Sea to Shining Sea

Artist Justin Long's sense of humor and non-obnoxious approach to irony shines through in his latest exhibit.

Artist Justin Long is not only a guy’s guy, but he’s also a very Miami dude.

Among a variety of other things, he knows a ton about cars, racing and the ocean. His approach to his work runs along the lines of “write what you know,” so his interests show clearly in his work.

The absolute best thing about Long, though, is his amazing sense of humor and non-obnoxious approach to irony. In a world of hipster fanny packs, he manages to properly highlight the humor in the tacky and mostly leave behind the serious and ugly American Apparel-ness that is so rampant in contemporary youth culture.

Long often uses his carpentry and engineering skills to create impressive, large scale, interactive works. Last May, he and his muse, Rob Lorie, a.k.a. Meatball, constructed their own bike-powered Gravitron at their show "Youth Fair, Bro." People drank cheap beer and then were whipped around in this crazy contraption; a dangerous and brilliant look at our precious, local county fair. As with "Youth Fair, Bro," Long continues to look at Miami themes and imagery in his latest solo exhibition, "From Sea to Shining Sea."

Long’s solo exhibition explores nautical themes in contemporary art. Having spent his childhood sailing and fishing in Biscayne Bay, he knows a thing or two about the deep blue sea. Miami is the ocean and Justin’s all Miami. If you are a sailor or love a sailor, you’ll enjoy his humorous approach in this exhibition to the tension that takes place during the Columbus Day Regatta between rivaling yacht clubs.

The opening is tonight at Twenty Twenty Projects’ new space on the edge on Hialeah. You may think, Hialeah? Hells no. But it’s only about a 10 minute drive on the 112 from downtown.

The reception starts tonight at 7:00 p.m. and ends at Midnight. The show is running through Nov. 14, at 1388 SE 9th Ct.


Read more of Liz Tracy's Miami missives on her blog, Miami, bro.

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