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Kips Bay Decorator Show House Palm Beach

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We recently toured the third annual Kips Bay Decorator Show House located in a plantation-style estate in West Palm Beach’s South End neighborhood. The house, owned by famed interior designer Lars Bolander, features 19 of the most prominent design firms from around the country, including several from South Florida, who transformed the home’s spaces with their unique and sophisticated styles.
In just under three months, the talented group designed each room of the remarkable 8,751-square-foot home inspired by South African and Dutch architecture. The home features four bedrooms, five bathrooms, a great room with vaulted ceilings and French doors that open up to an expansive loggia, and a spacious kitchen with an adjacent outdoor dining terrace. The home’s large master suite offers sprawling garden and pool views. The estate also boasts two guest houses, a pool house, and an expansive private garden with lush tropical flora for the ultimate outdoor living and entertaining experience.
Design enthusiasts and novices alike will be inspired by the level of creativity and imagination on display through unexpected wall treatments, beautiful furnishings and an array of bold colors.
The Kips Bay Decorator Show House is open now through Sunday, March 1st. The event benefits both Kips Bay Boys & Girls Club and Boys and the Girls Clubs of Palm Beach County.
For more information, visit Kips Bay Decorator Show House.

Celebrating a Century of Art Deco

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Home to more than 800 Art Deco buildings, Miami’s glamorous South Beach is an architectural goldmine of 1930s pastel-colored gems. This year marks 100 years since the Art Deco architectural style was first developed, so as we start off 2020, we’re reflecting on some of our favorite iconic Art Deco style buildings. The famed architectural style has evolved since the 1920s, but continues to inspire designers, artists, and photographers today.
The city of Miami Beach celebrates Art Deco Weekend every year in January. In addition, there are weekly walking tours of the historic district for those interested.
Designed in 1939 by Henry Hohauser, credited as one of the principal architects behind the Deco styling of South Beach, The Webster is a classic example of Art Deco architecture in the area. The former hotel has been transformed into a high-end fashion boutique, but you can still admire the original polished terrazzo floors, gleaming staircases, and pastel-colored decor.

A much-loved icon of South Beach, The Breakwater Hotel was designed in 1936 by Yugoslavian architect Anton Skiskewicz, and sports clean, colorful lines and the archetypal symmetry emblematic of the Art Deco period. The 99-room boutique hotel was extensively renovated in 2011, restoring The Breakwater to its former glory.

Designed by architect RA Benjamin, the Colony Theatre opened its doors in 1935 as a Paramount cinema. Currently, it is one of the most fashionable performing arts venues in South Florida, hosting concerts, comedy acts, dance performances, operas, and film festivals. Showcasing bold lines and geometric patterns with neon lights and a pristine terrazzo floor, the building maintains all the integrity of its original Art Deco features.

The Cadillac Hotel, designed by Roy F. France, was constructed in the 1940s to resemble one of the brand’s premium motors, chrome center trim emblazoned with a glistening hood ornament. It stands proudly as one of the tallest Art Deco buildings on the beach. It is now owned by the Marriott hotel group, and was recently renovated, but it still retains its Art Deco charm, with terrazzo floors and palm-embossed ceiling adorning the lobby.

Berenblum Busch Architects Designs The New Puerto Rican Chamber of Commerce

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Berenblum Busch Architects is designing the new Puerto Rican Chamber of Commerce and County Office Building in Wynwood.  Developed by Moishe Mana, construction of the three-story, 35,410-square-foot building at 2900 NW Fifth Ave will begin this fall.
According to the firm’s Founding Principal Gustavo Berenblum, the building will include a ground floor café, retail and meeting spaces, and 6,800 square feet of ground-floor parking. The second floor will host offices for the chamber and county. The third floor will have additional offices as well as a 6,800-square-foot terrace facing south toward 29th Street.
The design of the building draws inspiration from Wynwood’s industrial nature, the mostly one-story warehouses that define the neighborhood’s character, along with the popular murals that have become a tourist destination.
Claudia Busch, BBA’s Founding Principal,  said “It’s an opportunity for the Puerto Rican community to have a place of its own. You already have many Puerto Rican institutions that are there contributing to the health of the local economy there.”
Construction is slated to begin in September. The chamber, currently at 3550 Biscayne Blvd., is expected to relocate by November 2021.
Developer Mana added  that the Wynwood neighborhood was one of the first areas settled by Puerto Rican immigrants who moved to Miami in the 1950s. “It’s important to have the chamber in Wynwood because we don’t want to lose this part of the community,” he said. “We want to keep the culture.”
For more information visit Miami Herald.

