KISSING BOOTH" Show

When: Opening December 1, 2010 (closing Dec.15)

Where: 3821 N.E. First Court Miami, Florida 33137

Calling All Smoochers

Join Swampspace Gallery to celebrate the romantic nostalgia of love with the much anticipated "Kissing Booth" show, featuring artworks by Kenny Scharf and Oliver Sanchez. Kissing Booths were light spirited attractions at carnivals and fairs of days gone by. On the surface these contraptions were used to tantalize and loosen our pockets. They are sentimental relics with an enduring practical purpose. Reviving their benevolent tradition, the Kissing Booth show is a fundraiser benefiting the students of Design and Architecture Senior High school. But the gallery installation like the "Eternal Kiss" is much much more.

Love is Blue

In 1907 sculptor Constantin Brancusi took a chunk of stone and with a few simple cuts, transformed the rock into an iconic sculpture. With the canons of amour that preceded him, Brancusi illustrated the soulful power of this singular carnal contact. His work serves as a constant reminder that there is no substitute for kissing. Chiming in with salacious intent, the very kissable Bob Hope once said "People who throw kisses are mighty hopelessly lazy". At the risk of smothering the flames of the kiss, the huggable Confucius proclaimed, "Kissing is like drinking sea water. You drink, and your thirst increases". Today many find themselves at the crossroads of emotions. With salty tears we proceed along the paths of contentedness and despair. The intimacy of a kiss shared by two being in a single space in time is like happiness, it feels best when you give it to someone else.

Pucker Up

During the festivities of the prestigious ABMB 2010 art fair and the sophisticated reveling in the Miami Design District, one destination certain to be unique and uncouth is the Kissing Booth.

Whet Your Whistle with a swampy cold beer, compliments of Grolsch USA.

a Swampsky opening

2010-11-05T04:35:00.000-07:00

Swampspace Gallery

presents

"Sky's The Limit"

Alvaro Ilizarbe

aka

Freegums

This new work portrays our cultures' indulgence of guilty pleasures through entertainment.

Opens November 13th 7-11pm

3821 NE 1 Court

Miami Design District

This show will feature a large scale projection of clips of American pastimes and Juke songs

that are layered and mixed into dance music videos.

The artist is superimposed on the video embracing the moment by dancing and celebrating.

The video strives to satisfy our never-ending desire to have fun and be entertained, invoking a feeling of momentary fulfillment.

October Terror Alert

2010-10-08T04:20:00.000-07:00

Who Turned the Sun Off

Now that the summer is over and the sun is setting for a new season of tourism and terror, get out and enjoy the chilling nights of October's Art Walk in South Florida.

Spinello's House of Execution

Check out the marc chagall of the swamp.
Go see the creepi-crawly fantastic paintings of Farley Aguilar at Spinello Gallery.

Out on the Town for a Bite of Culture

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another Swampy opening

2010-09-29T04:18:00.000-07:00

SWAMPSPACE GALLERY
is proud to present

GINGERSNAP
by
Samuel Lopez De Victoria

Opening Saturday October 9th 6-12pm

3821 NE 1 Court
Miami Design District

*

“Don't sweat the petty things and don't pet the sweaty things”
George Carlin

*

Artist Note:

An illustration and interactive art show dedicated to everyone's past pets, Gingersnap licks your heart with fish and hamster hands. Either lost, in a better place, or with someone else former pets gain recognition for their instinctual efforts of having some affect on a life.

Gingersnap features the work of:

Samuel Lopez De Victoria
Devin U. Caserta
Sebastian Castro
and more (to be announced)

In part Gingersnap is sponsored by Interactive Initiative, a foundation focused on facilitating the interactive arts.

My Pet Cock

Recently disappeared from the hood, never to be forgotten, Randy Rooster, where are you?

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September ArtCrawl

2010-09-15T19:28:00.000-07:00

Turtle Traffic

As Miami gets re-constructed in anticipation for this years tourist season and much ballyhooed ArtBaselMiamiBeach, there are several questions local artists want answered.

Who will give them a show?
What do they have to do to get a show?
When will they get a show?
Where can they show?

