By: Alexa Shabinsky By: Alexa Shabinsky | November 29, 2021 | Culture,
The Wynwood Walls have been a significant location in Miami’s ever-evolving art scene. In honor of Miami Art Week, we had the chance to catch up with Jessica Goldman Srebnick, CEO of Goldman Global Arts and Curator of Wynwood Wall to discuss this year’s Art Week plans, the Wynwood Walls, and the future of the Miami art scene.
The Wynwood Walls is an outdoor museum located in the heart of Wynwood, bringing together some of the world’s greatest artists in the graffiti and street art genre.
See also: Your Guide To Miami Art Week And Art Basel 2021
The city is gearing up for a major celebration of art, following a year and a half of the pandemic. When asking Goldman Srebnick how she thinks the art community was affected over the course of the last several months, her answer reveals the hope and commitment the community has been through. “Truthfully, when we closed down when everything stopped in March of 2020, I really thought that the art market was going to suffer for quite some time and that it would take a long time to kind of see the light at the end of the tunnel.” she continued, “We're seeing an incredible resurgence in the art market, and a real interest and excitement. I think people recognize the importance of art and culture to human existence, and I think it's been pretty spectacular.”
With a theme every year for Miami Art Week, the Wynwood Walls have revealed their 2021 theme as, Agents Of Change. Goldman Srebnick explained that the themes give the curators and the artists the chance to discuss things that are important to them while also staying true to the time that they are living in. This year’s theme gives the opportunity to look back on the year 2021, which has been a year of reflection, challenge and decisions. “This concept, this idea of agents of change; artists have always been agents of change, they use their talents to get people to think differently, or change the environments in which they're in. So, I feel like this is a really beautiful, hopeful message that really anybody can be an agent of change,” Goldman Srebnick noted.
As a pinnacle location in Miami, there is no better place to have chosen such a moving theme. For anyone who has gone to the Wynwood Walls, the art is inspiring and moving. Goldman Srebnick is aware of the impact the Wynwood Walls has on our community, as she stated, “Wynwood Walls have always been a creative canvas for all kinds of people, not just artists, but even the visitors who are there to hopefully be inspired and to have incredible experiences or memories. The hope is that they'll walk away, wanting to make a positive difference in the world in whatever way that they can.”
This year’s Wynwood Walls class of 2021 features some of the most standout graffiti and street artists of our generation. The lineup includes artists from many cultural backgrounds and styles of art including, AIKO, Diogo “Addfuel” Machado, Bordalo ii, David Flores, Scott Froschauer, Joe Iurato, KAI, Kayla Mahaffey, Mantra, Ernesto Maranj, Greg Mike and Farid Rueda.
For the first time in history, the Wynwood Walls hosted an open call competition, to give the opportunity to a local artist. The team at the Wynwood Walls was so excited with the participants and their mural concepts, remarking that the artist community in Miami is advancing at an amazing pace, with even better talent. “You can live in South Florida and make a living as a really fantastic artist, it wasn't it wasn't always that way.” Goldman Srebnick continued, “My hope is that Wynwood and the Wynwood Walls has something to do with that.”
Agents of Change at the Wynwood Walls will be both a moving and inspiring exhibit part of Miami Art Week this year. Although Miami Art Week officially ends on December 5, the murals will be up at the Wynwood Walls through next year.
Photography by: Courtesy Nick Garcia, Goldman Properties