A pop of color on utility boxes in North Miami’s Griffing Park

The colorful brushstrokes of local artist and once-North Miami resident Cavan Koebel now adorn utility boxes, benches and more at Griffing Park, part of the Community Redevelopment Agency’s Art in Public Places Program.

Helmed by newly named Public Arts Program Manager Michelle McKoy, this project is one of many coming to the city. Murals and public art have been popping up around North Miami for quite some time.

“I’m looking forward to working with innovative artists and implementing public art that reflects the diversity of North Miami. Infusing energy on multiple levels is what art does, I’m fortunate for the opportunity to navigate this terrain using expressive art modalities,” said McKoy.

For the latest project at Griffing Park, at NE 123rd Street and West Dixie Highway, Koebel (a.k.a Raw.Sol) had to work quickly, having been alerted about the Call for Artists just a week before the deadline.

“My dad, who is a Realtor in North Miami and a fellow artist I know that does work with juvenile detention centers both sent me the information, saying they immediately thought of me and encouraged me to apply,” Koebel said.

He quickly checked out the Call to Artists and saw what they were looking for and trying to have done. He knew the artwork had to be fun, uplifting and something that celebrated the local environment.

“I incorporated Caribbean influences like native plants and animals to celebrate the natural environment of South Florida when creating the designs,” said Koebel.

He created the mock-up in two to three days, with the final designs taking about four days. The designs then were presented for approval, and he got to work. His colorful work was unveiled at Griffing Park on April 30.

In total, Koebel’s work is featured on four concrete benches, six utility boxes, one single-story concrete pavilion and two smaller single-story utility buildings.

This project is not Koebel’s first for North Miami. His murals grace the Mary’s Lb. pet food store on West Dixie Highway and one of the walls of the Taco Bell on NE 125th Street.

Artist Cavan Koebel.

“Just like with the big murals, I wanted to do something bright and dynamic that catches the passersby eyes and then when you step closer to it you really can see the details like the shapes and plants, water and animals,” he said. “This project was also different because it was all design based.”

Koebel worked closely with the city in vinyl-wrapping the work at the park to ensure that the designs hold up to Miami’s weather elements.

Born and raised in North Miami, he is excited to work in his hometown where he grew up right off 125 Street, one of the city’s main streets running through downtown. It brings him immense joy to experience the city’s growth, including the many events put on by the Museum of Contemporary Art.

“It makes me happy to see the community bringing people together to celebrate our similarities and differences,” he said.

As a full-time artist since 2017, he has commissioned murals adorning walls in 10 different Florida cities and about as many states. The commissions began his last year in college – he received a bachelor’s degree in marketing from the University of Central Florida — when he also formed a media marketing company.

Koebel was the ideal choice for the first of many of North Miami’s upcoming Art in Public Places projects.

“Griffing Park was the first one because it is city owned and so made for a quick implementation,” said Rasha Cameau, executive director of North Miami’s CRA. “Our North Miami chief of police, Larry Juriga, was instrumental in getting this initiative started.”

A formal Call to Artists (released in February) for the public art in Griffing Park garnered 23 applications. The North Miami CRA Board and Art Selection Committee chose Koebel with a commission of $3,500 for his chosen design.

On the selection committee were McKoy; Geo Darder, founder of the Copperbridge Foundation; Amanda Covach, curator of Education at MOCA; Christine Carney, assistant director of City of North Miami Parks & Recreation; Doris Metzer, president & CEO of DM Art Enterprises, Inc. and Rose-Philippe Coriolan, producer and host of the “Cinema Verite” radio show on WSRF 1580 AM/99.5 FM.

Slated for future public art installations are Pioneer Boulevard from Northeast Sixth Avenue to West Dixie Highway and crosswalks on Northeast Seventh Avenue from 119th to 143 streets.

“We want to do a sculpture garden on the median on Pioneer Boulevard and painted crosswalks on Northeast Seventh Avenue ... to slow traffic down,” said Cameau. “There will be call to artists for these as well.”

Later down the road, they will work with private property owners along 125th Street to create sustainability murals. Another upcoming project will involve painting fire hydrants in the community and will involve the Police Athletic League of North Miami.

A majority of the pieces are required to include a specially designed NoMi Heart to distinguish them as Art in Public Places Projects.

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