Locust Projects Goes Swampy

Break-Through Miami
Valerie Hegarty

Romance with Erosion

But if there's an erosion at home, you know, Thomas Jefferson warned about a tyranny of an oligarchy and if we surrender our democracy to the tyranny of an oligarchy, we've made a terrible mistake.
Pat Robertson

I wish the press were paying more attention to the erosion of the Constitution and the slippery slope that we're getting into, by giving up the right of the Congress to talk about when and how and where we go to war.
Barbara Lee
If you look over the course of a hundred years, I think the gradual erosion of the consensus that's held our country together is probably more serious than a few bearded terrorists who fly into buildings.
Pat Robertson

Proto Synthesis

Biaophelia by Nellie Appleby
More swampiness at Dimensions Variable

*

Star of TYPOE

"Bang Bang" at Spinello

An open letter from actor Jon Voight to President Obama:
June 22, 2010

President Obama: You will be the first American president that lied to the Jewish people, and the American people as well, when you said that you would defend Israel, the only Democratic state in the Middle East, against all their enemies. You have done just the opposite. You have propagandized Israel, until they look like they are everyone's enemy — and it has resonated throughout the world. You are putting Israel in harm's way, and you have promoted anti-Semitism throughout the world. You have brought this to a people who have given the world the Ten Commandments and most laws we live by today. The Jewish people have given the world our greatest scientists and philosophers, and the cures for many diseases, and now you play a very dangerous game so you can look like a true martyr to what you see and say are the underdogs. But the underdogs you defend are murderers and criminals who want Israel eradicated. You have brought to Arizona a civil war, once again defending the criminals and illegals, creating a meltdown for good, loyal, law-abiding citizens. Your destruction of this country may never be remedied, and we may never recover. I pray to God you stop, and I hope the people in this great country realize your agenda is not for the betterment of mankind, but for the betterment of your politics. With heartfelt and deep concern for America and Israel,

Jon Voight
(pops is as stupid as his daughter Angelina Jolie is stunning)

Flier Fly Girls
Scene at Swampspace

Forever Young

After his death last year, self-taught artist Purvis Young left behind a treasure trove of outsider art. He also left his studio unchanged for the fortunate self-taught artist Juan Rozas to have access to. Both have painted on discarded objects as their canvases, including doors, cardboard, and pieces of wood. Rozas draws his inspiration from the passionate Purvis, his work and his spirit, forever young.

*

Ingenious Gentleman

2010-09-05T20:18:00.000-07:00

Swampspace Gallery

presents

Juan Rozas

Q U I X O T I S M

Where the Air and the Land Meet Forever

Opening September 11, 2010

7-11 -pm

If we are in the final throes of the golden age of Miami's Art Awakening then Juan Rozas may well be the Don Quixote of the swamp. His work is both ingenious and melancholy. In his impractical pursuit of ideals manifested by rash, lofty, romantic and chivalrous actions, Rozas offers us an idealism without regard for practicality. His lucid brand of expression does not take consequence or absurdity into account. South Florida is a place where the sky and the land meet forever, a place where a young bohemian from Buenos Aires, having met innkeepers, prostitutes, goatherds, soldiers, priests, escaped convicts, and scorned lovers, reveals Miami as both magical and mundane.

PocketCamera

2010-07-13T18:25:00.000-07:00

Shot on site at the grand opening of M*T Your Pockets

Hats off to Randy the Rooster for making folks feel at home in the swamp...

*

pocket of lollipops

2010-06-26T10:46:00.000-07:00

Friday, June 25, 2010

SWAMPSPACE GALLERY
presents

M*T Your Pockets
by
Maitejosune Urrechaga and Tony Kapel

opening July 10

Performance by Pocket of Lollipops at 9pm

Miami Design District
Art Walk - Second Saturdays

*

wyndesignartzywood district

2010-06-26T10:45:00.000-07:00

Sunday, May 9, 2010

Art Parking

In a rush to "accommodate" the throngs of happy galley goers, Miami Parking Authority is scrambling to waste more of our diminishing tax dollars by replacing perfectly good meters with newer meters... the old ones get transplanted to neighborhoods where previously there were non. It appears that every square inch of public space has been appropriated by the MPA in a scheme to broaden their revenue stream. No matter folks will flock to where ever there is something of interest that does that does not involve going to the mall.

