Locust Projects

#LocustArtistSpotlight: We are thrilled to congratulate Leo Castañeda on being included in the Whitney Biennial 2026 @whitneymusuem !  Locust Projects is proud to have supported Leo’s Long Haul #wavemakergrant in 2018 to develop his Levels and Bosses digital game, which led up to his incredible Herramientas (Levels & Bosses) immersive installation at Locust in 2022. It’s so exciting to see the project continue to evolve in his Camoflux Grotto web-based game featured in the 2026 Whitney Biennial! Our Deputy Director Munisha Underhill had the opportunity to visit the exhibition last weekend and experience Leo’s compelling work firsthand!  Organized by the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Whitney Biennial now in its 82nd edition is one of the most significant exhibitions of contemporary art in the United States, bringing together artists whose work is shaping the current cultural landscape. Congratulations to Leo on this incredible achievement!  Photos 2 and 3: @munishaunderhill at the @whitneymuseum 
Photos 4 and 5: Herramientas (Levels & Bosses) at Locust Projects, 2022. Photos by @zackarybalber and @worldredeye #WhitneyBiennial #LocustProjects WaveMakerGrants @warholfoundation PastExhibitingArtist

“It’s not that this bird went extinct forcefully. It was just like nobody cared. And I want people to care because I care.” -Johanna Strobel WATCH! Go behind the scenes of “A Bought Kingdom” with artist Johanna Strobel and learn more about the ideas behind her immersive installation confronting the ecological consequences of human ambition. Rooted in the extinction of the Dusky Seaside Sparrow, the exhibition uses sculpture, animation, and music to reflect on environmental loss, the passage of time, and the cost of progress. Experience A Bought Kingdom  in person at Locust Projects — on view through June 27, Tuesday–Saturday, 11am–5pm.

Video by Alexa Caravia (@ac2565 ) with additional filming by Zusel Escriba also available on our YouTube channel, link in bio!. 🎥
 This exhibition  is a @knightfdn Digital Commission. Locust Projects receives major support from @knightfdn ; @miamidadearts , the Miami-Dade County Mayor and the Board of County Commissioners; the State of Florida through the Division of Arts and Culture and @neaarts ; @warholfoundation ; @ruthfoundation ; and @PerezFamilyFoundation and @miamifoundation #CREARTE2025

🥒 LAST 𝗟𝗢𝗖𝗨𝗦𝗧 𝗟𝗔𝗧𝗘 @ 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗗𝗜𝗟𝗟
📆 Thu, May 21, 2026 | 7–9pm Join us for the final Locust Late @ The DiLL of the 2025–26 season!  For the season finale, we’re exploring how our online and offline lives intertwine, beginning with a hands-on workshop led by artist-educator Fereshteh Toosi using live-action role-playing (LARP) to thoughtfully probe our relationship with digital systems. The evening concludes with a participatory performance by movement artist Roxana Barba, activated through a secret Discord chat projected live in the DiLL. Artists of all skill levels are encouraged to #BYOL (Bring Your Own Laptop) and follow along. 7pm 𝗪𝗢𝗥𝗞𝗦𝗛𝗢𝗣
Fereshteh Toosi: Hacking Reality: exploring tech entanglements through play Reflecting on this past season of digital innovation, how do invisible systems continue to shape our behavior and values? In this interactive workshop, Fereshteh Toosi uses live-action role-playing (LARP) to explore our relationship with digital systems—without writing code or building machines. Through short improvisational games, participants step into speculative realities shaped by surveillance, data clouds, and offline zones. The workshop concludes with a discussion about what these playful scenarios reveal about our lived experiences. 9pm 𝗣𝗘𝗥𝗙𝗢𝗥𝗠𝗔𝗡𝗖𝗘
Roxana Barba: secret group chat (beta test) RSVP at the link in bio!! This event is free and open to the public, and presented as part of the @knightfdn Digital Innovation Initiative at Locust Projects. Complimentary refreshments are available for guests aged 21 and older courtesy of our 2025–26 sponsors @thetankbrewingco and @topochico . #artandtechnology #locustprojects

