Summer in South Florida consists of lots of heat and mangos everywhere you go. For Jayme Gershan, these tropical fruits are the stars behind her immersive exhibit, “When Mangos Last in my Backyard Bloom’d.”
Gershan moved to South Florida in 2007 from Massachusetts. She didn’t know much about mangos, but her curiosity made her discover an allergic reaction tied to the fruit’s sap, or the sticky liquid found near the stem.
Despite the sensitivity, the sweet treat is not stopping Gershen from showcasing a fruit that is a symbol of Miami’s vibrant community.
“This allergy got me thinking about this place where I live and the nature that we live within,” said Gershen.
A grant by the Knight Foundation allows Gershen to invest her time in creating a space filled with interactive installations. The free exhibit has been running since June.
Once you walk in, you can pick your mango from the artificial tree and you roam around the studio listening to chewing sounds, seeing mango-related interviews on screens, and participating in dropping your seed into a wishing well that is nailed to a wall sculpture.
“The mangoes are this unifier that really represent this place,” said Gershen.
The exhibit is based on Gershan’s film, “The Mango Movie,” and it got its name from a poem written by Carmen Misé. Both were key factors in the making of the place.
“Let’s remember the things we love and protect them before they are gone,” said Gershen. “That’s what her poem said to me.”
From the moment people step into the exhibit to by the time they’re leaving, Gershan believes that people can form connections and help the community thrive.
“We are all different and a lot of my work explores how all these different ideas and views and world experiences can kind of collide in this place and survive,” said Gershan. “Making this exhibit was an ode to the mango, but it was an ode to the city.”
“When Mangos Last in my Backyard Bloom’d” runs until August 9. Click here for more information about the exhibit and upcoming events.
