From streamlined hotels to flamboyant movie palaces, Miami Beach is brimming with Art Deco buildings. There are about 800 structures in the style, according to the National Register of Historic Buildings, making it a dream location for retro-architecture aficionados. Take a stroll on Ocean Drive, Collins Avenue and environs to spot these 10 fabulous highlights.
Architect Igor B. Polevitzky is responsible for designing approximately 500 buildings in Miami, including the Albion Hotel (1650 James Ave at 17th St, 305-913-1000), which to this day upholds his vision of marrying the interior and exterior. It’s since been purchased and preserved by the Rubells (a family better known for their vast art collection rather than real estate holdings), who’ve helped transform the Art Deco gem into a hub for art and entertainment.
Originally designed as a hotel by famed architect Henry Hohauser in 1939, the Webster (1220 Collins Ave at 12th St, 305-673-5548) is now home to one of the city’s most popular high-end fashion boutiques. There’s still a lobby where non-shoppers can linger and admire the structure’s original terrazzo floors, as well as a geometric facade with neon accents that solidify its Art Deco designation.
Architect R.A. Benjamin dreamed up the Colony Theatre (1040 Lincoln Rd at Lenox Ave, 305-674-1040) in 1935, when it served as a Paramount Pictures movie house. The 415-seat theater has undergone a series of renovations since then but its terrazzo floors, illuminated vertical sign and extensive cultural programming—from concerts to plays to film festivals—remain intact.
Most Art Deco architecture lives south of 20th Street, though there are a few jewels scattered throughout mid-beach, such as the Roy France–designed Cadillac Hotel. Now called Courtyard Cadillac (3925 Collins Ave between 39th and 40th Sts, 305-538-3373) since undergoing renovation by Marriott, it was the only structure built to resemble an automobile. Look closely at the entryway and you’ll notice it resembles the car’s hood, while the unique finial peak serves as the hood ornament.
Photograph: Courtesy Creative Commons/Flickr/Phillip Pessar
Designed in 1930 by Russell Pancoast—grandson of Miami Beach pioneer John A. Collins—as the Miami Beach Public Library and Art Center, the Bass Museum (2100 Collins Ave at 21st St, 305-673-7530) occupies what was also the city’s first public building. Its distinctive Art Deco facade is marked by bas reliefs above the entrance depicting various historical motifs, from colonial Spanish sailing ships to contemporary cruise ships.
The tallest building on Ocean Drive when it was built in the mid-’30s, The Tides (1220 Ocean Dr at 12th St, 305-503-3268) is still the most commanding structure on the block in our opinion, despite being only 12 stories high. Designed by L. Murray Dixon, one of the city’s most prolific architects of the Art Deco era, it features porthole windows as a nod to more “tropical deco” styles.
Naturally a hotel owned by Emilio and Gloria Estefan would have its share of fame. The Cardozo Hotel (1300 Ocean Dr at 13th St, 305-535-6500) even had a cameo in the Farrelly brothers’ comedy There’s Something About Mary (it served as the location for the conspicuous hair gel incident). Though some Miamians simply remember this three-story, streamlined Art Deco building as the one most resembling a toaster.
Photograph: Courtesy Creative Commons/Flickr/Phillip PessarIts relatively neutral tones make The Carlyle (1250 Ocean Dr at 13th St, 305-531-3238) one of the most understated Art Deco structures on Ocean Drive. Yet the property, which has remained virtually unchanged since its completion in 1941, is among South Beach’s most recognizable hotels—you may remember it from cameos in films such as Scarface, The Birdcage and Bad Boys II.
Photograph: Courtesy Creative Commons/Flickr/Alfredo Aponte
The Art Deco landmark designed by architect Roy France (who was also responsible for the Cadillac Hotel) underwent a restoration in 1997 and then again in 2014, but even the furnishings inside the lobby are as they were when it opened in 1940. Among most distinctive features of the National Hotel (1677 Collins Ave, 305-532-2311) are its 205-foot-long palm-lined infinity pool and historic tower topped by a cupola.
Billed as the tallest building in Miami Beach in 1947, the Delano (1685 Collins Ave at 17th St, 305-672-2000) straddles the Art Deco and modern eras. Architect Robert Swartburg was also responsible for designing the midcentury Vagabond Motel (restored and rechristened the Vagabond Hotel). Given a makeover by Philippe Starck in the mid-’90s, the Delano—now part of Morgans Hotel Group—even made the AIA’s list of America’s 150 favorite pieces of architecture.
