You've never seen a more stunning installation based on a mangrove forest.
The Swarovski Crystal Palace installation, "Mangue Groove" by artist Guilherme Torres, links Design Miami to important aquatic conservation efforts surrounding mangrove ecosystems in Brazil, but it also feels very Miami: one of our own local habitats rendered in glittery gold, with wooden platforms and a blazing digital sunset surround.
There were other highlights at Design Miami, which focuses on contemporary furnishings, objects, lighting, and objects of art in a tent that shares a parking lot with big brother Art Basel. Outside, in an installation by architecture collective Formlessfinder, a 500-ton pile of sand held up a cantilevered roof, creating an environment of shade and magic that was also quite Miami.
Inside, Fendi put on a glitzy show of mirrors and more mirrors, while cheeky medicine cabinets screamed "art, you fool!" lighting fixtures mesmerized fairgoers, and a full-scale construction of Jean Prouvé's 1945 demountable house, with it's lime green hairpin support structure, felt like walking on holy ground thanks to Galerie Patrick Seguin.
Check out photos below -- and head to Design Miami, which opens to the public Wednesday.
