Second Saturdays Art Walk Guide: Pop Portraits and Fake Churches

To quote No. 36 in our list of 50 reasons to love living in Miami, "Ain't no party like an Art Walk party." On the Second Saturday of every month, from 7 to 10 p.m., we throw our own mini Art Basels -- that's why we're so good at it by the time the official art fairs open their white tents. And sure, a lot of the walk consists of crowds roaming gallery to gallery in search of an open bar. But we're also guessing a lot of you show up to see the latest exhibits and art, so we've compiled this helpful little guide. Get your dirty soul cleansed with Jim Drain, see Francesco Lo Castro's love letter to Miami at Butter, and behold the former photo editor of Vice's images at O.H.W.O.W. At 10 p.m., when you're freshly fueled on good art, fresh air, and perhaps some free Grolsch, head to Awarehouse for the WVUM after party with Javelin.

Tim Barber: The former photo editor of Vice magazine who runs the

online gallery www.tinyvices.com has his first major show in the U.S.

this Saturday. "Untitled Photographs" is 40 of his landscapes, portraits,

and other equally delicate and evocative images. As our art critic

reports "Barber's intriguing snaps convey the notion of a moment frozen

in time before being fumbled, and they possess a red-eye, family-album

aesthetic at once familiar yet enigmatic." O.H.W.O.W., 3100 NW Seventh

Ave., Miami. Call 305-633-9345 or visit oh-wow.com.

Jim Drain: In "Saturday's Ransom," the artist uses translucent drawings on the pages of found books and melted wax to create a stained glass

effect on Locust Projects' façade. As he told the New Times,

"Researching the early history of the church for the show, I discovered

that people believed that when sinners stood outside of a cathedral and

the light shined through them from the stained-glass windows, they would

become purified." Cleanse your soul this Saturday night. Locust Projects, 155 NE 38th St., Ste. 100, Miami.

Call 305-576-8570 or visit locustprojects.org.

Five New Reasons to Live: Miami artists Kevin Arrow, Nicole Martinez,

Damian Rojo, Barron Sherer, and Skip Van Cel use 16mm film, digital

video, 35mm slides, and sound to blow your mind, eyes, and ears. The above is a still from Sherer's Mike Schreiber: In "True Hip-Hop," curator Maria Arelleno presents photography by Mike Schreiber,

who's turns his lens towards hip-hip superstars such as M.I.A. and Mos Def. Expect music by Keen One and Culture Chris during the Art Walk.

AE District, 3852 N. Miami Ave., Miami. Call 305-571-5122 or visit

aedistrict.com.

Miguel Paredes: See a sculpture version of Miguel's painting In the Name of America, which

has never been shown in Miami, and a first look at Miguel's all-new

series, "Elements of an Artist." There'll be music by DJ Ari X and complimentary

cocktails by Alambiqu Mixology, Grey Goose, Plymouth Gin, Beefeater

Gin, Appleton Estates Rum, and Ice Tropez. Paredes Fine Arts Studio, 2311

NW Second Ave., Miami. Visit miguelparedes.com.

Exposures II: This group show features a collection of crisp and

saturated C-prints from Mitrani's stable of skilled photographers: Luis

Lazo, Peggy Levison Nolan, Kanako Sasaki, and others. Dina Mitrani

dinamitranigallery.com.

Michael Scoggins: The Brooklyn artist taps into the playful doodling

from school days via his enlarged notebook paper pieces in "#1 Fan."

Using bubble-letter scribbles and exaggerated exclamation points, he

scrawls "Best Drawing Ever!" and "Bad Artists Copy. Good Artists Steal."

In the gallery's project room, find "Precious," an exhibit emphasizing

the weight that culture places on artistic ideals. It features videos by

Ingibjörg Birgisdóttir and Davida Nemeroff, paintings by Eduardo

Consuegra and Mary Anna Pomonis, and installations by Gomez De Molina

and Peter Harkawik. Diana Lowenstein Fine Arts, 2043 N. Miami Ave.,

Miami. Call 305-576-1804 or visit dlfinearts.com.

Francesco Lo Castro: The Italian-born, German-raised pop-surrealist

painter displays 30 oversized portraits of South Florida creatives such as

Karelle Levy. Butter Gallery, 2301 NW Second Ave., Miami. Call

305-303-6254 or visit buttergallery.com

Xaviera Simmons: In her solo exhibit, "(Harvest): Any Number of Myths and

Stories," the NYC-based artist, in the words of our art critic,

"explores awareness and expansion in a series of staged scenes employing

photography, sculpture, text, performance, and video. In her work,

Simmons often appears like a stranded astronaut on a desert planet or a

disoriented wanderer clutching a map. She also mines the relationship

between predator and prey in dramatic found images such as one depicting

a majestic barrel owl shredding a mouse in its claws." David Castillo

davidcastillogallery.com.

3: In this exhibit, Rosario Bond, Alette Simmons-Jimenez, and Randy

Burman examine consumerism, greed, obsession with beauty and youth, and

overrated art. One of the installations includes a paper shredder and

during the Art Walk, the public is encouraged to feed in famous art works to be ripped to shreds. Artformz Alternative,171 NW 23rd St., Miami.

Call 305-572-0040 or visit artformz.net.

Alvaro Ilizarbe/Freegums: According to his web site "Sky's The Limit" is a "large scale projection of clips of American pastimes and Juke songs that are layered and mixed into dance music videos. The artist is superimposed on the video embracing the moment by dancing and celebrating." Sounds. Pretty. Freaking. Awesome. Swampspace 3821 NE 1 Ct., Miami. Visit freegums.net.