It’s not the first time Anthony Marest has brought his art to Miami, and it surely won’t be the last. The Alicante-born painter is known for deploying large-scale murals around the globe, and his latest two wall pieces add to a sweeping total that surpasses 6,500 square meters. In Wynwood Arts District, the neighborhood famed for its vibrant street art on the city’s many building facades, his work stands out as a bold statement in this dynamic urban gallery.
From Villena, Spain, born in 1982, Marest spent the past three months creating new murals that crown two buildings each more than twelve stories tall. The project is anchored by First Avenue in Wynwood, a street that has become a defining landmark as Miami evolves into a modern tech and art hub. The area, known as a new Silicon Beach, buzzes with graffiti artists and tech companies shaping the city’s identity.
Marest’s love of deco-inspired aesthetics is evident in his work, which blends with Miami’s Mediterranean revival textures and a Mediterranean sensibility described by curator Fran Picazo. His art is celebrated for energy, bright color bursts, and a fusion of geometric and abstract elements. Picazo notes that Marest’s pieces carry themes of equality, freedom, diversity, and a respect for life and the environment. In the artist’s visual language, palm trees, sea, and sky never disappear from the landscape he paints for the city.
On this occasion, the artist introduced an innovation by depicting a human figure for the first time in one of the murals. The focal point is a woman on a springboard, sunlit with hands raised to hold light, symbolizing a new dawn and a new era. The work resonates with the slogan the future is woman, a concept Marest regards as essential to include.
In Marest’s own words, art has a unifying purpose: to bring people together in a fair, inclusive way, shaping a future that honors the environment, human connection, and shared emotions. He emphasizes living fully in the present, since the moment when it all began continues to drive the momentum of his practice.
There will also be permanent murals, safeguarded by a special paint designed to preserve the works for twenty years. Picazo explains that these pieces are meant to coexist and endure, a fundamental aspiration of urban art, especially in a city where artists come to paint some of their most valuable walls.
digital work
During Art Basel Miami week, Marest was invited to contribute a digital projection on the facade of the Paramount Miami Worldcenter, a skyscraper rising sixty stories. His sunset cityscape animation was displayed on the building, and it has been replicated in collaborations with brands such as Dolce & Gabbana and Tiffany & Co., marking it as one of the year’s most prominent digital pieces.
idyll with miami
Although his projects span multiple cities across the United States and Europe, Miami remains a constant source of inspiration for Antonyo Marest. He opened an exhibition in Madrid in 2020 featuring fifty works inspired by the historic Sun Harbor Hotel in Miami from the 1970s and 80s, and the previous year he painted the exterior of the hotel itself. In 2021, he created a 24-meter-tall tower of containers at an architectural office complex near Spotify’s Wynwood headquarters. His affection for the city is deeply rooted and continues to shape his work.
The artist’s bond with Miami deepens with ongoing projects since February 2023, including a residency at the PAMM museum and the creation of three more large murals. The city remains a living canvas for his evolving practice.