FAENA ART ANNOUNCES 2023 MIAMI ART WEEK PUBLIC PROGRAMMING WITH ‘SPACES OF
INFLUENCE: SHAPING COMMUNITY IN THE MODERN WORLD’ EXHIBITION FEATURING
INSTALLATIONS BY SEBASTIAN ERRAZURIZ, BEEPLE AND KELLY BREEZ

• Faena Art to exhibit MAZE: Journey Through the Algorithmic Self, a site-specific installation by Sebastian Errazuriz on Faena Beach, and accompanying book exploring the implications of AI on society
• A major new sculpture by Errazuriz, Battle of the Corporate Nations, will also be unveiled at Faena Cathedral
• Beeple to present S.122 sculpture in partnership with The Reefline at Faena Cathedral
• Local Miami artist Kelly Breez to present bar-inspired installation ‘Dirt’s Dive’ at the Faena Art Project Room, Faena Art’s permanent space in Miami Beach for artistic innovation and community-oriented exploration

Faena Art, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, announced further public
programming for Miami Art Week 2023, presenting four major installations, collectively titled ‘Spaces of Influence: Shaping Community in the Modern World.’ The exhibition unites provocative installations across the Faena District that explore the tension between community and individuality, technology and tradition, power and grassroots. From the AI-generated pathways of Sebastian Errazuriz’s maze to the nostalgic corners of Kelly Breez’s ‘Dirt’s Dive,’ to Beeple’s dystopian vision of climate change, and culminating in the epic struggle depicted in Battle of the Corporate Nations, this collective showcase invites viewers to navigate and question the evolving landscapes that define our sense of community in a rapidly changing world.
“We are elated to unveil ‘Spaces of Influence: Shaping Community in the Modern World’ at this year’s Miami Art Week,” says Alan Faena. “This ambitious exhibition brings together Sebastian Errazuriz’s pioneering explorations of technology, design, and community, which stand as a testament to Faena Art’s dedication to championing today’s foremost creative minds. Alongside him, we’re honored to showcase the work of local artist Kelly Breez, who captivates us with her vibrant and authentic tribute to Miami’s unique social fabric. We are also proud to present, in partnership with The Reefline, an important sculpture by digital artist Beeple, that highlights the threat of climate change. Collectively, their installations serve as an engaging lens through which we can explore and celebrate the evolving dynamics of community in our modern world.”
Opening on December 5, the centerpiece of this year’s Miami Art Week programming will be a newly commissioned and monumental maze installation by artist, designer, and activist Sebastian Errazuriz (b. 1977, Santiago, Chile) located at Faena Beach. Designed using popular artificial intelligence (AI) platforms Midjourney and DALLE2, the sand-covered labyrinth titled MAZE: Journey Through the Algorithmic Self invites visitors to explore its intricate pathways, eventually converging at a reflective monolith at the center. This monolith will serve as both an art piece and a gathering spot for performances and community interaction throughout Miami Art Week. The groundbreaking installation invites visitors to reflect on the ways in which AI is increasingly shaping the world, and the subsequent urgency for “IRL” human and community interaction. Erraruiz urges viewers to consider the ways in which communal interactions will help humankind navigate the ethical complexities and potential biases that come with AI, to ensure that technology serves humanity, not the other way around.
Concurrently, Errazuriz will release a new book titled AI MAZE, accessible via QR codes within the maze. This book delves into the transformative influence of AI on various aspects of contemporary life, from education and healthcare to the economy and warfare. Each page of AI MAZE features a unique QR code, encouraging reader engagement and gathering crowd-sourced opinions on the societal implications of AI. Errazuriz’s aim is twofold: to provide an escape into self-discovery through the maze and to create a communal platform for dialogues about our rapidly digitizing world.
“This is the first maze designed not to get lost, but instead to find ourselves,” says the artist Sebastian Errazuriz. “A small oasis to temporarily escape, disconnect and reconnect with what is important. A place to have conversations on society’s upcoming technological and environmental challenges. The public installation will be inaugurated in parallel with the launch of a book, AI MAZE, that helps society imagine our future interacting with artificial intelligence. The public art installation and book will be accompanied by a series of panel talks on AI, and its transformative role for the creative industries.” In addition, Errazuriz’s new marble sculpture, titled Battle of the Corporate Nations, will be showcased at the Faena Hotel Cathedral from December 5, 2023, to March 30, 2024. This work humorously casts tech moguls Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, and Jeff Bezos in an epic struggle, reminiscent of the grand mythological battles depicted by early Italian Renaissance artists like Michelangelo.
Also on view in the Faena Cathedral will be digital artist Beeple’s groundbreaking sculpture S.2122 (2023), presented by Faena Art in partnership with The Reefline. The kinetic sculpture embraces blockchain technology, digital video and a three-dimensional sculptural form to offer a sci-fi inspired meditation on climate change and our place in an imagined future. The work depicts a decaying building complex set in the future, slowly being buried underwater as hypnotic drones circle overhead.
To raise awareness for climate change and rising sea levels, Beeple will raise the water levels in the work every five years until the building is completely submerged.
“Much like The Reefline, which bridges the realms of marine conservation with art, I have planned the evolution of S.2122: every 5 years, the water level inside this virtual ecosystem will rise by a quarter, leading to the entire structure being engulfed in a span of 25 years. The inhabitants will evolve and adapt, symbolizing not just the resilience of humanity in the face of climate change, but also our inherent ability to thrive amidst adversities,” commented Beeple.

