LINCOLN ROAD: THE ART DISTRICT OF MIAMI
Lincoln Road is one the country-s first pedestrian-only roadways and is a focal point of art and design in Miami Beach, Florida.
Originally opened to vehicular traffic, the street was closed off in the early 1960-s after Miami Beach architect Morris Lapidus received a commission to transform Lincoln Road. Lapidus, whose signature works include the Fountainbleau and Eden Roc hotels, incorporated the Miami Modern Architecture or “MiMo’ style that he pioneered into his designs that included fountains, gardens and an amphitheater.
Lincoln Road boasts excellent restaurants, trendy boutiques and a multiplex cinema. This pedestrian thoroughfare is home to the New World Symphony Orchestra and the Colony Theatre performing arts venue. An assortment of galleries and studio space for the area-s emerging artists, The Art Center South Florida, is also located here.
As an indicator of Lincoln Road-s place in the Miami art scene, The Miami Beach Preservation Board has approved plans to close additional stretches of road to vehicular traffic and Florida International University School of Architecture has established a satellite campus here with facilities for teaching art, music, theater and architecture.
Today, street performers, using various mediums, entertain continual streams of tourists to this popular South Miami Beach destination.