A curved reality

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In collaboration with Medtronic and The Gabriel Hotel, Back to Healing’s emotionally moving exhibition delivers a powerful and artistic viewpoint of how spinal curvatures uniquely affect the human body and mental health.

Empowering stories of four influential advocates from different walks of life will be highlighted throughout the night. Their stunning photographs, by Gabriel Perez Silva and Troy Anthony, will be celebrated alongside never-before-seen, scoliosisinspired art pieces from award winning artists David Baskin, Graciela Cassel, Mariana Lagunas, and C. Michael Norton.

What is Scoliosis.

Scoliosis is known as a common condition that affects individuals from all walks of life. With more than 3 million cases per year, scoliosis impacts over 80 million people of the U.S. population alone. Studies have shown that patients not only suffer from severe physical discomfort, but 40% of those affected are also likely to have suicidal thoughts due to perceived self-image and appearance. Simply defined, scoliosis is a sideways curvature of the spine that measures greater than 10 degrees to the right or left as the examiner faces the person. Instead of a straight line down the middle of the back, a spine affected by scoliosis will sometimes look like a letter “C” or “S.” In some cases, bones in a scoliotic spine may also have rotated slightly, making the person’s waist or shoulders appear uneven.

About Back to Healing Founded in 2016, Back to Healing (BTH) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit that has the mission to improve the quality of life of individuals affected by scoliosis through mental health, empowerment, education, and awareness. As of 2021, BTH has reached more than 6 million people. By focusing on the artistic beauty of the unique physical impact spinal curvatures have on the human body, we aim to reach millions more through impactful projects, programs, and campaigns, while breaking both the physical and mental health stigmas associated with scoliosis in our society. As research shows, the mental health effect of scoliosis is an invisible burden carried by many people living with the condition. We at BTH therefore truly believe in celebrating the remarkable stories of people affected to advance the understanding of the emotional implications, as well as create a society where those affected feel empowered and heard.

For more information, please visit www.BacktoHealing.org

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About Medtronic | Presenting and Legacy Sponsors Founded in 1949, Medtronic is a global leading medical device company that inspires hope with groundbreaking healthcare technology solutions for the most complex and challenging conditions facing our world. Driven by purpose and with 90,000-plus people in over 150 countries, Medtronic sees extraordinary possibilities to further increase their positive impact in the world. Medtronic is committed to accelerating access to healthcare technology, advancing inclusion, diversity & equity, and protecting our planet.

For more information, please visit www.Medtronic.com

About The Gabriel Hotel Downtown Miami | Gold Sponsor The Gabriel Miami is a 129-key lifestyle hotel in Downtown Miami, offering spacious rooms and suites and views of Biscayne Bay. Adjacent to the hotel’s palm-tree-lined sun deck on the 14th floor is a rectangular pool with views of the intracoastal waterway, the Miami Beach skyline, PortMiami and Biscayne Bay, providing guests with the ultimate venue for relaxation and tranquility among the city’s cultural epicenter. Select rooms feature balconies with outdoor seating, providing the ultimate venue for watching the sunrise over the Miami skyline.

For more information, please visit www.thegabrielmiami.com.

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About Stryker | Silver Sponsor Stryker is one of the world’s leading medical technology companies and, together with our customers, is driven to make healthcare better. We offer innovative products and services in Orthopaedics, Medical and Surgical, and Neurotechnology and Spine that help improve patient and hospital outcomes.

For more information, please visit www.Stryker.com.

About Escuela de Artes Plásticas, UAdeC | Bronze Sponsor The School of Plastic Arts (Escuela de Artes Plásticas) of the Autonomous University of Coahuila is an institution of creative training with more than a century of history, recognized as the main institution of art and design teaching in Coahuila, Mexico. Its mission is to train design and art professionals who, from the understanding of social, economic, cultural and commercial issues, empathy, using reflection and critical and disruptive thinking, develop solutions that contribute to facing the great challenges of society and to build a better future.