On the occasion of Miami Art Week 2023, Faena Art will also present an immersive exhibition by Miami-based artist Kelly Breez (b. 1985, Lake Worth, Florida) in the Faena Art Project Room, Faena Art’s permanent space in Miami Beach for artistic innovation and community-oriented exploration. To celebrate the installation, Faena Art will host a special event during Miami Art Week on Wednesday, December 6, 2023, featuring gourmet culinary offerings by Chef Paul Qui, specialty cocktails, and live DJ entertainment.
Breez will transport visitors to the nostalgic, vanished bar scenes of old South Florida by creating ‘Dirt’s Dive’, a fantastical bar environment that will feature life-sized cut-out figures, dynamic sculptures, and drawings reminiscent of vibrant bar decor. Through playful manipulation of scale, Breez crafts an alternate universe that oscillates between the familiar and the fantastical. Born and raised in South Florida, Breez weaves her personal history and local lore into her distinctive aesthetic narrative.
“Creating an installation like Dirt’s is as much about story-telling as it is about art-making,” says artist Kelly Breez. “Old haunts like Dirt’s are teeming with history and stories, and I find them super inspirational. Creating an installation like this has been a dream of mine for years. I’m fascinated by relics and this space will be full of them.”
The artist shines a spotlight on the dwindling presence of the classic dive bar, a communal space where unplanned encounters and authentic experiences once thrived. Set against the high-octane backdrop of Miami Art Week, the exhibition offers a poignant commentary on the disappearance of Miami’s vintage watering holes, swallowed up by modern glitz. As one of the most archaic forms of communal spaces, the bar symbolizes a gathering place for exchanging experiences and tales. In this sense, ‘Dirt’s Dive’ is a vibrant tribute to bars as the enduring pillars of community and selfexpression.
In their respective works, Sebastian Errazuriz, Beeple, and Kelly Breez are focused on how communal spaces and shared experiences are evolving due to societal changes—whether it be the advent of AI and technology, the devastating effects of climate change and rising sea levels, or the transformation and disappearance of traditional social spaces like dive bars. Sebastian Errazuriz’s maze, with its AI elements and community engagement via QR codes, questions how technology impacts our self-perception, communal interactions, and even our collective future. Beeple’s kinetic sculpture reflects the alarming effects of climate change on our existing infrastructures. On the other hand, Kelly Breez’s ‘Dirt’s Dive’ is a tribute to a vanishing element of local culture and communal space—the dive bar. While one looks forward and the other looks back, both artists examine the essence of communal spaces and interactions, inviting visitors to question and understand the changing nature of community in a rapidly evolving world.
Faena Art will also present an exhibition by local Miami artist Liene Bosquê for the 2023 edition of No Vacancy, in partnership with the City of Miami Beach. No Vacancy is a juried art competition that supports and celebrates mainly local artists, provokes critical discourse, and encourages the public to experience Miami Beach’s famed hotels as temporary art destinations in their own right. This year, 12 artists created 12 installations across iconic Miami hotels and will be on view from November 16 through December 14, 2023. Bosquê will present Before Miami Design Preservation League, a sitespecific installation based on the now demolished and lost building silhouettes of Miami Beach before the 1980s.

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NOTES TO EDITORS
Special thanks to Chase Sapphire for their generous support of Faena Art’s projects at Miami Art
Week 2023.
About Faena Art
https://www.faenaart.org/
Faena Art is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization that commissions, produces, and houses crossdisciplinary artistic experiences with an emphasis on cultivating community and supporting artists locally and abroad. A catalyst for innovative, site-specific, and immersive practices, Faena Art bridges the popular and the experimental making art accessible to all. Faena Art fosters new models for social interaction transcending the traditional boundaries of art, science, philosophy, and social practice.
Established in 2011, Faena Art continues to commission major installations and exhibitions that are a major highlight of Miami Art Week and the city’s vibrant cultural scene at large. Over the past 12 years, their programming has expanded to include a biannual art prize, permanent exhibition spaces, and residencies across both Miami and Buenos Aires.
Follow @FaenaArt on Instagram and Facebook.

