MIAMI – Danelle and Michele grew up watching their Cuban father Raul Pino paint every day in the living room. The attorney would hold up one of the many photographs he took of indigenous people during trips to Africa and South America. His brushes captured every detail.
They grew up going to his exhibits. He loved art so much that even after suffering a stroke and losing mobility he continued to find ways to get color on canvas. Danelle studied nursing at the University of Miami and Michele graduated from St. Thomas University School of Law.
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While Michele Pino was practicing law, Danelle found her tribe in Wynwood. She felt connected to the artists’ ecosystem and opened Wyn317 Art Gallery in 2013. The 400-square-foot space would get so full people were bumping into each other. It was time to search for a new home.
“This space felt familiar. It turns out I had been here for a seminar on manifesting what you want and I had envisioned this gallery,” said Michelle Pino, 37, who is now Wyn317′s assistant director and the in-house expert on contract law, copyright, export regulations, and authenticity.
The coincidence sealed the deal. Their Cuban mother, Isaura Pino, helped them to buy the corner two-story 6,000-square-foot building, at 4320 NW 2nd Ave. The first floor has floor-to-ceiling windows and two galleries. There is a backyard for performing artists, walls for muralists, and residences for artists.
Over the years, the sisters saw Wynwood’s expanding influence on neighborhoods like Allapatah, Buena Vista, and Little Haiti. Their gallery is walking distance from the Miami Design District’s Institute of Contemporary Art, or ICA, an innovative contemporary art museum that opened in 2017.
“Our great aunt loved art and told us stories about the different museums and masterpieces she had seen in museums all over the world, so visiting art museums was always a part of any family vacation,” Danelle Pino, 32, said.
They have also seen the presence of women increase in the art world. They have a list of Latina artists they work with that includes Diana “Didi” Contreras, Agana, and Delvs. Last month, they had an exhibit to celebrate the 10th anniversary of Few & Far, an international crew of creative women.
“We believe it’s important to showcase emerging artists alongside established artists in the gallery in order to create a mentorship-like environment where one learns from the other,” Danelle said, adding they also like to host events that bring the community of art lovers, collectors, and artists together.
Just before Art Basel Miami Beach attracted about 80,000 people from all over the world, the sisters celebrated the opening of Adrian Avila’s first solo exhibition, “Astro Logos • The Word of Light,” with a Saturday party that included acrobats and fire dancers.
“Adrian’s work is amazing! His oil paintings are so realistic people think they are digital photos, even his giant murals look realistic. He is a very talented artist,” Danelle said.
Avila, 32, moved to Miami from Holguin, Cuba when he was 13, and he trained at the New World School of the Arts in Miami and at the Art Center College of Design in California. He describes his work as “an exploration of the timeless self and its relation to the collective consciousness” through “texture, symbols, linear patterns and sacred geometric shapes.”
Michele Pino said she was very impressed with the maturity of Avila’s work. He has had dozens of murals around the city. She said she can envision his continued success and that of their gallery and the city’s art scene. They are always in search of new talented and innovative artists and of opportunities.
“It would be great if city officials allocated more areas and spaces for art. They could work with local galleries to organize projects and coordinate with artists,” Danelle said. “Offering incentives or grants to local businesses to promote art in public spaces would also be very supportive.”
The Pino sisters have big dreams and they are not afraid to work for them. They are still grieving the loss of their beloved father and they still have dozens of his paintings in storage. They dream of starting a nonprofit in his honor to help promote the use of art therapy in the healthcare sector.
“Our parents left Cuba as children in the 60s. They learned courage, perseverance, and dedication from watching their parents as they worked and struggled to make a living and raise a family,” Danelle said. “Our parents in turn passed those lessons on to us.”
Avila’s solo exhibit will be on display until Jan. 8. The gallery opens from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. from Tuesday to Saturday at 4320 NW 2nd Ave. For more information or to schedule an appointment, call 305-761-1116. The gallery also has a presence on Artsy, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.
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