Johanna Strobel: A Bought Kingdom | On view in the Project Room through June 27
 𝗔 𝗕𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗞𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗱𝗼𝗺 is a newly commissioned multimedia immersive installation by German-born, NYC-based artist Johanna Strobel confronting the ecological consequences of human ambition. Years in the making, this project grew from research sparked during a 2023 road trip from NYC to Miami, where visits to Kennedy Space Center and Disney World revealed uncanny parallels between the “Happiest Place on Earth” and the infrastructure behind the “Greatest Human Achievement.” 🚀🏰
 Rooted in the extinction of the Dusky Seaside Sparrow, a small native Florida bird whose fragile salt marsh habitat on Merritt Island was gradually destroyed through the development of Kennedy Space Center, the exhibition explores environmental degradation, spectacle, tourism, loss, and the consequences of progress and power. Following the species’ rapid decline, the last remaining birds were sent through various institutions for failed breeding attempts before eventually arriving at Discovery Island, Disney World’s former zoological park, where the final bird, Orange Band, died in captivity in 1987. The species was officially declared extinct in 1990.
 🎶 Playing off Disney’s Enchanted Tiki Room, Strobel’s immersive installation combines a hand-drawn and live-filmed three-act musical film, melting wax timepieces depicting birds and eggs, a multidisciplinary publication produced with @exilebooks featuring contributions by @loriemertes @alexandro_segade and ursula.stroebele, and yes — even a lousy souvenir t-shirt! 🛍 Shop the exhibition (including t-shirts and comic books)  online through our Editions website - link in bio!

This exhibition is a @knightfdn Digital Commission. Locust Projects receives major support from @knightfdn ; @miamidadearts , the Miami-Dade County Mayor and the Board of County Commissioners; the State of Florida through the Division of Arts and Culture and @neaarts ; @warholfoundation ; and @PerezFamilyFoundation and @miamifoundation #CREARTE2025 
Photos by @pedrowazzan

#LocustArtistSpotlight: We’re excited to celebrate members of the Locust Projects family selected for the 2026 edition of the Florida Prize in Contemporary Art at the Orlando Museum of Art 🎉 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗴𝗿𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀� Charo Oquet — Exhibiting Artist ‘00� Ema Ri — Exhibiting Artist ‘26 and WaveMaker Grantee ‘22� Mette Tommerup — Exhibiting Artist ‘20� We Are Nice n’ Easy — Exhibiting Artists ‘17 Congrats all! 👏 The Florida Prize in Contemporary Art, organized by the Orlando Museum of Art, brings recognition to some of the most progressive artists working across the state. Now in its twelfth edition, this year’s exhibition features twelve artists working across painting, photography, sculpture, installation, and more. The exhibition highlights a wide range of visual languages, from text-based works to coded systems, spiritual practices, and deeply rooted personal and cultural narratives. Congratulations to all of this year’s Florida Prize artists! We’re proud to see so many from the Locust Projects community contributing to the rich and evolving cultural landscape of Florida.

🎤✨ THANK YOU FOR JOINING US ✨🎤
 This Wednesday we continued our CURATOR TALKS series with an incredible talk by Kristy Edmunds, Director of @massmoca !

A globally recognized leader in the arts, Edmunds shared insights into her visionary approach to curatorial practice and institution-building, shaped by decades of work across visual and performing arts. From her leadership at MASS MoCA to her work with major international festivals and organizations, she offered a dynamic perspective on creating platforms that support artists, foster making and experimentation. “In my experience, arts leadership finds you, and I realized early that organizations can be a kind of material....a medium for making possibility at scale. They are their own kind of art form. And they are epic adventures in collaboration, with thousands of teachers.”
- Kristy Edmunds We’re so grateful to everyone who came out, asked thoughtful questions, and brought such great energy to the conversation—it’s been amazing to see our community show up for the return of CURATOR TALKS 💫 This talk will be available on our youtube page soon in case you missed it!! ARTIST TALKS and CURATOR TALKS are supported by a CreARTE grant from The Jorge M. Pérez Family Foundation at The Miami Foundation @perezfamilyfoundation @miamifoundation . CURATOR TALKS are presented by @vivantskincare . Additional support is provided by The Wege Foundation, the Grob Gift Fund, and @vagabondhotelmiami #LocustProjects #CuratorTalks #ContemporaryArt

