Tucked within a small corner of Overtown lies an exhibit that spoke louder than the bustling sounds of highway traffic during Miami Art Week.
“Chamber of Reflections,” an exhibit by the creative collective Burgundy XYZ, multimedia storyteller Gary Tyla, and exhibition space Quiet Hours, showcased its opening reception on Thursday, Dec. 4.
The exhibition, which features works by Miami native Qadir Parris and Los Angeles-based Terry Joshua, showcases the two artists’ personal experiences and vulnerability as Black men.
Terry Joseph and his piece, “When Nature Wants A Man/Sharon’s Son.”
(Instagram@TerrytheDon)
The venue was packed wall to wall with excited creatives, families and friends supporting the artists.
Parris, a 21-year-old Miami-born interdisciplinary artist, highlights his local upbringings through familial portrait paintings. One such example is his “Leaders of Tomorrow” tapestry, which blends elements of three unique photo references from his familial background into a singular piece of artwork.
“I want my work to pull into the soul of the audience and draw them to look inward. I feel like a lot of people were really drawn to my work, from me pulling in these photos and capturing these experiences — it makes people look at their own experiences and connect to the art,” Parris said.
Parris’ work at “Chamber of Reflections” is an extension of that of another exhibit, “Spirit Scope,” born out of his residency with the YoungArts Gallery in Miami.
“The pieces in the YoungArts exhibit were pieces from high school showcasing who I am at the time, but as I later discovered more about my family history through my grandfather, my grandmother, and others, I just felt like bringing so much story to the forefront,” Parris said.
The stories, showcased through portrait work of his parents and other family members, speak to his hopes of “wanting to draw people to pull into a world where they relate to the spirit of certain aspects of people in the art.”
Joshua, a 25-year-old Los Angeles-based contemporary artist, says his art has functioned as his own personal diary since a young age. His work in the exhibit showcases his emotions, vulnerability, and exploration of self throughout the years.
“My life has been art, truthfully, but I don’t believe I lead with my traumas. But in my art I do,” Joshua said in conversation with Burgundy XYZ collaborator Edwins Saintrose.
As with his piece “When Nature Wants A Man/Sharon’s Son,” Joshua uses surrealism and abstract art styles to convey his emotions in a more complex nature. The piece provides a visual of how he rebuilt himself after his childhood experiences “to show reverence to the little kid that just wanted to create.”
Joshua was born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio, but he has lived in various cities throughout his lifetime before ultimately landing in Los Angeles. His work within the “Chamber of Reflections” exhibit speaks to the interconnectedness of art across regions, especially in the East Coast.
“I think that when you’re talking about collaboration, getting different tastes from different cultures, I think there’s a lot more opportunity to do that,” Joshua said.
Exhibitions like “Chamber of Reflections” help to “bridge the gap,” Tyla said, at a time when young Black and brown creatives remain under-represented, especially within global events like Miami Art Week.
The group of creatives worked on the exhibition for three months, wanting to “bring new artists that a lot of people don’t see often, bringing new artwork into these spaces for people to see and experience just like we have,” Saintrose said.
Max Machado, founder of the Quiet Hours Space, said he hopes that patrons of the exhibit, whether local or national, see the vulnerability and connectedness behind each piece.
“You see two artists with different styles, but there’s through line with their work. With Qadir, it’s a deeper dive into your family archives; with Terry, it’s about reflecting on self,” Machado said.
“They may not have seen works like these at some of the main fairs for Art Basel, but came here and felt they could, you know, have this avenue into a conversation and into new art as well.”
“Chamber of Reflections” is on view through Saturday, Dec. 13, from 1 p.m. to 10 p.m. at Quiet Hours, 212 N.W. 11th St., Miami, FL 33136. Admission is free.