Art Vault & Valuables Services (AV&VS), Miami, United States

Groundbreaking to commence on Miami art house 'The Vault'
During this year’s Art Basel Miami Beach (4 - 7 December 2008), award-winning Miami- and Basel-based Oppenheim Architecture+Design, in partnership with Javier Lumbreras of Artemundi & Company, will break ground on Art Vault & Valuables Services (AV&VS) or as art insiders are calling it, “The Vault” in the trendy Wynwood Design District. The development of this 11-storey, 140,000 sq ft storage facility is slated for completion in early 2010.

As an important art collector with an extensive background in depository warehouses including Rodolphe Haller in Port-Franc, Switzerland, Day & Meyer in New York, Cadogan-Tate in London and Paris, SIT in Madrid, and Welti-Furrer in Zurich, South Beach-based investor Javier Lumbreras understands the importance of conservation and management. “We seek not only to minimize the burden of managing art collections and other valuables but offer our members the ability to enhance and refine them,” states Lumbreras.

Lumbreras chose noted Miami-based architect Chad Oppenheim of Oppenheim Architecture+Design, the firm behind Ten Museum Park and one of today’s foremost young architects, to collaborate on the project. The exterior of The Vault will serve as an important public art installation. With constantly revolving panels featuring art by emerging and established artists, the prototype facility will look unlike any other storage location in North America.

“Like the art to be housed inside, the façade of The Vault will engage the public in a dialogue and become a kind of social architecture that will enrich the lives of all who come in contact with it,” describes Oppenheim.

Oppenheim’s design of The Vault will also include a high-tech art storage facility with concierge-level services for owners seeking peace of mind and new ways of expanding collections. Client services will include a state-of-the-art conservation laboratory, collection and logistics management, and premium financial and insurance services. Members will have access to exclusive showrooms and exhibition spaces for their collections.

The development of The Vault is yet another example of the City of Miami establishing itself as a major player in the international art scene. During Art Basel Miami Beach, Lumbreras and Oppenheim will host a private collectors’ dinner featuring Lumbreras latest book, The Art of Collecting Art that discusses the impact of the economy on the art world and the importance of investing in art during challenging economic times.
source: www.worldarchitecturenews.com
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