FaenaArt #FaenaArtProjectRoom

Faena Art Project Room
3420 Collins Ave Miami Beach, FL 33140

Perez Art Museum PAMM

Jareh Das

Azza El Siddique’s worlds between worlds

Backed by research and using sight, scent, sound, and time, the artist’s multilayered environments are sensory studies in ephemerality

Azza El Siddique builds worlds that hover between the states of life and death, growth and decay. Her site-specific installations are room-sized sensory environments – often infused with the intense fragrance of incense – that set sculptures, screens, masks, or vessels into architecturally minimalist steel frameworks. Custom-engineered systems modulate natural elements like water, light, and heat to create material and metaphorical circles of life: Clay objects appear in states of disintegration; dripping water transforms the materials it touches; and heat diffuses scents. Embodied and ephemeral, these installations address impermanence and mortality, but also transformation and rebirth.

Born in Khartoum, Sudan, and now living in New Haven, Connecticut after earning an MFA at Yale University in 2019, El Siddique’s work draws upon her Sudanese heritage and, more recently, her research into ancient Egyptian and Nubian architecture and funerary traditions. ‘My research operates from a space where I can play around with movement and the sensorial,’ she explains. ‘This also stems from being a queer woman of color, an immigrant, and the sense of awareness I have navigating the world within these built environments.’

The artist’s recurring use of heady aromas like sandalwood, amber, and musk creates a sanctuary atmosphere for viewers and pays homage to her East African heritage. These fragrances are prominent within the diasporic Sudanese community, which uses scents and rituals to retain tradition and identity in the places Sudanese have migrated to (in El Siddique’s case Canada, where she spent her youth). As the artist explained in a Zoom call: ‘Scent is a material that embeds itself within spaces and envelops the viewer whilst having the ability to make those who experience it time travel, in a sense.’

Memory – a kind of time travel – also plays a role in El Siddique’s installation Final Fantasy (2023), to be presented by Montreal-based gallery Bradley Ertaskiran in Art Basel Miami Beach’s Positions sector (the fair debut for both artist and gallery). Like her previous installations, the structure resembles a sacred space like a pyramid or temple, but also evokes the feeling of, say, a laboratory. ‘The installation reflects my younger years, when I played role-playing PlayStation games with my late brother,’ El Siddique explains. ‘These games feature narratives that remain relevant in our contemporary world: overconsumption, corporate greed, exploitation of natural resources, religious extremism, oppressive governments, natural disasters, pandemics, and so on.’

The installation’s two sphinx-like cement dog sculptures are based on 3D scans of the artist’s own Doberman Pinscher, Sunny. Dobermans were bred in the late 19th century as protective dogs, and the sculptures guard a large square steel fountain with a central column framed by four monitors playing looped video text of spells from ancient Egyptian and Nubian funerary texts including The Book of Two Ways. Presented here as a continuous flow resembling a scrolling stock-market ticker, the scripts once served as guides to the afterlife, providing instructions to the deceased for encounters with gods, demons, and deities, alongside strategies for progressive rebirths. The fountain’s cascading platform holds bisque-fired vessels and is surrounded by metal scaffolding: The latter erodes over time, while water that slowly drips from the scaffolding stains the vessels. The effect is tomblike, reliquary.

El Siddique’s fascination in the changeable materiality of objects is evident in her work, which blends storytelling with science, and traditional making methods with industrial production. ‘My main interest is in the way that these ancient architectures were built in metaphorical ways, and how they address narratives centered on the journey that takes the deceased to another world. This is a beautiful way of storytelling, and forms the basis of my practice,’ she says.

And as the work honors the archaic, it recasts how we perceive the present. In a review of scholar Katherine McKittrick’s Dear Science and Other Stories, a 2020 study on Black and anti-colonial strategies, writer Anna Nguyen noted that the author ‘positions Black storytelling as a way to hold on to the rebellious methodological work of sharing ideas in an unkind world, in exploring how Black creatives have always used such interdisciplinary and rebellious methodologies to invent ways of living outside of prevailing knowledge systems.’ El Siddique’s deeply poetic, research-led work embodies the interdisciplinary and defiant methodologies McKittrick writes of, unraveling past disciplines and imagining new ways of being in and experiencing our current world.

Azza El Siddique is represented by Bradley Ertaskiran (Montreal). Her work will be on view in the Positions sector at Art Basel Miami Beach in December. 

Jareh Das is an independent curator, writer, researcher, and occasional florist based between West Africa and the UK.

Published on November 13, 2023.

Captions for full-bleed images, from top to bottom: 1. Azza El Siddique, that which trembles wavers, 2023. Installation view at Bradley Ertaskiran. Photography by Paul Litherland. Courtesy of the artist and Bradley Ertaskiran. 2. Azza El Siddique, Solar Evocation, 2022. Installation view at Centre Clark, Montreal. Photography by Paul Litherland. Courtesy of the artist and Bradley Ertaskiran.

Perez Art Museum PAMM