Art Deco district in Miami Beach

Art Deco district and Beaches

Miami Beach has the second largest Art Deco district in New Zealand after Napier. Here you will find the largest collection of Art Deco style buildings in one place. The Art Deco Quarter in Miami Beach well worth a visit. The buildings were constructed in the 1930s and 1940s. The Art Deco District in Miami Beach extends from the southern tip of the island to about Dade Boulevard.

 

 

The Art Deco District in Miami Beach is a listed building

The Art Deco District in Miami Beach has been a listed building since 1979. Many of the buildings were to be demolished at the time. However, popular protests prevented this. Therefore, the entire neighborhood is now a US Historic District. The Miami Design Preservation League is one of the organizations that looks after the preservation of the Art Deco buildings in Miami Beach. The listed part of town is between the Sea, 5th Street, Alton Road and the Collins Canal. There are a total of 960 Art Deco buildings. Many of them are now used as hotels, shopping malls or even cinemas. Be sure to check out the indoor areas, which are open to the public. You can find Art Deco not only on the facades, but also in the interiors of these houses.

 

 

So we start our walk through the Art Deco district of Miami Beach in Florida at Lincoln Street Mall. This is the pedestrian street in South Beach. This is lined with boutiques, restaurants and bars. Away from the Miami Beaches, you can not only shop well, but also take a break with a fruit cocktail or a Cafe Cubano.

 

 

Art Deco Miami Beach

While strolling through the pedestrian zone, we first discover Art Deco jewelry on the houses in the Art Deco architectural style. This Cadillac Art Deco advertisement dates back to the early days of Miami Beach's Art Deco District. It is a good example of how the Miami architectural style was used for commercial purposes at that time.

 

 

Miami Art Deco features

The curved lines are typical of the Art Deco architecture of Miami Beach. We often notice them. One example of this is the Lincoln Theater, a movie theater on Lincoln Street Mall. The pastel colors of the houses are also typical of the Miami architectural style. Together with the layout of the rooms, which are often grouped around an inner courtyard, they also give the buildings from the Art Deco era an airy appearance.

 

What is Art Deco?

Art Deco is not limited to architecture. It is decorative art that has also been used in furniture, fashion, jewelry and everyday objects. Art Deco paintings and drawings also have their own unique style. It is therefore definitely worthwhile to look at the buildings in the Miami Art Deco District not only from the outside, but also from the inside. The Art Deco style developed at the end of the 19th century. One finds Art Deco elements up to the beginning of the Second World War. The heyday was in the 20s of the 20th century.

In contrast to Art Nouveau, Art Deco has no clear style feature. Instead, the elegance of the forms, precious materials, colors full of intensity and sensuality play a role. Organic and floral motifs appear frequently. The artists do not attach importance to a natural representation of the motifs. Rather, they look more like posters.

 

 

Spanish Quarter Miami

We then continue our walk south past pastel-colored Art Deco-style houses. Our destination is Espanola Way, a Miami neighborhood with many buildings in Art Deco architecture. Typical are the sun visors over the windows. These should keep the heat and sun out of the living quarters. Because the houses were built at a time when air conditioning systems did not provide coolness in the interior. Miami's beaches can get hot and muggy, especially in the summer. Since the windows are often wide open in the hot season, bars have been installed in front of the windows. The architects fitted these seamlessly into the Art Deco design. Therefore, they are not disturbing, but underline the effect of this architectural style. The residents can thus open the windows even on hot summer days and thus ensure a draft in their apartment.

 

 

Many of the Art Deco houses are therefore built around a private courtyard. This enabled sufficient air exchange in the rooms because windows can be opened on both sides of the room. When the window is open, the cooler air from the inner courtyard ensures a room climate that is pleasant even at more than 30 degrees. So the summer days on the beaches of Miami are also bearable.

We continue to

Espanola Way, Miami Beach

 

 

This part of the Miami Art Deco District is not only worth a visit for its architecture. Here you will find good bars and restaurants where you can eat well during the day. An evening stroll will show you Miami's nightlife with Art Deco flair. On Espanola Way, we notice elements of style on the pastel-colored houses that are reminiscent of Spain. The Mediterranean style prevails here. Hotels, hostels, bodegas, bistros and street cafes line the street on both sides. Some of them came to fame because of their regulars.

Al Capone was vacationing in the Miami Art Deco district

 

 

The Clay Hotel is one of them. This is where Chicago mobster Al Capone and his gang of gangsters spent the holidays. In return, he assured the city that he would not engage in any criminal activities during his stay. Allegedly he kept his promise. The facade of the hotel also appeared in the opening credits of the television series "Miami Vice". This ultimately ensured a renaissance of South Beach.

 

 

 

Art Deco ornament in the Art Deco district

If you follow Espanola Way to Collins Avenue, you will come to Jerry's Deli. Its facade is reminiscent of a steamship. This is also typical of the Art Deco style, which likes to use nautical elements in its architecture. That goes well with the lifestyle on Miami Beaches. The sea and its ambience are never very far here. Under the parasols along the street you can treat yourself to a Café Cubano or enjoy an ice cream sundae.

 

 

On the other side of the street, the Z Ocean Hotel takes up this architectural style again. Here, however, the facade of the hotel is more reminiscent of one of the ocean liners that call at the port of Miami Beach every day. Here you can have a look at the lobby of the hotel. Art Deco elements also play a role in this.

 

 

 

Ocean Drive in the Art Deco district of Miami Beach

 

 

We pass through the Z Ocean Hotel. So we finally get to Ocean Drive and the Miami Beaches. One Art Deco building follows the next with its decors in the pastel colors for which the Arte Deco district of Miami Beach is famous. A stroll along this street leads past Art Deco buildings in South Beach. Many of the buildings date from the early days of Art Deco in Miami Beach. The builders of that time did not care about artistic beauty. Rather, they wanted to build a bathing resort that corresponded to the taste of the time. Their aim was to attract bathers to Miami Beach who were looking for a seaside resort in the style of the time. They did not expect that they would create an attraction that still attracts visitors to Miami Beach today.

 

If you want to know more about the Art Deco district in Miami, it is worth visiting

Art Deco Museum and Welcome Center
1001 Ocean Drive
Miami Beach, FL

You can learn more about the three architectural styles of Miami Beach on a visit. Art Deco, Mediterranean and modern Miami style. In addition to these permanent exhibitions, there are also special programs and special exhibitions.

The Miami Design Preservation League also offers tours of architectural styles found in Miami Beach. This includes an Art Deco tour of the Miami neighborhood.

 

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Source Miami Beaches and Art Deco Miami: On-Site Research. Thank you for inviting Miami Beaches. However, our opinion remains unaffected.

Text: © Copyright Monika Fuchs, TravelWorldOnline
Photos: © Copyright Monika Fuchs, TravelWorldOnline