SPRING 2020
University of Miami AMS350
HISTORY AND CULTURE OF SOUTH FLORIDA
Mapping Miami’s Contemporary Culture
WEDNESDAYS, 3:35pm-6:05pm
Merrick 214F
Lecturer: Cathy Byrd
EMAIL: cxb1184@miami.edu
Office hours by appointment
Once Upon a Time in Miami: Stories from the Cultural Landscape
STUDENTS WILL CO-PRODUCE EPISODES FOR WVUM 90.5!
INTRO
How did Miami become a destination for international contemporary art and ground zero for sea level rise at the same time?
Exploring the City’s past, present and possible future, students learn audio podcasting—how to use digital tools to uncover, collect, produce and share stories from the cultural landscape. The course will deepen knowledge and understanding of this metropolis through research, reading and writing, local experts, interviews, field recordings, site visits and participation in public events. Diving into contemporary cultural history and current events, the course mines local resources to illuminate the role of creativity in addressing the impact of growth, development and climate change on Miami’s communities.
ABOUT Cathy Byrd
Cathy Byrd is a globally engaged curator, educator, podcaster and writer with more than 20 years of experience in the field of contemporary art. Her writing appears in the Miami Rail, Art Papers, Art in America, Sculpture magazine and other publications. Race and gender, the economy, the environment, global migration and technology are among issues and ideas she brings to the world’s attention through her hybrid practice.
In 2011, Cathy launched the new arts media platform Fresh Art International. Her roving audio podcast engages at the center and fringe of art scenes across seven continents. Based in Miami since 2013, Fresh Art International is known for making contemporary art and culture accessible through podcasting. Cathy sparks conversations with today’s emerging and established artists, curators, writers, designers and filmmakers at the center and fringe of creative communities, to witness, document and archive the voices and sounds of our complex cultural landscape.
SPRING 2020 FIELD EXPEDITIONS
North Beach, with the Juggerknot Theater’s Miami Motel Stories
Downtown Miami and Brickell
Little Haiti Cultural Complex, with Marie Vickles, Edouard Duval Carrié, Carl Juste and william cordova
Little Havana, with Plusurbia
Allapattah: Rubell Museum, Spinello Projects, Bonnier Gallery, Jolt Radio
Pinecrest Gardens: Earth Day with Xavier Cortada and students
Featured photos: Ellen Harvey, Atlantis, Miami Beach Convention Center, 2019 | Simon Faithfull, ARTSail, Miami, 2018 | Cathy Byrd, Peréz Art Museum Miami, 2018. Photo Alex Markow | WVUM Team, University of Miami, 2019 | Dimensions Variable, Miami, 2019 | Johanne Rahaman, Black Florida, 2018 | Buskerfest, Downtown Miami, 2018
