Herzog & de Meuron’s Pérez Art Museum Miami is a new icon for the city
The opening of the Pérez Art Museum Miami was the star attraction of this year's Art Basel Miami Beach. It was not only art lovers who flocked to see the new 3000 square-metre gallery by Swiss architects Herzog & de Meuron (we first visited the Perez in April, when it was still under construction). On the first Sunday of its public opening, the parking lot was overflowing and locals were queuing round the block to take a tour of their newest cultural landmark.
Surrounded by lush tropical planting, the glass and concrete structure is raised on stilts and features a sweeping veranda and hanging columns of plants. Each gallery offers views over bridges, highrises, and expanses of tropical blue water. You couldn't be anywhere other than Miami - which for project architect and senior partner Christine Binswanger, was the point. 'Given the spectacular location, PAMM offers more views than any of the other 14 museums we have built,' she says. 'To balance the intimate and concentrated experience of contemporary art with exposure to the sea and the park was one of the things we wanted to achieve.'
Adds Binswanger: 'We wanted the building to be rough, to feel real, inside and outside, not invent another interesting cladding. Concrete as a structure and a finish has rarely been done around here, and for a museum even less so.' At the Perez Art Museum, It works perfectly. The work of late Cuban painter Amelia Peláez and the hanging steel sculpture of Monika Sosnowska simply pop against the concrete walls.
Until March, Chinese artist Ai Wei Wei (with whom Herzog & de Meuron collaborated on the Beijing 'Bird's Nest' stadium) is the headline act, but the museum has its own permanent collection of 1800 works, many of which are by American and Latin American artists and occupy the two lower levels of the building. A huge, open plan screening area hints at an impressive film programme.
With its extensive greenery, acres of glass and seamless transitions from the outside to the inside, PAMM is the antitheses of the intimidating 'white cube.'
'Museums should be as open as possible to a real variety of attitudes and forms. PAMM can become such a place for everyone,' says Jacques Herzog. Judging by the local Sunday crowds, who were sporting six-inch heels, mini skirts and bikinis and pushing baby strollers, his assertions might just be right.
ADDRESS
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox
1103 Biscayne Blvd.
Miami, FL 33132
USA
Emma O'Kelly is a contributing editor at Wallpaper*. She joined the magazine on issue 4 as news editor and since since then has worked in full and part time roles across many editorial departments. She is a freelance journalist based in London and works for a range of titles from Condé Nast Traveller to The Telegraph. She is currently working on a book about Scandinavian sauna culture and is renovating a mid century house in the Italian Lakes.
-
In memoriam: Richard Serra (1938-2024)
We remember American artist Richard Serra, whose vast sculptures transformed landscapes around the world
By Hannah Silver Published
-
Architectural gardens around the world to soothe the soul
From small domestic gardens, to nature reserves, urban interventions and local parks, here are some of the finest green projects that place nature at their heart
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Corfu hotel Domes Miramare redefines beachfront bliss
Make like Jackie O at Corfu hotel Domes Miramare, a property with contemporary luxury and echoes of 1960s glamour in spades
By Bridget Downing Published
-
Boise Passive House’s bold gestures support an environmentally friendly design
Boise Passive House by Haas Architecture combines sleek, contemporary design and environmental efficiency
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
At the Hilbert Museum of California Art’s expanded home, art and architecture converge
The Hilbert Museum of California Art expands its home, courtesy of Los Angeles architecture studio Johnston Marklee
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Pearlman Cabin by John Lautner is an organic Californian mountain retreat
John Lautner’s midcentury Pearlman Cabin, tucked away in the Californian mountain resort of Idyllwild, is a striking example of organic architecture
By Mimi Zeiger Published
-
Albert Frey’s Aluminaire House is reborn in Palm Springs
Aluminaire House, designed by legendary modernist Albert Frey, has been reconstructed outside the Palm Springs Art Museum
By Michael Webb Published
-
Beverly Hills’ Carla Ridge is a modern home taking in expansive city views
Carla Ridge in Beverly Hills blends modernist architecture nods, with contemporary lines and varying textures which complement its views of the hillside, valley, and city
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Downtown LA’s Beaudry is a cityscape statement of modern luxury
Beaudry is a new Los Angeles residential skyscraper by Marmol Radziner that offers contemporary living, a sense of place, and earthy design
By Carole Dixon Published
-
The Houses at 8899 Beverly offer options, sustainability and modernist nods
The Houses at 8899 Beverly by Olson Kundig is a collection of sustainable townhouses framing a midcentury area landmark in the West Hollywood Design District
By Carole Dixon Published
-
This Walter S White house in Indio is given a new lease of life
This Walter S White house in Indio, California, has been redesigned for the 21st century by Sean Gaston
By Hadani Ditmars Published