It’s telling of The Way We Live Now that self-imposed ephemerality is a trend. Pop-ups of all stripes — restaurants, shops, even parks — comprise a fad that, paradoxically, I suppose, doesn’t seem to be going away any time soon. The appeal of the pop-up, as I see and understand it, is that it gives whatever is popping-up an irresistible sheen of newness (“I’ve never seen that before!”) and infuses it with the perfume of imminent disappearance (“I may never see that again!”). What distinguishes the plurality of pop-ups from a Brand New Limited Time Offer from, say, McDonald’s is that they are often associated with words like gourmet, boutique, experiential.
Wynwood independent theater O Cinema is in the middle of a retrospective of the first ten years of filmmaking by rakontur, the Miami-based media studio that broke out in 2006 with Cocaine Cowboys. The retro continues on Wednesday with a screening of an extended version of The U, a documentary that rakontur made for ESPN’s 30 for 30 series about the Miami Hurricanes’ dominance and “Bad Boys” behavior in the ’80s. Here, co-founder Billy Corben reflects on a scene that did not make it into the film’s final cut.
Film: The U (2009) Scene: “Recruiting Stories — Lamar Thomas”
O Cinema celebrates 10 years of film making by rakontur, the Miami-based media studio behind Cocaine Cowboys (pictured).
As we mentioned in this week’s indie film guide, all of next week O Cinema will celebrate the first 10 years of film making by rakontur, the Miami-based media studio behind Cocaine Cowboys, The U, Square Grouper, and other Florida-centric documentaries. (For a chance to win a pair of all-access passes, sign up for the Beached Miami e-blast.)
With the retrospective set to begin on Monday with a screening of Raw Deal: A Question of Consent, an exposé on the contested rape of a 27-year-old exotic dancer at a University of Florida fraternity house, rakontur co-founder Billy Corben reflects on a scene that did not make it into the final cut.
One of many monumental relics abandoned after Kulturpark closed to the public. -- photo via Kulturpark's Flickr
A group of self-proclaimed visionaries and artists, including Miami-based artist Agustina Woodgate and Spinello Projects director Anthony Spinello, want to raise enough money to revive a long-abandoned theme park “sleeping” amid a forest in East Berlin.
The Indie Cinema Weekend Roundup is a weekly preview of the movies playing at Miami’s small film houses. This week’s roundup was compiled by Denise Castillon.
Title: ‘We Need To Talk About Kevin’ (United Kingdom, drama/psychological thriller, 112 minutes, rated R)
Saturday night was Art Walk in Wynwood and the Design District. As regular Beached Miami readers know, we usually shoot a photo essay of the monthly event. This time around we tried something different, and we’re happy to say it rocked the casbah. The Insta Art Walk Challenge asked participants to share photos from Art Walk via Instagram and/or Twitter in an attempt to capture the raucous gathering through the collective eye and lens of Miami. All told, about 40 people shared more than 260 photos (prize winners announced below gallery). Below you will find 44 #instawalk305 photos, at least one from each of the participants. You can hover over the thumbnails for photo credits and click them to see the photos in full size. To see all 260+ photos from the challenge, visit the Beached Miami Facebook page.
From design to setting, the Miami Marine Stadium is perhaps the most striking structure in the city, and, until recently, it was one of the most endangered historic places in the nation. Thanks to vigorous, ongoing activism by preservationists, including Hilario Candela (below), the architect who designed it as a 27-year-old Cuban immigrant, the stadium has a good chance of reopening to the public as a one-of-a-kind entertainment venue. To read more about the building and its architect, read my story in The Atlantic Cities, which features a collection of beautiful photographs by Robby Campbell.
Though Scope New York stole a few Miami gallerists’ attention this month, there are still a handful of new and promising exhibitions opening in time for Art Walk in Wynwood and the Design District on Saturday, starting with …
Shortness of Breath @ Locust Projects
Locust Projects’ first exhibition in a new space at 3852 North Miami Avenue, a few blocks west of its former Design District home, Shortness of Breath features large-scale paintings by Miami-born artist Natalya Laskis, who used everything from broom brushes to skis to apply paint. “Moving beyond the scenes of socially exclusive groups, such as motorcycle gangs and isolated farming communities that characterized Laskis’ former work, Shortness of Breath pushes the artist’s exploration of social archetypes into a realm of engagement rather than observation,” according to the exhibition description. In addition to Laskis’ show, there will also be a site-specific installation in the project room by Miami artist and designer Emmett Moore called High, Low, and in Between. To celebrate its new space, Locust will have food from Harry’s Pizzeria at the openings. To learn more about the exhibitions, visit locustprojects.org
