Julia and Max Voloshyn, Ukrainian gallerists who have made Miami their home.
cjuste@miamiherald.com
Wynwood might be known as Miami’s arts neighborhood, but these days, that title might actually belong to nearby Allapattah.
In recent years, art galleries have been popping up in Allapattah, an industrial area of warehouses, shadeless streets and sprawling art museums. Local gallery owners are teaming up to welcome Miamians to their galleries Saturday evening for a good-ole-fashioned art walk.
From 5 to 8 p.m., seven galleries and art spaces just blocks away from each other are open after hours, offering exhibitions, drinks and opportunities to mingle.
“There used to be an art walk in Coral Gables a long time ago, and people really flocked to that,” said gallerist Katia David Rosenthal. “Bringing back this idea of an evening where all the art institutions can be open could be a nice thing.”
With more people moving to Miami since the pandemic and increased international attention on the city’s arts scene, gallerist Mindy Solomon said the neighborhood galleries want to keep the momentum going this summer.
“We want to serve the growing community that’s here all year,” she said. “There’s so much happening right now in terms of momentum to the Allapattah neighborhood. I’m hearing of even more people coming our way.”
Here’s a quick guide to the galleries and museums open for the first Allapattah Art Night.
Voloshyn Gallery
Ukrainian gallery owners Max and Julia Voloshyn want to spark dialogue between Eastern Europe and the Americas.
Two years ago, the Voloshyns happened to be in Miami with their young daughter when Russia invaded Ukraine. Their Kyiv gallery turned into a bomb shelter, and the couple worked to help their artists and colleagues thousands of miles away. They turned lemons into lemonade late last year when they opened their second gallery location in Miami.
This Saturday, Voloshyn Gallery is opening “Haunted II,” an otherworldly exhibition featuring Lorenzo De Los Angeles, Harold Mendez, Aneta Grzeszykowska and Matteo Callegari. The show was co-curated by Omar Lopez-Chahoud and Gean Moreno.
Address: 802 NW 22nd Street, Miami
Info: https://voloshyngallery.art/eng.html
Mindy Solomon Gallery
Mindy Solomon is the OG Allapattah art gallery owner. She was drawn to the “potential in the rawness” when she bought the location in 2020. And after opening her gallery in April 2021, several Miami galleries followed suit.
“I’m very happy about it because I was the first on the street!” Solomon said.
The gallery is showing three exhibitions. There’s South Korean artist Jane Yang-D’Haene’s pottery, Siennie Lee’s Antarctic landscapes on silk, and Miami artists Frances Trombly and Leyden Rodriguez-Casanova’s works inspired by the mathematical theory of spacetime.
Address: 848 NW 22nd St, Miami
Info: https://mindysolomon.com/
KDR
“It’s been pretty organic,” Rosenthal said about Allapattah’s rise as an arts hub. “I moved down here because of Mindy Solomon and affordability.”
KDR features paintings and sculptures by emerging artists. Just months ago, the gallery exhibited a fun and funky dream world of terracotta sculptures by Nicaraguan-American artist Joel Gaitan. On view until June 8 is “Anonyme Skulpturen,” an exhibition by New York artist Sam Stewart. The show features into sculptures Stewart made of industrial buildings inspired by the photos of influential German couple Bernd and Hilla Becher.
Also on display are the Bechers’ photographs, on loan from the Rubell Museum. There’s a strong sense of camaraderie among the art galleries and institutions in the neighborhood, Rosenthal said.
Address: 790 NW 22nd St, Miami
Info: https://www.kdr305.com/
La Cometa Gallery
This gallery is new to Miami, but not new to the international art scene.
La Cometa Gallery first opened in Bogotá, Colombia, 35 years ago. In recent years, the gallery began to expand to more cities, including Medellin, Madrid, Spain, and Miami. The community has received La Cometa well since it opened its Allapattah location in December, said associate director Andrés Córdoba. The gallery typically highlights work from emerging artists and Latin American masters, he said.
Currently on display is “what’s mine, what’s yours,” a group show featuring artists from around the world, including Miami-based Polish artist Justyna Kisielewicz, Miguel Ángel Ríos of Argentina and famed South African painter Dr. Esther Mahlangu.
“Come to Allapattah, be more in touch with the art here,” Córdoba said. “I can promise a good time and cold beer.”
Address: 1015 NW 23rd St unit 2, Miami
Info: https://galerialacometa.com/en/
Andrew Reed Gallery
Gallery owner Andrew Reed is also satisfied with his Allapattah location. Reed opened his gallery just next door to Voloshyn last fall.
“[Art Night] is going to be a great moment and a real sign of how the neighborhood has evolved over the last six months,” Reed said. “It’s been really beneficial to be in that neighborhood and its played out exactly as I hoped it would.”
Saturday night, the gallery is opening its latest show, “Drawn (in)to the land” by Brazilian artist Paula Turmina. The show, Turmina’s first solo show in the United States, explores climate change and ecology with warm toned paintings of oranges and purples.
Address: 800 NW 22nd Street, Miami
Info: https://www.andrewreedgallery.com/
El Espacio 23
What was once a 28,000 square foot warehouse is now a contemporary art space dedicated to displaying works from the collection of Jorge Pérez, the real estate mogul, art collector and namesake of Pérez Art Museum Miami.
El Espacio 23 is showing “To Weave the Sky,” an exhibition exploring the wide world of textiles, from a colorful Bisa Butler quilted portrait to a medieval-style tapestry of Pablo Escobar’s infamous “Hacienda” to a massive sculpture somehow weaved from dirt and milk. The sweeping show includes almost 140 works by over 100 artists from around the world.
“With art, we’re in a hurry. We’re looking, we’re looking, we’re looking at paintings and sculpture, but when it comes to textiles, I think it makes you pause a little bit,” curator Patricia Hanna told the Herald.
Address: 2270 NW 23rd St, Miami
Info: https://elespacio23.org/
Rubell Museum
This one is for the real art nerds.
The Rubell Museum shows work from the seismic, globally-lauded collection of Mera and Don Rubell. The Rubells opened the first iteration of their museum in Wynwood in 1993 and later moved to an even bigger location in Allapattah. Considered to be one of the most important art collections in the world, the Rubell Museum is home to artwork by the likes of Keith Haring, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Nick Cave, Jeff Koons and Yayoi Kasuma. Try not to get lost.
Address: 1100 NW 23rd St, Miami
Info: https://www.rubellmuseum.org/miami
Allapattah Art Night
5-8 p.m. Saturday at the galleries along 22nd Street and 23rd Street from NW 8th Avenue to NW 22th Avenue.
This story was produced with financial support from individuals and Berkowitz Contemporary Arts in partnership with Journalism Funding Partners, as part of an independent journalism fellowship program. The Miami Herald maintains full editorial control of this work.
This story was originally published May 30, 2024, 3:54 PM.
