Baby food jars strung together. A sparkly tiara on a rocking horse. A glass bowl filled with yarn. Buttons long estranged from their original cardigans.
These random whozits and whatzits all have a place at The Things Lab in Miami, where items that would otherwise collect dust or end up in the garbage find a new life.
But make no mistake. This is not a typical thrift store. It’s more of an ever-changing immersive art installation that invites people to rifle through drawers or place items in fun arrangements. The setup can change, and there are no prices. Instead, people can decide how much they want to pay for an object.
“Nothing quite exists like what we have because we're so many things all at once,” said Miami-based curator and co-creator Susan Caraballo. “The intention is really for the community at large to be able to come and play and also enjoy what we have and take things home.”
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The idea of The Things Lab sprung forth from an immersive art project that Caraballo worked on last year called “Prelude to 2100.” Demonstrating the realities of climate change, her art experience imagined a world in which Miami was underwater and the Deering Estate had been converted into a co-housing facility and where chain supermarkets like Walmarts and Targets disappeared— but second-hand stores continued in their place.
She worked with 30 or so different multidisciplinary artists, including her Things Lab co-creator, Kerry Phillips. Inspired to create a space for repurposing and upcycling, the duo came together to bring the concept of The Things Lab — a sort of library of things — to life.
At a time in South Florida where land is limited and local governments continue to deliberate over where to put our waste, The Things Lab promotes a culture of reuse.
“[The idea] is to keep things from the landfill that could still be used. It still has potential. Like this broken lamp may not be a viable lamp anymore … But it could be a sculpture or it could be a towel holder,” Phillips said. “So part of the idea is resiliency through creativity.”
As a visual artist, Phillips tends to transform mundane, ordinary objects and incorporate them into her art installations. The Things Lab, she said, fulfills her dream of building a stockpile of objects that are fodder for artwork.
“Once I've collected something and picked it up off the street, it’s like I'm the foster parent, and I want to keep it and hold on to it forever — like I've grafted it into my heart,” Phillips said.
“I can't just throw something away once I see possibilities in it, you know? This space allows people to let go of some of these things they've been holding onto for one-day projects — like I'll get to that one day. But then they bring it here because they know that someone else will cherish it just as much as they did.”
Their brick and mortar location in the Little River area of Miami is the physical manifestation of the community that Caraballo and Phillips started on WhatsApp. Their friends in the arts community used the group chat to post things they no longer needed or request certain items. It has since flourished into an active, online community with multiple threads of over a thousand people.
Caraballo and Phillips said they aim to be a sustainable partner for people in the arts community — whether it be visual and arts theaters who want to quickly clear their sets or craft supply stores that need to purge their storage units. Recently, they’ve soft launched a “library of things” where people can rent items at a low cost like camping gear, air mattresses, old-school TVs and projectors. As South Florida artists grapple with a lack of funding and studio space, the Things Lab helps fill that gap.
“I don't think we need to put up with, like, all of the inequities in our world, but I know that creativity happens regardless,” Phillips said.
Although the duo tends to source material from artists, they make it clear that The Things Lab is for everybody. Back in her home state of Texas, Phillips said she grew up with a “make-do” mindset — an ethos to work within your limitations — that allows creativity to be exercised by all.
Workshops and community support
The Things Lab also offers three-hour workshops that run the gamut from collaging to sewing to upcycling objects that are offered at sliding scale prices — all with the goal of making things accessible and sustainable.
As a non-profit startup, they have relied heavily on individual donations and paid memberships for exclusive announcements. And they have curated a bench of volunteers to help them with their expanding programming.
The outpouring of community support comes at a good time.
Caraballo said that they cannot renew their lease. Now they are actively looking for a new space and partner to keep the project going. However, they remain optimistic about the future. They’ve applied for a 501c3 status, and they’re looking into foundation funding, among other things.
“Even though unfortunately we're losing this amazing space that we have that has been a blessing to have for this past year — [it allowed us] to really pilot this project and and test it because now we have proof of concept.”
The Things Lab location on 7251 NE 2nd Ave will be operational until the end of December. They also have extended hours for Art Week on Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
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