Miami street artists “weed bombing”
Miami street artists participate in “weed bombing”
Miami street artists are beautifying a dilapidated neighborhood, one weed at a time.
Miami, FL September 12, 2011 — In an area mostly devoid on any color except for black asphalt, Miami street artists are brightening one of the most dilapidated areas of Downtown Miami, one weed at a time.
Weed bombing is the act of converting overgrown weeds into works of street art by painting them various colors, thus adding a vibrancy to the neighborhood that did not exist before. Bradley Knoefler, President of the Overtown Park West Redevelopment Association (OPRA), which organized the event stated “we used to cut the weeds ourselves, but it’s much more beneficial to beautify them and convert them into street art. Unlike traditional graffitti, weed bombing doesn’t damage private or public property and has immediate benefits to our quality of life.”
“The idea is gaining traction among local street artists,” said Gregg Rivera, one of the participating artists “Wynwood has its graffitti walls, and Downtown we have our weeds. They both are a blank canvas that street artists can use to practice their art.” Knoefler hope the idea will catch on and traditional taggers will paint weeds instead of buildings. “This way we can beautify the neighborhood through street art as opposed to degrading it.”
The Overtown Parkwest Redevelopment Association (OPRA) was formed in 2009 in response to the lack of visible improvements and degradation of some of Miami’s most blighted neighborhoods, Overtown, Parkwest, and West OMNI, despite hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars spent on “redevelopment”. OPRA has completed dozens of clean-up and neighborhood improvement projects by just “doing it”. Promotion of progressive streetscapes, bicycle insfrastructure, parks and green spaces, and sustainable, practical transport systems are among the organization’s goals. In 2011, OPRA Partnered with the City of Miami Community Redevelopment Agency (www.miamicra.com) to create Grand Central Park.
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