Miami’s art community has always been a movable feast. Our cultural hub began downtown, moved to The Grove in the sixties, switched off to South Beach, then back over the bridge to Wynwood and the Design District at the (recent) turn of the century. The circle is closing as creatives trend back to downtown now that wildly successful Wynwood has priced out many artists.
It takes some steering for an area to coalesce into a substantial entity; people need to be informed, talent nurtured and supported both financially, academically and creatively.
Photographer: Irene Sperber
Sean McCormick with Eleazar Delgado's 111 3rd St roof mural.
Sean McCormick is one such spark of influence who is watching downtown’s metamorphosis. He has jumped into the waters to insure the movement back to town has friends and supporters. Over the summer McCormick, along with Lee Ann Lester, Director of Next Level Fairs (major international art fair organizers) have formed Miami Downtown Arts District (MDAD) for just this purpose and are President and Vice President respectively.
The non-profit will assist cultural institutions, museums, galleries and artists. MDAD is corralling Brickell Arts District and Downtown within its fold, rallying the troops to work in unison (with Miami Downtown Development Authority and community leaders) creating events, dispersing information and providing ground reinforcement. MDAD will be officially launched on September 19 (6 p.m. to midnight) through the 21 with a weekend full of events underlining the art season’s start to “create one voice for downtown and Brickell,” explains McCormick. This launch will be held in conjunction with the annual DWNTWN Art Days third year celebration starting at McCormick Place and providing transport to other locations via FREEBEE transportation services.
Maps showing all event sites will be found at each venue. The indefatigable Florida Grand Opera will be singing out their 74 years of expertise over this weekend’s bash.
Photographer: Provided by MP
McCormick Place.
I visited Sean McCormick at his centrally located office on the top floor (8th) of McCormick Place (111 SW 3rd St) a hub of activity containing studio, gallery and event space; providing a professional home for artists such as the well established Eleazar Delgado and Monique Lassooij. As a real estate man, McCormick is aware of neighborhoods and their worth in the community.
“In September 2012, the DDA (Miami Downtown Development Authority) had a blow out opening with old cars, burlesque shows etc.....1,500 people attended which seeded the idea that downtown was ripe.” The two groups will work in a combined effort, with events such as the First Fridays Downtown Art Nights, running since March of 2013. “I saw artist’s displacement and wanted to create a creative ecosystem,” shared McCormick. Lee Ann Lester and Sean McCormick rolled out MDAD over the summer with meetings so successful they have 150 institutions attending and tracking the meetings. “PAMM, the Science Museum, Freedom Tower MCAD....everyone is showing up here.” I was informed. There is a two tier structure to membership which currently offers introductory annual membership fees of $300 for organizations and $75 for artists. They provide marketing and other promotional advantages, accessibility to First Friday Art Nights, educational and professional development meetings and workshops.
The import of this area cannot be understated for Miami-Dade. McCormick mentioned how PAMM is doubling their visitation expectations and Miami World Center project has graciously donated free space to the arts and artist.
Photographer: Provided by McCormick
Dr James McCormick's downtown office at Julia Tuttle Circle in the 1920's.
As a bonus I received a sublimely interesting peek into the past of one of Miami’s early families in this enclave of transplants. Dr. James McCormick arrived in 1922, parking his practice a stone’s throw (with a good arm) from grandson Sean McCormick’s current office window on the PH floor of a 1924 era building on the Miami River.
The now named McCormick Place (a nod to the grandiose Chicago convention center, McCormick Place, where Obama gave his election night speech) used to be alternately a customs house or a warehouse concealing illegal “likker” during the Prohibition. Sean pointed out the circular stains on the exposed cement floor, and allowed me to guess the source. I did some major math and correctly guessed barrels of contraband hooch were the culprits. To complete this historic round robin, cocaine cowboys also used the address as a drop off for their product of choice. It was built a towering eight stories high to take advantage of the buildings advantageous point in a loop of the Miami River —all angles of ingress could be surveyed quickly from the roof...a big help whether customs house or bootlegger’s loft. Grandfather James had his offices in what was, at the time, Julia Tuttle Circle, at Miami Avenue (then Avenue “D”) and 3rd Street, the very spot Miami was incorporated in 1896.
They condemned his building in the ‘60s to put in expressways and overpasses we see today whirling around the city like a knot of old necklaces at the bottom of your jewelry case. Interesting fact: Dr James McCormick is now buried in Julia Tuttle Circle in the old city of Miami Cemetery on Second Avenue.
Photographer: Irene Sperber
LEFT: Downtown overlooking the green space where Miami was incorporated - taken from the McCormick Place roof. RIGHT: Artist Eleazar Delgado in his MP studio.
Sean has found and kept intact the old custom house doors from the 111 building as well as an black iron gateway with LAW OFFICES scrawled in gold leaf from previous tenants. McCormick Place boasts a logo from in house artist Eleazar Delgado, who did a beautiful job of using Sean’s black and white preferences and utilizing the “threes” of the address in both the logo and roof top mural. Miami’s grid system is also evident in the design and circles representing trains and ramps.
Students of Mary Malm of Miami University of Art & Design did the design on the front of the building. McCormick Place uses the talents of the city to enhance all aspects of our land. Sean McCormick sees himself as “a preservationist at heart but we also need a future.” “We are a cutting edge global city and moving in the right direction.”
Photographer: Provided by FGO
Florida Grand Opera.
“We are looking for satellite fairs (of Basel, etc) to locate downtown, McCormick explains. The Bayfront Concept Fair this year (Dec 2-7) will be around the Naguchi fountain; fair tents will be designed to take advantage of stupendous bay views.
Some events available on September 19th DWNTWN ART DAYS weekend celebration:
- Black Box Theater- animation and Short film Viewings 6 to 9 p.m. Show hosted by Freddy Stebbins, 9 to midnight.
- Gallery Exhibition: Special curation by Elvira Aedo-Dago
- Bombay Sapphire Outdoor Lounge curated by Life Is Art, live music and performance artists, 7:15 to midnight. Will Brawl, 8 to 10 p.m.
- Fine Art Studios will be open: Eleazar Delgado’s studio and artists on the 2nd and 3rd floors.
Gallery exhibition and fine artist studios open through 9/20 and 9/21.
Free entry and parking. Held at 111 SW 3rd Street, Miami 33130
or inquire at: mccormickplacemiami@gmail.com
See event details a miamiartzine website.
