WISH TOWERS INSTALLATION CELEBRATES THE NATURAL ENVIRONMENT
IN HONOR OF GARDEN CENTENNIAL
OPENING RESCHEDULED DUE TO WEATHER:
The opening reception scheduled for November 9, 2022, was moved to December 3, 2022, due to the approach of Tropical Storm Nicole.
MIAMI – October 12, 2022 – Vizcaya Museum and Gardens welcomes the return of its Contemporary Arts Program (CAP). In line with the centennial of the estate’s 10-acre formal gardens, completed in 1922, this year’s exhibit–Wish Towers by Javier and Jaime Suárez Berrocal–explores how art and nature intersect at Vizcaya. The opening reception takes place on Wednesday, November 9, 2022, at 7:00 p.m. and the exhibit will be on view through April 17, 2023.
“James Deering was an avid patron of contemporary art in his day, commissioning many artists to create site-specific works for Vizcaya’ gardens, which turn 100 this year. As such, it is fitting that the return of Vizcaya’s Contemporary Arts Program revolves around an installation in the gardens and environmental sustainability,” said Joel Hoffman, Executive Director and CEO.
“I am excited to see the next phase of this initiative under our new curator, Helena Gomez.”
Vizcaya’s gardens have provided beauty and inspired a sense of wonder to visitors. This is the result of their unique location, elaborate design and natural treasures. A complement to its surroundings, Wish Towers is a modular sculpture made of fossilized coral collected from Puerto Rico’s shores. Inspired by the coral limestone used throughout Vizcaya’s construction, this local stone became the artists’ focus.
“After a four-year intermission marked by a hurricane and a global pandemic, it is incredibly exciting to resume the Contemporary Arts Program with Jaime and Javier Suárez’s poignant piece,” noted Helena Gomez, Vizcaya’s Curator.
“Honoring our garden’s history and design, the Suárez brother’s towering and awe-inspiring installation brings awareness of Vizcaya’s climate-vulnerable location and invites collective participation to care for the environment in which we live.”
Twin brothers Jaime and Javier Suárez Berrocal were brought up in Puerto Rico where they were exposed to ceramics, woodworking, and fishing from an early age. Their passion for the arts and the ocean guides their interest in environmental forms of expression, and their artistic practice develops concepts and strategies that respect and protect the environment.
The artists transformed the sun-bleached coral into unique pieces that link together creating vertical structures, described by the artists as stalagmites. Together, they form a coral compass, with each tower representing a cardinal point whose coordinates metaphorically signal Vizcaya’s geographical location. The site-specific installation, with five coral towers, rises from Vizcaya’s Reflective Pool, blending harmoniously with the surrounding grottos and obelisks.
The commissioned work explores the relationship between the ocean and the land by serving as a vessel for mangrove propagules (seedlings). The mangrove tree straddles between the land and the ocean and is known for protecting coastlines. At Vizcaya, red mangroves support our ecosystems and provide buffering during storm surges. Jaime and Javier’s work responds to the ongoing challenges posed by climate change, including sea level rise and increases in seawater temperature, honoring Vizcaya’s commitment to environmental sustainability.
Wish Towers symbolizes the collective effort to protect the natural world we inhabit. The installation encourages public participation to promote ecological responsibility. By activating a manual pump, our visitors will contribute to watering these mangrove seedlings and thus helping them grow. At the end of the exhibition, the young mangroves will be planted in Vizcaya’s coastal forest, helping mitigate the challenges of sea level rise caused by climate change, while the coral sculpture will return to the Puerto Rican seabed, where it will serve as a sustainable structure for new coral to attach and grow.
The Contemporary Arts Program (CAP) is supported by The Danielson Foundation; the Miami-Dade County Mayor and Board of County Commissioners; and is sponsored in part by the State of Florida, Department of State, Division of Arts and Culture, the Florida Council on Arts and Culture, and the National Endowment for the Arts.
RELATED PROGRAMS:
- Wish Towers Opening Reception | Wednesday, November 9, 2022, at 7:00 p.m. Tickets are $10 per person. Purchase tickets at Vizcaya.org/events.
PHOTOS | Click to download; Photos Courtesy of the Artists. Captions provided.
ABOUT THE COMTEMPORARY ARTS PROGRAM
El Programa de Arte Contemporáneo (CAP, por sus siglas en inglés) es una serie de exposiciones por encargo que ofrece a los artistas el reto creativo de desarrollar una obra original y específica para un lugar histórico. Desde 2006, el CAP ha proporcionado a nuestros visitantes nuevas formas de ver el patrimonio histórico y ha reforzado las relaciones con artistas contemporáneos.
CAP se inspira en el espíritu dinámico y creativo que caracterizó los inicios de Vizcaya hace cien años, y continúa la tradición de James Deering como mecenas de las artes. Desde John Singer Sargent, un huésped de la casa que pintó acuarelas de la finca, hasta A. Stirling Calder, que esculpió las figuras de la Barcaza, y Robert Winthrop Chanler, creador del mural del techo de la Gruta de la Piscina, Vizcaya continúa un diálogo entre lo histórico y lo contemporáneo. Al igual que hace cien años, el singular sentido del lugar de Vizcaya sigue siendo el punto de partida para los artistas.
The Contemporary Arts Program (CAP) is supported by The Danielson Foundation; the Miami-Dade County Mayor and Board of County Commissioners; and is sponsored in part by the State of Florida, Department of State, Division of Arts and Culture, the Florida Council on Arts and Culture, and the National Endowment for the Arts.
SOBRE EL MUSEO Y JARDINES DE VIZCAYA
El Museo y Jardines de Vizcaya es un Monumento Histórico Nacional que preserva sus recursos culturales y medioambientales para que la gente conecte con el pasado, comprenda el presente y forje el futuro. Construida entre 1914 y 1922 como residencia de invierno del fabricante agrícola James Deering, Vizcaya es uno de los ejemplos más intactos que quedan de esta época en Estados Unidos, cuando las fincas construidas por los empresarios de más éxito del país se inspiraban en las casas señoriales de Europa. Vizcaya cuenta con una Casa Principal repleta de una colección de arte decorativo, 10 acres de jardines formales, una hamaca rocosa (bosque autóctono), una orilla de manglares y una villa histórica que se está restaurando para contar la historia completa de Vizcaya y proporcionar espacios adicionales para programas y actividades de divulgación comunitaria, incluidos los de agricultura. Vizcaya ha sido un centro comunitario desde su apertura al público en 1953; recibe 300.000 visitantes al año.
Located on Biscayne Bay at 3251 South Miami Avenue, Vizcaya is open Thursday through Monday from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Closed Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day. For more information, visit www.vizcaya.org, connect via social media, or call 305-250-9133.
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