Scharflight Night

When our monster sun sets on the latin manhattan, creatures of the swamp come out for some courting and cavorting among the potpourri crowd of gallery going winers, diners and gentrifyers. We meld in the blue light of the red dot districts.

Lawful Assembly

Like a menstruating metropolis, Art Walk Second Saturdays brings out the blob of believers in what a culture of art appreciation can do for a community.

At the Tit of Creativity

They drink with desire from the well of swollen plenty. There is so much great art on view each month. Where does it come from, where does it go when the shows close only to open next month with new works. Is it more of same? Mostly yah, but art appreciation is a first hand experience, something old may be new to you.

Beat the Boob Tube

Lazy is as lazy does. Why stay home watching the bandit-box or facebooking when you can get out there for some genuine face-time. Tell yourself that next month you're gonna go to art crawl.

Gone Golen

A real crowd-pleaser Harold Golen is the insiders outside art specialist and king of monster Kaiju. consistent great shows are guaranteed.

Get Love Lucky

It's plucky when you get lucky and you win at the game of courtship. a quite moment with that someone soon to be special is a rare thing at artwalk, but love happens.

Oh My Golly Wop

At the intersection of diet blvd and snitzel drive, Pockets Full of Lollypops enjoy the blasting sun at sound check. Who went to Churchills on Sunday for the Ladies Night of Mayhem?

More Couples for Art

Mr. Alvaro and Jen are f*ckin cute, but no this is not rehearsal for a Thai wedding, they are checking out an artist books and other relics currently at swampspace.

Yes there are many gallery hoppers just out for the free beer and cheese and chicks, but there are also many respectable lovers and creators of art that can be counted on to grace the fine art establishments from the hallowed halls of museums to the diminutive galleries that dot the heart of miami's art neighborhoods. But foot traffic is not enough, art establishments need real patrons, people that will put their wallets where their taste for art is.

Mr. and Mrs. Patrons

Love the Miners of miami springs. I always make sure to have plenty of fried chicken and swampy punch on hand for my patrons and stragglers that wander in search of free stuff. Like a master haitian drummer, once sufficiently nourished and lubricated, she began to perform by telling us all her dirty jokes.

Please Sir, Can We Have Some More

Meanwhile up with the ivory towers of DWNTWN where some important announcements are professed. Congrats to the 41 finalists, condolences for the 900 losers of the Knight Arts Challenge 2010.

*

Sixo de Mayo

2010-06-26T10:43:00.000-07:00

Friday, May 7, 2010

Other Swampy Opening...

City Link has the Murmur on Art Walk for tomorrow night.

Re-viva La Revolusion

Congratulations to the People of California and Mexico on the day after the celebration of their independence from... who was it again?

AztecoMayacun Village

Have a Kahlua or a Virgin Margarita... but don't get too sloppy.

El Borracho

We've had enough SPILLS recently, you will have to clean-up after your own personal mess.

Dia de las Madres 2010

Paintings by Adolfo Sanchez

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ARS RIP

2010-06-26T10:42:00.000-07:00

Sunday, May 2, 2010

Swampspace Gallery

presents

ADOLFO RENE SANCHEZ
(1957-1990)
an incomplete archive

In Loving Memory of My Dear Brother Who Died of Aids Twenty Years Ago.

Opens May 8th 6-12pm

NYC circa 1984

Before computers, man-made killer viruses and all the "progress" that has transpired, there were happy days when the biggest worry two young Cuban brothers from Miami had was how to pay the $350. rent on a giant four room apartment in the Upper West Side.
Guess what, we paid the rent by selling art. We lived like princes with dirty faces.

Drawing Comes Easy

What is it that drives people to make art?
If it is Beauty, Humor and Social Relevance then they are on the right track to a thorny fulfillment.
Art is the most powerful force on Earth.

