[Announcer] Art Loft is brought to you by# the Friends of South Florida PBS.

Art Loft, it's the pulse of what's happening in our own# backyard, as well as a taste of the arts across the United States.

In this episode, miniatures,# murals, music and more.

Artist Francois Piacente shares his Miami vice, Locust Projects and artists# tear along, take us to the corner store and in Cleveland we catch up with Mario and Zelda.

From# Miami Vice to the art deco preservation movement, Miami in the 1980s was all about the glitz and# glamor.

That time's still alive and well in the works of Miami sculptor Francois Piacente.

But# there's a catch, he works small, really small.

I could get to make something tangible.

It's not# digital art, it's something really tangible.

And at the same time, I can tell my story.

Realistic,# it doesn't matter.

All I want is to tell stories in my own way.

I see like this board, like board# of MDF board, I use, that's my canvas in a way.

I picture this and then in my head I picture the# whole city already.

So the inspiration comes from that.

My name is Francois.

I'm a miniature artist,# specialize in architecture and automotive arts.

They are big miniatures, let's put it that way.# You can call it sculpture.

There's so many aspects of it, so I don't even know how to name it myself.# Usually I have some random vision that comes to me.

And then the goal is how do I get from now to# my vision?

And of course with some wiggle room for creativity here and there.

Then the engineering# parts comes into it because what I'm doing is very precise, very detailed.

Even though my# stuff look weathered and gritty and all that, it's still very precise and detailed and I don't# leave room for any mistake.

It has to be perfect, and whatever perfect means in my own mind.

And# my perfect is the inner perfection.

Basically what I like to do about my work is replicating an# ever-changing world, like the world keeps evolving all the time.

So does my art.

So I like to add# like a little spot of rust here and there just to add a little more character and a little more# story for the audience so people can do their own stories, after that, whenever they see all those# details, they can picture whatever they want.

That's the magic of my work is that it doesn't# stop with just what I'm doing.

I like people to be able to picture something.

The messier, the# better, adds more character to it.

Lots of life to the work, it doesn't just exist now, it's# living.

The whole Miami Vice aesthetic, which includes not just the or it has the cars, the# music, everything.

I like to call the aesthetic.

So if I want to narrow down even more, that# will be, that will be the direction, my vision.

I start making models when I was like 11 years# old 'cause I've always been a car guy and that was the best way for me to get into the automotive# world in my own way.

The more accessible way to do it.

And now the model cars is not even# the focus anymore.

This is just character in the background.

These are my characters# really when it comes to my miniature scenes.

I don't like to use figures 'cause I feel# like you cannot replicate life in a person, but you can replicate life in an abandoned place.# And this is usually the way I do those things and my cars usually my little cars, they are, they're# helping, they're helping telling the story.

I kind of slowly moved into the architecture# side 'cause I've always been interested in it.

I never really got into it, but that's my way of# contributing to that world, of architecture.

I'm stitching my mental pictures together to create# a unique piece.

Those pieces are like fictional, they not exist anymore.

They're totally# fictional.

And to me that is the best part when I make fictional building, but realistic,# I like to say that I get to create twice.

So the first creative aspect is in the crafting.

And the# second one is in the storytelling, which now I get to create my own little worlds.

I always start# with a rough sketch basically.

So it helps me getting ideas and blueprints out of my head.# You know, it's basically my notes right here, just rough proportion.

You can see here,# classic Miami style over here.

That's gonna be a replica.

And then after that I jump into# the computer, Illustrator and I start drawing everything very more precise.

Like very precise.# And then after that I send everything to my laser cutter that where I can have clean, precise cuts.# And then it's all about assembling the whole, the whole thing that I engineer for the past# few days because it usually takes some days to really get everything right.

Once I have my# structure, then after it's all about dressing up, giving some life, gain some character by using# different type of materials.

It can be anything, it can be like a piece of sandpaper, it could# be like a real stucco, it could be anything.

Anything can be anything.

It's all about problem# solving with a touch of artistic touch.

There's no templates.

I usually figure out as I go.

I like# to call free style, like from point A to point B, like all the way.

I just put all the pieces# together, the puzzle I built in my head, now it's finally, and that's actually a very# rewarding part right now.