You never know what you’re going to experience at 🥒 𝗟𝗢𝗖𝗨𝗦𝗧 𝗟𝗔𝗧𝗘 @ 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗗𝗜𝗟𝗟 💻⛓️ Kicking off with an incredible hands-on workshop, artist and educator Ariel Baron-Robbins guided participants through translating creative ideas into the spatial internet using digital scanning and open-source 3D software. Everyone who participated was also treated to a trove of great resources for solo experimentation. The night closed with visual and sound artist Richard Moreno debuting Corpse Chrysalis, a giant wheeled crate that unfolded into a cabinet of curiosities, a masterclass in extreme metal sculpture and sound. Thanks to our community for showing up to experiment with us! Stay tuned for the season finale on May 21 with artists Fereshteh Toosi and Roxana Barba. Presented as part of the @knightfdn Digital Innovation Initiative at Locust Projects. Refreshments courtesy of @thetankbrewingco + @topochico .  #LocustLate #TheDiLL #ArtAndTechnology #MiamiArts

🎥✨ NOW LIVE: CURATOR TALK WITH AMBER ESSEIVA ✨ Missed it or want to revisit the conversation? The full recording of our March 25 CURATOR TALK with @amberesseiva is now available on our YouTube channel—watch via the link in bio! Thank you again to everyone who joined us in person and brought such thoughtful energy to the room—we loved kicking off the return of CURATOR TALKS with you all 💫 🎤✨ TOMORROW NIGHT ✨🎤don’t miss CURATOR TALK with Kristy Edmunds, Director of @massmoca , happening tomorrow, Wednesday April 29 | 7-9pm! A globally recognized arts leader, Edmunds will share her visionary approach to supporting artists across disciplines. 👀 Register now—link in bio! Both series are supported by a CreARTE grant from The Jorge M. Pérez Family Foundation at The Miami Foundation @perezfamilyfoundation @miamifoundation . CURATOR TALKS are presented by @vivantskincare . Additional support is provided by The Wege Foundation, the Grob Gift Fund, and @vagabondhotelmiami #LocustProjects #CuratorTalks #ArtistTalks

Join Locust Projects in #TheDiLL for a one-night student group show presented with DMINTI Art Foundation highlighting emerging practices thinking critically about artificial intelligence. Attendant Engagements No. 2 brings together new works by five student artists whose practices span painting, sculpture, video, and digital media. Developed as the culminating phase of DMINTI Art Foundation's Artist Engagement Fellowship—originally initiated in collaboration with The Bass and in partnership with higher education institutions including FIU, New World School of the Arts, and Miami Dade College—the exhibition features work informed by direct engagement with an AI-driven portrait environment by Michelangelo Pistoletto currently on view at The Bass. At Locust Projects, that fellowship culminates in a public presentation of new work from emerging voices within Miami's art and tech ecosystem. Featuring works by: Laura Alfonso Chelsey Dalberry @chelseyxdesign Melissa Pedemonte @melon.pdmnt Francisco Rodriguez @franky.rodriguez023 Lily Silva-Jones @s.ilvajones Presented as part of Locust Late @ The DiLL and the Knight Digital Initiative, this presentation reflects Locust Projects' ongoing commitment to supporting work that emerges from sustained engagement between artists, technology, and higher education communities. #thedill #locustprojects #artandtechnology #artandtech @thebassmoa @fiucarta @nswaschool @mdcollege

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 29 🎤✨ CURATOR TALK: KRISTY EDMUNDS ✨🎤

