History

Big Walls Big Dreams is a mural-painting festival series curated and produced by UP Art Studio.
Previous iterations have occurred in Miami during Art Basel Miami Beach (Miami Art Week) since 2013.

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Original Location
Wynwood Arts District, Miami

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Artists
Multiple international mural artists

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Themes
Social consciousness, animal rights, climate change

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Previous Sponsors
Pepsi Beverage Co. (Lifewtr, Mountain Dew), Akzo Nobel, TruClear Global, Epson, Johnny Walker

Highlights by Year

2013: UP Art Studio and RK Crew of Chicago painted an unsanctioned mural located in the heart of Wynwood, Miami’s famed art district during Art Basel week. In 2015 this became the central location for Big Walls Big Dreams.

2014: UP Art Studio assisted artist MrD1987 with producing the Liquitex Lounge, and painted murals with international artists Inkie and Pez.

2015: Big Walls Big Dreams officially kicked-off with its centerpiece mural, “Free Lolita” by the husband and wife artist duo Shalak Attack and Bruno Smoky. The mural was painted to help bring awareness to the campaign to free Lolita from the Miami Seaquariam following over 40 years of captivity.

2015: Owned by then Mayor Philip Levine of Miami Beach, the block-long building, had an additional 12 murals painted on it.

2015: More murals were commissioned by Mountain Dew (Pepsi Beverage Co) at other locations in throughout Wynwood.

2016: Big Walls Big Dreams returned with bigger dreams, and a bigger list of artists and locations throughout Wynwood, encouraging a theme of climate change throughout many of the murals.

2016: World-renowned artists INSA and Drew Merritt painted a mural that was converted to “gif-iti” (animated via an app).

2016: A mind-bending mural painted by famed artist PEETA was created.

2017: UP Art Studio curated a series of 20 murals with support from Lifewtr (Pepsi Beverage Co), Akzo Nobel, and Mayor Philip Levine. Several of the murals followed a theme of (water) conservation.

2017: Seven murals were painted on Romero Britto’s warehouse facilities in Wynwood.

2017: A mural was animated via projection mapping in a collaboration between artist Jay Mack Muzik, TruClear Global, Epson, and UP Art Studio.

2017: UP Art Studio was commissioned by Mayor Levine to paint murals inside the building which housed the headquarters for his campaign for his run for governor of Florida.

2017: UP Art Studio showcased art from graffiti and street art legends at SCOPE Miami Beach, the most cutting-edge Art Fair during Art Basel, which in 2017 brought in 60,000+ art lovers and collectors onto Miami Beach. UP Art Studio partnered with TruClear Global, Epson, and SCOPE Art Fair to transform the Art Fair’s entryway into an illuminated experience.

2018: Big Walls Big Dreams took over a warehouse in Little Haiti and painted 10+ murals at this location.

2018: Big Walls Big Dreams worked with several Brazilian street artists to paint new murals at Romero Britto’s buildings in Wynwood.

2019: Two murals were painted at the Salvation Army, including the “Art Angel” by artist MrD1987, a 2-story mural in the heart of Wynwood.

2019: A mural by Ruben Ubiera and Jay Caes also showcased friendship and diversity.

About UP Art Studio

UP Art Studio is a Houston consulting firm whose mission is “Civic Pride through Civic Art.”  Principals Noah Quiles and Elia Quiles are a husband-and-wife team who curate, create, manage, and implement public art plans and projects. They are passionate about harnessing the power of art and placemaking – and the creativity of artists – to uplift people, neighborhoods, and underserved areas.

 The firm commissions local and national artists. It assists clients with ideation, planning, feasibility, funding, partnerships, community engagement, artist management, project delivery, and communications/PR. Since 2012, UP Art Studio has delivered hundreds of murals, Mini Murals, and other public art installations. The firm is currently creating and implementing Public Art Plans for major districts of Houston and for cities around Texas.