When I know that everything fits, like exactly how I want it# now.

The engineering part, it's halfway down.

That's the fun part.

Now I can really start# dressing up and tell the story to match the rough sketch that I have over here.

I'm always# like a 20 step ahead.

Whenever I build something, I'm here, in my head, I'm already a 98%.# The idea was to trick the eye so people can be tricked.

They don't know, at first glance,# they didn't know if it was a mall or if it was the weird world.

It start with a sheet of wood and# then I go all the way to this.

It's pretty fun.

[Announcer] Next we head to St.

Petersburg to meet a# pa.. Puerto Rican heritage from WEDU Public# Media, we meet the artist Ketsy Ruiz, AKA Sketzii, whose paintings are as bold# and colorful as the land she calls home.

Like I'm in downtown St.

Pete or downtown# anywhere else.

Tampa, and then I go to PR to kind of have to go home like, and it's# in the country, country and barefoot all the time.

And then this place, the artist residency# feels like that to me.

Like if I can't go home, I'll come here to work.

I think being a military# brat is what influences the diaspora aspect of my work.

So I've been able to travel and visit# lots of different cities, different places, meet a bunch of different people.

But I'm from# Hatillo, Puerto Rico, so it's this dynamic that I have where I live in the in-between at all# times.

I have to do like a base coat.

I can't leave it like, it's just not my jam.

That way# too, if like the light, once I do the outlines, like usually I do everything that's super matte# on here.

But if for any reason it's transparent or like something peeks through a crack, like# you'll see yellow, you'll see another bright color.

You know, I don't ever want it to be white.# Like if I do white, it has to be intentionally.

I put white on the canvas, not from the primer.

When# I try to tell my stories, I have a really bright color palette and my color palette is reflective# of the homes that you will see on the island.

And they're actually like color matches to like# homes that are there.

So that's why I went with that color palette.

It's a very like Latino# color palette.

It's very much of the culture, but then people interpret it as like happy.# They think my colors are happy.

So there are a lot of people who walk up to my work and they're# like, oh, I love your work.

It's so beautiful, so bright, it just makes me feel happy.

And here# I am talking about like Hurricane Maria and how distraught I am that I couldn't be there to help# out my family.

And like I'm crying underneath a flamboyant tree and they're like, it looks great,# it looks happy.

And so that's probably the hardest thing to overcome.

The fact that like my color# palette gives one sense of joy to people.

But then what I'm actually talking about isn't just# something that's pretty on a canvas.

It's like the metaphors are about really deep stories, you know,# things that I've been through, things that other people have been through that come from PR.

And so# that's probably been the hardest thing to overcome is kind of explain that part of it.

And then as an# artist you don't wanna overexplain anything or you don't wanna feel like you're defending yourself.# So it's like, hey, take this for what it is.

And I love that you think that you know, it's beautiful# and it's bright and that it looks joyous, but like take a second to really look at it.

Take# a second to really read it, look at the title, try and put together, you know the pieces.

That's# all that I can hope someone sees in it.

That's also why I think it's so important for me to tell# the stories.

When someone else connects to it, they get it.

Like, wow, I remember what happened# during Hurricane Maria.

Like I was there too, or oh, I know what it is to go back and forth# with a suitcase since I was three years old.

Like I completely get that.

You know, my work is# for the people.

So whatever somebody interprets is what they interpret, right?

So I'm not mad# at all if like what they interpret isn't what I was trying to say.

If their interpretation is# something that connects with them, like their soul or their story, I love to hear that because# I have heard things all over the place about my pieces and I go, wow, I would've never thought in# a million years.

Like that's what you've got from this.

And I love hearing those interpretations# because then it makes me think, oh, like I can think outside the box now.

Like it doesn't have# to be just what I wanted to portray in my work.

Being out here and being like disconnected from# city life and noises especially helps a lot to concentrate.

It makes me wanna like not look at# my phone.

You know, a lot of it is like looking at your phone and scrolling and like a lot of# my daytime stuff is networking and like doing meetings and trying to figure out how to make the# world a better place and all of these things.

And when I come out here, it's just me.

Like it's# me, it's by myself.