Kristy Edmunds is the Director of MASS MoCA (@massmoca ), one of the largest multidisciplinary contemporary art museums in the U.S. A globally recognized leader in the arts, she is known for her visionary approach and commitment to supporting artists across visual and performing disciplines. Don’t miss this chance to hear directly from one of today’s leading curatorial voices—right here in Miami! 🗓 Wednesday, April 29
 🕖 7–9 PM
 📍 Locust Projects
 🎟 FREE (register at link in bio!)
 🚗 Street parking available Edmunds is the inaugural recipient of the Berresford Prize from United States Artists and was named a Chevalier (Knight) of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French Government in recognition of her contributions to culture. Prior to MASS MoCA, she served as Executive and Artistic Director of UCLA Center for the Art of Performance; inaugural Consulting Artistic Director for Park Avenue Armory; Artistic Director of the Melbourne International Arts Festival; and Founding Executive and Artistic Director of the Portland Institute for Contemporary Art and its acclaimed Time-Based Art Festival. CURATOR TALKS and ARTIST TALKS are supported by a CreARTE grant from The Jorge M. Pérez Family Foundation at The Miami Foundation @perezfamilyfoundation @miamifoundation . CURATOR TALKS are presented by @vivantskincare . Additional support is provided from The Wege Foundation, the Grob Gift Fund, and @vagabondhotelmiami #LocustProjects #CuratorTalks #ContemporaryArt

#LocustArtistSpotlight: We’re excited to celebrate members of the Locust Projects family being recognized at the 2026 @oolitearts Ellies Awards tonight 🎉 𝗦𝗽𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗦𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗼𝘂𝘁
Roberto Behar & Rosario Marquardt / R&R Studios — Lifetime Achievement Award
(Exhibiting Artists 2000) william cordova — Better World Award (Past Exhibiting Artist 2004 & 2025) Swipe to see more familiar faces from the Locust Projects family of artists recognized this year 👏 𝗢𝗼𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗲 Arts 2026 𝗘𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗲s Creator 𝗔𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝗥𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗽𝗶𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 Roxana Barba — WaveMaker Grantee ‘25 Yanira Collado — WaveMaker Grantee ‘24 Marie Franco — Summer Teaching Artist ‘25 Margo Hannah — WaveMaker Grantee ‘24 Edison Peñafiel — Upcoming Exhibiting Artist ‘26 Kerry Phillips — Exhibiting Artist ‘24 Leyden Rodriguez-Casanova — Past Exhibiting Artist ‘10 & WaveMaker Grantee ‘15  ‘17 Monica Sorelle — WaveMaker Grantee ‘23 Cornelius Tulluch — Exhibiting Artist ‘23 Congrats to all of this year’s Oolite Arts Ellies Award recipients! Presented by Oolite Arts, the Ellie Awards support Miami-based artists across disciplines with vital funding, recognition, and opportunities to advance their practices. We’re proud to see so many artists from our community continuing to shape and energize the cultural landscape of South Florida.

🌴✨ Lost Shaker of Salt by @kellybreez and @Patty.Gone and A Bought Kingdom by Johanna Strobel (@hijoylo )are NOW OPEN TO THE PUBLIC! More moments from our Spring Fling: Margaritaville with a Twist fundraiser and the premiere of two new immersive exhibitions! Thank you to all who came out for the celebration in a surreal, Margaritaville-inspired dreamscape that playfully reimagined the fantasy of paradise! ❤️‍🔥 🍸 Some remaining works from the Silent Art Auction are still on view and available until tomorrow, Wednesday April 22—don’t miss your chance to collect incredible works, with up to 50% of proceeds going directly to artists! Special thanks to our Host Committee and event sponsors including @bacardi , @topochicousa , @mep.juice , @cocacola , Lin Projects, @bohemiankitchenmia , @garageandsocial , @lohimag , and @ivebeenframedmiami , Locust Projects’ official framer. Photos by @worldredeye and @loganfazio #SpringFling2026 #MargaritavilleWithATwist