Renowned artists like Peter Tunney and Bordalo II utilized the infamous Miami Art Week to share important messages through their work. The PVBLIC team had the opportunity to meet with Tunney and learn how his latest projects are helping people who have been wrongfully convicted.
Each year the epicenter of Miami’s Wynwood art district, Wynwood Walls, chooses a theme to debut during the Miami Art Week. This year's theme was Agents Of Change, expressing the way artists can revolutionize change through their work, changing an environment, addressing pressing issues with creativity, or bringing joy and wonder into someone's life.
The PVBLIC Foundation team reunited in Miami during Art Week and experienced the work of artists creating an impact. We had the opportunity to meet with artist Peter Tunney, Wynwood Walls’ first tenant. Peter gave us a tour of his gallery where his famous textual images with inspirational messages like, Don’t Panic, The Time Is Always Now, Fear Less, Love More and Change the Way You See Everything fill the space.
His latest projects “Liberty” and “Grattitude”— spelled with two t’s, he said, as in the inseparable concepts of being appreciative and attitude — are focused on the injustice and suffering that result when innocent people are sent to prison. Tunney partnered with USA Today to create the pieces using over 700 newspaper articles all focusing on the issue of wrongful incarceration or the concepts of liberty or gratitude. Proceeds from both paintings and their NFT versions will go to the Gannett Foundation and The Sunny Center, which is dedicated to healing the emotional and mental trauma experienced by exonerees.
Peter showed the team around the Wynwood Walls and gave some insight on the new pieces created for the 2021 Miami Art week. One of the artists whose work stood out was Bordalo II. Bordalo is a portuguese artist famous for using street garbage to create animal sculptures and warn people about climate change and endangered species.
His latest sculpture, "Plastic Mom n Baby Monkeys"- as he called it on his instagram page- hugged a large tree in the center of Wynwood Walls grabbing the attention of everyone who walked by. The piece was made using non-biodegradable trash collected throughout the city of Miami.
Artists like Peter Tunney and Bordalo II use their talents to revolutionize change. Reminding us that impact can be made in a plethora of ways, even by collecting garbage off the street and turning it into something unrecognizable. We encourage you to reflect on your everyday life and think of ways you are able to create a small impact. This can be by living more sustainably, volunteering your time to initiatives you are passionate about, or simply by bringing joy to someone's life, we can all be Agents Of Change.
