Miami Metromover Art Tour

When you want to explore art throughout Downtown Miami, hop on Miami-Dade County's Metromover – a free, electrically-powered, automated people mover – for a self-guided art tour. Whether you’re on-site, outside of or within a short distance of many Metromover stations, there’s beautiful art to behold. Much of the public art was commissioned by the Miami-Dade County Art in Public Places program, and several Metromover stops are within close reach of the city's museums.

The Miami Metromover Art Gallert

The Metromover has 3 loops – the Omni, Inner and Brickell – so you might have to change lines to see every piece of art in this article. We’ll start on the Full Loop (the Omni and Brickell Loops combined).

Look Up to “Reaching for Miami Skies”

While waiting to board at Brickell Station, look up at the curved concrete canopy ceiling overhead. That's "Reaching for Miami Skies" by Connie Lloveras, a series of hand-formed, painted ceramic tiles that feature periodic blue tiles to point viewers skyward. The quilt effect was created by a Cuban-born artist for a commission awarded by Art in Public Places.

Can’t-Miss Art That You Just Might Miss

On the northbound platform canopy, there are 2 public works by artist Carlos Alves. “Solar Window” is a site-specific aluminum and ceramic piece that mimics stained glass. “Gate of Sentiments” is an aluminum palm tree nestled inside a metal square. Keep your eyes open for this one. It blends in perfectly with the surroundings, making it easily missed.

Art to Enjoy

Brickell City Centre was built around this Metromover station. Carlos Alves’ installation, “La Palma," a mosaic tile, is on the southeast second column. It draws the eye upward like one of the palms or green trees that surround it.

River Views and a Giant M

The Riverwalk stop gives you a great view of old Miami, the Miami River and one of the city’s first settled areas. Here, riders are greeted at street level by the giant “Red M,” a site-specific work by Roberto Behar and Rosario Marquardt, known as R&R Studios. The piece is made of concrete block, stucco and red paint. Decorative elements – such as a clock and Art Deco surface treatment – symbolize the tropical flora of the city. It’s enhanced at night by dramatic lighting. The “M” has many meanings, including “Miami,” but it’s certainly a celebration of the city.

Impressive Sculptures and a Peek at Miami’s History

There are plenty of outdoor art sculptures to see at or nearby the Government Center station, which is in the heart of Downtown Miami and on all 3 loops. They include Carol Brown’s “Seven More of Them,” an aluminum sculpture with 7 “human-like” pieces welcoming visitors to the South entrance of the Steven P. Clark Government Center. The colorful and whimsical “Dropped Bowl with Scattered Slices and Peels” by Claes Oldenburg and his wife, Coosje van Bruggen, is in the public park adjacent to the Government Center. Very close by, the fort-like Museum of Miami features revolving traveling exhibitions and a rich and varied selection of artifacts and photos of Miami’s history.

Joan Lehman’s 17-foot-high brushed stainless-steel “Rhythm of the Train” is an impressive fixture at the Miami-Dade Children’s Courthouse, which is one stop past the Government Center at the Wilkie D. Ferguson, Jr. stop.

A Towering Link to Miami’s Cuban History

About 400 feet from Freedom Tower station – which is on the Omni loop – Freedom Tower itself is an architectural masterpiece and one of Miami’s crown jewels, standing tall as a symbol of the city’s deep ties to the Cuban-American community. Get up close and marvel at this national historic landmark built in the Mediterranean revival style in 1925. The building is on the National Register of Historic Places and is a true work of art.

A Cosmogram That Tells a Story

Available on the Omni or Full Loop, the Miami World Center station is home to Houston Conwill’s “New Calypso.” Look on the sidewalk entrance to behold this 15-foot bluestone that resembles an engraved sundial. Best known for his collaborative, site-specific works, Conwill worked with his sister, poet Estella Conwill Majozo and architect Joseph DePace to create the circular cosmogram. Informed by the Black Archives Foundation, the artists sandblasted significant cultural symbols like literature, song lyrics and historical figures onto the stone.

Park and Art

Accessible from all 3 loops, the Bayfront Park station is a wonderful place to stop and visit the beautiful landscape of Bayfront Park. While there, feast your eyes on the “Slide Mantra,” a huge marble sculpture created by the deceased Japanese-American artist, Isamu Noguchi. This white, smooth piece is over 10 feet tall and weighs 29 tons. The sculpture is Noguchi’s salute to resonance, and well-placed, as he held the belief that play and sculpture appreciation go hand-in-hand.

An Artistic Vision of Miami

This is the end of the Metromover’s Omni loop and 1 station past the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts of Miami-Dade County. At the School Board station, you’ll find “Vision of Peace” by Noreen Morelli, who created the work with students from Design and Architecture Senior High School (D.A.S.H.). The colorful ceramic tile in tropical hues greets riders on the canopy entrance above the escalator and is also carried onto various columns around the station.