Urban Art Association

I agree. But I love Parla’s work so am blinkered / biased

Still available. Open to close offers.

These Elm's prints look so much like an original work...the depth is amazing on them. GLWTS!

Just received the email announcing his upcoming Museum show 'Homecoming' at the Pérez Art Museum Miami.

Copied from the email:


Dear friends, it is an honor and a privilege to announce my upcoming "Homecoming" exhibition at the Pérez Art Museum Miami, my hometown, this fall. Three years in the making, this exhibition is a profound personal journey featuring new works, a site-specific mural, and my return to painting. I can't wait to share this experience with you all. Stay tuned for more details!

Celebrating the spirit of resilience and returning to one’s roots, Homecoming is a testament to the profound connection between personal history, art, and creative expression.

“José Parlá’s practice blends and translates a myriad of cultures, resulting in a colorful narrative,” said PAMM Director Franklin Sirmans. “We’re excited to present this collaboration between artist and curator, two Miamians in their own right, as we know it will deeply resonate with our community and audiences.”

“ Homecoming is deeply rooted in my journey, shaped by the rich history of my origins. In this new series, each painting is created as an homage to my native home of Miami,” said José Parlá. “By using a process of layering ink, paint, plaster, and collaged posters that were once posted on the city's walls, each painting bears the imprints of the region’s displacement, immigration, adaptation, and the transformation of words into gestures, made using the names of localities, countries, and its peoples. These abstract gestural marks become indelible echoes in the tapestry of historical psychology and geography, serving as a poignant narrative.”

Homecoming will be an elaborate, two-part exhibition—and a radical departure from the traditional use of space in a museum. For the first portion, visitors will have the unique opportunity to observe Parlá’s dance-like technique in real time as he paints a site-specific mural. The second portion will see the museum gallery transformed and converted into Parlá’s studio—a room full of paint-covered tables, a lively vinyl Cuban-inspired records collection, and decades of Parla’s archival memorabilia. In addition to the completed mural and studio recreation, the exhibition will also feature a number of all-new works that Parlá created upon his return to painting. The result is a process-focused exhibition highlighting an expressionistic painter who conscientiously engages with Cuban (and broader diasporic) identity issues.

The exhibition represents a homecoming to Miami and marks a return to himself and his practice. In 2021, Parlá contracted a life-threatening case of COVID-19—he was hospitalized and endured a four-month coma during which he suffered a stroke and significant brain bleeding. Homecoming will present new and existing works that Parlá created upon his return to his studio. “José Parlá’s practice and work appeals to a much broader audience than just the committed museum-goer,” said PAMM Associate Curator Maritza M. Lacayo. “Homecoming celebrates an artist whose artistic career began in Miami while reflecting on the COVID-19 pandemic. As a child of immigrants and having moved throughout his life, Parlá’s personal story will also echo those of our Miami community.”