LTC 236-2019 MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND ACTIVATIONS iti\A I AM I E5 ta. 0
City of Miami Beach, 1700 Convention Center Drive, Miami Beach, Florida 33139,www.miamibeachfl.gov
OFFICE OF THE CITY MANAGER
236-2019
LETTER TO COMMISSION
TO: Mayor Dan Gelber and Membf-rs of th-jCityCommission
FROM: Jimmy L. Morales, City Mana►.=
DATE: April 25, 2019
SUBJECT: MEMORIAL DAY CULTURAL ACTIVATIONS
The purpose of this Letter to Commission is to inform you on the status and direction of the
Memorial Day Cultural activations being produced by the Tourism and Culture department.
Following the termination of the contract with RER Consulting, the Tourism and Culture
department met with various stakeholders within the community to receive feedback on how best
to proceed given the short time frame, and sensitivity around such a high impact weekend. All
parties agreed that taking an approach which puts a strong focus on citywide arts and culture
initiatives, versus a "single festival" approach, was the best way to move forward, to mitigate
crowd control issues, "pressure cooker" situations, and to allow this year to help start to change
perceptions of the weekend and of Miami Beach.
The Tourism and Culture department will be working with the following curatorial team:
Dejha Carrington - http://carringtonprojects.virb.com/projects
Octavia Yearwood - https://www.octaviayearwood.com/
Jared McGriff- http://jaredmcgriff.virb.com/
This curatorial team will curate interactive arts and cultural programming during Memorial Day
Weekend 2019 (May 23-27) which will mobilize artists and organizers to activate various
institutions, public and digital spaces throughout the city. Our belief is not to add to an already
crowded space at Lummus Park, given the existing large crowds and Air and Sea events already
being produced, but to pull audiences further into the city to get intimate with what we have to
offer, by programming various spaces and cultural institutions in South Beach.
We have developed the overarching theme of"Trust as Currency" to help guide the exhibition and
installation programming for all institutions who wish to participate, by sparking crucial
conversations about inclusion, blackness, and relationships, via artistic mediums.
We believe that every relationship has its flaws, but by utilizing arts and culture as a mediator, we
can have a medium that will allow different stories to be told, to understand different points of
view.
CURATED EXHIBITION
*all venues are suggestions and not yet confirmed
• "I See You, Too", an exhibition about how propaganda and misinformation have
compromised us. Co-curated by Octavia Yearwood, and PAMM DAMLI Curatorial
Fellow Naiomy Guerrero (installed in an empty storefront on Lincoln Road)
• Black Florida: A Modern Archive by Johanne Rahaman: South Florida photographer,
Johanne Rahaman, is known for documenting Florida's historically black
neighborhoods. The moving installation From the South to the Southernmost - Miami
Beach' will be projected from various LED screens. The show featured images of the
residents and community events Rahaman documented between 2015 and 2016 such
as the Martin Luther King Jr. Day Parades in Liberty City and the monthly `Big Night in
Little Haiti' community festival. (installation would be mobile)
• Vehicle Messaging Board Installation on Ocean Drive Closure - The medium is the
message. Ever drive by one of those large digital road signs on the Causeway that
advertise lane closures and warn against bad behavior? Let's put those things to good
use with poetic and witty interventions that subvert common narratives and promote a
positive message. We see these as becoming huge marketing / Instagrammable
moments in an otherwise overcrowded and undesirable area. (installation would be
within the road closure on Ocean Drive, between 5th and 7th Streets)
• Digital Campaign: Selection of top local and visiting photographers and influencers
with high social media clout to help unpack cultural idioms and start to get the positive
side of Memorial Day Weekend, out in the public realm. This will help to combat the
incessant negative attacks from the media, and help to change perceptions.
(installation would exist digitally)
• Gospel Brunch: a culinary culture festival with food as the focal point. A Sunday
celebration at the Botanical Gardens utilizing music and food to bring communities
together and spark healthy conversation. (Botanical Gardens is TBC).
CULTURAL ANCHORS
• Tourism and Culture will be working with our cultural anchors (The Bass, Miami New
Drama, the Holocaust Museum, etc.) to offer them $5,000 each, should they be able to
work with our curators to program installations within their spaces that utilize "Trust as
Currency" as the overview.
All curation above will take place within the existing approved Memorial Day budgets.
The Tourism and Culture department sees this initiative as an important one, where the City of
Miami Beach can be at the forefront of culture, by utilizing arts and culture to change perceptions
of a city. We believe that with support of the above over a three to five year period, the City of
Miami Beach could see one of the most successfully produced cultural festivals in the country.
Should you have questions or comments, please do not hesitate to contact Matt Kenny, Tourism
and Culture Director at x6597 or mattkennymiamibeachfl.gov