Kind of like lifting up a rock to see what's underneath, participants of this Bas Fisher Invitational (BFI) program get to uncover the real Miami, complete with creepy tales, kitschy spots, historical references, plenty of metaphors, and the artists' own memories.
While tours are only $35, BFI worked with nonprofit press Exile Projects to make them more accessible with the printing of Weird Miami Anthology ($40), a new book of zines with self-guided tours. The anthology will be released Saturday, September 20, at a launch party at downtown haunt Mama Tried, following a Weird Miami tour by artist Jessica Gispert titled "A Woman Encased in Concrete." (More on that later.)
The idea of self-guided tours in zine format emerged as part of BFI's switch to social-distancing programming in 2020. According to Naomi Fisher, the organization's co-founder, curator, and director, the effort considered these requirements: "How do we do something that’s really great for the community, that's a lasting archive, and that gets as many artists as we can work with an artist fee during those initial phases of the pandemic?"
Some of the artists featured in the anthology include Jenna Balfe, Hattie Mae Williams, Coral Morphologic, Orlando Estrada, and Fereshteh Toosi, and all of the zines are available as free downloadable PDFs online. The effort aligns with the organization's 20th anniversary and honors 15 years of Weird Miami tours.
Naomi Fisher gushes about the new book, calling it "gorgeous." It's bound with three tropigoth-pink key chains that allow curious readers to pop a guide onto their own key chains and head out on an adventure in the Magic City. "It’s a way to do self-guided tours, but it’s also a memorial to a moment," says Fisher. "Someone could explore Miami, understanding that part of exploring Miami is learning that it's an ever-changing city, and sometimes things disappear."
Downtown Development
"The tour is inevitably personal," explains artist and FIU Visiting Assistant Professor of Photography Jessica Gispert, who will host her first tour on Saturday. Fisher says Gispert's relationship with downtown Miami, the focus of her tour, is unique. After arriving in South Florida, her Cuban immigrant parents opened a restaurant equipment store across the street from what is now the Corner. Though tour specifics are kept secret, her family's history may be highlighted. "I always think of North Miami Avenue and my dad’s place being there, and all the growth that started happening around him rapidly — the first being Club Space," she recalls, and then highlights "the dichotomy of people working this job that’s industrial and rough around the edges, and then seeing these pretty people stumble out of Space at 8 in the morning." She plans to touch upon the ever-shifting demographics of the area and the rise of the arts community downtown, which she witnessed on trips back to Miami while living in New York City and Germany for 11 years.
The Downtown Development Authority (DDA) recently moved to support Weird Miami with funding. This freed up resources for BFI to print the new anthology and record these ephemeral tours. Photographer Alex Markow (who has worked with New Times) is documenting Weird Miami tours for short online recaps that will be available later this month.
The Only Constant
Gispert remains mum on the details, but she says her "Woman Encased in Concrete" tour will start off at the Miami City Cemetery at the grave of a woman who, legend says, is literally buried in concrete. "The idea is that when she perishes, there’s basically the silhouette of her body within concrete, which we’ll never see. But I think it’s a really cool metaphor for what’s happening to us," Gispert says. Musician Jose Castello, formerly of bands Pygmy and Down Home Southernaires, will read an upbeat poem on the downtown building that was once Burdines, then Macy’s, then Ross. "It’s not only about the sadness of change, but also the humor," she explains. The tours are undoubtedly fun and quirky, and at least once were held in an actual party bus. But the focus is on making contemporary art accessible to more people. "I look at this as a kind of alternate artist talk," Fisher says. Removing the jargon and formalities can help people better understand the artist and their output. This is especially important for artists like Gispert, whose work is highly conceptual.
"My work is really rooted in an exploration of the unseen and the 'other' culturally within my Cuban family and lineage, and related to spirituality. But there are always stories related to preservation and resilience," says Gispert, who just wrapped a show at the Patricia and Phillip Frost Art Museum and will be part of the upcoming "Nuestro Vaivén (Our Sway)" exhibition featuring Latinx artists at Sarasota's Ringling Museum of Art.
She emphasizes that Miami’s arts community is just that: resilient, despite the city's constant changes. "We're really good at keeping community. We all go support each other at events and rally for each other," she says. "We’re a small, big city in that way.”
Weird Miami Anthology Book Launch Party and Tour With Jessica Gispert. 5:30 p.m. Saturday, September 20, at Mama Tried, 207 NE First St., Miami. basfisherinvitational.com.
