Wynwood: Miami’s Urban Art Gem
Across the causeway from the glitzy Art Deco scene on Miami Beach lies the previously industrial area of Wynwood, where some of America’s finest urban art attracts visitors from around the world. Daubing the cavernous warehouses and buildings, the eye-boggling murals have revitalized the neighborhood and opened its doors to restaurants, breweries, galleries, and bars with serious street cred and edge.
Look to the Walls
Wynwood Walls is the unlikely gathering of some of the world’s most famous urban artists. Obey (Shepard Fairey), Futura, Miss Van, and The London Police – all have been invited to create some of their largest (and most legal) works at this former rundown area of Miami, thanks to the late Tony Goldman, a philanthropic property developer who wanted to create a ‘museum of the streets’. Now spreading over much more than the original six warehouses, annual paintings have taken place since 2009 with more than 50 artists transforming 80,000 square feet of walls. Wynwood Doors, once the neighborhood dump, was added on in 2010 and turned into a park, encircled by 15 roll-down shutters that feature less prominent artists who have painted everything from Bladerunner-esque futuristic city scenes to mystic-looking elephants.
Since 2010, street art has seeped out of the pedestrian square, now fringed with restaurants that have welcomed the graffiti artists into their spaces and spread over neighboring shops, galleries, and bars. If Haight Ashbury was the height of hippie murals, sunshine, and rainbows in the 60s, Wynwood has a similar feel for the switched-on, Instagram generation of today – while there’s no innocent dreamscapes or LSD-inspired art, the whole area has an offbeat charm that is worlds away from the bikini-ed beach bars and fancy cocktails of Miami Beach.
Art Is Just the Start
The revival of Wynwood demonstrates the transformative power of street art. The area boasts a monthly (every second Saturday) art walk and various tours that visitors can take to see new work from the surrounding galleries. The whole locale erupts with passion and creativity. Notably, Art Basel, arguably the most influential art event series in the world, hosts several events in Wynwood every December. Consequently, where Art Basel goes, collectors and investors follow.
Moreover, artists aren’t just at work outside around here. The galleries (often located in what look like run-down warehouses) showcase a mix of contemporary visual arts. Wynwood 28 focuses on South American artists, while Locust Projects features edgier pieces. The Rubell Family Collection houses one of the largest publicly-accessible private collections of contemporary art in North America, located in a 45,000-square-foot facility that was once used for Drug Enforcement Agency confiscated goods. This gallery was Wynwood’s first and features artists such as Jean-Michel Basquiat, Keith Haring, and Jeff Koons.
Drink Local
It’s hot, it’s Miami – visitors can’t explore for long without succumbing to one of a number of craft beer bars that have cropped up. Unlike many American cities, the area is compact enough that everything essential (beer, food, art in whatever order) is walkable within a three- or four-block radius. This layout gives the area a distinct community feel, while the lack of skyscrapers adds a secret backstreet vibe.
Wynwood Kitchen & Bar is located within the Wynwood Walls project and feels like an extension of the park. Forty craft beers will satisfy even the fussiest drinker, with La Rubia and Wynwood IPA brewed just a couple of blocks away. For those who want to drink at the source, Wynwood Brewing Company, Miami’s first craft brewery, can be found on NW 24 Street and has a tap room with a daily afternoon happy hour.
During weekends, locals descend upon Wynwood for a chill afternoon filled with beers and beats, with several bars offering brunches that come with buckets of mimosas and DJs getting parties started in their gardens. There’s no designer pretension here; rather, it’s a good-times, love-everyone kind of vibe. Brick, on NW 28 St, is one such place that features local brews and laid-back gatherings.
Taste the Caribbean
It would be a crime to leave Wynwood without indulging in some of the tastiest plates in the city. While the urban art may resonate with the eastern seaboard cities of the US and Europe, the food is pure Miami – a delightful mix of Latin American and Caribbean cooking that exemplifies the flair putting Florida on the foodie map.
At Wynwood Kitchen & Bar, Cuban-style ropa vieja empanadas offer heavenly bites of slow-cooked beef enveloped in crispy pastry. The ceviche mixto here brings some Peruvian influence with a mix of octopus and scallops in a citrus tomato sauce. However, it’s not all upscale dining. Jimmy’z Kitchen might look like a cheap eats kind of place, but it’s the best spot for mofongo, a traditional plantain dish from Puerto Rico.
Colorful Coyo reflects the magic of Mexican cuisine with smashed-to-order guacamole and hand-pressed tortillas that boast inventive fillings (duck, octopus, or cactus, anyone?), while a hidden bar in the back serves phenomenal margaritas.
Furthermore, South Florida’s original dessert, the famous key lime pie, also gets its due here. At Fireman Derek’s Bakeshop, the former firefighter-turned-baker sees long lines of people queuing daily to taste his secret recipe for the ultimate sweet-and-sour cheesecake.
This article was originally published in 2016.
