TRAVEL MIAMI HAS
TRAVEL MIAMI HAS RESONATED IN THE PAST FOR CONFLICTING REASONS, BUT OF LATE THE CITY HAS REGENERATED ITSELF BECOMING A GLOBAL ARTS AND DESIGN BOOMTOWN APRYL THORNTON, HOSTESS, BASEMENT, EDITION HOTEL “Miami is New York’s hotter sister – in both senses of the word. In the past it was seen as a snowbird destination, so you’d have tourists from the colder northern states coming here for winter sun, but it’s turned into an exciting year-round destination, even in the heat of summer” 36 j THE DESIGN ISSUE
DESIGN DISTRICT This page: Buckminster Fuller’s Fly’s Eye Dome. Left: French artist Xavier Veilhan’s sculpture of Le Corbusier in the Palm Court. Below left: The neon-lit ice rink in the Edition Hotel The city of Miami has resonated in the past for conflicting reasons. In the days of the early 1980s’ cocaine wars – captured in the iconic TV drama series Miami Vice with Crockett and Tubbs – the city was the world’s murder capital. It’s also had a longstanding reputation as North America’s foremost retirement resort. But of late, the drug gangs have been sidelined as the city regenerates itself, becoming a global arts and design boomtown, spearheaded by Art Basel Miami Beach, the glamorous art fair which started in 2002 and was the international catalyst for change. “Art Basel has had an undeniable impact on Miami’s art and culture scene. For one week of the year, the contemporary art world is focused on our artists and cultural institutions,” explains Brandi Reddick. She is the curator for Miami-Dade County Art in Public Places and her important role in local government not only allows her to THE DESIGN ISSUE j 37