It is me and animals, which I love animals.

I think I like animals better than# I like people.

So I guess that's another way that influences me being out here, like the animals# end up in my art.

I find my community, especially since I've been a professional artist for the# past five or six years through social media, through Instagram specifically.

And that# is how I talk to people.

That's how I talk to my community.

I also love going to different# types of networking events.

I work with multiple nonprofits to talk to other artists, other people# that are in the community, community leaders.

And it's very much a part of my work, now that# I've been involved in several nonprofits, I've been able to do community type of projects# and it started my paint and sit classes and it started my community murals.

So it's something now# that I didn't even think I'd be getting into when I first started as a professional artist.

And# it's developed over time and it's actually like my number one favorite thing to do with art is to# like have people involved with my pieces.

I am all about sharing information and resources.

Like one,# yeah, it feels good to do it for the community, but two, like when I see someone else, they have# this potential and they're just kind of like lost in the sauce and they don't know exactly where# to go with it.

And I'm like, I was you, I was you a couple years ago.

Let me tell you about# this, this, and this.

You need to sign up here, you need to fill out these forms, you need to# meet these people at these places.

It's just, it's cool to really watch someone grow.

I think# it's really good to surround yourself with a community of people, whether it's friends, whether# it's families, whether it's coworkers or a network of a community or something to have people around# you who like recognize what your talents are and just keep telling you that same message over and# over again.

Because it's a mind thing.

At the end of the day, we are our own worst enemy.

So for# anybody that feels lost in the sauce or has the imposter syndrome, we all do.

None of us know# what we are doing ever.

You just have to like take the risk, go with it, see what works out,# and be okay with some things just not working out the way you want it to.

What's meant for# you, I truly believe in what's meant for you is meant for you.

So you should just go for it# and not worry about what anybody else has to say.

[Announcer] Bright and colorful with the marching# orders at Locust Projects last fall.

As artist Tara Long took over the arts incubator.# Here, she welcomes all to La Esquinita.

I'm Tara Long and welcome to La Esquinita.# There is a facade of sweetness that you can find here.

Miami is just so known for# its face, for its beautiful beaches, for its beautiful women, for the strong# drinks and the good parties.

But underneath that veil is a light decay and rot.

I wanted# to reveal both of those things in this show, the facade of sweetness and lift the veil a little# bit, show some of the decay and the rot and that is what hopefully you will experience here in La# Esquinita.

My work, it's multidisciplinary and it's also large scale.

So this work can't really# be presented anywhere.

It really needs a special space to exist.

And Locust Projects is one of the# only spaces in Miami where something like this is possible.

So when you arrive to La Esquinita# you'll be greeted by this beautiful mural by Serge Touissant.

You're gonna walk into what seems# like a sweets and souvenirs shop, a little femme, Peewee Herman even.

And then behind the counter# you'll come to face a giant crumbling cake.

I don't want to tell you what to experience,# but I will say that there is a performance, there is a facade, there is the unveiling# of the horrors and the rot and the decay.

And being from Miami, you know, there's always# gonna be a bar at the end.

But in this instance, the bar wants to give you a sense of nature# reclaiming the space.

After all of the development and everything that this place has been through# and the people have been through, my hope is that the Everglades and the nature will just reclaim it# somehow.

And I hope you have a great time, or not.

[Announcer] From WVIZ in Cleveland, Ohio,# we meet a groundbreaking symphony that's shaking up classical music.

Founded in# 2023, the video game Symphony performs iconic gaming soundtracks like# the Legend of Zelda and Pokemon.

For me, playing video games,# there's so many factors that go into making a game memorable.

And one of# the biggest factors for me is the music.

I grew up playing video games.

That# was my introduction to music actually really was through video games and# specifically Mario, Zelda, Halo, you name it.

Pretty much everything that I# could get my hands on and I was allowed to play.

Growing up, I was really into Skyrim and# all those mid-2000s, late 2000 games that would come out.

And I just plugged in so# many hours and the background music and I thought it was so cool.

And so I've always# wondered to myself as time went on, like, where is this music even being recorded?

Is it# being recorded, and how do you even play it?

