Rockstar Games Erases Miami Artist Memorial for GTA VI Promo
A tribute to late graffiti artist Alex Reyes was painted over without notice as part of a promotional campaign, leaving his mother and friends to grieve a lost landmark.
By Zoe Harrison ·
A mural honoring Miami graffiti artist Alex Reyes, known as Rect, was painted over in late October to make way for a new artwork promoting Grand Theft Auto VI. The change occurred on 24th Street in Wynwood, replacing a memorial that had stood since Reyes died in a car crash in 2022.
Myriam Rivera, Reyes' mother, visited the wall regularly with flowers, a candle, and coffee. She sat near the display of his final work and a portrait, speaking to the artist whom Miami knew best by his moniker. Rivera described the site as the place she went when she wanted to feel close to her son. The new mural, part of a campaign by Rockstar Games, launched last month in partnership with Wynwood Walls for the game's November 19 release.
Rivera said she did not receive advance notice that the memorial would be covered. Rockstar Games and artist Tatiana Suarez, who painted the replacement, did not respond to requests for comment via email. Goldman Properties, which owns the wall, confirmed the ownership. Goldman Global Arts, the producer of the promotional murals, stated that it has offered Rect's crew, DTK, another wall and materials to create a replacement.
Ariana Rosasco, a friend of Reyes, argued that the work cannot simply be resurrected on a different surface. She called the removal a stab in the heart, noting that the crew had painted the wall before his death and that it became a form of therapy after he was gone. Rosasco compared the site to a gravestone, a place where friends paid respects and where she would stop to say hello to her late friend when feeling down.
Rivera emphasized that the original artists donated their time, money, paint, and equipment to build the tribute around a section Reyes had painted himself. Tour groups frequently visited, with guides explaining the wall's purpose as a tribute to a deceased local artist. Both women noted a code of respect among artists to leave walls commemorating late peers alone. Rosasco said the situation called for basic courtesy, such as a heads up that the wall was changing.
Goldman Global Arts emphasized its history of supporting the local artist community in a statement. The company said it learned of the disappointment in the removal and offered DTK a different wall and materials. The statement did not clarify whether DTK had accepted the offer. Rivera hopes the tribute can be restored as a permanent memorial, while Rosasco believes the energy and emotion of the original work are gone.
The incident highlights a tension in Wynwood, where early artists invested in the neighborhood before it became a destination for restaurants and developments. Reyes lived near Biscayne Boulevard and 22nd Street and considered the area his stomping ground. Rivera said she has not returned to the site because she associates the GTA series with violence and prostitution. She stated that everything her son hated is in that video game and that she does not want to see it.