Love Made Him Do It

Painting is probably the most challenging of approaches to artistic expression.
There is nothing more intimidating than a blank canvas staring back at you asking to be transformed for some greater good. To tap ones stream of consciousness is to connect with the power and illusion of the spirit world. Adolfo was driven by the passion of an indescribably hungry spirit he possessed. He nourished it like the champion of creativity the that he was.

W.H.O. Knows.

But something (not) funny happened on the way to the forum and all hell broke loose. Where did the Human Immunodeficiency Virus come from? Where did it go? How many more will die from Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome?
The World Health Organization may have some answers but who cares.

Self Portrait 1984

Most people live a long incidental life. They seldom take chances. Few will challenge the ancient rituals of creative experssion. They will not go there for their minds fear the awakening of the self to a state of being. Our minds want to be in charge of our every waking moment so that we focus on the past and the future. But it is the being that most honestly understands and reflects what life is about, it's about the Now.

In other words, Less Thinking More Feeling.
This is what Adolfo was about.

Inscription For A Gravestone

I am not dead, I have only become inhuman:
That is to say,
Undressed myself of laughable prides and infirmities,
But not as a man
Undresses to creep into bed, but like an athlete
Stripping for the race.
The delicate ravel of nerves that made me a measurer
Of certain fictions
Called good and evil; that made me contract with pain
And expand with pleasure;
Fussily adjusted like a little electroscope:
That's gone, it is true;
(I never miss it; if the universe does,
How easily replaced!)
But all the rest is heightened, widened, set free.
I admired the beauty
While I was human, now I am part of the beauty.
I wander in the air,
Being mostly gas and water, and flow in the ocean;
Touch you and Asia
At the same moment; have a hand in the sunrises
And the glow of this grass.
I left the light precipitate of ashes to earth
For a love-token.

Robinson Jeffers

Samanthrax Gozlan

2010-06-26T10:41:00.001-07:00

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

S W A M P S P A C E G A L L E R Y

is pleased to announce

MILK, HONEY, (whatever) and MONEY

by Samanthrax Gozlan

April 10th * 6-11 pm

Second Saturday Art Walk Design District

unsubscribe here

What the Anthroposophy?

“The basis of artistic creation is not what is, but what might be; not the real, but the possible. Artists create according to the same principles as nature, but they apply them to individual entities, while nature, to use a Goethean expression, thinks nothing of individual things. She is always building and destroying, because she wants to achieve perfection, not in the individual thing, but in the whole.” Rudolf Steiner

Wannman & Latimer

2010-06-26T10:39:00.000-07:00

Tuesday, January 12, 2010

Swampspace Gallery

is pleased to present the first show of 2010

Something Near, Somewhere Far

by
Azura Wånnman and Walter Latimer

Opening Reception Saturday January 16, 2010 6-11pm

Cool Nights at Miami Design District Hot Spots.

Also same night openings at Locust Projects, Spinnelo Gallery, Dimensions Variable, Bass-Fisher International, and more.

Seek and You Shall Find.

All these two DASH luminaries did to get a show at swampspace was ask.

basel bonanza closing

2010-06-26T10:37:00.000-07:00

Sunday, December 6, 2009

Movies about the art world are almost always really boring. It was not easy to make a film about an artist like Jean Michele Basquait, but Julian Schnabel did a very nice job. It is near impossible to paint an accurate picture of all that transpires in Miami during Art Basel Week but some one ought to chronicle what might be called the Ultimate Artzyfest.

Ask anyone, art should be left to the professionals. Swiss cheese may be full of holes but there are no people more skilled at nurturing a growing world of art makers and appreciators than the Basel organizers. It takes a willingness... and wads of cheese.

Art Miami Fair display was several notches above your average arts & crafts street fairs. The dirt on canvas Basquit portrait was one of many varied works that compelled a respectable crowd to see more. And more there was all over town from north beach to downtown and moral gables.

There are basically three kinds of works, The Good, The Very Good and The Drop Dead Great Stuff. Many clever works using optical illusions were show stopping clever. This tunnel was no more flat than the swamp is, but it's schtick has staying power.

Back at the Big Show, unsuspecting firstimers are always taken aback when turning a corner and are suddenly face to face with these gems of illusionary quirk. I want one.

