By Juan Pablo Plata
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Maximo Caminero, the Dominican-born, Miami-based artist whose vibrant abstract paintings draw deeply from Taino ancestral forms, Caribbean horizons, African legacies, and modern explorations of sacred geometry and the universe, has long been a dedicated voice in the local art scene. With a self-taught practice spanning over four decades, Caminero has exhibited widely across the Americas—from solo shows in Miami and Santo Domingo to group presentations in Nicaragua and Puerto Rico—while also founding the Dominican Cultural House in Miami in 1993 to champion Latin American painters, writers, and musicians.In recent years, he has continued his studio work in West Palm Beach, where he hosts free weekly exhibitions to support emerging and established creators alike, fostering the very community visibility he has always advocated for.While Caminero remains widely known for a fortuitous and highly publicized moment of protest in 2014—when, during an exhibition at the Pérez Art Museum Miami amid Art Basel festivities, he smashed a painted Han Dynasty vase by Ai Weiwei as a spontaneous act highlighting the underrepresentation of local artists in major institutions—the incident, though controversial and resulting in legal consequences, does not define his life or legacy. Far from it: that singular event sparked broader conversations about inclusion in Miami's art world, ultimately drawing greater attention to the rich ecosystem of local talents who create year-round, beyond the annual international spotlight of Art Basel.Today, more than a decade later, we sit down with Maximo Caminero to discuss the enduring themes in his work, his ongoing commitment to cultural advocacy, the evolution of Miami's artistic landscape, and the deeper motivations that have sustained his creative journey through triumphs, challenges, and everything.
Photos of Caminero by Marcela Solarte Llantén.
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