Thursday, November 28, 2013

Thoughts on cardboard continued

Bling up the helpless. Acrylic and Sharpie on card board. Smile even if you don't feel like it.
Every major city has it's iconic artist, and Miami has Romero Britto. He is called "a Brazilian American neo-pop artist". Perhaps he belongs to Florida as a whole, but I know when you arrive at JFK (NY) his apple is there to greet you. His sculptures accent the entry to most of Miami's libraries and parks. Our school has one in the courtyard. People love to love him and love to hate him. He stands for surface decoration, jazzy patterns, Latino bling, musical color, youthful cartoon, and our money culture. Britto has made an art fortune by licensing his art for an array of products, with "pop up stores" located at airports, on cruise ships, in the college student centers, and along the tourist mall walkways.

So why not put a little Britto twist on the street beggar's signs? With Miami Basel coming to town the police are busy interrogating the homeless and offering to bus them 30 miles away to shelters. If they refuse, because the shelter might require religious obligations nor involuntary substance-abuse or mental-health treatment, they can be taken to jail. This is all in a new wave attempt to dismantle a 15 year old settlement, Pottinger vs City of Miami.
Anyway... what about... we just add a little random culture to the streets? Leave the helpless homeless alone (as far as not jailing them), and even throw a little change their way. I'm going to give this sign away today as we head to the Keys for a little sunshine, (Florida is freezing this morning- 60 degrees!).
Happy Thanks Giving...

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