Thirteen years ago, when the Perez Art Museum of Miami(PAMM) held its first celebration for the Black Art Fund, BlackMiami saw the beginning of a never-before-experienced focus on Black artists. This Saturday, the 13th annual Art and Soul Celebration takes place in Miami to ring in Black History Month.
Previously, it was not unusual for major Black artists to be promoted in Miami, to a small art community, nor was it unusual for there to be no attention placed on local Black artists. However, times have changed, and PAMM has been a leader inits focus on Black art, both internationally and locally. Every year, PAMM hosts “Art and Soul”, a fundraiser for the Black Art Fund, which has raised $8.9 million to date and helped the museum acquire incredible works by the art world’s most lauded Black artists. “Art and Soul” is curated in many ways for the large donor yet allows access to the everyday art supporter who wants to be part of history and celebrate artistic excellence.
PAMM’s leadership in Black art is intentional and dynamicallyshows the range of the African diaspora with a nod towards the Caribbean, the Central part of the African continent, and South America, as well as the United States. This leadership was molded by Jorge Perez, the Knight Foundation, and Franklin Sirmans. Sirmans’ appointment in 2014 was an exciting choice for Miami, and his curatorial focus was exactly what the city needed, given its long neglect of the Black art world. Franklin’s work in New York, Los Angeles, Houston, and New Orleans was fantastic preparation for what would be needed to lead PAMM into the future. That future has brought diverse programming that brought Miami’s community at large together, making Miami the a focus for Black creatives worldwide. Celebrating the leadership of PAMM, as well as being a partner in building a collection of loyal Black art, is still possible by clicking this link to purchase tickets
