Codina Partners and City of Doral Debut LUX Doral: A Large-Scale, Immersive Art Initiative in Downtown Doral

Jen Lewin, Helix, 2021, Doral, Florida. Artwork © 2021 Jen Lewin. Photograph by Oriol Tarridas Photography

Codina Partners, in conjunction with the City of Doral, is launching LUX Doral, a comprehensive, interactive arts program that will feature the work of leading digital, sculpture, lighting, and performance artists in Downtown Doral, Miami’s premier town center.

“From custom murals and sculptures to innovative entertainment, like George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker® in the Park, artfulness has always played a significant role in Downtown Doral, and LUX Doral will elevate this by further connecting the Downtown Doral community, patrons and visitors through shared art experiences,” said Ana-Marie Codina Barlick, CEO of Codina Partners, the developers of Downtown Doral. “We are grateful for the tremendous team who helped us bring our vision to life, including Martin Posta, Forecast Public Art and the DeVos Institute of Arts Management at the University of Maryland, in addition to the City of Doral.”

Engaging artists from across the globe, LUX Doral will bring permanent installations, as well as an ongoing series of rotating exhibitions and performances to the Downtown Doral community. LUX Doral will kick off by previewing the first four works of the initiative:

• Lightweave – Designed by New York City based art studio, SOFTlab, Lightweave is an interactive artwork that weaves together structure, color, light, and sound and is inspired by the vibrancy, interconnectedness, and rhythm of the Doral community. During the day, the strands of colors and angular structure create volumetric patterns and cast unexpected shadows on the pathway below, while the experience at night is like walking through a musical instrument. The form and color act as scaffolding for an unexpected symphony of light and sound that is activated by pedestrians as they walk down the Paseo.

Lightweave is meant to be different every time you experience it. During the day, the strong Florida sun highlights the vibrantly colored tubes that weave through the structure and create dynamic overlapping patterns as you move through the archways. At night, custom programmed light and sound effects come together to animate the structure. The piece responds to sound, so to activate it, just clap, cheer, laugh, or simply enjoy the show as the artwork responds to wind or planes passing overhead.

• Helix and Andante – Designed by Brooklyn-based new media sculptor, Jen Lewin, Andante and Helix are a pair of sculptures positioned at opposite ends of the Paseos that combine mathematical, musical, and dance principles into interactive experiences that stimulate auditory, tactile, and visual senses.

In dance and music, “andante” refers to a slow tempo, or gradual, fluid motion. Lewin’s sculpture of the same name is derived from a staff in which each tube of light becomes a bar of music. Andante plays tones based loosely on a pentatonic scale, which is often found in traditional Chinese music and sounds as if it shifts fluidly between major and minor tonalities.

Helix, a series of twenty-four spires laid out in the form of a nautilus shell, is based on the dimensions of the golden ratio. We see the golden ratio all around us in nature—from the petals of a lily, to spiral galaxies, hurricane patterns, and even the ratios of human faces. Lewin uses this form to show how math prevails throughout the natural and built worlds, and how we as humans are drawn to the beauty of our environments, and ourselves.

Helix and Andante were facilitated by Forecast Public Art, one of the country’s first nonprofit organizations dedicated to advancing the field of public art. Founded in 1978 and based in Saint Paul, Minnesota, Forecast is invested in public art that plays a crucial role in creating a sense of belonging and supporting people to realize their potential, and live healthy lives.

• Balance – Designed by Budapest-based projection mapping creative group, Maxin10sity, Balance demonstrates, through a family-friendly, fun, and abstract artistic installation, how we as humans can impact the “Balance” of nature.

Balance illustrates in an interactive, immersive micro-environment, how the balance of sun and rain affects vegetation, where participants, through their movements, possess the powers of the sun and precipitation and experience their effects. Pedestrians are invited to spontaneously interact with the artwork and with one another, to choreograph the rhythms and cycles of the natural world.

“We are proud to be partnering with Codina Partners on yet another innovative and impressive cultural opportunity for our residents and visitors to enjoy in the heart of Doral,” said Mayor Juan Carlos Bermudez. “This latest initiative further demonstrates our City’s commitment to growing as a beacon for the arts in the western part of Miami-Dade County, inviting visitors from all over the region to come to Doral and enjoy impactful art and a vibrant downtown area.”

LUX Doral is curated by Martin Posta, founder/director of Signal Festival, a four-day annual festival of light art and emerging technologies in Prague. The festival attracts artists and designers from the Czech Republic and abroad to create light installations in streets and public spaces across the city, including famous historical landmarks. Signal Festival is considered the largest cultural event in the Czech Republic. Posta has an extensive background on experiential design, event production and producing eye-catching art experiences globally.

“The way we interact with our surroundings makes us who we are. We are what we see, hear, feel and perceive — all our senses working together, in harmony, creates our experience of art. At LUX Doral, we have showcased the powers of imagination of light artists. LUX Doral is Miami’s first, open-air light art gallery, bringing innovative and interactive art to Doral’s residents, tenants, and visitors from South Florida and worldwide,” said Martin Posta, LUX Doral Senior Curator. “LUX Doral is a new artistic landmark that provides new meaning, experience, and sense of discovery with every visit. We are proud to showcase the world’s leading digital artists to ensure that Doral shines as bright as these artworks.”

To create an innovative and engaging program, Codina Partners collaborated with a team from the DeVos Institute of Arts Management at the University of Maryland. A global leader in strategic planning and implementation support for new and established cultural institutions worldwide, the Devos Institute is a leader in complex project management and development of cultural activation strategies for mixed-use projects.

For more information on LUX Doral, follow @LUXDoral on Instagram and at www.luxdoral.com.

For more information on Downtown Doral, follow @DowntownDoral on Facebook and Twitter and @DowntownDoralLife on Instagram.