CHOEFF LEVY FISCHMAN TROPICAL MODERN STUNNER FEATURED ON DEXIGNER

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Our client, Choeff Levy Fischman, designed a recently completed two-story home on Miami Beach’s exclusive Palm Island. The residence leaves you in awe the moment you step onto its lavish motor court as many of their homes do. However, this one boasts a colossal cascading water feature and a British-made automobile rotating turntable – one of two found in Miami. The private driveway also includes an outdoor stairway and a three-car garage with lift capacity concealed by rich Timura wood. The home’s exterior façade also features gray limestone to create a warmer aesthetic.
Designed in the architect’s famed Tropical Modern style, this abode provides large living spaces in an open-concept format. The residence’s first floor features a seamless transition from room to room with large living spaces in an open-concept format. It includes floor-to-ceiling sliding glass doors that open up to the rear deck, blending the indoors with the outdoors. A custom Italian-made wall panel conceals a built-in television and grand wood louvers subtly denote the living room entrance.
A focal point of the home’s interior is a stunning 460 square foot open-air atrium with floating concrete steps that take you across a shallow pool of water. Additional soul-soothing reflecting ponds and cascading water features are spread throughout the property on all four sides of the residence to emphasize its waterfront location.
The master suite boasts a midnight kitchen, a sitting lounge, and a fireplace. Two spacious bathrooms feature exotic floor-to-ceiling marble, and each comes with a seamless glass zero-edge spa shower with steam and scent ventilation. One of the master suite bathrooms also includes a bespoke vanity and a standalone floating Boffi tub.
The home’s second level also includes an atrium-facing pajama lounge where the family can relax in a private setting away from the traffic of the ground level.
For more information, visit Dexigner.

CASACOR Miami 2019

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CASACOR, the most complete architecture, interior, and landscaping design exhibition in North America, returned to the Magic City launching during Miami Art Week at Brickell City Centre.
This year’s exhibition features an international mix of 20 established and emerging designers, all inspired by sustainability and Miami’s urban infrastructure. Landscape artists have also curated living spaces to allow guests to truly connect with nature while creating a sense of belonging and calmness in the epicenter of Miami’s famed financial district.
Designs showcased at the indoor-outdoor exhibition include the works of Moniomi Design, Allan Malouf, Pininfarina, Jesus Pacheco Studio, Edge Collections, Alberto Salaberri, and Léo Shehtman, who all returned to the event for the second time displaying new designs. Keeping things fresh, CASACOR Miami has added new top-tier designers to its roster. Among these are Ukraine’s rising design firm YODEZEEN, AD100’s 2017 best interior designers Sig Bergamin, and Michelle Haim from award-winning design firm Fanny Haim & Associates, and Cristiana Mascarenhas.
Local talent such as Mr. Alex Tate Design, Guimar Urbina Interiors, B+G Design, Tamara Feldman Design, IG Workshop, Light on White Design Studio, and Studio RODA in collaboration with Odabashian are also showcasing their work at the event.
The design-centric exhibit is open to the public until December 21st with student tickets starting at $20, and regular admission costing $30.
For more information or to purchase tickets, visit casacormiami.com.

Miami Art Week 2019 Guide

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Design-lovers everywhere are in Miami for this year’s art week! Read about some of the latest must-see exhibitions and events:
CASACOR Miami — the architecture, interior and landscaping design exhibition in North America — returns for its third year at Miami’s $1.05 billion landmark, Brickell City Centre. In partnership with swire properties, presented by cosentino and with the global sponsorship of deca, the interior design exhibition will feature an international mix of 20 established and emerging interior designers, inspired by sustainability and the urban infrastructure of the city. Visitors will move from micro-environments to vignettes within a 25,000 square foot residential sales gallery. Visionaries, such as moniomi design, Allan Malouf, Pininfarina, Jesus Pacheco studio, edge collections, Alberto Salaberri, and Léo Shehtman return to CASACOR Miami. This year, the three-week exhibition continues to add new top-tier designers to its impressive roster, such as Ukraine’s rising design firm Yodezeen, and Sig Bergamin and Michelle Haim from design firm Fanny Haim & Associates. Open December 2 – 21, at 700 Brickell avenue.

