The Faena District Miami is a comprehensive real estate project from the young Argentine developer Alan Faena, designed by Foster + Partners, Roman & Williams and the architectural firm OMA. It will be located in Miami Beach, along the iconic Collins Avenue between 32nd and 35th street. “I’m working on one of the best projects across the Americas,” says Alan Faena with pride. “We’re creating an entire district.”
Alan Faena, founder of the Faena Group, is more than an urban developer. He represents a fusion between an artist and an entrepreneur, which allows him to combine aesthetics and urban development in all his creations. This young Argentinian, born in 1963, has been passionately devoted to every project in his life. The fashion world was his first bet when, in 1985, he created his own textile design label, Via Vai. The successful venture turned him into a popular celebrity in his home country.
ALAN FAENA.
After selling his company in 1996, Faena left Argentina for some time. Then, in 2000, the young entrepreneur took a radical turn in his career when he became interested in real estate and partnered with Len Blavatnik, a Russian-American billionaire investor and banker from New York. Faena created a new urban concept, the Faena District of Puerto Maderos, Buenos Aires.
The celebrated architectural complex includes the Faena Hotel, El Porteño Building, Porteña I and II, Los Molinos and the Faena Aleph residences. It was the firs major project designed by Sir Norman Foster in South America. The Faena Arts Center was also part of this expansive complex, which was built on the site of a 1908 mill, which today holds his art foundation.
This magnificent art laboratory was conceived as a place for experimentation, “a space where artists can express themselves and have an exchange with the people,” says Faena. Inside there is room for all artistic disciplines: from photography, visual media, arts and sculpture, to design, architecture, fashion, literature and cinema.
For this visionary developer, the Faena District of Buenos Aires was a successful concept, “a lifetime experience for an entire neighborhood”. “As a result of all this passion for culture, art, theater, dance and music, in 2011 we opened the Faena Arts Center,” says the artist/developer. “Today the district offers all kinds of activities and attracts new talent.”
In Miami Beach, Alan Faena’s unique “district” concept has resulted in an architectural complex composed of Faena House, a 24-storey building with 47 ocean view luxury residences, designed by Foster; Faena Saxony Hotel, a redevelopment of the iconic Saxony hotel by a distinguished creative team that includes filmmakers Baz Luhrmann and Catherine Martin; Faena Arts Center, Faena Bazaar and Artists-in-Residence Center; and Faena Park, designed by Koolhaas and the architectural firm OMA; Faena Marina, located along Indian Creek; and Faena Gardens, creares by the distinguished landscape architect Raymond Jungles.
The spectacular design will integrate the most advanced and sophisticated technology to its ultramodern buildings. It will introduce a soothing combination of ocean blue and the green from the native plants into their gardens and parterres, to create an ambiance of luxury, comfort and warmth. And as he did in Argentina, Faena´s new proposal is not just a utilitarian resort; it feels more like an art installation, a new modus vivendi, a contribution of distinction, art and lifestyle, which takes a radical departure from the usual tourist vibe of Miami Beach.
The soul of the entire complex is Faena House, a spectacular building that appears as an imposing, futuristic, aerodynamic tower that will blend with the surrounding environment while at the same time making a statement of luxury and distinction. All of the 47 residences have a majestic 1,300 square feet outdoor terrace, which runs the length of the entire unit, offering spectacular panoramic ocean and city views. These terraces are harmoniously integrated to the interiors through floor to ceiling glass walls and 13-foot sliding doors, which blur the line between interior and exterior spaces.
The three glorious penthouses, unique in their class, have an interior area of nearly 8,000 square feet and almost 10,000 square feet of outdoor terraces. Each penthouse has a private pool and elevator. The selling price also makes them exclusive: $50 million, a figure that breaks the record for the most expensive property sold in Miami: a spectacular Indian Creek Village mansion, which sold in 2012 for $47 million.
The price is justified by this new paradigm of the art of living, which results from the cutting-edge vision of Alan Faena, executed by a large team of collaborators, which included include award winning architects, engineer and curators.
“We are not limited to devising and developing the project. We will also provide service and management. Therefore, we have put our soul into this project”, says Faena talking about the architectural complex being built in Miami Beach. The result is “an enclave of high design, culture and entertainment surrounded by nature in one of the most vibrant cities in the United States,” concludes the renowned entrepreneur. ■
