Artists

Autumn Casey

Autumn Casey (b. 1987, Dallas) draws on a variety of personal relics and pop-cultural ephemera, both abject and singular, to challenge and question her subjectivity of the world at large. Her practice, which moves from sculpture to collage as well as video performance, considers the history of the found object and assemblage-redeploying existing materials or moments in unexpected, idiosyncratic ways. The result is a body of work that vibrates along the tense cord between the personal and the vernacular. Casey studied sculpture at the New World School of the Arts (BFA 2011) in Miami. Her work can be found in various collections including the Museum of Contemporary Art, North Miami, where she won the 2010 Optic Nerve XII, and by the Perez Art Museum Miami.

Asif Farooq

With a keen interest in the historical and theoretical frameworks behind different types of machinery, and a consciousness for modern technology, artist Asif Farooq creates engaging works that pay homage to the advancements of mechanisms and the cultures that have employed its very innovations. Working in both large and smaller scales and employing a diverse range of media, Farooq’s practice builds on early childhood experimentation of drafting, welding, and construction, among other crafts. Such curiosity continues to be ingrained in Farooq as current projects include a larger than life model of a soviet MiG-21, a particle accelerator, and plans to release a satellite into orbit above North Korea's capital, Pyongyang. Supplementing these ambitious projects are Asif’s “guns”, a series of hand-made revolvers, semi and fully automatic guns cut from cardboard, for which he has gained great acclaim and recognition. Farooq has created technically unmatched pieces that rise with the very ideas he seeks to honor. Whether furthering political, historical, or social agendas, Asif remains focused on his principles. Asif’s skills, particularly in the exhaustive detail exhibited in the replicas of his subjects are unmatched having resulted in many distinction and honors. These accolades include exhibitions at Primary Projects, Locust Projects, and the University of Arkansas. Farooq is also an active educator speaking as part of the Locust Roundtable Series, the Creative Mornings Miami Series, and New York City’s Clocktower Radio program. He was named one of “8 Artists to Watch” for Art Basel Miami Beach 2015 by the Miami Herald and was selected as an official artist of the Art Basel Miami Beach Studio Tour Series. Miami-based Asif Farooq continues to refine his craft through both independent study and broader community education.

TYPOE

Typoe (b. Miami, 1983) is a multidisciplinary artist whose practice plays upon the constant tension between the dark recesses of the urban underground and the shimmering bling of celebrity. With both gravitas and irreverence, his work might be regarded as a contemporary memento mori with a smile. Typoe’s work evolves in response to a given situation or environment and he often works with gunpowder, fire, plastic, spray paint, and found objects in the creation of his works and installations., the messenger that while laughing, points to hypocrisy and excess while announcing the melancholy of time lost. Based in Miami, Typoe has participated in gallery and museum shows around the world and exhibited his work in Mexico City, Mexico, New York, Los Angeles, Buenos Aires, Argentina, and Basel, Switzerland. Typoe is cofounder and Creative Director of PRIMARY, an art collective and gallery in Miami.

Santiago Rubino

Santiago Rubino (b.1979, Buenos Aires) is entirely self-taught. For the last seven years, Rubino's work has been exhibited at commercial and art fair-venues in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Mexico City, Toronto and Miami. Between 2007 and 2008, solo presentations of Rubino's work have been held at Jack Shainman Gallery in Chelsea and Spinello Projects in Miami. Rubino has been featured in Ocean Drive Magazine, MIAMI Magazine, Art & Antiques, Juxtapoz Magazine and Artnet.com. Rubino lives and works in Miami.

Jose Mertz

Miami based Jose Mertz is an artist, designer, and image maker. Inspired by ancient civilizations, religion, Eastern philosophy, and science fiction, Jose reimagines traditional eastern imagery and creates stunning works of art using modern techniques and methods. The results yield timeless pieces combining elements of the past, present and future. Jose enjoys implementing his images on various surfaces from prints and t-shirts to stickers and large scale murals. Over the years Jose has gained praise for his signature style resulting in many gallery shows, while also maintaining a strong presents on the streets. Jose has exhibited in New York, Maryland, New Jersey, Ohio and has worked with large brands such as Adidas and Kidrobot. He has also exhibited in large scale art fairs such as the Armory show in New York. Along with Jose’s fine art work, he has also participated in many mural projects, showcasing his street art work. He participated in the Miami Marine Stadium Mural Project, the Raw Project, and the MLK Mural Project among the world’s greatest street artists. Jose is a graduate of the Maryland Institute College of Art and has been included in publications such Juxtapoz magazine, Kingbrown magazine, and the New York Times. Jose’s work has become apart of many private collections as well as the growing collection of murals around Miami.