Billionaire philanthropist, entrepreneur and contemporary art collector Jorge M. Pérez will unveil his highly anticipated experimental arts center, El Espacio 23, on December 2. Located in Miami’s emerging Allapattah neighborhood, El Espacio 23 will serve artists, curators, and the general public, with regular exhibitions, residencies and a variety of special projects. The space will house the Jorge M. Pérez collection, which is regarded as one of the world’s most extensive private holdings of contemporary art. El Espacio 23’s opening show, ‘time for change: art and social unrest in the Jorge M. Pérez collection’ features close to 100 works by over 80 global artists, and explores questions of identity, public unrest and marginalized peoples. Inaugural exhibition, open December 4, at 2270 NW 23rd street.

Commissioned by the city of Miami Beach, the monumental public installation by Argentinian artist Leandro Erlich ‘Order of Importance’ will be on view at Lincoln Road beachfront through December 15. It will be the largest public work by the artist to date. Open December 3 – 15, at Lincoln Road beachfront.

To inaugurate the opening of the newly-designed Raleigh Gardens, Michael Shvo and his partners today present an outdoor public exhibition of the work of the late Claude Lalanne (1924-2019) and François-Xavier Lalanne (1927-2008) — the artistic duo known together as les Lalanne. The exhibition will be on public display in a new, immersive, lush, beach-side tropical garden designed by architect Peter Marino, and Miami landscape architect Raymond Jungles. Open November 22, 2019 through February 29, 2020, from 12pm to 8pm, at 1775 Collins Avenue.

Wynwood Walls, the famed epicenter of the Wynwood arts district known worldwide for its groundbreaking, ever-changing collection of curated art, will celebrate its 10-year anniversary this year. Goldman properties CEO Jessica Goldman Srebnick has selected a roster of global artists, both up-and-coming and established, to create new murals at the Wynwood Walls in time for the international art community to descend on Miami. This year’s artist line-up will feature Tats Crew, Hush, Mina Hamada, Kelsey Montague, Michael Vasquez, Dan Kitchener, Faile, Futura, Kenny Scarf, Ernesto Marange, Martha Cooper, Dasic Fernandez. At Wynwood Walls, 2520 NW 2nd Avenue.

For more events and information, visit designboom.

33rd annual Festival of the Trees

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Each year South Florida’s architecture and design community demonstrates its support for interior architecture education through their annual participation in Festival of the Trees, a fundraising event coordinated by Florida International University’s Interior Architecture Department.
Over the past 32 years, this annual holiday event has raised over $350,000 in funds that benefit FIU’s Interior Architecture Department and its students.
Sponsors underwrite designers who design and build unique holiday creations and donate them to the event. The “trees” are then displayed and auctioned at the gala opening. Winning bidders take these extraordinary creations home and get to show them off throughout the year.
Our President, Josh Oberhausen was selected as a judge at this year’s event, along with Hilda Altimari, Art Director of Dacra Miami Design District; Martin Amado, TV Personality; Massimo Casagrande, Director of Education at Marangoni Miami; and Liana Guilarte, Group Publisher for Modern Luxury. The event took place Thursday, November 21st, at The Moore Building in the Miami Design District.
Congratulations to the winners of the 33rd annual Festival of the Trees:
Most Colorful: “Candela” by AECOM
Most Animated: “It’s All Relative” by Nichols Brosch Wurst Wolfe & Associates, Inc.
Most Progressive: “Respirations” by FIU RDF Lab
Most Sustainable: “Cross-Cultural Headgear” by TSAO Design Group
Most Creative: “Layers Through Time” by G. Alvarez Studio, Inc.
Most Elegant: “Glitz” by HKS Architects, Inc.
Most Whimsical: “Hold My Memphis” by CallisonRTKL
Most Illuminating: “Depths of Deco” by Gresham, Smith, & Partners
Most Thematic: “Games Archiving Games” by OBM International
Honorable Mention (Creative): “Carousel Through Time” by Cube 3
Honorable Mention (Thematic): “Vessel” by Stantec
Honorable Mention (Colorful): “Copasetic” by Zyscovich Architects

