[7] From the age of four, Rodez showed an early inclination toward the arts and was supported by his parents as he regularly spent hours drawing and painting.

[8] On the eve of Thanksgiving Day 1969[9] Rodez and his family relocated to New York City under the Freedom Flights refugee program.

[10] In New York City, Rodez sought to attend an art school and pursue a career as a visual artist and architect.

After leaving Cuba for the United States with his family in 1969, Rodez briefly attended New York City’s High School of Art and Design.

[10] Consequently, Rodez never received specialized art training with the exception of a figure drawing course at the University of Miami while majoring in History.

Following his graduation from Miami Beach Senior High School in 1975, Rodez returned to New York City for two years yet struggled to support himself as an artist, leading him to instead to pursue his other interest of becoming an attorney in South Florida.

Most notable among the projects are: Jose Bedia, Cundo Bermudez, Gary Moore, Anna Valentina Murch, and Robert Rahway Zakanitch for The Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts; Carlos Alves, Connie Lloveras, Buster Simpson for the Miami-Dade Metrorail and Metromover Stations; Miami International Airport’s A Walk of the Beach by Michelle Oka Donner; and Airport Sound Wall by Martha Schwartz, among others.

Then, in 2012, he opened his own gallery and studio space in Miami’s Bird Road Art District, where he curated solo and collective shows and often contributed his own works.

[11] Miguel Rodez’s work in public art selection eventually led him to become a curator who has received reviews from critics.

Miguel Rodez curated two exhibits - “Dealing with Reality” (August 1, 2019) and “Open Discourse” – at the Favalora Museum at St. Thomas University.

[19] He curated two exhibits – “Eight Visual Paths” (April 20, 2019)[20][21] and “Reference Cited” (September 8, 2018) – at Florida International University’s Steven & Dorothea Green Library.

In November 2019, Latin American Art Magazine published a bilingual article authored by Miguel Rodez regarding the role of a curator.

[30][31][32] During the years that he worked as an attorney, Rodez represented mostly elderly and underprivileged clients regarding a wide variety of legal matters.

[citation needed] Early in his legal career, Rodez became involved with the Cuban American Bar Association (CABA).

[9] While working for the CIS, Rodez conducted research, engaged in analysis and wrote assessments regarding human rights issues in cases where parties appeared before him, with or without an attorney.

[9] In 1996, while still working for the Federal government, Miguel Rodez ran for Circuit Court Judge in Miami-Dade County, Florida.

His Twentieth Century Masters series is a collection of monumental round portraits depicting famous visual artists of the period.

This includes portraits of Jean-Michel Basquiat, Marc Chagall, Salvador Dalí, Frida Kahlo, Pablo Picasso, Andy Warhol, and famed fellow Cuban artist Wifredo Lam.

This series utilizes imagery that envisions the perspective of someone trapped in an unfavorable circumstance and dreams of the moment when the chains that bind one rupture and freedom is gained.

Art critic Carlos Suarez de Jesus opined that “The reductive, serial quality of this series is deceptively simple while intrinsically profound.

[42] These works succeed in evoking the sublime through monochromatic forms, effortless beauty, tactile surfaces, and range of scale.”[42] Suarez de Jesus noted: “Nelson Mandela’s harsh years in prison taught him something about the indomitable will of the spirit.

He said of his experience: ‘For to be free is not merely to cast off one’s chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others.’ Suarez de Jesus added, “Instead of conveying a sense of instability and restlessness in his work, through the process of much thought, Rodez captures the spirit of Mandela’s sentiment.”[42] The Escape series, like his Imagine Liberation series seeks to generate a discourse about departure from one’s physical or metaphysical location to one of hope.

These paintings seek to provide the viewer with visual relief (hence the term “escape”) through the use of calming colors such as cool teals, aqua and blues.

Intended as a masculine response to Georgia O'Keeffe’s flower series, Rodez likewise infuses sensual qualities to botanical imagery.

[47] The piece has been shown multiple times with Alejandro Mendoza’s collective group exhibitions Giants in the City alongside other established Miami artists such as Yovani Bauta, Jose Bedia, Tomas Esson, Miguel Fleitas, and Frank Hyder.