The School of Plastic Arts has a future, humanistic and transdisciplinary vision, applied in updated and competitive undergraduate and graduate programs.

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David Baskin Title: Semper Augustus Medium: Cast Bronze Dimensions: 24 x 57 x 24 inch.

Year: 2021

13 Graciela Cassel Title: Breathing Medium: Video Year: 2021 This video will show, by poetic abstraction, the process of healing possible by interconnecting humans and nature.

Healing places are possible because of strong relationships between humans, nature, and even cities. After almost two years of having our collective faith worn thin from the fear of covid, a time of recovery is surging. Actions in the video reflect this recovery: rustling of leaves, and, particularly, the lens zooming in to capture these moments that each re-signify life. I interpret this time of healing as “breathing”. This healing comes despite the very rough cuts of trauma, as if two branches on a fruiting tree break apart, thereby requiring a wise orchardist to bind up and re-graft them.

Two branches, sutured and held with a wire, allowing the sap of one branch to run into the broken one, offering restoration. We humans can heal also: with words that connect each other.

After suffering, screaming, dancing, finally healing will reappear in our paths.

We will reintroduce nature into us, with movement and rhythm. Breathe! Yes, all of us, every race, all the languages and all the countries will recover from the horrors of our recent life. This connection —a binding together and with nature— will help us breathe.

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Mariana Lagunas Title: Curves Medium: Oil on Canvas Dimensions: 47 x 55 inch Year: 2021

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C. Michael Norton Title: Corina Corina Medium: Modeled Acrylic, Glass & Mirrored Shards on Linen Dimensions: 90 x 16 inch Year: 2021

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Title: 1 & 2. Elina Diaz 3 & 4. Samantha Quinones 5 & 6. Mary Lisa Idol 7 & 8. Santhosh Rizza

Gabriel Perez Silva Medium: Black and white photography Dimensions: 40 x 60 inch Year: 2021

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Troy Anthony Title: Back to Healing Medium: Black and white photography Dimensions: 42 x 60 inch Year: 2021

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1. Esmirna Barrera Title: Escoliosis (Scoliosis) Medium: Digital Illustration Year: 2021 2. Amalia Cadena Robles Title: Si la vida te da curvas… ¡Presúmelas! (If life curves you…

Show them off!)

Medium: Digital Illustration Year: 2021 3. Claudio de Aquino Gutiérrez Title: Escoliosis (Scoliosis) Medium: Digital Illustration Year: 2021

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1. Miguel Ángel Zertuche Title: Scoliosis Medium: Digital Illustration Year: 2021 2. Edgar Abraham Espinoza G. Title: Descendencia (Offspring) Medium: Digital Illustration Year: 2021 3. Carlos Mendoza Alemán Title: Escoliosis (Scoliosis) Medium: Digital Illustration Year: 2021

David Baskin

David Baskin received a BFA from The Cooper Union in 1987. One-person exhibitions include Arts Brookfield, Grace Building , NYC, Freight+Volume Gallery, NY, NY; Sculpture Center, NY, NY; Ingalls & Assoc., Miami, Fl and Black and White Gallery, Brooklyn, NY. Selected group exhibitions include the Brooklyn Museum of Art, Brooklyn, NY; Marianne Boesky Gallery, NY; Carolina Nitsch, NY, NY; Grassi Museum, Leipzig, Germany; Munson Williams Proctor Arts Institute, NY; Triennale Design Museum, Milan, Italy; Musée de Design et d’arts Appliqués Contemporains, Lausanne, Switzerland; Carriage Trade, NY, NY; Galerie Erna Hecey; Brussels, Belgium; Flag Art Foundation, NY, NY. Honors and awards include McDowell Fellowship, NH; Pollock-Krasner Foundation, Yaddo Fellowship, NY; Commission through Brookfield Properties for a lobby installation at the Grace Building, NY, NY. He has taught at the Cooper Union School of Art, New York Institute of Technology and was a visiting critic at the School of Visual Arts, NY, NY; Pratt Institute, Brooklyn, NY, and the University of Buffalo, NY. David Baskin was one of the original members of the Brooklyn based non-profit art organization Smack Mellon and he lives and works in NYC.

