Presented by: ESPRONCEDA – Institute of Art & Culture
Venue: Carrer d’Espronceda 326, Nau 10, Barcelona
Date: November 22, 2025
Time: 18:00h – 19:30h
20 spots available! email to info@espronceda.net to book your space!
Are you an artist or curator interested in exploring how public and social art can transform cities and communities?
Can Art Change a City? is an intimate, participatory, and exclusive art talk and gathering that explores how public and social art can transform urban spaces, communities, and collective consciousness.
Bridging Catalonia, Miami, and Puerto Rico, the event celebrates ESPRONCEDA’s ongoing dialogue with the global art community as the European host of Fountainhead Residency, fostering exchange between artists, curators, and researchers across continents.
The evening will bring together artists and thinkers from Barcelona, Miami, and Puerto Rico to explore how art in everyday spaces fosters trust, collaboration, and ecological awareness—building bridges across cultures and continents.
The event forms part of NEB & Inclusió, an ESPRONCEDA program aligned with the New European Bauhaus (NEB) initiative. NEB & Inclusió promotes artistic and social projects addressing climate change, urban transformation, and inclusion through creativity and innovation.
The discussion will highlight how public and social art fosters trust, collaboration, and community transformation while breaking traditional exhibition boundaries. Themes include ecological and social impact, artistic collaboration, activism, and relational dynamics in contemporary art.
Structure of the talk (approx. 40–55 min):
1. Introduction (5 min). Welcome by moderator Tatiana Fife (ESPRONCEDA) and overview of the evening.
2. Individual Presentations (20–30 min)
- Samara Ash (7–10 min) – Recent commissions and ecological engagement projects, including “Siembra en Ascenso., insights on murals in shared spaces, ecological awareness, and community engagement (“Echoes of Resilience”, commissioned by the Florida Wildlife Corridor Foundation, and “Legacy” for the City of Memphis), Quick comment on Fountainhead Residency, sharing its vision, programs, and opportunities for artists.
- Marco Caridad (7–10 min) Overview of personal practice focused on identity, resilience, and public art,
- Isabel Causadias (7–10 min) Scholar and curator perspective on the social, cultural, and economic impact of public art,
3. Panel Discussion & Audience Q&A (10–15 min). Exploring ecological and social impact, collaboration, and the evolving relationship between art, technology, and urban transformation.
4. Closing Remarks (5 min)
The talk aims to illuminate the power of art in everyday spaces, showing how creative practice, trust, and collaboration can transform communities, cities, and ecosystems, while inspiring participation, dialogue, and cross-cultural connections.
Participatory activity: “Two Visions, One Common Root”
In keeping with ESPRONCEDA’s participatory ethos, guests will take part in a symbolic planting activity inspired by the artists’ work. Each participant will choose between two printed bag designs—Samara Ash’s “Siembra en Ascenso” and Marco Caridad’s “El artista en peligro”—representing complementary energies: growth and transcendence, or resilience and identity.
These bags will serve as small pots where participants “plant their seeds of identity,” forming a collective installation that transforms the floor into a living artwork—a dialogue between intention and memory, art and nature, poetry and action.
During the activity, the poetic video “En Tránsito / In Transit” will be projected—a visual meditation on movement, memory, and transformation. The piece follows two beings drifting through an undefined space—between water and horizon, creation and disappearance—searching for traces of life and meaning. It becomes a reflection on what it means to plant, drift, and endure in the face of extinction.
Designs:
- Samara Ash — “Siembra en Ascenso”
Organic shapes, roots, leaves, and a feminine silhouette merging with a tree.
Symbolism: planting ideas with intention and faith, creation as an ascent toward transcendence, growth of the creative spirit. - Marco Caridad — “El artista en peligro”
Fragmented human/animal hybrid forms, jaguar-horse motifs, ironic textual elements (“Endangered species of still believing”).
Symbolism: the fragility of the contemporary artist, identity in transformation, resilience and irony within creation.
Half of the bags will feature each design. Placed together, they will form a visually powerful installation—a dialogue between the works and the audience, between poetry and action.
About the panelists
Isabel Causadias (Spain / Barcelona)
Researcher and lecturer at the University of Barcelona’s Faculty of Fine Arts, Isabel Causadias specializes in the sociology and economics of art. Her doctoral research examined the primary art market in Catalonia, focusing on the professionalization of artists and systems of trust and value within cultural economies. As a member of the RELAT research group, she explores narrative construction in contemporary art practices and the evolving relationships between artists, institutions, and audiences.
Samara Ash (Colombia / Miami)
An interdisciplinary artist and MIFA resident, Samara Ash explores the intersection of nature, humanity, and transcendence through painting, photography, and large-scale murals. Her community-based and public art projects—commissioned by Disney, the Florida Wildlife Corridor Foundation, and others—invite reflection on resilience and ecological awareness. Her work has been featured at Art Basel Miami, Paint Memphis, and the Museum of Art & Design (Miami), and forms part of collections such as the Sagamore Art Collection and multiple municipal public art programs across the US.
Marco Caridad (Venezuela / Puerto Rico)
Based between Miami and Vieques, Marco Caridad is an artist and curator whose work merges painting, performance, and installation to explore identity, queerness, and belonging. As Artistic Director of Miami International Fine Arts (MIFA) and founder of the Biolumina Art Residency, Caridad creates participatory projects that connect art, ecology, and community. His work has been exhibited at the Wolfsonian Museum, Adrienne Arsht Center, and internationally across the U.S., Europe, and Latin America.
About Fountainhead Residency
Founded in Miami in 2008, Fountainhead is one of the United States’ most respected artist residencies. It has hosted more than 580 international artists, fostering collaboration among creators, collectors, and curators. Its mission is to strengthen the global art ecosystem by supporting artists at key moments in their careers. www.fountainheadarts.org
About Miami International Fine Arts (MIFA)
Founded in Miami, MIFA is a multidisciplinary art center and residency program dedicated to nurturing creativity, collaboration, and professional development among artists. It provides studios, exhibition spaces, and mentoring opportunities for emerging and established creators, encouraging cross-cultural dialogue between Latin America, the Caribbean, and the international art community. MIFA also supports public art initiatives and educational programs that strengthen Miami’s role as a global hub for contemporary art. www.mifamiami.com
About Biolumina Art Residency
Created by artist Marco Caridad, Biolumina Art Residency is an international program based in Vieques, Puerto Rico, dedicated to artistic research, environmental awareness, and cultural exchange. Situated within an extraordinary ecological landscape, the residency invites artists to explore the intersection of art, ecology, and identity through collaborative and site-responsive projects that illuminate the transformative power of creativity within nature. www.bioluminaresidency.org
