walls turned sideways are bridges (edition 1 of 10) © William Cordova + Luis Gispert 2014-2015
MDC Museum of Art + Design Presents Pop Up Exhibition Featuring Alumni William Cordova and Luis Gispert Benefiting Arts for Learning/Miami
Miami, August 31, 2015 – Miami Dade College (MDC) alumni and internationally-renowned visual artists, William Cordova and Luis Gispert, have collaborated to create walls turned sideways are bridges, a series of 10 original works that will be exhibited at the MDC Museum of Art + Design (MOA+D) at the historic Freedom Tower Sept. 17 – Oct. 18. Proceeds from the sale of the artwork will benefit Arts for Learning’s (A4L) arts education programs across South Florida. The exhibition is free and open to the public.
Before developing careers that would prove key to heightening the national awareness of Miami’s burgeoning arts community, Cordova and Gispert both attended MDC but did not meet until they were completing undergraduate art studies far from home in Chicago.
“We were drawn to each other’s work while studying at MDC, but never met,” recounts Cordova. “We inadvertently collaborated on the bathroom walls with pseudo-intellectual graffiti at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and finally realized each other’s presence. We started working together on films, videos, performances and large scale installations. Luis [Gispert] and I have known of each other’s work for the past 24 years, though we’ve only been friends for the last 21.”
As a longtime supporter of A4L, Cordova has given of his time and talent to the organization through student workshops at afterschool programs and serving as a panel juror for A4L’s middle school intensive and high school internship programs. After helping to coordinate a successful silent auction fundraiser in 2013, Cordova presented the idea of creating a limited edition series to benefit the organization, and found this to be fitting for collaboration with Gispert.
“We chose to collaborate on a project for Arts for Learning because Luis and I are part of the many communities that make up South Florida,” said Cordova. “We felt it important to put actions behind our words, so, when we say we believe in the arts, we are not talking about the commercial art world. We are talking about how essential art is in our early and later development as human beings.”
Cordova and Gispert will also collaborate to deliver a workshop to interns of A4L’s ArtWorks Internships in the Arts program. In its fifth year, the ArtWorks program has expanded to offer paid internships in Creative Writing, Dance, Theatre and Visual Art to more than 30 students throughout the school year and summer terms.
MOA+D is free and open to the public Wednesday through Sunday, from Noon – 5 p.m. Frames for the works were generously provided by newly relocated I’ve Been Framed (www.ivebeenframedmiami.com). The works are priced at $2,000 each.
About Arts for Learning/Miami
Arts for Learning (A4L) is a non-profit organization dedicated to advancing teaching and learning through the arts and community cultural resources. As a leading source of arts programs in Miami, A4L provides traditional and arts-integrated instruction, student studio programs, afterschool and summer programs, high school internships, and teacher and artist professional development. A4L’s programs augment cognitive, social, and emotional development in children and youth. The programs also develop creativity, critical thinking, communication, problem solving skills as well as promote positive peer relations and cultivate self-efficacy. A4L partners with Miami-Dade County Public Schools, Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs, and Young Audiences – A4L’s national affiliate. A4L also serves as the South Florida Wolf Trap, a regional program of Wolf Trap Institute for Early LearningTM. A4L’s services are delivered to more than 5,000 children and youth in approximately 50 schools, preschools, after-school programs, and summer camps throughout Miami-Dade and Broward.
About MDC Museum of Art + Design
MDC Museum of Art + Design (MOAD) is Miami Dade College’s flagship institution dedicated to the presentation and exhibition of visual art and design, housed at the National Historic Landmark Freedom Tower at Miami Dade College in Downtown Miami. The mission of the Museum is to promote the appreciation and understanding of art and its role in society through direct engagement with original works of art from within the College’s extensive permanent collection and temporary exhibitions. Furthermore, the Museum presents year-round lectures, symposiums and art related events to expose, educate and engage the greater public through related creative processes.
For more information on Arts for Learning and sales inquiries, please contact Carolina Candelaria at (305) 576-1212, or [email protected].
For more information about the exhibition at MDC Museum of Art + Design, please contact Carolina Salazar at (305) 237-7710.
MDC Media-only contacts:
Juan Mendieta, 305-237-7611, [email protected], MDC communications director
Hessy Fernandez, 305-237-3949, [email protected], Director, Media Relations
Sue Arrowsmith, 305-237-3710, [email protected], media specialist
Allison Horton, 305-237-3359, [email protected], public information coordinator
Alejandro Rios, 305-237-7482, [email protected]