Born in Cuba, this celebrated sculptor now calls Miami, Florida home. She works with ceramics and mixed media. Ivonne Ferrer adds color and vibrancy to any room, not just with her work but with her personality and smile.
The Event
She is preparing some art pieces for an exhibition in the Marco Island Center for the Arts located at 1010 Winterberry Dr. on Marco Island. This is a personal exhibit at the Petite Gallery. It is scheduled to begin on July 10 and to run until August 1, 2023.
The Works in Progress
The work consists of sculptures of assorted body parts painted or tinted in perfectly clean white. They include a human arm with a hand, a baby’s head and a woman’s shoe. These parts are framed and enshrined in colorful cabinets. The cabinets seem to be wood painted with white on the outside and bright colors on the inside.
At first, when I looked at the objects, I was attracted to their clean lines and classic forms. The hand’s features, for example, are ideal and show care for their allusion to a perfect specimen of a hand. Then, the more I thought about it, the more grotesque the items became. I don’t mean grotesque as in displeasing to the eye, but monstrous.
Placing these assorted parts, evidently human, but dead and colorless, in those colorful containers evoked a sense of irony as if celebrating an ideal that is broken and dead. It seemed as though the works celebrated the destruction of a highly regarded ideal. Not just its destruction but its dismemberment is depicted and because of the colors, enjoyed.
Pinecrest Gardens had an incredible event on April 15 that began at 5:00 PM. There were two people at the door receiving tickets and giving out coupons for the concession. There were over two hundred patrons casually dressed and enjoying themselves exploring art, learning about the environment and enjoying expertly created food, drink and music. Three buildings housed artworks. Each building contained works by a different artist. One building had Annette Bonnier, Xavier Cortada was in another and the main gallery had Artists Set the Table curated by Carola Bravo.
We met Cristina Blanco, the Director of the Gardens, who had been part of our correspondence and had told us of the event. She advised us on how best to enjoy the Special Exhibition. Blanco mentioned that we could begin at the Inspiration Center to see Bonnier’s collection of photographs, then walk back to Xavier Cortada’s showing at the Hibiscus Gallery and then cross to the Cypress Hall which showed the hARTvest collection.
Wildlife on Display
There was plenty to see between the buildings. The gardens have many tropical plants, some swans and many peacocks. An attendant mentioned that there were owls which were difficult to see because they tended to stay away from people. The peacocks kept making hissing noises and loud yells that sounded like women yelling for help. They watched me walk around and let me get quite close. The peacocks danced and spread their beautiful feathers. It was quite a display.
Digital Camera
Outdoor Exhibit Spotlighting Climate Change
Xavier Cortada’s work was displayed outdoors on the way to the Inspiration Center. It featured some flags and placards with numbers painted on them. Each number indicated how far underwater the ground would be if the current levels of climate change continued. Along with many scientists and experts, he is predicting a dangerous rise in the sea levels. This means that towns along the coast risk being flooded sooner than we would like. His work calls attention to the facts about our environment and the precarious conditions in which we live. He has visited many centers of political strength exhibiting his work and raising awareness.
He also had these interesting pieces. One was a large board with all of these note cards with small messages written on them. On each card, someone had written a note to another person living a hundred years from now. It had to be about the environment. I wanted to write something saying that the world was saved because the youth cared, but Gary said that the note cards were for kids and I shouldn’t write on them.
The other wall had containers with plants growing in them. Each of these plants were salt tolerant and could slow down erosion caused by water at the oceanside.
Digital CameraIntrepid PhotographerButterflies Are Free
Inspiration Center
It was an honor and a pleasure to make the acquaintance of this talented, grounded and inspiring artist, Annette Bonnier. She talked to us candidly about her experience during the pandemic and what led her to create these “Reflections from the Shadows.”
Bonnier’s Reflections
When I took the picture here, I realized that there were so many layers in this image. The artist, Bonnier, had created the image which I had then photographed and now the computer is reproducing all of these times. It is so amazing to me.
Her work speaks to the resilience of the human spirit which can find beauty in the most difficult circumstances created by isolation, disease and loneliness. Her travels to Africa and Jamaica also inspired her to create impactful and humane images. Her tender smile and open nature drew me in and made me want to stay with her, talking about what really matters.
This exhibit was entitled “Underwater Florida.” It featured the art of Xavier Cortada. Earlier in the article, there was mention of the symbolism of the placards with the numbers on them.
Here is his website that will explain more about his position on global warming and what each of us can do.
Cortada is a highly involved member of the community who has long advocated for the protection of our living areas. He has given TED Talks, has spoken to government leaders and has worked with youth to call attention to our global village’s environmental needs. It was a pleasure to ask him a question and get a wry smile and a great answer.