Gustavo Oviedo

From the streets to the shore, Parisian born, Miami-based Gustavo Oviedo is a multidisciplinary artist whose works can be found in media of all varieties. Oviedo uses materials and tools such as vinyl, spray paint, photography, and found objects to create and recreate works that are true to Miami. Despite being raised in Columbia, Venezuela, and Mexico, Oviedo’s work can be identified by its vibrant colors and nautical motifs which are clearly representative of his current home of Miami. Not only does Gustavo celebrate his home through the visual components of his work, but goes as far as to scuba dive or search on his boat for discarded objects to use in future works. By exploring the Florida waters as his studio or canvas, Oviedo, often referred to as an “accidental environmentalist”, is able to retrieve discarded “souvenirs” from the sea while documenting climate change, pollution, and mother nature. In addition to his contemporary pieces, Oviedo, a veteran of the street scene, has been also known to craft exciting street art murals. Often depicting organic, abstract forms, painted in hundreds of colors, his noteworthy murals have a distinct tropical vibe. Oviedo has described his unique technique as “Particle Style”; a term derived from inspiration Oviedo found by looking through microscopes. His observations have been broken down into “single cells” and “amoeba”, that together have graced murals all around Miami. Gustavo, who holds a Master’s degree in motion graphics continues to further his work in motion graphics through his company, 131 Projects. His meta-displays of environmental and geographical research have been widely displayed in both solo and group presentations. He has presented his work at the Art & Culture Center of Hollywood, Art Center South Florida, Bakehouse Art Complex, Primary Projects, and the Young at Art Museum, among others. In addition, two of Oviedo’s short films have been part of MOCA’s Optic Nerve Short Film Festival. Oviedo continues to document for his ever-expanding audience, his historical accounts with nature while displaying his found memorabilia and explorations through his home base of Miami.

BooksIIII Bischof

Gallerist, curator, and director; BooksIIII Bischof wears many hats. The Miami native, known for his bold and experimental projects currently runs the Miami gallery Primary Projects alongside wife Christina Gonzales and long time friend Typoe. With a history of locations all around Miami, Primary Projects continuously showcase remarkable exhibitions created by a collection of emerging and mid career artists, both locally and nationally based. Seemingly always receiving high praise, each of Primary’s shows present contemporary and fine art works with forward thinking ideas. Books has now directed these exceptional shows since 2009. While Primary has caught much attention for Bischof, his cultural and artistic roots in Miami lie much deeper. In 2007 Book’s organized and directed Primary Flight, the worlds first large scale, live mural exhibition. The revolutionary project encompassed nearly 30 blocks in what now is the Wynwood Arts and Design Districts. Being the first to cover the manufacturing districts walls in paint, Books initially invited 35 artists for the inaugural edition of Primary Flight. Over the next few years Primary Flight exploded, upping the ante in both talent and caliber. In 2009, just two years after its inception, Primary Flight included 150 of the worlds most prominent street and graffiti artists from all over the world. Artists included Shepard Fairey, Retna, El Mac, Revok, Lister, Tristan Eaton and more. In addition to Primary Flight, Books has directed mural projects in Greensboro North Carolina, Havana Cuba, and in downtown Miami, with “Words travel fast,” a series of typography based murals by many artists Books currently represents. Alongside His previous mural and gallery endeavours, Books has also found success in his many other creative projects. In 2013 Books, along with Primary Projects were commissioned as directors to organize and curate the country's largest public art exhibition as part of the Arts Initiative at Fashion Outlets of Chicago. The exhibition included the works of national and internationally renowned contemporary artists such as Daniel Arsham, Jim Drain, FriendswithYou, Jen Stark, Kenton Parker, Andrew Nigon, and more. The installation received over 240,000 visitors in its first four days and the Arts Initiative public relations campaign generated roughly 140,000,000 media impressions of the project, which included national coverage in a variety of publications. The Project went on to win the Gold U.S. Maxi Award for “a cause related project that benefits community interest.” Bischof has also worked with superstar Dj’s, commissioned as art director for Dog Blood's (Skrillex and Diplo) music video to their single “Chella Ride.” The animated video, made possible by Primary and Goldenwolf animation received the award for best animation at the 2014 Berlin Music Video Awards. Books has been featured in publication such as the Miami Herald, Ocean Drive Magazine, and various other web and print sources. Books Bischof continues to direct solo, group, and specialty projects out of his home base in Miami and abroad.

