Miami Marine Stadium inspires this tale of modernist architecture and Biscayne Bay, of speedboats and rock stars, of skateboarding, street art and a storm named Andrew. Advocates and artists, architects and restoration specialists share the story.
We begin with a flashback to our 2016 episode with dancer choreographer Hattie Mae Williams. Her creative intervention at the stadium is just one example of how the site has beckoned artists for decades. Fast forward to 2018. Miami’s International Boat Show has come the marine stadium’s home on Virginia Key for the third year in a row. The stadium is now in the first phase of a complete restoration. Don Worth, one of the founders of Friends of Miami Marine Stadium, talks about the ten years of activism that led to this moment. The stadium’s original architect Hilario Candela, restoration architect Richard Heisenbottle, conservation specialists Rosa Lowinger and Kelly Ciociola explain the restoration process. Among local artists behind the 200 layers of paint that now cover the concrete venue, Hox and Abstrk voice their support for the stadium’s face-lift. Over the next three years, the legendary venue will come back to life, reclaiming its identity as a top destination for cultural experiences in Miami.
Sound Editing: Anamnesis Audio | Special Audio from Concrete Paradise exhibition at Coral Gables Museum, courtesy of Little Gables Group | Feature photograph by Diana Larrea
- view of stadium from the basin
- View of Miami from Virginia Key
- Don Worth, Friends of Miami Marine Stadium, Miami International Boat Show 2018
- Tam Gryn, adding her signature
- a view of Miami International Boat Show 2018
- evidence of boat shopping
- Kelly Ciociola, restoration specialist
- Rosa Lowinger with graffiti removal crew
- Rosa Lowinger removing paint
- work at Miami Marine Stadium
- removing graffiti
- restoration experts
- Restoration team
- rainbow bull’s eye painting by Hox
- Abstrk and Hox with Cathy at Jolt studio
Related Links: Hilario Candela, Friends of Miami Marine Stadium, RLA Conservation, RJHeisenbottle Architects, HoxxoH mural, Concrete Paradise Exhibition at Coral Gables Museum, National Trust for Historic Preservation, Getty Keeping It Modern Grant, Hattie Mae Williams
Related Episodes: Hattie Mae Williams on the Allure of Miami Marine Stadium