Noted New York architect Charles Gwathmey, who died Monday in Manhattan at 71 from esophageal cancer, designed (in conjunction with the Miami firm Gelabert-Navia) the Museum of Contemporary Art at 770 NE 125th St., North Miami. That building went up in 1996.

But two years ago, MOCA unveiled plans for an $18-million expansion, also designed by Gwathmey's firm, Gwathmey-Siegel. The addition would double the museum's size, permitting it to exhibit more of its collection and offer more educational programs.

The architect's death ``is very sad news for the architectural profession,'' said Miami art collector Peter Menéndez, senior associate for corporate communications at AECOM Design.

Said Bonnie Clearwater, MOCA executive director and chief curator: ``Charles Gwathmey was not only a visionary architect but a dear friend, and we are enormously saddened by his death. He passionately embraced the spirit of MOCA and translated this vision into magnificent, versatile spaces that are welcoming and accessible for the entire community.''

MOCA was Gwathmey's first free-standing museum project and ``always held a special place in his heart,'' Clearwater said. ``It was a truly inspiring experience to work with him. He will be greatly missed by all of us in the MOCA family.''

Clearwater declined to elaborate on the status of the expansion.

``Right now, it is premature to discuss the expansion plans,'' she said. ``We are mourning his passing, and our thoughts are with his family at this time.''

PLAYS WANTED

Working on a play? Maybe there's an audience and a cash prize waiting.

The Inter-American Development Bank in Washington, D.C., is celebrating its 50th anniversary by sponsoring the Hispano-American Playwriting Competition. The competition has three categories, including children's theater, and will award a variety of prizes. The 10 best plays will be published by the IDB. The big winner nets $17,000 and a trip to the capital for a performance of the work by the Bárbara Simon Theater. Other winning plays will be staged in New York and Washington, D.C. Info: www.teatrobid.org.

THE SILO PROJECT

Bakehouse Art Complex (BAC) plans to create a public-art design/installation for two historic flour silos on its premises and is seeking proposals from artists interested in the commission.

The chosen artist would transform the silos, which date to the 1930s, into ``a significant community landmark'' for the Wynwood Arts District. The deadline for applications is 5 p.m. Sept. 1 at Bakehouse Art Complex, 561 NW 32nd St., Miami, FL 33127. Info: www.bacfl.org/siloproject; info@bacfl.org.

GAY ARTISTS SOUGHT

Organizers of ``A Taste of Out in the Tropics,'' a component of this year's Miami Beach Sleepless Night on Nov. 7, are looking for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender artists to participate in an event at the Colony Theatre on Lincoln Road.

Artists can work in theater, dance, music, spoken word or film. The event will be presented by Robert Rosenberg/Tropical Wave Productions, in association with FUNDarte (www.fundarte.us) and MiamiARTzine.com with support of the city of Miami Beach.

``We are especially looking for work that is artistically adventurous and high quality,'' Rosenberg says, ``that tackles challenging issues of gender and sexual identity, contemporary social and political issues, or is just plain fun.''

Join the discussion

The Miami Herald is pleased to provide this opportunity to share information, experiences and observations about what's in the news. Some of the comments may be reprinted elsewhere in the site or in the newspaper. We encourage lively, open debate on the issues of the day, and ask that you refrain from profanity, hate speech, personal comments and remarks that are off point. In order to post comments, you must be a registered user of MiamiHerald.com. Your username will show along with the comments you post. Thank you for taking the time to offer your thoughts.

     Showing: Oldest first Newest first Most-recommended first Least-recommended first

@Nyx.AuthorDisplayName@ wrote on @Nyx.PostedAtTime@:

@Nyx.repliedToText@

@Nyx.replyAnswerText@

Reply to this Comment @Nyx.Recommender@ @Nyx.AbuseReporter@