Francesco LoCastro

Italian-born Francesco LoCastro has been a dominant force for contemporary art in South Florida for over a decade. Though being born in Italy, and growing up in Germany, LoCastro was quickly immersed into local scenes of music and art as he moved to South Florida during his highschool years. LoCastro rapidly gained a strong foothold in the south Florida art seen through his works of kaleidoscopic and geometric abstractions. His pieces, what at first may seem to be a computer generated piece of graphic design, are actually meticulously crafted pieces created using acrylic, epoxy resin, spray paint and more. Through his use of layering materials, Locastro creates explosive pieces of color that maintain a heightened sense of dimension and depth. While achieving spectacular pieces on wood and board, LoCastro is not confined to two dimensional surfaces. In LoCastro's “Safety” series, he uses familiar techniques and color ranges to create stunning pieces of sculpture that include new materials ranging from plastics, wood, rocks, and metals. He has been also seen to create equally exciting outdoor and indoor murals that depict his iconic architectural image. As a result of his masterful practice, LoCastro’s immersive work has gained much attention over the years, resulting in many many solo and group exhibitions. To date, LoCastro has shown his work in Miami, San Francisco, Texas, New York, Orlando, Venice Beach, Colorado, Philadelphia, Cleveland, New Orleans, Los Angeles, Italy, and more. He has presented pieces at the Artcenter South Florida, Hollywood Art and Culture Center, Young at Art Museum, and many other art institutions around the country. In addition to gallery and museum space exhibitions, LoCastro has also displayed his works in large scale art fairs. These art fairs include Scope Miami Beach, artMRKT South Hamptons, Art Market + Design in Bridgehampton New York, Art Hamptons, Art Palm Beach, and Art Houston among others. LoCastro continues to create explosive and exciting works out of south Florida, maintaining a fresh image for new contemporary art in the region.

Atomik

Atomik is a 100 percent Miami artist. Atomik, trained in graphic design, is a big name in the Miami art scene. The graffiti legend, part of the infamous MSG crew, a group of local graffiti heroes, has been painting the city for quite some time. While growing up in the emerging Miami graffiti scene of the 80’s, Atomik witnessed for himself at a young age what would later become his profession. Famous for his iconic orange character which emerged as a response to the demolition of the Miami Orange Bowl, the artists also marks the walls of Miami with his sleek hand-styles, graffiti and lettering. While painting for almost 20 years, Atomik’s playful characters and hand styles have become as much a symbol of Miami as are palm trees or neon lights. His unmistakable orange character has been placed all over the world bringing a piece of Miami to places such as Chile, Melbourne, Brazil, Mexico, Amsterdam, Berlin, Seoul, Bangkok, Sydney, and Puerto Rico. Atomik produces smaller pieces as well out of his studio in the Little Haiti neighborhood of Miami. His studio pieces on media ranging from canvas to paper as well as found objects like street signs, directly reflect his street work and usually feature his ubiquitous orange character. In addition to his great presence on the streets, Atomik also brings his work inside, displaying pieces in both solo and group exhibitions. His exhibitions includes shows at NOW Contemporary Art, Vice Gallery, Swampspace Gallery, Wyn317 Gallery and the “Art of Basketball” exhibition presented by the NBA and the Public Works Department during Art Basel in 2011. Atomik does not stop, continuously crafting works inside and out, on the streets of Miami and around the world.

2 Alas

2 Alas is an arts collective comprised of Andrew Antonaccio and Filio Galvez. Known for their black and white linear portraits and colored geometric abstractions, the duo have become a strong force for Urban art in Miami. While their brilliant murals have been placed around south Florida in recent years, 2 alas also travels afar, broadening their street art and mural portfolios. Andrew and Filio have painted all over the world in places such as Italy, Switzerland, Cuba, New York, Dominican Republic, Montreal, and Puerto Rico. In addition to their travels they have also participated in street art fairs and festivals including the Artesano Project, Viavai Project, Mural arts festival, Downtown Hollywood Mural Project, Becks Mural Project, Monumentart Mural Project, Vision Arts Festival, and more. Along with their street work, Andrew and Filio have gained attention for their smaller studio pieces. They have extensively exhibited these pieces in both solo and group exhibitions at numerous galleries and museums. Often embarking on even larger projects, 2 Alas has exhibited in large scale fairs such as the Scope Miami Beach art fair and has been commissioned by Ford to design the exterior of a car for the Miami International Auto Show. They have been commissioned by other large companies such as Firefox and Beck's and have pieces in many private collections in Miami and abroad.

Anthony Lister

Australian born and based artist Anthony Lister is a world renown contemporary, street, and graffiti artist. Beginning painting on the streets at the age of 17, Anthony Lister, or Lister is now one of Australia's most prominent contemporary and street artists. Employing his skills and iconic gestural mark on various media, Lister masterfully paints giant street murals and crafts smaller studio pieces inspired by subjects such as superheroes, supervillains, and ballerinas. Lister has found much success over his studio work which has been displayed in solo shows in cities all around the world including New York, London, Sydney, Toronto, Los Angeles, Melbourne, Milan, San Francisco, and Miami. In addition to great success in the gallery space, Lister also maintains a strong presence on the street with his murals. Lister has now painted hundreds of murals all around the world and participated in many collective mural festivals. With a strong presence in Miami, Lister has participated in local mural exhibition including Primary Flight and the Raw Project while also painting many murals around Miami throughout his many visits. In Miami Anthony Lister is represented by the Robert Fontaine Gallery where he has previously put together two solo shows. Lister received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree at the Queensland College of the Arts in 2001 and was then mentored by Max Gimblett in New York in 2002. In 2004 Lister was the recipient of the Queensland Education Minister’s Art Award, with a further mentoring workshop residency at Blender Studio, Melbourne. Anthony and his work have been published by VNA Magazine, Juxtapoz, and has been named one of the “50 Most Influential Street Artists of All Time” by Complex Magazine. Lister continues to tackle huge murals and masterfully create studio works.