Cypress Hall
“Artists Set the Table” was a collection curated by Carola Bravo featuring the work of over 80 Cuban artists. These ceramics were as diverse as the individuals who produced them.
Gary and I were both amazed at the collection. Some of the plates were whimsical, funny, and provocative. Others were subtly charged and spoke of the same resilience and heart that has fueled the success of so many in the Cuban community.
It was so nice to spend some time with Yvonne Ferrer of the Museum of Contemporary Arts of the Americas. The warm-hearted passionate artist explained to us about the inspiration for her work with ceramic sculpture. During the pandemic, she and a fellow artist Evelyn Politzer created a heart-shaped work to express the need to care and show compassion for each other in concrete actions. She said the heart is the center of the emotions, is where pain and feelings dwell and is where life grows. She said that we all have a heart.
For more information about the museum check this link out:
Coral Gables to Host Lifetime Achievement Award Winners
On Thursday April 27th the Coral Gables Museum will present the opening of a special exhibition featuring the work of notable Cuban American architects whose style and unique approach to building design has impacted the city of Coral Gables and other areas.
Titled “All Stars: CINTAS Foundation Fellows in Architecture & Design from 1963 to 2022,” the exhibition is a first time ever collection of work by fellowship recipients Jose Bernardo, Roberto de Alba, Raul de Armas, Andres Duany, Carlos Alberto Fleitas, Javier Galindo, Anthony Garcia, Jose Gelabert- Navia, Miriam Gusevich, Jorge Hernandez, Rolando Llanes, Adrian Lopez Gonzalez, Mario Miqueli, Ricardo Porro, Manuel Quijano, Nicolas Quintana, Raul Rodriguez, Alfredo Sanchez and Mario J. Torroella.
On display in the Gallery 109 and Abraham Family Gallery areas will be models, drawings, reports, photographs and videos drawn from the collections of the fellows and the CINTAS Foundation. Christina Chiang is the Curator of Architecture and Urbanism at the Coral Gables Museum and curated this exhibition.
Award Winners Display Variety of Styles
The architects, Javier Galindo and Miriam Gusevich, are but two whose work display the great variety of styles which will be featured at the exhibition.
Javier Galindo
Javier Galindo was born in Havana, earned a Masters of Architecture from Cornell University and a Bachelors of Architecture from FIU in Miami. Currently based in New York and has practised with firms in Miami and San Francisco as well. He received the 2015 Rome Prize in Architecture, the KPF Traveling Fellowship, and several competition awards and recognitions.
Miriam Gusevich
Miriam Gusevich, also Cuban born, is an urban designer, scholar, and teacher, with a lifelong commitment to public interest design. She is the founding principal at GM2 Studio and CEO of Restoring our Places, an NGO. She received her Masters and Bachelor’s in Architecture from Cornell University and was a Loeb Fellow at Harvard University.
The opening night event will take place from 7 to 9 p.m. The exhibition will be on display until July 30 of this year.
Riverside 66, Tianjin, China
Architect – Kohm Pedersen Fox
Images are representative of works by these architects and designers. Web designer does not hold copyright to these images.
CINTAS Foundation is now accepting applications for fellowships!
Final call. Application deadline is May 1 st, 2023. Applications in Spanish will be accepted.
Gallery Night is scheduled for Friday, January 6th at the Coral Gables Museum. The event will take place between 7:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m. for the enjoyment of the public. The Florida Guitar Foundation will have an open mic, there will be live music from Purpleberry Jam and there will be four gallery exhibitions.
The Florida Guitar Foundation regularly invites guitarists who enjoy playing classical guitar to their open mic events. They are for guitarists of all skill levels to perform and learn from each other. Upcoming Open Mic nights will be January 6th, February 4th, March 4th, April 4th and May 6th at the Coral Gables Museum. To find out about this contact Federico Muskgrove Stetson at Frederico@Floridaguitar.org, the director of the program, or just the organizations box at info@ Floridaguitar.org.
Performing this month at the live music session will be Purpleberry Jam from Doral. They enjoy playing covers of Santana, Jimi Hendrix and Pink Floyd as well as performing their own music. Their music is a blend of funk, R&B, and rock with a modern twist. They combine mild distortion on guitar with driving beats and a danceable feel on drums that will excite and relax simultaneously. Ms. Betancourt shared her bluesy voice that caresses the soul out of its sleepiness. She played with them a few years back, and I don’t know if she will sing tomorrow night. It should be a pleasant surprise for everyone.
As a counterpoint to the musical events’ auditory vibes, the museum will offer visual stimulation in its current exhibitions. The art on display features a series of striking mixed media engravings and one sculpture by Haitian-American artist Edouard Duval-Carrié, tapping into the history, literature and mythos of the Caribbean. Also presented is an array of images in the collection of Raúl and Mily de Molina from their world travels, featuring 29 outstanding international artists.
Rule Creations 