FIU Online's "Beautifully Miami" Project
2,800 cafecito cups, paint, and adhesive | 66 x 116 inches
Born of the 305: Beautifully Miami
The FIU Online Born of the 305 campaign was first conceived in 2019 as a celebration of the university’s ties to its community, diversity and the people of South Florida—all of which give DiBartolomeo great pride as she builds on a metaphor for her Beautifully Miami piece.
The metaphor goes deep, DiBartolomeo feels. Cafecitos bring people together—we all know that time of day, whether at home or at work, when the smell of freshly brewed coffee fills the air and cups are passed around—most everyone enjoys this small drink of liquid energy. It allows people to connect, laugh, share stories for a while, good or bad, and then press on with their lives. Wherever we are from, these tiny cups bring us together to create one of the many moments that make living in Miami beautiful.
“Cafecito cups read as ‘very Miami’ but also make the viewer reconsider the resources right in front of them. This piece challenges the viewer to see the commonly overlooked in a new way,” she explains as she plans her work. DiBartolomeo notes that education does the same thing—it offers students new perspectives, so when they graduate, they can see and be seen in a new way, too.