The London Police

Chaz Barrisson and Bob Gibson, better known as the “London Police”, are an English street art duo that now live and work in Amsterdam. Bob’s detailed architectural scenes along with Chaz’s fun characters create exciting and striking murals. Their iconic LADS figures can be seen around the world, everywhere from Germany and Brazil to Spain and Sweden. The London Police have also participated in many solo and group shows internationally in places such as Miami, London, Kentucky, and Paris. They seem to enjoy working in Miami. They participated in the Primary Flight mural project in 2007, 2009, and 2010, the Miami Marine Stadium mural project (2014), and The Caleidoscoop Art Basel project in 2013. The London Police have had their work exhibited at the Gregg Shienbaum Fine Art Gallery (2014) and at Scope Art Fair in Miami Beach in 2009 during Art Basel. Most recently they worked on a massive mural in Hollywood, Florida for the Downtown Hollywood Mural Project (2014) and have exhibited at Scope Art fair again in 2014 being represented by the StolenSpace Gallery from London. The world-renowned London Police come back to Miami every year for big events such as Art Basel and keep putting up great work.

2501

2501 is an Italian street artist who is based in Milan, Italy. 2501 is famous for his monochromatic two dimensional line paintings that seem to create abstract three dimensional forms. He sometimes accompanies his black and white pieces with some gold or the occasional color. 2501’s unmistakable line work can be seen in many different places in around the world such as Poland, London, Paris, Baltimore, Australia, Chicago, and Miami. Along with his street art, 2501 has made some impressive studio pieces that have been displayed in galleries in Bologna, Italy, San Francisco, and Miami. 2501 has worked in Miami during his visits over the last few years. Recently 2501 completed a month long residency in Miami as part of the Fordistas Residency Program and showed his new works in a solo show entitled “Tons of Tools” at Product 81 Gallery in the Wynwood Arts District. The show was published in the December 2014 issue of Juxtapoz Magazine. 2501 has also participated in a group show at the same gallery titled “Friends and Family” during Art Basel 2013 and 2014. 2501 along with his gallery shows, has created many pieces around Miami in the Wynwood neighborhood. 2501 continues to travel to Miami for shows and big events like Art Basel and plans to continue painting in Wynwood.

Diana Contreras

Diana Contreras is a Peruvian born, Miami based artist and street artist. Working out of her Little Havana studio, Diana or “Didi” produces beautiful portraits of women, often in oil paint, that fall along with her theme of femininity. In the streets Didi continues her painting of women, buts swaps oil for spray paint. Diana received her Bachelor degree in Art Education and a Post-Graduate of Art in Teaching from Florida International University. She has also joined in the study abroad program in Florence, Italy and enrolled in the Art Students League of New York. Didi has participated in many group and solo shows. She will soon display her work in Dubai along with other Miami street artists as part of the Street Art Dubai Gallery. In Miami, Didi is represented by the Brisky Gallery in Wynwood, which also boasts a mural painted by her on its façade. A piece by Didi will also be on display at the 2014 Miami Book Fair. In 2014 she participated in the Downtown Hollywood Mural project and was a part of the RAW Mural Project at the Jose De Diego Middle School during Art Basel. She has been commissioned many times for her work in both murals and canvases and has sold her work for private collections in several parts of the world.

Jill Weisberg

Jill Weisberg is a South Florida artist born and still residing in Hollywood, Florida. Jill, trained in graphic design, works on both studio and street pieces. Her use of nonconventional paints such as nail polish, allows her to create beautiful murals and smaller pieces that have a recognizable shimmer and iridescence. Jill has taught graphic design at Nova Southeastern University as well as Florida Atlantic University. She has achieved street pieces in the Wynwood Arts District and has had pieces shown in galleries such as Locust Projects in the Design District and The Art and Culture Center in Hollywood, Florida. Jill is the Creative Director of Shrift and Farbe Design Group and the Project Manager of the Downtown Hollywood Mural Project. In 2013, The Downtown Hollywood Mural Project received the honor of being voted “Best Public Art” by the Broward and Palm Beach New Times. Jill works to bring renowned local and international artists as well as local street artists to Downtown Hollywood to create exciting new murals and add visual energy to the area.