August 1st, 2001
Blueprint
Big Picture
by Donna Paul
The latest development in the Miami Design District is not about interior design, or even interiors. It is about the conversion of a warehouse, now called the Living Room Building, to an art piece with a message. Miami architect Roberto Behar and Rosario Marquardt cut into the building, built two walls, added a stucco sofa (with red vinyl cushions), built two lamps and a curtain of real fabric. The appearance of wallpaper is, in fact, 360 flowers individually handpainted on the walls. The space, says the architect, is "where public and private space collide and become one. Where the real and the fantastic coexist". The Living Room Building can be seen at 4000 N. Miami Avenue, Miami, Florida.