The New Negro Escapist Social and Athletic Club (Emmett) by Rashid Johnson

Brooklyn-based artist Rashid Johnson is making some noise in the art world—from New York to Chicago to Miami. Earlier this year The New York Times profiled the artist for his first solo show, “Rumble,” and he’s one of six finalists in the running for the 2012 Hugo Boss Prize, the winner of which will receive a $100,000 art stipend from the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation.

His largest solo show to date, “Message to Our Folks,” recently debuted in Chicago and is now on view at the Miami Art Museum (MAM). Works nod to American and African American icons like W.E.B. Du Bois and Miles Davis, with juxtapositions to everyday items like books, mirrors, plants, and records. MAM chief curator Tobias Ostrander describes this combination as an “unusual vocabulary of materials and innovative mixing of diverse forms and cultural references.” He goes on to tout Johnson as “one of the most vital and interesting artists working today.”

Art enthusiasts already familiar with Johnson will be happy to see works from ongoing series’, such as the artist’s melted black soap and wax abstract works (Cosmic Slops), fictional portraits of a secret African American elitist society (The New Negro Escapist Social and Athletic Club), and “shelf sculptures” made of found objects. Through November 14, 2012. 101 W. Flagler St.  Miami, 305-375-3000