Over at Scope Art Fair this unfortunate chap is either someones grandpa, a collector, or a piece of art. You pick.

The artist eyeballed, contemplates a shiny thing.

There may be an army of these flamboyant characters of just two, cause they seem to be everywhere at once. No they are not the reincarnation of the Scull Sisters, but definitely channeling the same great creative spirit.

Pixie with pigeon feet at the Big Show. Very cute bronze not to be taken lightly.

Over at the Art Asia, there were some fascinating works from our brethren from the far east, non more potent a symbol than this field of red from where the sun rises in the west.
Collectors who sunk a big chunk on Chinese art are still holding, waiting for foreign markets to wake up again.

Back at the Big Show for a second look-see, First Lady Michele Obama was spotted offering her blessings and assurance of plenty of parking to all Americans and Europeans travelers alike.

Up the beach to the Grolsch fueled NADA fair at the fountainbluish Deuville Hotel, local art community icons, Scott Murrey and Grela of Wet Heat Film Projects mingled nicely with other cutting edge gallerists from around the world here to offer their treasures to throngs of art lovers.

This painting at Scope is powerful in that it portrays the current condition in the art markets...
that being one of vaporized superheros where only the power-suits remain as a reminder to the viewer that even the invincible can be deflated by the almighty frivolity of the art world.

This clever piece at NADA speaks for itself. Love that.

You're gonna need gallons of Tang to get you through all the hoohaa of Art Week.
Giant Kenny Scharf canvas at The Big Show.

Perfectly Swampy photo collage at Art Miami. I want it.

Expanded PolystYrene was widely seen in use by a myriad of artist, including this elegant french gallery at Art Miami. I did not invent styrofoam but have been using it long enough to earn the title Prince of American Marble.

This rag-tag clan of artzy types had a great booth at Scope, I think they were living there for the week.

Street Art is everywhere and thanks to Tony Goldman and Jeffery Deitch much of the urban masterpieces on his Wynwood properties will not be subject to the county's insidious Sign Ordinance bushit. Graffiti is here to stay and not a century too soon. This is the new face of miami.

The City and Beaches really need to clean up their act. Traffic congestion due to the relentless road work was a cluster-flub of civic embarrassment and waisted time for many visitors on VIP schedules.

This install in Wynwood is so Miami it is swampy good.

Back in the old country they are still showing us how it's done.

For now until next year the art season in the swamp is closed, hurray for natives.

God Bless Art

Meanwhile Visit the Swampspace Gallery Cookie Show - open till December 20th.

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Home of the Min Treats

2010-06-26T07:51:00.001-07:00

Tuesday, December 1, 2009

Once Upon a Time in the Swamp...

On the occasion of Art Basel and Design Miami Fairs,
Swampspace Gallery
is please to announce the opening of
The Cookie Show
a foodie pop-up retail featuring the delicious
Min Treats Cookies.

MIN TREATS are Super HEALTHY, HOMEMADE, FULLY LOADED, oatmeal cookies made with organic and natural ingredients. Coconut oil increases your metabolism, Smart Balance lowers cholesterol and is high in Omega-3, Walnuts are high in Omega-3, Cranberries, GOJI BERRIES, and Chocolate are superb anti-oxidants. Unsweetened coconut is not only delicious, but is also good for you! Don’t forget the raisins!

So go on... be Guilt Free and INDULGE!!

The proceeds from this show will benefit Design and Architecture Senior High DASH.

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The Cookie Show

2010-06-26T07:48:00.000-07:00

Sunday, November 22, 2009

On the occasion of Art Basel and Design Miami Fairs,

Swampspace Gallery

is please to invite You to a Foodie Pop-up Retail featuring.

"Home of the MIN TREATS"

MIN TREATS are Super HEALTHY, HOMEMADE, FULLY LOADED, oatmeal cookies made with organic and natural ingredients. Coconut oil increases your metabolism, Smart Balance lowers cholesterol and is high in Omega-3, Walnuts are high in Omega-3, Cranberries, GOJI BERRIES, and Chocolate are superb anti-oxidants. Unsweetened coconut is not only delicious, but is also good for you! Don’t forget the raisins! So go on...don’t feel guilty, INDULGE!!

