Friday, February 14, 2014

Street Art Big Time In Miami

If you live in Miami, or visiting same for a reasonable amount of time, you are very likely to notice that "street art" or "graffiti" has become a major attraction... bringing scores of pedestrians, and the traffic that brought them, into the former neglected, low rent industrial north part of downtown Miami now called Wynwood. And it should be. It is the grandest outdoor show of the talents of many of the greatest "street art" artists in the world, covering buildings for over 50, square blocks. It has become more accepted by the public, and through them by those who control the streets & walls. Very definitely something to see. For a sample of what you would see check out my video of the Wynwood street art during Basil Miami 2011art happening.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vOT0Zzw0-kg&feature=youtu.be

What irony.  Fifteen or so years ago, l published a piece in my e zine on my website (sohobooks.net/graffitiobserver/archives/miamiartmassacre} showing very accomplished street art on a great number of buildings in the area now known as Wynwood, and the very same buildings with the street art painted out, before & after...with the after showing slivers of the former artworks at the top & bottom of walls painted out, where the "killers'" paint brushes hadn't quite blotted out the work that once was there. Around the same time, one of the MSG group's members was arrested for his graffiti work. But l must give a lot of credit to the local Miami Fox channel's show "Deco Drive" for doing a segment on my then recently released street art book along with MSG members painting a magnificent Alice In Wonderland mural. they were painting on a 29X100 foot wall on N13th Street, Miami, a derelict area at that time; a passerby was asked about the mural, essentially work that gets graffiti artists arrested for. He said it helped to beautify the area & he appreciated having it in his neighborhood. It took awhile for That man's sensibility to get across, but thankfully, it did.

It also should be mentioned here that the" New Times" website has a great article about the current street art scene in Wynwood