Public Art in Miami

From established to emerging artists, Art in Public Places Miami features more than 700 works on view in public buildings and parks throughout Miami and Miami Beach. Get a sampling of this exciting program by viewing these 12 must-see public artworks in Miami Beach during your visit.

For more public artworks throughout the Miami-Dade area, visit the Miami-Dade County’s Art in Public Places program.

The Beatles Mandala (Amor=Love) project is a homage to the visual world of The Beatles. Their mythology, song and record covers art references are embedded in the design. You will spot the word love in multiple languages, including Hebrew, Japanese, and Tibetan along the borders of the mosaic.

From the bright yellow, pink and blue pieces of glass that call back to their Sgt. Pepper’s era to visuals of an apple, a strawberry, a beaming sun, a bright star and a diamond; each detail carries its own meaning. The diamond is for Lucy in the Sky, a star for Ringo Starr, a strawberry for Strawberry Fields, a sun for Here Comes the Sun, and an apple for Apple Records.

The mosaic was made by Arrow and 8 female workers in India, then shipped and placed atop fiberglass.

Tobias Rehberger is a resident of Frankfurt, Germany and an internationally recognized artist whose career began in 1990 and has had over 100 art shows in major museums and galleries throughout the world. The South Pointe Park Pier gate is a ‘speech bubble’, a visual element that has repeatedly appeared in several of the artist’s works in order to make inanimate objects speak. In this case, it is used to have the pier introduce itself to its visitors.

When the gate is open, the ‘speech bubble’ playfully sits on top of the archway of the gate which is painted in the same bright colors that were developed as the artist’s signature palette and establish a visual dialogue with the pier. The graphic pattern of the gate symbolizes sound waves spreading from the ‘speech bubble’. Additionally, the pattern is also an abstraction of the way the wooden boards are laid on the pier.

Wendy Wisher’s work is influenced by the natural environment and linked to the human inhabitance of that environment – the connecting threads that exist between the phenomenon of the natural forces and contemporary urban advancements.

Liquid Measures includes hand-cut, blue mirror, water glass tiles that cover three electrical boxes and their pedestals. The installation makes reference to the wind and water currents that pass through the area while reflecting the surroundings of the environment and those within it. The tiles have a watery effect and shimmer as viewers walk by and the lights in the city at night.

Ellen Lanyon paintings and murals have been commissioned for public buildings by the US Department of the Interior; The State of Illinois Building, Chicago; The Cooperative Bank of Boston; The State Capital, Springfield, Illinois.

The mural for the Police Station, Miami Metamorphosis, draws on the nostalgic images of vintage postcards to narrate the transformation of Miami’s natural forms – the tropical birds, shells, palm fronds, sails – into the stylized motifs of Art Deco architecture.

Garren Owens is a resident of Miami Beach. Some of his projects include the Art Deco Historic sidewalk medallions. Owens took inspiration from the design of the Manhole Covers and Miami Beach as his inspiration.

The approach of the design of the Miami Beach manhole covers combines the three most unique and loved aspects of our beautiful city – the sunrises, the ocean and Art Deco. The sunrise is that moment of tranquility at the beginning of each day. The ocean in Miami Beach has some of the most beautiful beaches in the world. Art Deco is what Miami Beach is most famous for. The exotic Art Deco motif depicting the Frozen Fountain can be found throughout the Art Deco Historic District.

The Humanoids in the Collins Canal Park are a classic representation of the work of Joep Van Lieshout. Van Lieshout is a Dutch artist who is internationally recognized for his sculptures, large-scale installations and public artworks.

The Humanoids are part of the artist fascination with man and nature. They appear as abstract figures, which use the park and the natural environment as their habitat, formulating a subtle message about our relationship to nature and our origins. The sculptures are placed throughout the park, along the canal and among the landscaping. The Humanoids invite visitors to engage and encourage social interaction and contemplation.