La Esquinita

A surreal corner store unfolds at Locust Projects as La Esquinita reimagines the exterior and lobby as a candy-colored “Sweets & Souvenirs” shop stocked with more than 500 miniature confections. Conceived by Miami-born artist and musician Tara Long, the installation marks her first major solo exhibition and transforms the space into a dreamlike parable about sweetness, desire and the histories that shaped the city.

What begins as a playful bodega façade quickly deepens into a layered journey through Miami’s landscapes and myths. Visitors move through three immersive acts created in collaboration with a large community of artists, musicians and performers: a seductive storefront of tempting treats; a cavernous “cake hall” anchored by a towering, slowly crumbling cake; and a speakeasy-like back room where sound and imagery hint at nature’s patient return. Sugar becomes both subject and cipher, invoking the industries that once reshaped South Florida’s land and labor. Long, also known for her experimental music persona Poorgrrrl, draws on Miami’s glossy surfaces and buried histories to connect the cultivation of sweetness to the conditioning of want. 

Commissioned by Locust Projects and curated by Executive Director Lorie Mertes, La Esquinita was selected from more than 650 open-call proposals and reflects the organization’s commitment to risk-taking, artist-led experimentation. The exhibition is also the featured Miami Art Week project, accompanied by a meet-the-artist gathering and performance on December 6.

La Esquinita is on view November 15 through January 17 at Locust Projects. Admission is free and open to the public.