Located in the lobby of the FIRST NATIONAL BANK OF SOUTH MIAMI, each month The Wirtz Gallery exhibits local and international artists. Gallery hours are: Monday – Thursday, 9a-4p; Friday, 9a-6p. Artist receptions are generally held on the second Friday of the month from 6-8p, and are open to the public. The bank is located at 5750 Sunset Drive, South Miami.
In March, the gallery hosts an exhibit by artist Shirley Bloomfield, known for her landscapes.
The Miami Watercolor Society’s Spring Show is hosted at the gallery during the month of April. Read more about the Watercolor Society on page 30.
In May, another watercolorist will be featured at the gallery and he is John Bowen. Bowen is a commercial and fine arts artist for some fifty years.
He served as an illustrator with the USAF for eight years, including a stint in Vietnam graphically documenting Airlift Operations in 1968, and even published an illustrated book about his Vietnam tour of duty.
THE WIRTZ GALLERY
The gallery in the lobby of the First National Bank of South Miami is named in honor of the Wirtz family patriarch Arthur M. Wirtz.
Wirtz, of Chicago, made his fortune in real estate and liquor distribution; he created the business in 1922. The Wirtz Corp. also owns the Chicago Blackhawks hockey team and co-owned the United Center arena—where the Blackhawks and the Chicago Bulls basketball team play.
When the gallery opened, it was reportedly the first bank in the United States to have a registered gallery within the institution.
MAKING ART HAPPEN ELSEWHERE IN TOWN
In addition to The Wirtz Gallery usual artists receptions, two venues typically host artists that evening: Isabel Fine Home Accessories at 7334 Red Road hosts local artists in her store and hangs the work for the month. At the Doc Thomas House, home of the Tropical Audubon Society, student artists often exhibit. Check with these venues for more details.. A new
Pop-Up Gallery has started on the last Friday of the month at a vacant retail space at 5822 Sunset Drive. It’s really “uptown” with food, drinks and entertainment.