The proceeds from this show will benefit Design and Architecture Senior High.

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JUKEBOX hidef

2010-06-26T07:46:00.000-07:00

Friday, October 9, 2009

TJ AHEARN JUKEBOX (PLAYLIST)

Back In Black --AC/DC
Win, Lose or Draw --The Allman Brothers Band
Never My Love --The Association
Surfin' Safari --The Beach Boys
Surfer Girl --The Beach Boys
Fun, Fun, Fun --The Beach Boys
Good Vibrations --The Beach Boys
Dizzy Miss Lizzy --The Beatles
Black Sabbath --Black Sabbath
Strange Brew --Cream
Green River --Creedence Clearwater Revival
American Pie --Don McLean
Light My Fire --The Doors
L.A. Woman --The Doors
Touch Me --The Doors
The Golden Road (To Unlimited Devotion) --Grateful Dead
I'm Into Something Good --Herman's Hermits
Kozmic Blues --Janis Joplin
Shapes of Things --Jeff Beck
Good Shepherd --Jefferson Airplane
Plastic Fantastic Lover --Jefferson Airplane
Inside --Jethro Tull
Lola --The Kinks
New York Groove --KISS & Ace Frehley
In The Evening --Led Zeppelin
Ramble On --Led Zeppelin
Sweet Home Alabama --Lynyrd Skynyrd
Nights in White Satin --The Moody Blues
Cowgirl In The Sand --Neil Young (CSNY)
Because the Night --Patti Smith
Just Like Me --Paul Revere & The Raiders
See Emily Play --Pink Floyd
Handsome Johnny --Richie Havens
Paint It, Black --The Rolling Stones
Crazy Mama --The Rolling Stones
Midnight Rambler --The Rolling Stones
It's Only Rock 'n' Roll (But I Like It)--The Rolling Stones
Play With Fire --The Rolling Stones
In Every Dream Home a Heartache--Roxy Music
Love Is the Drug --Roxy Music
Soul Sacrifice --Santana
At The Zoo --Simon & Garfunkel
Born to Be Wild --Steppenwolf
Quicksilver Girl --Steve Miller Band
I Love You --Steve Miller Band
Paper Sun --Traffic
The Acid Queen --The Who
Roundabout --Yes
Mustang Sally --The Young Rascals
Sunlight --The Youngbloods

JUKEBOX by T J Ahearn

2010-06-26T07:43:00.000-07:00

Sunday, September 27, 2009

JUKEBOX
by T.J. Ahearn

The music spanning the Sixties and Seventies represents a dynamic shift in the cultural strata of western civilization and beyond. Rock 'n Roll the prevailing musical genre signifying that era remains embedded in our contemporary society -- to the point of banality as it is often co-opted for TV advertising and mass media. The evocative, imaginary scenes in the works in this show are ignited by the spark of the music's intent and flavor-- reflections on concepts of Utopianism, sexual liberation, spirituality, ecology, war resistance and other themes that continue to be relevant today.

The opening reception will feature live spinning by famed DJ Yard!!!

catalog with text by Gean Moreno

Libations courtesy of Grolsch usa

THIS IS A NICE TIME TO REINVENT YOURSELF.
GET YOUR COMPILATION CD NOW!
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HYPERCULTURE - Victor Muñiz

2010-06-26T07:42:00.000-07:00

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

swampspace gallery is pleased to present:

H Y P E R C U L T U R E
an installation by Victor Muñiz

Opening Reception Saturday August 29 6-12pm

Hyperculture refers to the staggering rate of change in modern technological societies. It is the condition of perpetual interregnum. In other words hyperculture is our constant state of being between knowing and feeling while information continues to flow with increasing volume. The rampant illnesses of our society--including the disintegration of the family, the degradation of the environment, unlimited commercialism, and unrelenting stress are familiar to us all.

Victor Muñiz examines the profundity of Hyperculture according to the Gaian hypothesis that the earth is a self-regulating organism. Can the same be said of information? Does it lead a life of its own or is it merely a disposable by-product of mass culture?

