URBAN THREADS is the next big civic project of PLY-Miami. We are creating a large scale mural installation for an exterior wall in downtown Miami to honor the legacy of Julia Tuttle. She is the only woman in the US who has ever founded a city: The year was 1896. Her influence brought Henry Flagler's railroad to South Florida which brought visitors, lots of visitors, to a place where it never freezes. And so our city was born and continues to grow. 2021 will mark the 125th birthday of the City of Miami. What better way to celebrate than with a mega mural created in Julia Tuttle's likeness, created entirely by Miami residents!

The underlying purpose of Urban Threads is to bring together the many divergent subsets of Miami’s vast ethnic population, using crochet, the űber-trendy and universally familiar art form that utilizes yarn. The mural project encourages cross cultural connectivity in a creative grass-roots activity.

PLY-Miami, directed by Pamela Palma, is a collective of talented fiber artisans who will oversee the logistics of Urban Threads. We are reaching out to community groups and centers, scout troops, students ‒ for volunteers of all ages and genders. No experience necessary. We will coordinate crochet events; each person will receive yarn, a crochet hook, and instructions to crochet a 2’ square section. The sections will be joined to form the crochet mural. We estimate about 100 squares are needed for a 60’ x 100’ mural. Actual size and location TBD.All participants will be acknowledged and invited to the public unveiling of Urban Threads.

The completed project will cover the side of a building in downtown Miami in early 2021 as the City celebrates its birthday.