Transforming Opa-Locka Into A Vibrant Art Hub

The community of Opa-locka is transitioning from a city with a high crime and unemployment rate into an up and coming art hub. This creative metamorphosis was made possible with the support of a nonprofit organization, the Opa-locka Community Development Corporation (OLCDC), which is working to incorporate art into everything they are doing to help revitalize the community.

Once a month the OLCDC hosts a free art exhibition called META, curated by Mr. Ludlow Bailey. META is open to the public, allowing people to enjoy great artwork, listen to a lively panel discussion about art and engage with the artists during the event. Local and international artists such as Everton Wright, Asser Saint-Val, Elaine Defibaugh and Hattie Mae Williams have shown their artwork at previous META events. The event takes place at the Arts and Recreation Center (ARC), in the heart of Opa-Locka, in what was previously an abandoned mechanics shop. The ARC’s restoration has played a vital role in OLCDC’s community transformation by bridging the gap between the Opa-locka community and art. The event takes place on the last Sunday of each month from 1-4pm at the ARC: 675 Ali Baba Avenue in Opa-locka, FL 33054.

Similar neighborhoods in Miami are following this Wynwood-inspired design of community revitalization. The result is the emergence of new creative colonies throughout the area echoing outwards from the Wynwood Arts District. The goal of OLCDC is to help current residents embrace Opa-locka through engaging art initiatives. In doing so, OLCDC hopes to attract the attention of local and international artists and make Opa-locka more than just a place you pass through. This goal began in 2011, when OLCDC was awarded a National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Grant. The following summer, OLCDC recruited four artists/teams to begin work throughout the city of Opa-locka.

Community involvement in the arts is gaining momentum in Opa-locka and is bringing awareness to many art enthusiasts throughout South Florida. Through a partnership with Miami Rise, the OLCDC hosted Paint Day – phase one of the Oasis/Oases initiative to transform Opa-locka Avenue into a functional and visually pleasing space. In the summer of 2013, OLCDC received a $70,000 Art Works grant from the National Endowment for the Arts to commission noted artist/landscape architect Walter Hood to re-imagine Opa-locka’s Ali Baba Avenue. Over several site visits, Hood and his team engaged various stakeholders including OLCDC staff, city officials, business owners, residents, and potential partners to re-conceptualize the corridor to enhance Opalocka’s environment on the infrastructural and human scales. The result is Oasis/Oases, a large scale, long-term art project that will integrate walking surfaces, seating, shading and best management practices for storm water control to create lush green and shaded pocket oases along the length of Ali Baba Avenue. Under the guidance of artist and landscape architect Walter Hood, more than 200 volunteers attended Paint Day to paint a geometric street design onto the surface of the designated roadway. The permanent street design is one of the largest public artworks in Miami-Dade County.