And I think what's so great about the video# game music genre and video games in general is that there is a lot of opportunity for# you to be the hero of your own story.

And the music just really captures that spirit# and conveys that to modern day audiences.

I've been playing video games since I was a# kid.

I mean, I'm dressed as Aerith from Final Fantasy Seven right now.

It's cool to hear a# lot of the music that I both grew up playing and play now.

Hearing it through the orchestra# is just absolutely beautiful, it's a rare thing.

We're a bunch of music lovers that just# absolutely adore this music.

We just want to give this music all the love and# attention and respect that it deserves.

It is so beloved by so many people, a wide# range of ages and genders.

And it's really important to reach those people where# they are and bring this music to them.

It'sa me, Mario.

The Video Game Symphony is a# full symphony orchestra that is fully dedicated to playing video game music.

And we at the VGS believe that this is the# classical music of the future.

And we kind of see in the classical world that it's underappreciated,# it's underplayed.

And so in that sense, you know, we want to do it justice, but it's also# a celebration of how wonderful this music is.

We love sharing it with other people# and we just love performing it ourselves.

There are some orchestras that are hired by the# video game companies like Nintendo, SQUARE ENIX, and they tour and they play music from certain# video game series like Final Fantasy or Zelda.

But there aren't a lot of grassroots orchestras# that play this music and are dedicated to it.

We're just thinking, why don't we have that# here in Northeast Ohio?

Why don't we have that here in Ohio?

So we want to bring# that to this area for our audience and also to our players to be able to perform# this music that otherwise they might not be able to perform ever in their lives.

We# have so many people come up to us and say, it has been my dream since I was a child to# play this music, and finally I'm able to.

I utilize this as a tool to, you know,# educate the public a lot.

Oftentimes people come up to me and be like,# why video game music or you know, as opposed to focusing all of your# energy on classical orchestral music.

It's just as intricate and complex as any# other classical piece.

And it's connected to these fantastical worlds and emotions.# And it tends to pull from a lot of different cultures too.

Cultures and time periods that you# wouldn't necessarily get exposed to otherwise.

It navigates extreme spectrums of emotion and# it's very accessible to the public.

So it's a great vessel to either reach the youth and# even older folks too, that often come to me and say how much they enjoy the music.

Although# they don't know anything about the video games.

I think what's so amazing about this group is# that ability to separate the music from the video game and show it as its completely# unique, original art form within music.

And in that way the genre is different than# maybe some other genres where it's completely dependent on its surroundings and kind of# you're able to separate it from that and you're gonna have an amazing product at the# end of the day that audiences are gonna love.

We definitely slant towards# certain genres.

Personally, I think the RPG and fantasy genre tends to# have some of the most expansive and epic soundtracks just 'cause of the nature# of the drama.

We do a lot of that.

Well, Final Fantasy music is just great overall,# but we have this arrangement of the opening and bombing mission.

So it was just this really# challenging piece and I love it.

It's super active, it's super exciting.

It has all these# great brass moments.

You can't beat it, I love it.

We do a lot of Nintendo kind of, for obvious# reasons 'cause those are some of the best known and just kind of like some of the# greatest tunes and soundtracks out there.

So a lot of Mario and Zelda and Pokemon.

But# we're starting to get into more genres as we go along.

♪ I wanna be the very best# ♪ ♪ Like no one ever was ♪ ♪ To catch them is my real test ♪ ♪ To train them is# my cause ♪ ♪ I will travel across the land ♪ It's exhilarating, it's so hard to describe.

♪# Teach Pokemon to understand ♪ I get up here and I see the audience and I'm like, this is real.

These# people came for us and that is just so beautiful.

We're bringing an entirely new audience# into the classical musical world, which is something that is so important to me.# I want people to come to see us and hear this wonderful music.

And I want this to maybe be their# first experience going to an orchestra ever, and then maybe they'll go to more and more orchestras# and support the arts in other ways.

♪ Pokemon ♪ [Announcer] Art Loft is on Instagram at @artloftsfl.

Tag# us on your arts adventures.

Find full episode segments and more at artloftsfl.org.# And on YouTube at South Florida PBS.

Art Loft is brought to you by# the Friends of South Florida PBS.