Gypsies Curse: José-Carlos Diaz, impresario of the Worm-Hole Laboratory, has struck again. This nonstop independent curator of intelligent contemporary art, manufactured predominantly by young, restless, college-educated culture workers, has scoped out Karen Azoulay, Rachel Foullon, Sally Heller, Aimee Jones, Stella Lai, Cristina Lei Rodriguez, and Mary Elizabeth Yarbrough from slide submissions, online art repositories, and word-of-mouth. Ostensibly an effort to deflect an actual curse, the art in this exhibition works more like a charm, all pink-tinged and fashion-forward, coy and decorative. -- Michelle Weinberg Through July 8. Open Saturdays 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. or by appointment. Buena Vista Building, 180 NE 39th St., second floor. 305-798-6529.
Suspended Objects: Dario Escobar takes symbols of mass consumption and morphs them into aesthetic counterfeits, fake agitprop, or grown-up toys with the flair of a Madison Avenue whiz kid. He describes his mind twists as "modern folly" or "cultural repertoire legitimated by our collective memory." Either way, you feel ambivalently pulled by these pieces as if you could play with them, yet they belong in some ideological space between Terry Eagleton and AdBusters. Escobar's is a timely critique of capitalism, though his wit can, in the end, bite its own tail -- that is, if consumption's representation ends up being consumed. -- Alfredo Triff Through August 30. Karpio-Facchini Gallery, 1929 NW First Ave. 305-576-4454.
