sabel Rivera | Contributing Writer
Art, environmentalism and the Miami-Dade County administration collided on Monday, July 17 as the FIU Ratcliffe Art + Design Incubator hosted an official Miami-Dade County proclamation for Geographies of Trash Day.
The event marked the acknowledgment and support of South Florida-based graffiti artist David Anasagasti’s, popularly known as Ahol Sniffs Glue, “Geographies of Trash” project, establishing June 30 as “Geographies of Trash Day.”
In full-circle fashion, the highly-celebrated proclamation comes as a result of Ahol and the center’s two-year-long partnership initiated in 2021.
Aiming to clean up Miami’s streets and democratize the contemporary art scene, Anasagasti’s project took flight during the COVID-19 pandemic. It followed a previous collaborative project with bicycle company Rapha, during which Ahol cycled along the streets of Miami
In addition to aiding his journey toward health and sobriety, his newfound hobby made him keenly aware of the amount of trash littering the streets of Miami and inspired him to put a spin on what he does best: tagging.
Soon Anasagasti’s signature hooded eye appeared on discarded furniture, toys – even leftover takeout boxes – all across South Florida’s neighborhoods. To incentivize others to join, he created the thriving Biscayne World Discord server with the help of moderators turned friends.
The waste management mission is simple – he posts a snapshot of recently tagged trash with just enough context for fans to scavenge and add to their personal collections, both democratizing art by making it free and accessible to all and tidying up one street at a time.
“Miami has such a big bike community, so our trash community has integrated with the bike scene. Everybody’s down to collect trash and clean the streets because, at the end of the day, that’s what we want – to clean the streets,” shared Ralphie Heredia, Discord server moderator, and event attendee.
Prior to the proclamation ceremony, a brief social hour with food and drinks was held in which a litany of attendees including fans, local artists, FIU Ratcliffe faculty and fellows; and Anasagasti networked and socialized.
Standing in the place of Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava, who was unable to attend, Chief of Administration Graham Winick of the Department of Cultural Affairs read aloud the proclamation in a short ceremony, inciting applause from all guests.
Though initially an independent project, FIU’s Ratcliffe Art + Design Incubator’s involvement in “Geographies of Trash” has benefited both Anasagasti and Ratcliffe fellows immensely. In return for resources and expertise from the center’s in-house specialists, Anasagasti served in an entrepreneurial residency, advising and mentoring the center’s student fellows.
“Students can only learn so much from a lecture or a textbook; what we are teaching is what you cannot learn in a lecture hall or textbook. Ahol Sniffs Glue, being an entrepreneur in residence, is an example of how we are teaching by example,” said Neil Ramsay, visiting faculty in residence at the Ratcliffe.
“He is a masterful marketer, very successful businessperson and artist. We’re an art and design incubator, so what we want is for artists and designers to be successful businesspeople as well.”
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