Best Cities to View Art: Miami, Florida
As we continue our series on some of the best places to see art, Miami, Florida earns a prominent spot on the shortlist. With a dynamic cultural landscape, beautiful beaches and interesting architecture, the coastal metropolis has a lot to offer as a tourist destination. Miami is one of the most diverse cities in the country, with a majority-minority population including a large Cuban American community, and its appeal includes major sports teams and a bustling business district. 14 million tourists flock to the city annually to experience its picturesque coastline and get a taste of its unique culture.
There is a lot happening in the larger Miami Dade County area. South Beach is known for its art deco aesthetic and hip Ocean Drive nightlife. If you have the budget, you can even book a room in the opulent former home of Gianni Versace, which is now a high-end hotel. Miami proper includes world-class museums, top-notch cuisine, mesmerizing street art in Wynwood, and exceptional art spaces. Needless to say, visitors to Miami-Dade hoping to experience it all may find themselves with a packed schedule. With this in mind, we are highlighting a few of our favorite must-see locales to consider if you have limited time for your Miami art excursion. We’ve mapped out a fun and easy arts and culture immersed tour, that takes you from the Museum Park neighborhood to the Design District with a final stop at the Graffiti Museum.
Insider tip: We suggest having a hearty breakfast to start your day since most museums and art spaces don’t open until late morning. There are a number of great spots but we recommend B Bistro + Bakery, ranked among the “world’s best 50” for baked goods.
1. Kick Off Your Day at the Jorge M. Perez Art Museum
In a city well appointed with some of the best museums in the country, the Perez Art Museum is a notable stand out. Its Biscayne Boulevard location overlooking the bay makes a good starting point to begin your art immersed tour before heading to the Design District.
Perez Art Museum is known as the “flagship museum” in Miami Dade and was established in 1984. Formerly the Miami Art Museum, the Perez Museum was transformed into a private museum a decade later, with both rotating exhibitions and a robust permanent collection. The museum’s mission to mirror the diversity of Miami with its plurality of communities is reflected in many of the modern and contemporary artworks within its collection and the rest of its programming, which includes a Caribbean Cultural Institute.
Among the thoughtful works within the permanent collection are several by Nigerian-born Njideka Akunyili Crosby, whose collage and photo-transfer paintings frequently juxtapose her native roots and her impressions of her current American experience. Like many of her contemporaries whose works are showcased at Perez Art Museum, Akunyili Crosby’s art conveys a larger socio-political context.
Akunyili Cosby’s “See Through”
1103 Biscayne Blvd, Miami, FL
2. Next Stop: the Design District and the Institute of Contemporary Art
We suggest making the short ten-minute drive to start your Design District experience at the Institute of Contemporary Art. The institute champions innovative contemporary art representing artists throughout the region and internationally.
The permanent collection includes works by many intriguing artists, including Cuban-born Ana Mendieta, whose life was cut short in 1985 under tragic circumstances, for which her artist husband was a suspect but later acquitted. Mendieta was living and working in New York City at the time, as a feminist performing artist, painter, and sculptor. There is an intensity in the introspective nature of her art and an element of darkness associated with many of her works that is particularly compelling in retrospect. Her Silueta Series involved using her body to create indentions in the earth, and in some iterations, she set fires within the silhouettes.
“Glass on Face” by Ana Medieta. Mendieta frequently used her body as a means of creating art.
61 NE 41st St, Miami, FL
3. Up Next: Design District Gallery Hopping
The Miami Design District offers high-end retail and dining opportunities as well as sophisticated and edgy art galleries, in a chic and walkable 18 square blocks near midtown Miami. In addition to the galleries, you can encounter one-of-a-kind public artworks by award-winning artists as well, such as Buckminster Fuller Fly’s Eye Dome and a host of other works. There are a plethora of galleries to choose from, for which we are highlighting a few notables.
Marcowicz Fine Art
At the Marcowicz Gallery, three floors of gallery space feature sophisticated art and up-and-coming artists representing a new generation of talented creators. Famed and iconic artists and works on display include Andy Warhol and Fernando Botero while emerging artists include sculptor Idan Zaresky and progressive street artist Kai.
110 NE 40th St, Miami, FL
Rosenfeld Gallery
Rosenfeld Gallery moved from New York to the Miami Design District in 2020. The gallery showcases modern and contemporary paintings, sculptures, and works on paper. Art on display includes works by pop artist Keith Haring whose symbolism within his drawings are said to contain a secret language.
112 NE 41st St, Miami, FL
https://www.rosenfeldgallery.com/
THE OFFICE. GALLERY
The Office. isn’t your typical gallery. In addition to the decisive use of punctuation, The Office. is an experiential art space, with the incorporation of fashion and art. Founded by a “shoe entrepreneur” (and featuring shoes on display) a visit feels more like an immersive art experience than a traditional art gallery, though works on display are available for purchase. The Office. features changing art exhibitions, often with whimsical and exuberant themes, as well as more serious undertones.
160 NE 40th Street Suite B Miami, FL
4. Don’t Forget the Graffiti. The Museum of Graffiti, That is.
A quick six-minute drive from the Design District is the eclectic and forward-thinking Museum of Graffiti. We highly recommend that you include some time in your agenda for this change of scenery if you will, in contrast to the more traditional Miami art spaces.
Often referred to as the first museum of its kind, the museum celebrates the underappreciated yet understandably controversial art of graffiti. The practice first emerged in the 1960s and 70s, primarily in urban areas where it was utilized as a (usually illegal) form of expression. Ranging from simple tagging to intricate artistic designs, street artists were undeterred and graffiti only continued to proliferate across towns and cities of all sizes in America.
The museum institutionalizes the history and art form of graffiti through its indoor exhibition space, outdoor murals, and a fine art gallery.
299 NW 25th St, Miami, FL
We hope this foray into some of Florida’s best and most interesting places to enjoy art has given you some useful ideas for planning your next trip to Miami. If you prefer to peruse original works from the comfort of your home, check out UGallery’s website to discover new artworks weekly.
