FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Sustainable Urban Arts Center (S.U.A.C.) to break ground in Miami

A new directorial collective comprised of Miami based organizations responding to an increased social awareness of sustainability are proud to announce the development of their Sustainable Urban Arts Center (S.U.A.C.). The first of its kind in Miami, the center will place ‘the magic city’ alongside other forerunners in developing urban sustainability, both national and international.

With assistance from city and county officials and grassroots initiatives alike, founding 501c3 non profit organization Art of Cultural Evolution have teamed up with mobile educational resource, Transit Antenna and web based arts publication, ARTLURKER.com to produce S.U.A.C. in conjunction with a bevvy of local pioneers working to define various green sector fields.

The vision for S.U.A.C. is an entirely self sustaining arts park consisting of a natively landscaped green space, an international arts and sciences residency program replete with workshops and studios, a learning/education/visitors center, a bulk/0 packaging food store, community mulching, aquaculture ponds and much more. S.U.A.C. will seek to produce all its own utilities and condition all its own waste. Working with the ebb and flow of its surroundings the center will allow for the maximum yield of both environmental and cultural resources.

S.U.A.C. will be an epicenter for innovation and engagement in Miami, a platform for sustainable initiatives and a public interface that involves and educates by rejoining the arts with the sciences in a productive relationship long since forgotten. A venue for locally oriented, internationally focused projects S.U.A.C. will host exhibitions, offer workshops and provide an edifying public recreation space.

The power of the arts to anticipate future social and technological developments by a generation and more has long been recognized. From Ezra Pound who proffered the arts’ rightful place as the acknowledged guide and lamp of civilization to Marshall McLuhan’s idea of an artist as an antenna of society, the concept of the arts as prophetic contrasts with the popular idea of them as merely a form of self-expression. It is perhaps only fitting then that a group comprised primarily of notable arts professionals are leading the sustainability movement here in Miami with S.U.A.C., a community based project that is entirely social by nature. As consumer culture better understands its impact on our shared environment an increasing sense of civic responsibility has become prevalent.  Even the media is now facilitating the boom in sustainable practices and initiatives to the extent that such ideals are now largely considered ‘en vogue.’

About ACE

Art of Cultural Evolution is an IRS officiated public charity founded by artists, activists, members of the Miami community and concerned citizens. The mission of the organization is to engage the public in environmental and social ideas through the arts. ACE has produced MiamiZine an annual publication for living sustainably in Miami, ReProcess: Turning public trash into public art and is eager to launch a WVO Tax Incentive program to support the donation of waste vegetable oil from restaurants as a fuel alternative.

S.U.A.C. will become the central operating center for ACE and we will be receptive to ideas from the community, which may be submitted online in 2013 in our Community Ideas Forum. Please join our mailing list to receive our newsletter to stay abreast of further developments at www.artofculturalevolution.org

About Transit Antenna

TRANSIT ANTENNA is a hybrid arts and sciences organization that functions within the parameters of a (documented) creative workshop and educational resource. We operate nationwide, working to engage communities on contemporary issues and facilitate the dissemination of progressive systems and experiences for the benefit of anyone seeking to decrease their dependence on infrastructure. TRANSIT ANTENNA evolves organically in response to successive crews that travel the roads of North America in increasingly sustainable vehicles. Crew, members and residents of TRANSIT ANTENNA, both on and off the road, utilize www.transitantenna.com as a journal and project archive.

For TRANSIT ANTENNA, S.U.A.C. is the culmination of seven years of research. After fundraising in Miami’s Design District in 2011 we departed on a national tour with the intent of returning to Miami to share paradigm shifting ideas and technologies for the benefit of the local community.

About Artlurker.com:

ARTLURKER is an online contemporary arts publication written by a broad range of guest contributors including visual artists, musicians, curators and critics. ARTLURKER’s mission is to document cultural subjects that impact the local community and encourage critical discourse through various initiatives such as the Miami Writer’s Prize; an annual prize funded by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.

Since its inception in 2008, ARTLURKER has served the local community as a resource and platform representative of the relative accessibility of Miami’s art scene. For ARTLURKER, S.U.A.C. is an opportunity to utilize its popularity to affect positive social change through the arts.

Invitation to participate:

S.U.A.C. organizers are currently accepting letters of interest from designers and other potential affiliates. If you would like to be involved in the development of the center please include your resume and interest in the project in an email.

News:

In preparation work is currently underway at the S.U.A.C. test site, Midtown34thStreet.