Art on the Plaza: Avi Young – Bearing Bonds

Through May 31, 2025

All Day

MOCA’s Art on the Plaza returns with a thought-provoking installation examining the complexities of human connection. Avi Young’s Bearing Bonds, on display through May 31 at MOCA Plaza at the Museum of Contemporary Art, North Miami, features two figures—an adolescent and mentor—with arms extended toward each other but unable to touch.

The installation explores themes of separation, whether from physical distance, systemic barriers or emotional divides. Young ingeniously connects the silhouettes with melodic chimes, creating a symbolic bridge of communication despite the inability to physically connect.

As a queer Afro-Latinx artist, Young brings their vibrant cultural heritage and storytelling passion to their work. Their artistic practice often centers on tender portrayals of marginalized communities, celebrating identity while fostering empathy and highlighting the power of connection through textured, intimate narratives.

Young’s artistic journey began at the Design and Architecture Senior High, where they balanced artistic pursuits with STEM studies, including marine biology research at the Frost Science Museum. They later refined their skills at the Kansas City Art Institute, focusing on ceramics and material exploration. Since 2021, Young has been an associate artist at the Bakehouse Art Complex, contributing to Miami’s creative landscape.

Bearing Bonds is part of MOCA’s Art on the Plaza series, launched in 2020 to activate the museum’s outdoor space with temporary public art installations. The 2025 series showcases South Florida artists, including Young, Magnus Sodamin and Nathan Justice Moyer, with site-specific works rotating throughout the year to engage and connect the community.

Oolite Arts Presents: Mini Bookmaking Workshop with Wilie Báez

Saturday, May 10, 2025 | 1 – 5 PM
924 Lincoln Road, Studio 201, Miami Beach, FL 33139

Paper crafting enthusiasts and art hobbyists can explore creative bookmaking techniques at this Oolite Arts hands-on workshop led by artist Wilie Báez. The session introduces participants to fundamental bookbinding methods while incorporating various artistic elements to create personalized miniature books.

The Mini Bookmaking Workshop takes place on Saturday, May 10 at Oolite Arts on Miami Beach. Throughout the four-hour session, attendees will transform 12″ x 12″ paper into small handmade books using non-stitching binding techniques, while experimenting with collage, painting, drawing and printmaking to create distinctive page designs.

All necessary materials are provided, though participants are welcome to bring personal items to incorporate into their projects. The workshop is designed for all skill levels, requiring no previous bookmaking experience. By the end of the session, participants will have completed several mini books and gained skills that can be applied to larger bookmaking projects.

The instructor, Willie Báez, is a multidisciplinary artist originally from New York City’s East Village who transitioned from a career in Information Technology to pursue his artistic practice. Báez studied at the School of Visual Arts and Parsons School of Design in the 1990s and has exhibited his work in various locations including New Jersey, New York City, Miami, Puerto Rico and Spain. He currently works part-time at Oolite Arts, where he facilitates printmaking workshops and figure drawing sessions.

Registration requires advance booking, with refunds available up to 24 hours before the workshop begins.

Participants will craft their own personalized mini books, exploring artistic expression through the tactile and narrative possibilities of handmade publications. All materials are included, and the workshop is designed to welcome beginners and experienced makers alike.

Tickets start at $55, and space is limited.

Discover the artistry of bookmaking and leave with a one-of-a-kind creation that tells your story.

Register now at oolitearts.org or contact [email protected] for more information.

Mahara+Co Presents: “No Place Is Far Away” by Evelyn Sosa

Opening Reception: Saturday, May 10, 2025 | 6 – 9 PM
224 NW 71st St, Miami, FL 33150 | Little Haiti

Miami, FL — Mahara+Co is proud to present No Place Is Far Away, a powerful solo exhibition by Cuban artist Evelyn Sosa, opening on Saturday, May 10 from 6 to 9 PM in the heart of Little Haiti.

In this moving body of work, Sosa offers an intimate meditation on migration through a series of photographic portraits of objects—keepsakes, tools, fragments—carried across borders. Each object becomes a vessel for memory, rooted in personal histories of displacement, resilience, and longing. The exhibition poetically reflects on identity and the emotional weight of journeys made across time and space.

Through intimate images of personal objects carried by migrants, Sosa explores themes of memory, loss, and resilience. Supported by the Cuban Migrant Artists Resilience Fellowship (ARC + PEN International), this series captures the emotional weight of displacement.

No Place Is Far Away is presented with support from the Cuban Migrant Artists Resilience Fellowship, a program of Artists at Risk Connection (ARC) and PEN International, dedicated to supporting exiled and displaced artists.

Join us for the opening reception as we honor stories of migration and celebrate the power of art to preserve and transform memory.

For more information, visit maharaco.com.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contact:
Mahara+Co

Biography

Evelyn Sosa was born in 1989 in Havana, Cuba. Sosa is a photographer with preference for intimate and documentary portraiture. Evelyn graduated from the Documentary Practice and Visual Journalism program at the International Center of Photography (ICP) in New York where she was awarded with the Director’s Fellowship and the Arnold Newman Scholarship.

She has attended to several photography workshops, among which are the The Eddie Adams Workshop in New York; Chemistry Laboratory of Photography Workshop in the Higher Institute of Arts in Havana; and the Photography Workshops of FotoFest International & Foundation for Culture and Society from Chicago in Havana.

