MOAD Talks – Miami as Archive: Memory, Place, and the Legacy of Purvis Young

Join us for a discussion centered on the works of Purvis Young as a lens through which to consider broader questions of artistic legacy.

This MOAD Talks panel brings together three South Florida cultural practitioners: Tayina Deravile, Cultural Arts Practitioner, Independent Curator, and Gallery Manager at Girls' Club; Barbara Young, Art Librarian, Curator, and Art Services Supervisor for the Miami-Dade Public Library System, as well as Co-founder of the Vasari Project; and Terrence Cribbs-Lórrant, Executive Director and Cultural Curator of the Black Police Precinct and Courthouse Museum. Through exhibition-making and public programming centered on the archives of Purvis Young, each panelist has engaged Young’s work as a lens through which to consider broader questions of artistic legacy, memory, and archival practice in Miami.

This panel will examine their distinct cultural frameworks and consider how artist legacies shape and are shaped by archival practices in the city. In doing so, the discussion highlights how their perspectives illuminate different dimensions of Young’s practice. The conversation will explore which aspects of Young’s visual language, material choices, and thematic concerns informed their creative processes. It will also reflect on how his work offers a lens for understanding memory, place, and archives in Miami, as well as how his practice occupied and transformed space within South Florida art contexts.

Collectively, the panel situates Young’s legacy within Miami’s evolving art historical canon, foregrounding his continued relevance to the city’s cultural and social landscape.

By engaging these voices, the program invites audiences to encounter Young’s practice through layered perspectives, revealing the many ways his work speaks to Miami’s histories of migration, resilience, spirituality, race, and urban change.

Event attendees may park for free in the MDC garage at 500 NE Second Avenue, between NE Fifth and NE Sixth Streets.

The Museum of Art and Design (MOAD) at MDC may document the event, including its attendees. By entering the area, and/or participating in the event, you consent to the recording and its use in any form.

MOAD's programs are made possible with the support of the Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs and the Cultural Affairs Council, the Miami-Dade County Mayor, and Board of County Commissioners. They are sponsored in part by the State of Florida through the Division of Arts and Culture, and with generous support from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.

The programs at the Freedom Tower, operated by the Museum of Art and Design (MOAD) at Miami Dade College (MDC), are made possible with the
support of the Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs and the Cultural Affairs Council, the Miami-Dade County Mayor, and the Board of County Commissioners. They are sponsored by the State of Florida through the Division of Arts and Culture, the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), the National Trust for Historic Preservation, the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), with collections, exhibition, and marketing support from ArtesMiami, Art Bridges
Foundation, the Shepard Broad Foundation, the Miami Downtown Development Authority (Miami DDA), Henry Luce Foundation, Jay I. Kislak Foundation, Mitchell Wolfson Sr. Foundation, and US Century Bank.

Image: Purvis Young, Group of Figures. Paint on board and wood, ca. 1990. Donation of Mr. Richard Levine.