There's endless talk about Miami's cultural transformation and there are finally some numbers to back up this claim.
A national study by Americans for the Arts, says more than 13.5 million people attended arts and culture events in Miami in 2010 and spent over a billion dollars.
And our city's most fertile arts ground, Wynwood, just got a bump in funding from an arm of the Knight Foundation that puts the arts at the center of economic development.
Tuesday ArtPlace announced 33 grants awarded to art programs and districts across the country and three local ones made the cut.
The Wynwood Arts District will receive $140,000 to launch a Business Improvement District.
Matt Haggman, Miami program director for the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, one of the 10 funders of ArtPlace, said in a release: “This project will have immediate benefits for Wynwood, but just as importantly it will strengthen community engagement in a way that will pay off for years.”
Miami's The Light Box at Goldman Warehouse will also receive an even greater sum -- $385,000 -- to develop technical and artistic training, rental and new artistic programs at the space.
Lastly, The Bass Museum of Art in Miami Beach will receive an ArtPlace grant of $220,000 to put towards their "TC: Temporary Contemporary" public arts program.
It will help bring recognized artists into town to create site-specific installations in the Beach's arts district.
“The Miami projects receiving ArtPlace funding exemplify the best in creative placemaking,” explained ArtPlace’s Carol Coletta. “They demonstrate a deep understanding of how smart investments in art, design and culture as part of a larger portfolio of revitalization strategies can change the trajectory of communities and increase economic opportunities for people.”