T Wheeler Castillo

Final DAYS of the @aimbiennial ! Visit @dvcai studio 164 NE 56th St. DM for site visits.

Honored to be included in an amazing roster of artists. ‘Choublak (Hibiscus rosa sinensis) Flag’ will be raised Dec 1, 2 pm est, in the frontyard of the @dvcai studio. DM for address “Knowledge emerges only through invention and re-invention, through the restless, impatient, continuing, hopeful inquiry human beings pursue in the world, with the world, and with each other." — Paulo Freire The 2023 AI.M. Biennial, retums during Miami Art Week 2023 and will feature 56 site-specific installations throughout South Florida, created by diverse group of visual artists, dancers, activists, and performers. The AI.M. Biennial is an alternative to more mainstream commercial ventures. The mission of A.I.M is to disrupt and realize different ways of perceiving how art can be realized and function in public places through independent channels of distribution. The A.I.M. Biennial is a conceptual program promoting outdoor ephemeral, virtual, and physical art projects by cultural practitioners based and affiliated with the state of Florida. The A.I.M. Biennial proposes a democratic platform and outlet for artists and public that mediates on current themes addressing, ecology, migration, economy, race, violence, survival, healing, closure, and transcendence. Participants created temporary installations, performance, or documentation of existing three-dimensional work that relates to the A.I.M. Biennial concept. Physical address location and maps invite the public to seek and experience each piece through out South Florida and partnered cities, States and Countries.

🪸🌎🌊🦟🐠 Unstable Ecologies This salon features artists cultivating a mutualistic practice between technology and the natural world. Ecosystems emerge from mediation with artificial intelligence, and we come to a new understanding of our place in this world through symbiotic exchanges between biological and computational processes. A softer side of digital transformation begins to take seed with interspecies refiguring of the technologies of power that are changing our lived experience. Unstable Ecologies includes the work of Miami-based artists Felice Grodin, Fereshteh Toosi, Thom Wheeler Castillo, and Lee Pivnik. Each of these artists is deploying technology to connect our contemporary human experience with the environments and species of a city in crisis. Felice Grodin is working with AI to explore texture and biological patterns, subverting machine vision by putting technology at the service of her augmented reality creatures evolved from local species. Ferehsteh Toosi takes us on a journey through a younger generations’ view of the violently shifting geography of Miami, telling the story of a city shaped by climate catastrophe and hungry developers with memory and AR soundscapes. The stunning work-in-progress prints from Thom Wheeler Castillo envision a future for Miami where native growth has overcome the iconic architectures built in this impossible terrain. The ongoing research from Lee Pivnik offers speculative R&D in collaboration with AI to develop adaptive architectural solutions to Miami’s environmental precarity. Join us for an interspecies meeting of the minds on Wednesday, November 29th from 6-8PM at Oolite Satellite Space. The salon gathering will begin earlier than our previous events, to account for the shift of daylight savings time. Conversation and demos with the artists begins at 6PM with refreshments to follow.

Little late but still warm from the summer heat! Had the pleasure of speaking with Curator Rosie Gordon-Wallace. @dvcai has fueled my practice in so many ways. This series hosted by Rosie has featured alot of my favorite people. Check it out, support, share. Link in my profile or search: artofblackmiami.podbean.com Shout out to @petrabren and @ckinnard_ck1_sway_littlefox and the @visitmiami team!

FG-T, “Untitled” (Miami), 1992 🕯️🕯️🕯️ #whatshemeans

PS The flowers, fruit and botanicals of Suriname.

Final day in Paramaribo and its a rest day since the flight leaves early and its an hour drive to the airport. These images were some of my favorites, edited because of the limitations of at app. 1. Rosie’s first go at Batik 2. Roti meal (my fave) 3. Fabric backdrop at NAKS 4. Commewijne River 5. Beaded portrait necklace of Shaman Robins 6. Rosie with Milano at the Kali’na village 7. The oldest mango tree in Nieuw Lombé Maroon village 8. Detail of kerchief art at the Koto museum 9. Close up of Sloth detail in painting by @rinaldoklas 10. On the trail in Plantage Frederiksdorp #dvcai #dvcaisuriname #crearte

We started the day at Rinaldo Klas’ home and studio. Rosie started her day meeting with Suriname’s cultural minister. She met us at the studio just in time to sit and talk with the artist and to have a roundtable discussion about copyright, led by Marlon. The schedule was tight today because of the opening in the evening so we took off to the river. We crossed the river to Plantage Frederiksdorp for a tour that traced the life of a maroon and liberator. We walked through the forest and made stops according to the story of our hero. @roo_trips_su led the tour and shared lunch with us after. Later in the evening, we regrouped for the opening @readytexartgallery . What a wonderful turnout, lots of friendly faces met throughout the week and others in the gallery’s community, the US Ambassador to Suriname 🇸🇷 and his family included. We ended the evening at @monique_nouhchaia ’s home for a lovely Syrian dinner with the gallery’s inner circle of staff and artists. #dvcai #dvcaisuriname #crearte #readytexartgallery #usembassysuriname

We’re in the national paper! Nice way to start the day. Lots of excitement around the exhibition. And it looks great as install images have circulated the socials. Congrats to @monique_nouhchaia and her amazing team @readytexartgallery ! After a long drive due South, we visted Nieuw Lombé Maroon Village after a quick long boat across the Suriname river. Our guide Jonathan took us into a walk thru and around the village. We saw life in the village develop along side layers of history. We saw easily a 100 yr+ mango tree, cacao, skinks. It was promenade where the women’s council greeted Rosie with a ceremonial garment. We ended our day at the Koto Museum where upon Monique’s arrival, Rosie was presented an angisa as a gift. We were all delighted by the history of dress in Suriname after the abolishment of slavery. There are stories tied to each pattern, a lady and a little gossip would name a trendy fabric. It was also demonstrated how an angisa was folded and how many ways to communicate. @yantis_arts got to play dressup. #dvcai #dvcaisuriname #crearte #readytexartgallery

Were up early again to make our way to meet a shaman. We learn the life of a shaman Robins Anoewaritja. He sings for us. We spend the rest of the to get to know him. Next we drive into the country, crossing the river, to the workshop of ceramicist and his fam. His son Milano helped us when it came time for us to get a go at making. Its also his drawing that top’s the stack, the opening artwork of the day. He drew his fave video game ‘Among us!’ 🎮👾♟️ I clearly haven’t played and rotated in the wrong direction so turn your device 180 degrees. Still a great drawing from a young artist. We next go to the drumming. We learn about Winti culture from a maester. We learn for the last 20 yrs or so girls can drum too. We remeet a student who performed for the other nights @_nads_official_14 . #dvcai #dvcaisuriname #crearte #readytexartgallery

We started the day @readytexartgallery to check in on the install. Excited for @superblakwoman2 surinam trap and for her performance on opening night. Watson Akobe hosted next at his workshop where he practices woodcarving Tembe. Tembe is making everything you need for life, the marks and the making, always essential. We spent time with his family, including getting to know (and get excited) about Tifen Akobe @tifens_design fashion practice. Dinner was Chinese hot pot. Extra shoutout to @camcfarlane for being the most prepared (and letting borrow her second 📸 when I forgot mine). 🦂🌟🌈🦾 #dvcai #dvcaisuriname #crearte #readytex