In the age of information, Muñiz is a terabit of talent.

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Also Visit the TM Sisters at Locust Projects.

"I was learning, watching people's reactions and interactions with the drawings and with me and looking at it as a phenomenon. Having this incredible feedback from people, which is one of the main things that kept me going so long, was the participation of the people that were watching me and the kinds of comments and questions and observations that were coming from every range of person you could imagine, from little kids to old ladies to art historians." Keith Haring 1984

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Brown is the New Green

2010-06-26T07:40:00.000-07:00

Monday, August 3, 2009

Swampspace Gallery : Soft Opening August 8th

Decommissioned.
Reconsidering the Chasms in Art Theory and New Urbanism.

Also Second Saturday Night Gallery Walk - Catch a Movie Premier on Lincoln Road.

Big Screen Opening Night at the Boobies.

Aiden Dillard filmaker is the Luis Bunuel of the bayou.
You will want to put some ketchup on your pop-corn when watching his latest film,
Death Print.
Likely not at a theater near you soon.

Swampy V.2.0

2010-06-26T07:39:00.001-07:00

Thursday, July 9, 2009

prettier than pea soup.

Well, if you still have not figured out what exactly is swampy, here is another clue.

Chunnel of Love

Your are traveling furious through a winding tunnel of candy aura... like a donut shaped mobius strip, you arrive at a primal place in your being. Like the cream mfilling in a donut you ask, "how did i get here......"

After the Show.

Anyways, Claudia Guerreiro is a big fan of Kenny Scharf and the Vomitdingleberry Movement Troup, thereby she thoroughly gets what is swampy.

The Next Show.

If you would like further clues, make this a 'don't miss' saturday night at design district art walk.

Get Out, Enjoy the Moon.

Most coincidentally, Claudia is BFF with the benevolent and immaculate Mrs. Swampting, so diva's man is obliged to be in attendance.

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Lucky Ones - ClaudiaGuerreiro

2010-06-26T07:37:00.001-07:00

Monday, July 6, 2009

Lucky Rabbit Stew

If your moon cycle revolves around Second Saturday's Gallery Walk in the swamp, then be sure to visit the SWAMPSPACE GALLERY located in the posh Design District near the Wynwood Arts Neighborhood.

Last month's inaugural show at SWAMPSPACE was the joyous birth pains of a new gallery. "what is swampy" was a resounding flub, so without reservations here is the announcement for our next show.

Swampspace is please to present the very seductive Sobe Girl Claudia Guerreiro.

THE LUCKY ONES

paintings by Claudia Guerreiro

A search for woman painters reveals a wealth of enlightenment for both sexes. We all benefit when women shape an art-world of their own. It's obvious to find names like, Louise Bourgeois and Louise Nevelson; two masters of illusion with craft. Then we gaze at Georgia O'Keeffe and Tamara de Lempicka; two masters of seduction with style. And who doesn't get the ripe obsessions of Helen Frankenthaler and Frida Kahlo; two masters of their unknown desires so well delivered in the poetry of Anais Nin.

But with no explanation it is Egon Scheile and Barbara Kruger that come to mind when enjoying the paintings of young Claudia. Naturally, your personal moment with Guerreiro's paintings may be very different.

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When it rains, that's swampy

2010-06-26T07:35:00.000-07:00

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

Ahmadinejad takes a smoke break with the sisters... Burnt Sienna, Raw Umber and mother superior.

Very swampy day today in the swamp. Good day to visit the swampspace gallery.

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a swampy fable

2010-06-26T07:34:00.001-07:00

Monday, June 15, 2009

a swampy fable

THE MOOSE, THE HYENA AND THE MONKEY

The old moose thought himself a gentleman but was more a curmudgeon. The Hyena was a spotty blond in the prime of her adolescence. The Monkey was a descendant of ape royalty, but mostly just plain ripe from a life of sloth and mischief.

