By Robert Harkins, HistoryMiami

The first year of the HistoryMiami South Florida Folklife Center’s Heritage Spotlight series was a resounding success! We hosted three artists-in-residence: Ezequiel Torres, an Afro-Cuban batá drummer and drum maker; James Kelly, an Irish fiddler; and Mieko Kubota, a practitioner of ikebana, the Japanese art of flower arranging. Each artist showcased their tradition to public audiences and schoolchildren through a variety of programs.

The first resident artist of 2013 is Serge Toussaint, who you may know as “Serge the Artist”. He will be in residence from January – March. A muralist and sign artist, his creations can be found in several parts of Miami-Dade County, including Little Haiti, a neighborhood that boasts a long-standing street art tradition. His murals include portraits of prominent figures such as President Barack Obama and Miami Heat basketball players, and his painted signs grace the exteriors of numerous local businesses.

If you’d like to learn more about Serge and his work, join our walking tour of Little Haiti on Saturday, January 26 at 1 PM. We’ll meet in the courtyard of the Little Haiti Cultural Center, located at 212 NE 59 Terrace in Miami. There is no cost for the tour, and parking is free.

Upcoming resident artists include oud musician Joe Zeytoonian and Perú Expresión, an ensemble that performs traditional Peruvian music and dance. For more information about the South Florida Folklife Center, the Heritage Spotlight series, and all of our resident artists, visit www.historymiami.org/folklife.

Serge Toussaint with one of his iconic Pepsi cans