Public Art in Miami Beach

Well-known for its vibrant arts and culture scene, Miami Beach makes it easy to find captivating sculptures, mosaics and interactive exhibits in public places around the city. While some are new or temporary exhibits, others have been staples of the destination’s art scene for decades. Discover the best spots to find free art in public places in Miami Beach.

Miami Mountain & Chess Tables at The Bass

The Bass is South Beach's contemporary art museum, but you don’t have to go inside to see eye-catching works. Miami Mountain, Ugo Rondinone’s colorful, 42-foot-tall installation of five boulders stacked on top of each other, soars above the museum’s front lawn in Collins Park.

While "Miami Mountain” is the most-famous piece in the Art Outside program, an initiative established by The Bass in collaboration with the City of Miami Beach’s Art in Public Places program, it’s not the only onsite exhibit. Eternity Now, a neon sign by Sylvie Fleury, graces the museum’s entrance, and Jim Drain’s Chess Tables, consisting of two chess tables and four chairs, can be found at the museum’s northeast corner.

Mermaid at The Fillmore

The pop art sculpture Mermaid, by Roy Lichtenstein, sits on the south lawn of The Fillmore Miami Beach. Created in 1979, it depicts a mermaid covered in red diagonal stripes lounging on a bed of waves while sunshine streams down on her. The sculpture was made from steel, concrete and paint and sits just off the corner of 17th Street and Washington Avenue in South Beach.

Starchild in Henry Liebman Square

At the corner of 41st Street and Pine Tree Drive in Mid Beach, you’ll see a 50-foot-tall orange sculpture in Henry Liebman Square. Called Starchild, the statue resembles a blend of a sunbeam and a human figure. It was created by the artist duo FriendsWithYou and is made from powder-coated steel and aluminum. Representing light, power and nature, Starchild is the main character in FriendsWithYou’s metaphorical body of work that aims to promote unity throughout the world.

A Vivid Reminder at Holocaust Memorial Miami Beach

In 1984, a group of Holocaust survivors created the Holocaust Memorial Miami Beach. This outdoor memorial, located across from the Miami Beach Convention Center and just off Dade Boulevard in South Beach, pays homage to the nearly 6 million Jews who were murdered during the Holocaust. The bronze sculpture at the memorial was created by Kenneth Treister and depicts Holocaust survivors scaling an outstretched hand tattooed with a number from the Auschwitz concentration camp.

Sobe Is Love at Kimpton Angler’s Hotel

While many hotel lobbies in Miami Beach showcase beautiful works of art, Kimpton Angler’s South Beach is one of the few with a piece you can admire from the sidewalk. Just outside of the hotel’s entrance on 6th Street and Washington Avenue is the eye-catching Sobe Is Love sculpture. This bold installation features large letters that spell out SOBE in a modern style. Passersby are encouraged to snap a picture against the bold, pink letters.

Fun-House Mirrors & Wild Animals on Lincoln Road

You’ll find fun photo ops on Lincoln Road between Lenox Avenue and Alton Road. Pause between the concave and convex glass panels of Morris by Dan Graham. Its mirrored surfaces create a fun-house effect.

Then continue strolling along the pedestrian promenade to discover newer public art and installations: three temporary exhibits, created by the duo Gillie and Marc, of bold, bronze statues of lifelike animals. Sit next to an elephant, gorilla and koala at the The Wild Couch Party, a 40-foot-long sculpture of 12 endangered animals. Or pose with two of Gillie and Marc’s signature characters in Watch Out for Paparazzi Dog and Watch out for Paparazzi Rabbit. These sculptures depict creatures with cameras peeking out of manholes.

As part of the Lincoln Road Art Walk, the promenade also features rotating public art, including works by local and international artists such as Ignacio Gana, Philippe Katerine’s “Mr. Pink Takes Flight,” Rubem Robierb’s “Dream Machine” and “White Lotus,” and Oscar Esteban Martinez’s “La Herencia Viva,” making the entire stretch an ever-changing outdoor art experience.

Art All Around the Convention Center

The Miami Beach Convention Center (MBCC) has art on display inside and works from the Art in Public Places outside and in the surrounding area. Covering 7,000 square feet of an exterior wall on the MBCC’s northeast corner sits Morris Lapidus, a mosaic of fabricated porcelain tiles by Sarah Morris.

Joep Van Lieshout’s Humanoids sculptures can be seen further north in Collins Canal Park. These abstract aluminum figures, scattered throughout the park, invite visitors to reflect on the relationship between humanity and nature. Bent Pool, by Elmgreen & Dragset, rises from the ground in Pride Park, across from the convention center. This turquoise and white sculpture looks like a swimming pool that’s been bent into an upright “U” shape.

Colorful Welcomes in South Pointe Park

Two works from German artist Tobias Rehberger adorn South Pointe Park at the tip of South Beach, and while they’re seemingly unrelated, they feed off one another. Upon entering the park, visitors will immediately see Obstinate Lighthouse, a 55-foot-tall modern rendition of a lighthouse made from teetering discs. According to the artist, this modern lighthouse is intended to welcome visitors to Miami Beach.

Toward the southernmost tip of the park stretches a long pier, above which resides Rehberger’s Eloquent South Pointe Park Pier Gate. The speech bubble above the gate creates a visual dialogue between the gate and “Obstinate Lighthouse.”

The Stars Come Out on Washington Avenue

Miami Beach has long attracted famous actors, athletes and entrepreneurs, and since 2021, a mural commemorating some of the city’s most notable residents and visitors has been on display at 1543 Washington Avenue in South Beach. Created by Ignacio Marino Larrique and sponsored by the Washington Avenue BID (Business Improvement District), the mural depicts Prince, Jackie Gleason, Muhammad Ali, Gianni Versace and Jayne Mansfield, all of whom either performed in Miami Beach or enjoyed visiting the destination.

A Hidden Alleyway Artwork in Miami Beach

The Orb functions as a third-floor sky bridge that connects the Dixon and Hohauser wings of The Betsy Hotel. However, it also serves as a public art installation visitors can only see by venturing into a back alley on South Beach. By day, the sculpture looks like a giant egg sandwiched between two buildings. But by night, different scenes, images and colors are projected onto it to transform The Orb into public art in Miami Beach that's constantly changing.

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