Miami musicians are experiencing an unprecedented lack of venues as real estate speculation continues to price people out of the urban core. Thankfully, a few intrepid art spaces are filling the void by hosting shows and unique performances that blend visual art with sound.
At Locust Projects last month, the International Noise Conference hosted a truly unique program. The annual event focused on performance art and avant-garde and noise music lost its original home at Churchill's Pub when the venerable dive closed during the pandemic. Seeing it go on at Locust's new space is heartening, to say the least. Although there were plenty of bracing, abrasive performances to be heard, my favorite conjured the most unpleasantly omnipresent source of noise in all of our lives: our social media timelines. Artist Coltrane MacKendrick laid on the cold ground wrapped in a blanket and "doomscrolled" through their TikTok timeline with the phone hooked up to the sound system for all to hear.
More sophisticated, yet still aesthetically unpolished, was a collaboration between artist Alberto Checa and musician Nick León at Oolite Arts, part of the opening festivities for Checa's exhibition "Between Two Suns." As León DJed a sound collage of ambient tracks and local radio stations, picking up salsa and reggaetón, Checa and assistants built a makeshift sound system using poured PVC plaster usually reserved for the artist's day job working on boats. The performance spoke to the resilience and creativity of the Caribbean and Latin working classes that keep Miami afloat — literally in the case of the wealthy boat owners for whom Checa has worked.
There were other performances that I sadly wasn't able to attend. DJ Pressure Point anchored an activation of Gary Simmons' "Recapturing Memories of the Black Ark" at Pérez Art Museum Miami, while Jonny From Space and Mauricio, the Invisible, anchored a "Miami sound" edition of First Fridays at the Institute of Contemporary Art, Miami. Art institutions often have the resources and clout to support projects like these; let's hope we can see more of them in the future.
In March, notable art events and openings include a Miami native's exhibition of paintings in Liberty City, a fun show of Japanese pop art at a Miami Beach gallery, and a group show full of famous artists at PAMM. Read on below.
Unless otherwise noted, all listed events are free to attend and open to the public.