BBA’s Claudia Busch in Miami Herald’s CEO Roundtable

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We are proud to announce that Claudia Busch, Founding Principal of Berenblum Busch Architects, has been selected from among South Florida’s top business leaders to be in the latest panel of Miami Herald’s CEO Roundtable. The industries these panelists represent include technology, real estate and architecture, insurance, law, the arts, banking, nonprofits and small business.
Claudia Busch is founding principal of Berenblum Busch Architects in Miami, an architecture, planning and interior design firm. Busch, who has more than 25 years of experience in the field, has designed for major architects such as Zaha Hadid, Richard Meier, Nalbach Architekten, and Bernard Tschumi. She is also a senior instructor at Florida International University’s School of Architecture. Busch, who was raised in Germany, was trained in Hamburg and also has a master’s degree from Columbia University.
For the next six months, she will give her views on the most important civic and economic issues of the day and will also share personal stories of her successes and setbacks and tips on how to succeed in the business world.
For more information, visit Miami Herald.

Al-Farooq Corporation’s Work on Hard Rock Hollywood Highlighted in USGlass Magazine

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Our client, Al-Farooq Corporation played a vital role in designing and engineering different portions of the newly renovated Hard Rock Hollywood.
Inside the new guitar-shaped hotel, the engineers designed a 24-foot tall architectural glass waterfall that is part of “The Oculus” located in the lobby combining elements of water, fire and technology all choreographed to music.
The glass product manufacturer, Faour Glass Technologies, trusted Al-Farooq to assist them on this project because they are well-known for being experts in non-typical glass engineering.
Al-Farooq senior project manager, Hammad Muzaffar says the design was complex and required unique engineering analysis because it’s a long, curved system of glass with the dynamic loads from water added to it. The complete glass structure has a radius of 40 feet and is supported by a mullion-less system at the head and sill.
Faour’s Slimpact XL and pivot door systems were used for the hotel entrance and adjacent storefront. Al-Farooq worked with Faour Glass to engineer this portion of the project as well. The Slimpact product was used for approximately 2,200 total square feet of the project.
Muzaffar says his company had to create additional plate designs and connection detailing to get the system to work according to Florida codes, which have strict hurricane ratings.
For more information, visit US Glass News Network.

FRONTIER Building Completes Wawa’s 200th Florida Store

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Our client, FRONTIER Building has recently completed Wawa’s 200th Florida store in Naples. The experience-focused national contractor celebrated this major historical build with a grand opening event that took place last month. This milestone comes a little more than seven years after the Wawa brand launched into the Florida market, ahead of initial projections and schedules.
“As we reflect on our Florida journey, beginning with a single store in 2012 and now opening our 200th store in 2019, we are deeply grateful to our customers and associates who have made this expansion possible,” said Gheysens. “Thank you for supporting us over the past seven years. We can’t wait to see what the future of Wawa in Florida holds!”
Located at 12456 Tamiami Trail East at the Price Street Plaza, the brand-new convenience store and gas station now offers an additional fueling option for east and west bound drivers along U.S. 41.
The new 7,211 square foot convenience store is located on a 90,000 square foot lot and features eight fueling pumps and 55 parking spaces. FRONTIER’s Derek Hopkins was the onsite project manager overseeing the ground-up construction.
“FRONTIER is honored to have been selected to build out Wawa’s 200th Florida store,” said Hopkins. “Being based in Florida, we hope to continue to build for the national brand as it continues to expand its presence in the state.”
FRONTIER Building is currently building out another Wawa convenience store and gas station in North Miami, Florida. The Miami-based national firm also has two additional Wawa projects underway in Rosedale, Maryland and Manassas, Virginia.