In 2016 Sosa was the winner of the Herman Puig Prize, awarded to the best artist of the Body Photography Salon in Havana and in 2021 she obtained a special mention in the 7th edition of Post-it Cuban Contemporary Art event. During her practice since 2011 Sosa has participated in several group exhibitions in Cuba, the United States, Europe and Japan where she was invited to Kyotographie Festival in 2019. In 2024, she was awarded the Artist Resilience Fellowship, granted by PEN International and Artists at Risk Connection.

In 2017 Sosa exhibited Strange Birds of Passage, her first personal show in Mariano Rodríguez Gallery in Havana. Her second personal exhibition Havana Intimate was opened in New York in 2019. 

In 2023 she exhibited the duo show You are Everyone Who Tells a Story in Space 776 in New York. 

Sosa is the author of the photo-book Havana Intimate, through the lens of Evelyn Sosa published in New York by Uncommon Beauty Gallery in 2019. 

She lives and works in Miami.

Haitian Heritage Museum Presents “Nostalgia Primitive D’Haïti Deux”

Opening Reception: Saturday, May 10, 2025 | 6:30 PM
4141 NE 2nd Ave. #105C, Miami, FL 33137

Miami, FL — The Haitian Heritage Museum is proud to announce the opening of Nostalgia Primitive D’Haïti Deux, a powerful group exhibition debuting Saturday, May 10 at 6:30 PM in Miami’s Design District.

Featuring the works of celebrated Haitian artists Dubinsson, Fritzner, Hector, Obin, and Dambreville, this vibrant exhibition offers an evocative journey through Haiti’s rural landscapes, cultural heritage, and daily life. Through expressive figuration, rich color, and symbolic detail, the artists present a moving tribute to the traditions and spirit of Haitian visual storytelling.

Nostalgia Primitive D’Haïti Deux continues the museum’s mission to celebrate Haitian art and identity, inviting viewers to experience the beauty, resilience, and depth of Haiti’s artistic legacy.

Featured artists, including Dubbison, Fritzner, Hector, Obin, and Dambreville

Join us for the opening reception to explore these compelling works and connect with the heart of Haiti’s visual culture.

Admission is free and open to the public.
For more information, visit haitianheritagemuseum.org.

Media Contact:
Haitian Heritage Museum
[email protected]
(305) 371-5988

Bernice Steinbaum Gallery Presents

“Decorative” — A Solo Exhibition by Aurora Molina

Opening Reception: Saturday, May 10, 2025 | 3 – 8 PM
2101 Tigertail Ave, Coconut Grove, FL 33133

Bernice Steinbaum Gallery is proud to announce the opening of Decorative, a powerful solo exhibition by acclaimed textile artist Aurora Molina, on view beginning Saturday, May 10, 2025.

Aurora Molina, who unveils the psychological depth of generations and old traditions of needle art that have often been defined as low art. “DECORATIVE” is a humane quality in art, and not evil.

Through immersive installations and intricate needlework, Decorative explores the psychological narratives embedded within generational traditions of textile art. Molina’s work challenges the boundaries between craft and fine art, reclaiming so-called “decorative” practices as vessels of memory, resistance, and social commentary.

This exhibition invites viewers into an intimate world where threads carry stories—of women, of aging, of identity, and of the quiet power of domesticity. With humor, poignancy, and political edge, Molina stitches together a visual language that is both deeply personal and universally resonant.

Join us for the opening reception on Saturday, May 10 from 3 to 8 PM at the gallery’s Coconut Grove location. Admission is free and open to the public.

For more information, visit bernicesteinbaumgallery.com.

Media Contact:
Bernice Steinbaum Gallery
[email protected]
(305) 456-1234

Platabanda Opens with Isabella Rodriguez’s

“The Space Between Us” — Isabella Rodriguez’s Solo Exhibition

Curated by Ronald Sánchez

Friday, May 9, 2025 — Platabanda, Allapattah’s newest contemporary art venue, launches its programming with The Space Between Us, a compelling solo exhibition by multidisciplinary artist Isabella Rodriguez, curated by Ronald Sánchez. The public is invited to an opening reception on Friday, May 9 from 6 to 10 PM, located at 2163 NW 36th St, Miami, FL 33142.

The Space Between Us explores the often-invisible boundaries that shape daily life—between people, places, and identities. Through site-responsive installation, assemblage, and mixed media, Rodriguez meditates on the emotional and physical contours of separation and proximity in the modern urban experience. Her work invites viewers to engage with the “in-between,” prompting reflection on how cities divide and connect communities.

“Rodriguez’s work is deeply rooted in context,” said curator Ronald Sánchez. “She doesn’t just map space—she interrogates the politics and poetics of who has access to it, and how memory and environment collide.”

As Platabanda’s inaugural exhibition, The Space Between Us sets the tone for the gallery’s mission to champion artists whose practices engage critically with social, cultural, and geographic realities. The event marks a dynamic contribution to the vibrant art scene emerging in Allapattah.

Opening Reception:

Friday, May 9, 2025
6 – 10 PM
Platabanda – 2163 NW 36th St, Miami, FL 33142

Admission is free and open to the public.

For press inquiries or more information, please contact Rachel Gonzalez at [email protected].