9 Mesmerizing Installations You Should Check Out This Art Basel Weekend

1. Siyanda, South Beach

The gorgeous new sculpture combines metalwork wood and greenery to represent a peaceful-looking woman with flowers in her hair clutching her hands to her chest. Her name, Siyanda, means “we are growing” in Zulu and reflects on our relationship with nature. You can view her at 1 Beach Club inside the 1 Hotel in South Beach.

Find it at 2341 Collins Ave, Miami Beach, FL 33139.

2. Little Cloud Sky,  Española Way

The sky over Española Way has gotten a bit cloudy, but don’t worry these are the good kind of clouds. The FriendsWithYou duo has installed whimsical smiling clouds across Española Way that are so cute they will totally cheer anyone up!

3. Hall of Visions and Hatch at Faena Hotel, Mid-Beach

The Faena Hotel in Mid-Beach has gone all out this Art Basel with several really cool art installations including “Hall of Vision” by artist Pilar Zeta. This trippy, optical illusion work can be seen at the beach just behind the hotel. Another work by Zeta, “Hatch” can be found inside the Faena Hotel Cathedral.

4. Machine Hallucinations: Coral  at Faena, Mid-Beach

Also at the Faena, you’ll find Refik Anadol’s mesmerizing “Machine Hallucinations.” Featuring digital and physical art, Anadol’s abstract, immersive experiences use data-driven machine learning algorithms making these pieces way too cool to miss!

5. What Lies Beneath at Faena Hotel, Mid-Beach

Continuing on with the Faena hotel, we now move out to their pool where artist Carlos Betancourt has set up an incredible iceberg installation. “What Lies Beneath: Tipping Point,” invites the audience to reflect on the climate crisis with two buoyant iceberg sculptures. The artworks are a reminder that humans find themselves at a crossroads, a choice between extinction and survival.

6. Virgil Abloh’s last LV Collection, Design District

In his last collection for Louis Vuitton, the late Virgil Abloh has transformed the Design District into a giant chess board featuring larger-than-life, multicolor statues.  Playing on the house’s iconic Damier check motif, two oversized sculptures wearing looks from the collection sit in front of an LV mural within an oversized chess game.

Find them at 95 NE 40th St.

7. Five Echoes, Jungle Plaza

Inspired by the French woods in which Coco Chanel grew up and which later led her to the creation of her iconic no. 5 perfume,  immersion artist ‘Es Devlin’  will be creating “Five Echoes,” a massive circular installation surrounded by a lush forest of real trees and plants right smack in the middle of Jungle Plaza. The whimsical sculpture will measure around 100 feet in diameter with walls ranging from 2 to 33 feet high and will also feature sound, light and scent components. Devlin also frequently draws from nature for her own creations, including the mesmerizing “Forest of Us” mirror maze installation which you can now see at Miami’s Superblue gallery.

Find it at 3801 NE 1st Ave, Miami, FL 33137.

8. Tomorrow Land, Design District

A physical and virtual site-specific installation created by Studio Proba and Enjoy the Weather,  Tomorrow Land features a series of playfully designed sculptures, seating, and ornamentation. In addition to these physical components, the installation boasts an interactive, virtual game. A dedicated app built around AR technology and proximity beacons will allow visitors to “collect” and digitally customize Studio Proba’s shapes and place their own custom totems throughout the neighborhood—and beyond—for other participants to discover and play with.

9. 55 Sunrises, South Beach

For some more art on the beach, head on over to the sand just of 17th street in South Beach. Presented by Ives St. Laurent, 55 Sunrises by artist Sho Shibuya is a free art gallery on the sand!