The three lived in captivity comfortably since birth at the Metro Zoo on the edge of the Florida Everglades. Not knowing the hardships of life in the wild, they yearned with instinct for adventure in the great microcosms beyond the confines of the zoo. At night the Zoo keepers would watch Netflix movies and the animals would lay awake in their respective dens and listen to the stories told. One of Moose's favorite films was The Great Escape with Steve McQueen, Hyena's favorite was Cameron Diaz in Charley's Angels and it was no secret that Monkey wanted to be just like Jim Carrey in The Mask.

One day as the tropical storm season neared the three were hanging out rather bored and got to joking about breaking out of the Zoo to see firsthand what the big world was all about. The conversation suddenly got serious when the shifty Monkey challenged Moose's mettle. The Hyena, who was reading the New Times newspaper , suddenly proclaimed the headline "Hurricane Wilma Makes Landfall Tonight". They all looked at each other and thought of past storms like Andrew when other animals had escaped and wandered off into the swamp or the bright lights of downtown. Bored and naive they quickly hatched a plan to escape that night but could not agree on where to go once out.

The Moose always wanted to go to Key West for that old-world Hemingway charm. Hyena naturally had a nose for the nocturnal thrills of South Beach. Monkey, though having family that would take him in at Monkey Jungle, decided to go to West Palm Beach to hobnob with the affluent. As the storm bore down on South Florida they made a mad dash for the battered gates. After a treacherous hike through the windy rains, debris and darkness they found shelter in an empty MetroRail station. The next morning they bid farewell and parted ways for their favored destination.

Once there Moose was startled by hordes of overdeveloped tourists buying tee-shirts and sweet frozen drinks in fake coconuts. Finally his prudishness was confounded by the freakishness of Fantasy Fest. The next morning, with moldy indignation, Moose lumbered back to the Zoo.

Meanwhile our lass Hyena was soon basking in the bacchanal of Miami's Riviera with eyes bigger than her tummy and soon the room began to spin like a dervish. She awoke on the sandy beach in the jaws of a slimy land shark. With her shrieking pleas and the shark’s growl, she was gnawed to bits and left for bait on the shore.

Mister Monkey Prince grabbed some nice pants at a laundromat then made his way hitching rides northbound to Phillips Point Private Golf Club inthe spoils of West Palm Beach. He managed to make his way into the clubhouse where members were mingling at a fundraiser. No one would talk to him at first, the snoots were snubbing him! But with his big-talk, pedigee and balderdash, he was soon made a distinguished member. No one ever discovered he had made a home in the stables with his new confidants, the polo horses.

People like what they are used to.

venetian water feature

2010-06-26T07:31:00.000-07:00

Here in the swamp while some folks are busy raising their children, others are off to the Venice Biennale Art Fair in the old country.

MIA, NY and LA are the art-worlds ghost towns for the time being. Any one who is somebody and every other half-a-name is somewhere else predisposed with avoiding the rainy season.

Why do art freaks flock all the way to Europe for art among the waterways and canals that make Venice world famous...

... when they can just stay here in Miami and get all the Venetian splendor with swampy charm at reduced rates. Todays rain storm caused every kind of urban disruption imaginable but it also produced an awesome rainbow. With heavy flooding of our sea level town comes a damp reminder of what exactly is the nature of our South Floridian diorama, a place where water can reach up to your hi-knees at times.

So it is apt that a new art gallery in the Design District is called SWAMPSPACE.

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What is Swampy

2010-06-26T07:29:00.000-07:00

Just when you thought there could no more bandwagon art galleries ...
swampthing is piqued to provide museum quality walls for unworthy art.

Who:
SWAMPSPACE is pleased to join the community of fine arts galleries in Miami's Design District with its inaugural opening titled "What is SWAMPY".

What:
With a focus on themes such as beauty, humor and social relevance, SWAMPSPACE welcomes both casual visitors and seasoned art lovers to enjoy thought-provoking art installations concerning the esthetic of life in the urban tropics.

When:
Monthly Gallery Walk Second Saturdays
June through December 2009

Where:
3821 NE 1 Court
Miami, FL 33137

Why:
Because life in the swamp without art is still worth living... but it would be uneventfully greige.

Contact:
Swampstyle@gmail.com

OPEN CALL FOR ARTIST - Please inquire HERE.

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