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48 Hours in Miami for Art Lovers
From public works to grandiose contemporary museums, Miami is a city centered around the arts. If you want to fill your 48-hour trip to Miami with the best art in the city, we’ve got a two-day itinerary with your name all over it. How you spend your time dining, browsing, and resting is entirely up to you. There’s no shortage of nearby tasty options (including artsy eateries). Here’s our guide on how to spend 48 hours in Miami for art lovers.
Day 1
Dedicate your first day in Miami to downtown and the hip neighborhoods to the north. Begin at the Pérez Art Museum Miami. The modern and contemporary art museum is dedicated to collecting and exhibiting art from the 20th and 21st centuries, while highlighting Miami’s diverse community. The bayside sculptural facade of the museum is reason enough to pay this museum a visit. An elaborate array of plant columns hang from the roof as they wick water from the bottom. After a few hours exploring Miami’s premier contemporary art institution, take the 15-minute drive north to the Design District.
Known for its cutting edge architecture, upscale interior design stores, and luxury fashion boutiques, the Design District also has unique large scale public works dotting the streets. Visit the geodesic Fly’s Eye Dome by Buckminster Fuller, the adorable Pink Beasts by Fernando Laposse, the 10-foot SOLO Cup that is Jokester 2 by Paula Crown, and the Museum Garage. The parking garage was inspired from the surrealist parlor game, Exquisite Corpse. Various architects produced separate designs and were playfully composed together to create the modern, architectural version of the game. Conclude your visit to the Design District with a visit to the Institute of Contemporary Art. Their permanent collection and rotating exhibitions provide an important platform for the work of local, emerging, and under-recognized artists. ICA admission is free of charge.
End the day in the Wynwood District. Only a five-minute drive from the Design District, this artsy haven is known for its colorful large-scale murals by world-renowned street artists, outdoor museum, art galleries, and late-night scene. Points of interest include the Margulies Collection, Rubell Museum, and the Wynwood Walls which is open until midnight almost every day of the week.
Day 2
Shake off that art hangover, it’s day two and our schedule is just as packed. We move across the Bay to South Beach, where Art Deco and contemporary art reigns supreme. Sagamore Hotel is Miami’ original “art hotel” and lies in the heart of South Beach’s Art Deco District. Explore the sculpture garden, hotel lobbies, and murals for important works of art, including the buzzworthy I’m Not a Trophy by Arno Elias exhibition and Gillie and Marc’s Paparazzi Dogs and Rabbitwoman sculptures. The Bass is one of the quirkiest contemporary museums in the world. Only a 10-minute walk from Sagamore, the museum has an impressive adjacent park that is home to the iconic Miami Mountain sculpture.
Fill the rest of the day with everything Art Deco. The Art Deco District became one of the world’s greatest concentrations of the unique architecture following the SoBe building boom of the 1930s. Take a walk down Ocean Drive to see some of the most colorful buildings that make up the world’s first 20th-century historic district. For more Art Deco, both the Art Deco Museum on Ocean Drive and The Wolfsonian on Washington Avenue are home to important contemporary works from the period.
From insta-worthy art spaces to an in-depth look at Miami’s art history, stay up to date with the Sagamore Blog for everything ‘art’.
Enjoy 24-hour access to our latest exhibition during your stay at The Sagamore Hotel. Choose from our best rates and special offers when you book direct with Sagamore, an iconic Miami Beach destination known for its unique collection of contemporary art, spacious suites, and prime location only steps from the Art Deco District, The Bass, and the white sands of SoBe.
