Purvis Young Exhibit

One of Miami's unique artists is being celebrated between July 30 and November 7, 2010 at the Miami Art Museum. The Purvis Young Focus Gallery features paintings that span the career of the self-taught Miami artist whose works, inspired by life in Overtown, are now celebrated throughout the art world.

Young passed away in April of this year at the age of 67. Purvis Young’s work reflects the condition experienced by residents of Miami’s Overtown, the historic African American neighborhood that was transformed from a thriving community to an impoverished inner-city environment in the 1960’s and 70’s, when interstate 95 was erected.

Against this backdrop, Young’s work serves as inspiration for the capacity of the creative spirit to reclaim, transform, restore and renew. “Through the decades, Young served as an eyewitness to changes in social conditions and Miami’s transformation from a modest city to a bustling metropolis that now carries many of the social, economic, and political problems that come with being a large city,” said Peter Boswell, MAM assistant director for programs/senior curator. “In this context, Young’s paintings act as a form of protest against injustice and as a testament to the resiliency of the human spirit in the midst of often dehumanizing urban conditions.”

In collaboration with Miami International Film Festival, MAM will mark the opening reception and preview of the Purvis Young focus gallery with a special screening of Purvis of Overtown (2006) on Thursday, July 29, 2010. RSVP@miamiartmuseum.org. Seating is limited. First come, first seated. MAM and MIFF members free, non-members $10.