27 Graciela Cassel

Graciela Cassel was born in Argentina and currently lives in New York. She earned an MA in Studio Art from New York University and received an MFA from School of Visual Arts. Cassel works based on nature, even all urban, is presented through a lens of nature. Cassel is multimedia artist who showed her works at Museo del Barrio, Sotheby’s Art Institute, BRAC, Varis Center at Urban Glass, Chashama and Bienal del Sur in Argentina. Cassel’s videos received numerous international awards. In 2020, Cassel received a fellowship in NY Historical Society and in 2021 a fellowship with Ankhlave and Queens Botanical Garden.

Mariana Lagunas

Mariana Lagunas is a Mexican artist whose production has been considered an inspiration to other emerging artists in the revival of realism in contemporary art. Lagunas’ style depicts vibrant memories of collective imagery that invites the audience to reflect on resilience and adaptation in a global world

C. Michael Norton

A multi-award winning artist represented by David & Schweitzer Contemporary in New York, Art Virus Ltd in Germany, and among others. C. Michael Norton is a world-renowned American artist whose abstract paintings echo the cacophony of urban life. His large-scale paintings demand a curious look to discover patterns and textures created by the artist using knives, spatulas, rollers, tape, and dynamic movements.

Gabriel Perez Silva

Born in Cucuta, Colombia and growing up in South Florida’s cultural melting pot. Initially Perez Silva was an award winning swimmer for Colombia’s National Team but would undergo major surgery which would kickstart his artistic career. In the past few years Perez Silva has worked and resided in Miami, Italy, and now NYC. Perez Silva is an avid traveler, surfer, vintage collector, and activist, more specifically working closely with Scoliosis Foundation Ghana in helping patients and spreading awareness. He hopes his story, and art can inspire others to pursue what they love. His work and story have been featured in many publications such as Vogue, The Cut and many more.

29 Troy Anthony

Esmirna Barrera

One can only describe Troy Anthony as daring.

The Artist, Photographer pushes the creative boundaries across all platforms. Inspired by raw emotion, Troy Anthony creates mind blowing visuals. A true curator of the aesthetic, he remains in the pursuit of beauty through all things. Driven by passion, he captures surreal realism in his subjects. Stylized, powerful, provocative and creatively charged, Troy Anthony maintains an intrinsic complexity and multilayered nature to his work. Believing anything is possible as a “Maker” of art, Troy Anthony’s photography is in his own words “the intersection of Art, Music, Style and Culture”

Esmirna Barrera (born January 26, 1985 in Saltillo, Coahuila. México. She is a graphic designer and editorial illustrator. Her work has been published in Expansión magazine, Travel + Leisure among others. Is an editorial illustrator for the daily newspaper Vanguardia MX. She is a currently professor in the School of Plastic Arts, Professor Ruben Herrera at the Autonomous University of Coahuila.

Amalia Cadena Robles

Claudio de Aquino Gtz.

Miguel Ángel Zertuche

Edgar A. Espinoza

Graphic Design students at the School of Plastic Arts of the Autonomous University of Coahuila.

Carlos Mendoza Alemán

Carlos Mendoza Aleman is a mexican illustrator with more then 20 years of experience in editorial illustration field. He has worked for several newspapers y Mexico and the United States.

His style makes emphasis in hard news taking the concept as the base of his work. Nowadays works with the Border Center for Journalists and Bloggers as illustrator, also he works with the Autonomus University of Coahuila as Illustration teacher and also works as Arts Teacher at middle school level.

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Marcus John

Creative Director and Back to Healing Founder

Emireth Herrera Valdes Curator

Escuela de Artes Plásticas Editorial

Raquel Torres Gutiérrez Editorial Design

Miami Art Week

December, 2021