Miami Art Week Brings Artistic Traffic Jam

MIAMI BEACH, FL — Believe it or not, one of the highlights of this year's Miami Art Week is a monumental traffic jam.

Argentinian artist Leandro Erlich's "Order of Importance" has been drawing crowds all week along tourist-favorite Lincoln Road in South Beach.

Erlich's nearly life-size sculptures of a 66-vehicle tie up is one of the most visible signs that Miami Art Week has returned to this urban resort town.

"We came here specifically to see this installation," acknowledged Uhain, who traveled from San Sebastian, Spain to view the faux traffic jam just steps away from the Atlantic Ocean. "I really like it."

Throngs of well-heeled apprecianados from around the world are expected to descend on the unique installation over the weekend as Art Basel 2019 takes over the newly renovated Miami Beach Convention Center and a number of art installations pop up around the Miami area.

“For the 18th consecutive year Miami Beach will be the center of the art world,” predicted Miami Beach Mayor Dan Gelber. “Art enthusiasts will experience this international event in the newly renovated Miami Beach Convention Center, and they will also have access to the various public art installations throughout our city.”

In Miami Beach, the city will for the first time be posting Art Week Ambassadors at trolley stops from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday along Washington Avenue at 10 Street, 15 Street and 17 Street as well as on Collins Avenue and 46 Street.

The ambassadors will offer visitors and residents information on various Art Week art fairs, insight to the exhibits and offerings in Miami Beach’s cultural institutions, maps on how to use the Miami Beach Trolley and fun facts about the city.

The Miami Beach Convention Center itself has been transformed with works from more than 200 of the world's leading international modern and contemporary art galleries featuring works by more than 4,000 artists to include paintings, sculptures, installations, photography, film, video, and digital art.

The works range from editioned pieces by young artists to museum-caliber masterpieces.

Erlich's traffic jam can best be described as a rubbernecker's delight.

The vehicle sculptures are meant to symbolize a harsh and rigid modernity that is at odds with the natural and porous materials from which cars and trucks are made. There's even a stop sign for good measure.

"It's really something unusual because it's the first time I can see something like that," observed Maite, also of San Sebastian. "The amazing thing is that people are trying to think if the car is real or not."

Throughout his career, Erlich has combined elements of sculpture, architecture and theater to create surreal environments that are intended to disrupt the audience's natural view of the world.

As visitors walked through his installation earlier this week, they couldn't help but interact with it. One woman pretended to be one of the imaginary motorists behind the wheel of an imaginary car while another pointed to a vehicle as if it were a prize on a game show.

Others seemed to want to leave messages behind, perhaps "wash me" would be most appropriate.

Florencia of Buenos Aries, said she comes to Art Basel every year but had never seen anything like the realistic vehicle sculptures , which are separated by a median rail.

"It's great. It's original. I didn't see any other art like this," she said, adding that the artist must have wanted to draw people into his work, which will be on display until Dec. 15.

"I think that's the idea," she assured Patch.

The Miami Beach Trolleys offer one of the best ways to avoid the real Miami Art Week traffic jams this weekend. Here are some of the Art Week stops:

• Art Basel Miami Beach at the Miami Beach Convention Center, 1901 Convention Center Drive
  • 17 Street and Convention Center Drive (South Beach Loops A, B and Middle Beach Loop)
  • Washington Avenue and 18-19 Street (South Beach Loops A and B)

• Aqua Art Miami, 1530 Collins Avenue
  • 15 Street and Washington Avenue (South Beach Loops A and B)
• Art Basel Cities, Collins Park West
  • Collins Avenue and 21-22 streets (South Beach Loops A, B, Middle Beach Loop and Collins Express)
• Audemars Piguet Presents Sound Installation by Artist Jana Winderen, Collins Park East
  • Collins Avenue and 21-22 streets (South Beach Loops A, B, Middle Beach Loop and Collins Express)
• The Bass, 2100 Collins Avenue
  • Collins Avenue and 21-22 streets (South Beach Loops A, B, Middle Beach Loop and Collins Express)
• City of Miami Beach presents Order of Importance by Leonardo Erlich, Lincoln Road Beachfront
  • Washington Avenue and Lincoln Road to 17 Street (South Beach Loop A, Collins Express)
• Design Miami, Northwest Corner of Meridian Avenue and 19 Street
  • 17 Street and Convention Center Drive (South Beach Loop A, B, Middle Beach Loop)
  • 19 Street and Meridian Avenue (Middle Beach Loop)
  • Washington Avenue and 17 Street (Collins Express)
• Faena Festival, 3201 Collins Avenue – Beachfront between 32 and 36 streets
  • Indian Creek Drive and 33 Street (Middle Beach Loop)
  • Collins Avenue and 32 Street (Middle Beach Loop and Collins Express)
• Ink Miami Art Fair, 1850 Collins Avenue
  • 18 Street and Collins Avenue (Middle Beach Loop)
• La Prairie, Wave Installation by Artist Pablo Valbuena, Collins Park Beachfront at 22 Street
  • Collins Avenue and 21-22 streets (South Beach Loops A, B, Middle Beach Loop and Collins Express)
• PULSE Miami Beach, Indian Beach Park - 46 Street and Collins Avenue
  • 4225 to 4500 blocks of Collins Avenue
• Scope Art Fair, Ocean Drive - Beachfront between 8 and 10 streets
  • 9 Street and Washington Avenue (South Beach Loops A and B)

• SoundScape Park- 400 17 Street

• Washington Avenue and 17 Street (South Beach Loop A and Collins Express)
• Untitled Art Fair, Ocean Drive - Beachfront between 11 and 12 streets
  • 11 Street and Washington Avenue (South Beach Loops A and B)

For a full list of routes, visit www.MiamiBeachTrolley.com or download the free Miami Beach eGov app to track the trolley in real-time.

Residents and visitors are also encouraged to sign up for the city’s traffic text messages by texting MBTraffic to 888777. This free service will provide alerts on major traffic bottlenecks and alternative routes.

Art Basel will be open to the public from noon Saturday, Dec. 7 to 8 p.m. and on Sunday, Dec. 8 from noon to 6 p.m.

A one-day ticket for the Miami Beach Convention Center costs $65 with discounts available for seniors and students. Click here to buy tickets online.