The CIFO Art Space has held a unique position in Miami, and also in the Latin American art world, since it opened seven years ago. The exhibition hall on North Miami just north of downtown, with its incredible mosaic-tiled exterior, initially highlighted works from the Ella Fontanals-Cisneros Collection, which includes some truly remarkable pieces of contemporary art. It is has morphed, however, into a space to promote emerging and mid-career artists from Latin America, especially through its commissions and grants program (which up to this point has granted awards to over 50 artists).

Opening up tonight is the latest in that endeavor. “In Transition” features work from the latest recipients of the 2010 Grants and Commissions Program, given this year to two mid-career artists and eight emerging ones.

Artists are chosen by an advisory committee and then spend a year developing work. They are invited to Miami to install the pieces, participate in public programs, and interact with other grantees. While all the work is made individually and separately (in different countries and in different media), there is a common thread in that the work in the exhibition “demonstrates some degree of transformation between varying states or points of discourse — a series of transitions or glimpses into a process which appears not yet finalized.”

This year’s winners come from Uruguay, Brazil, Argentina, Venezuela, Mexico, and Colombia, and the work is heavy on installation, site-specific work, and video.

The goal is not only to provide funding and visibility, but maybe as crucial, to challenge stereotypical notions of Latin American art. Anyone who has seen previous exhibitions in this series can appreciate the latter, in that the work thankfully often breaks away from tired molds. In this seventh anniversary year, the pieces made for this exhibit will launch the CIFO Grants and Commission Program Collection, and future new works will add to the collection. That seems like the real prize.

The “Transitions” exhibit will also include one of those Miami rarities, a free catalogue, part of the mission to give high quality exposure to these artists and their work.

“In Transition,”  the 2010 CIFO Grants and Commissions Program, from Sept. 3 through Nov. 7 at CIFO, 1018 N. Miami Ave., Thursday through Sunday; www.cifo.org; 305-455-3380.