TEN NORTH GROUP PRESENTS
PURVIS YOUNG: DEICTIC ARTICULATION
A Visionary of Overtown Points the Way Forward
OPENING RECEPTION & PANEL DISCUSSION: Friday, September 18, 2026 | 6:00 PM
EXHIBITION ON VIEW: September 18 - November 18, 2026
LOCATION: Art and Recreation Center (The ARC) | Opa-locka, Florida
OPA-LOCKA, FL - September 17, 2026 - Ten North Group proudly presents Purvis Young: Deictic Articulation, a landmark exhibition celebrating the extraordinary vision and legacy of Purvis Young (1943-2010), the self-taught Miami artist who transformed the streets of Overtown into a living gallery of Black resilience, spirituality, struggle and hope.
Opening Friday, September 18 at 6:00 PM, the exhibition brings together Young’s distinctive paintings created on found plywood, cardboard and other salvaged materials. Through his iconic visual language of galloping horses, hovering angels, pregnant women and processions of elongated Black figures, Young documented the realities of his community while envisioning freedom, protection, renewal and a more hopeful future.
Young’s use of discarded materials was inseparable from his surroundings. Wood, metal and other remnants reflected a neighborhood dramatically altered by urban renewal and highway construction. From those fragments, Young created work that insisted upon the visibility, dignity and humanity of the people around him.
Spirituality remained central to his practice. Young described his recurring pregnant women as symbols of giving birth to a new nation, while angels appeared throughout his work as witnesses, protectors and messengers. His celebrated installations along Goodbread Alley in Overtown transformed the neighborhood into an expansive public gallery and made art directly accessible to the community that inspired it.
SPECIAL OPENING-NIGHT CONVERSATION: PURVIS YOUNG AND THE BLACK RADICAL TRADITION
Dr. Adrienne von Lates is an art historian, educator, curator and author of Purvis Young: Garden Angel. She received her Ph.D. in Art History from Columbia University and has held faculty positions at Columbia University, the University of California San Diego, the University of Miami and Florida International University. She has also served in education leadership roles at the Bass Museum of Art and the Museum of Contemporary Art, North Miami.
Martin Siskind, a longtime friend, dealer and former manager of Purvis Young, assembled and preserved a significant private collection of Young’s work. His decades-long relationship with the artist and stewardship of the collection provide a unique perspective on Young’s life, career and enduring cultural significance.
ABOUT PURVIS YOUNG
Born in Miami in 1943, Purvis Young spent much of his life in Overtown, where he created hundreds of works chronicling the people, spirituality and social conditions surrounding him. Inspired by art history, murals and everyday life, Young developed an unmistakable visual language that earned recognition from major museums and collectors across the country. He died in Miami in 2010.
MEDIA CONTACT: Nakia Bowling | Ten North Group | nakia@tennorthgroup.com | 305.726.3673
High-resolution exhibition and artist images are available upon request.
