Opened in 2025, the landmark Osvaldo N. Soto Miami-Dade Justice Center in downtown Miami provided a unique chance to commission and acquire large-scale, integrated, and location-specific artworks that celebrate artists from Miami and further afield.
During Miami Art Week 2025 (including Art Basel and related events), we joined a guided tour of the new art commissions and acquisitions at the Osvaldo N. Soto Miami-Dade Justice Center. Following an introduction by Patricia Romeu (Chief of Art in Public Places), Amanda Sanfilippo Long (Curator and Artist Manager for Art in Public Places) led us through the building, showcasing 14 newly commissioned works by artists Edouard Duval-Carrié, Nancy Rubins, Phillip Smith, Karen Rifas, Morel Doucet, Tomm El-Saieh, Loriel Beltrán, Loni Johnson, Onajide Shabaka, Beverly Acha, Laura Tanner, Jennifer Basile, and Charley Harper.
Art Tour: Osvaldo N. Soto Miami Dade Justice Center: Commissions and Acquisitions. Miami (USA), December 6, 2025.
Beyond these 14 commissions, the courthouse displays more than 90 individual pieces by 25 artists based in Miami-Dade County and South Florida through a dedicated acquisitions initiative. These works enliven public spaces such as elevator lobbies and hallways. Notable rotating displays include a major installation of photographs documenting Christo and Jeanne-Claude’s Surrounded Islands, on long-term loan from their foundation, as well as selections from the South Florida Cultural Consortium’s Acquisitions Program.
The Miami-Dade County Art in Public Places program, managed by the Department of Cultural Affairs, enhances the community by commissioning artworks that enrich public spaces and foster artistic and civic pride throughout the county.
By supporting collaborative and innovative projects, Art in Public Places elevates the aesthetic quality of civic environments, turning everyday public areas into inspiring places that uplift visitors and strengthen community connections.
Launched in 1973, Miami-Dade Art in Public Places was among the nation’s earliest public art initiatives. It began with an ordinance requiring 1.5% of construction costs for new county buildings to fund artwork purchases or commissions. The program is staffed under the direction of the Miami-Dade County Mayor and governed by a citizen Trust appointed by the Board of County Commissioners. The Trust relies on guidance from the Professional Advisory Committee—a panel of independent experts in art, art history, public art, architecture, landscape architecture, and related fields—who are selected by the Trust itself.
Over the years, the Art in Public Places Trust has commissioned or acquired more than 1,000 artworks, earning global acclaim as a pioneer in the field. These pieces are installed across diverse county locations, including Miami International Airport, Metrorail and Metromover stations, PortMiami, Zoo Miami, the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts, parks, fire and police stations, libraries, public housing, courthouses, and community health centers.
For many years, the program has emphasized site-specific, team-based collaborations that bring together artists, landscape architects, historians, engineers, and architects. This creative, interdisciplinary approach has produced projects that reinforce, articulate, and broaden the sense of community identity.
