Common Space Exhibit To Transform Oolite Arts' Gallery Into Its Own Work Of Art

This Art Basel, Oolite Arts will present a group exhibition featuring 10 renowned artists from Miami, New York and Chicago interacting with its gallery and investigating the concept of space and its various forms. Common Space, which runs from Oct. 20, 2021 - Jan. 23, 2022, will transform Oolite Arts' gallery into its own work of art.

Breaking the notion of a gallery as a static presentation, this exhibition re-imagines Oolite's unique space to bridge the gallery with studios and common rooms and brings together works by past Oolite Arts residents and visiting artists. Site-specific commissions and activations throughout the duration of the exhibit will provide prompts for viewer participation and engagement.

"Art Basel brings together visiting artist cultures from all over the world here in Miami," said Sally Eaves Hughes, a Whitney Museum Helena Rubinstein Curatorial Fellow and the curator for this show. "This exhibit, which has been two years in the making, is important in that it's a collaborative project overlapping between these three cities in one transformative space."

Common Space will feature works by Bethany Collins, Rafael Domenech, GeoVanna Gonzalez, Diego Gutierrez, Paloma Izquierdo, Ernesto Oroza, Sarah Sze, Rirkrit Tiravanija, Rafael Vargas Bernard and Tomas Vu.

Rafael Domenech, who sparked the idea of returning the gallery space to its original architecture, will present an immersive paneled installation that will occupy and divide the common room where the library is located. The piece exemplifies the idea that the spaces we inhabit and their structure impacts the way we feel, move, and relate to one another.

GeoVanna Gonzalez will be taking over a former studio space connected to the gallery and common room with a sculpture, experimental dance film, and performance. Her project explores the role of underground spaces, specifically queer clubs, and their importance as conduits of care, liberation, and self-preservation.

Another highlight is Rirkrit Tiravanija's three long form scrolls that will run along the curved walls in the gallery. The scrolls (prints from the edition are also at MoMA) function as a visual timeline, a map, and written correspondence of the artist's life during a 20-year period. Tiravanija has had his work featured at MoMA, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, and the Venice Biennale among several other prestigious institutions and biennials. Many of the artists like Tiravanija are engaging with the idea of language as a space of social exchange.

Hughes adds, "Oolite Arts' gallery space is very interesting and non-traditional. It has these fantastic windows and architectural curved elements. When creating this show, I wanted to engage with artists who could respond to the space."

Common Space extends beyond the gallery and into the city of Miami through two projects by Paloma Izquierdo and Diego Gutierrez. At Oolite Arts and the Miami-Dade Public Library, Izquierdo will introduce sculptures that mimic everyday objects and their function in community settings, such as pencils and keys. Gutierrez will present two installations of new paintings that expand the process of making beyond the space of the studio into the gallery and the public space of a storefront Walgreens window on 67th St and Collins Avenue in Miami Beach.

To view Common Space, the public can visit the gallery between the hours of noon and 5 p.m., Oct. 20, 2021 - Jan. 23, 2022. The gallery space is located at 924 Lincoln Road. For updates, visit oolitearts.org.

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