Just in time for Art Week Miami Beach 2025, The Betsy – South Beach unveils a brilliant new collection of photography that encompasses wide-ranging practices and purposes that extend far beyond merely pointing a camera and clicking the shutter. This collection (as well as some new mixed-media work) is realized through the inspired curation of the hotel’s co-owner and art curator, Lesley Goldwasser, within nine property-wide galleries.
These Art Week exhibitions capture the intensity of the world around us: past, present and future. Front and center is a major collection of works from Christo and Jeanne-Claude’s legacy of “putting the world under wraps,” including historic images of the Biscayne Bay installation in Miami (1983), the Reichstag in Berlin (1995) and the Arc de Triomphe in Paris (2021), all exclusively photographed in real time by Wolfgang Volz. Additionally, a new partnership with Ilon Art Gallery Collection features photographs of legends and icons that have shaped contemporary world culture by Annie Leibovitz, David LaChapelle, Larry Fink, Art Shay, Ken Regan, Bob Gruen, as well as two emblematic works by David Godlis.
The Betsy will also feature a major installation of photos of Miami Beach street life by Steve Dozier; photos of seasonal barren yet lush woodlands by Ira Wagner; projected experimental digital works on fabric by Miami-based artist Laura Paresky Gould; nature-filled explorations of African identity through Victorian fashion by Tamary Kudita; photograph-like paintings on vintage wallpaper by Lianne Jedeikin Goldsmith; an AI-generated work exploring simulated presence by Dahlia Dreszer; and a new observational photographic series by Miami-based artist Anastasia Samoylova in partnership with Aperture that asks what it means to be an American today.
Also eagerly anticipated during this timeframe is a one-person show of paintings by Ray Tenorio, a long-time member of The Betsy’s food and beverage team, who is forging a parallel career embracing his Latin roots, expressionism, urban mythology and fashion.
The Betsy is also one of 12 hotels chosen to participate in City of Miami Beach’s No Vacancy project, which will be on display through Art Week until December 20. As part of this program, “The Betsy Orb,” the egg-shaped architectural masterpiece that serves as a bridge connecting the hotel’s two buildings, will light up with a commissioned digital and acoustic piece, “Portal to Niña,” by artist duo LIZN’BOW (Liz Ferrer and Bow Ty).
Passersby are invited to enjoy the mesmerizing projections from the recently reopened trattoria-style pizzeria, The Alley, which offers unobstructed views of the ever-changing displays on The Orb.
A grand opening event for The Betsy’s Art Week exhibitions will take place on Thursday, December 4 from 8-11 p.m., featuring the premier of a commissioned piece by the Peter London Global Dance Company that explores themes of wrapping, unwrapping, temporality and transformation. As movements dissolve—one into another and then morph into a final still gesture—the entire dance becomes a mirror (and an echo) for the ephemeral nature of Christo and Jeanne-Claude’s work. Select artists from this year’s Art Week collection will be present at the event, alongside the hotel’s art curator, Lesley Goldwasser. Guests are encouraged to enter The Betsy’s Gallery through 1433 Collins Avenue.
During Art Week, The Betsy’s underground lightbox gallery, BBar, will present Atlantic Coast, a new observational photographic series by Miami-based artist Anastasia Samoylova, presented in partnership with Aperture. A special talk with the artist to discuss the works will take place on Friday, December 5, at 3 p.m. The collection retraces Bernice Abbott’s 1954 photographic journey along the Eastern Seaboard while documenting dislocation, loss and a shifting American dream. The new observational photographic series asks what it means to be an American today.
On Saturday, December 6, at 3 p.m., Dr. Deborah Willis, author of Reflections in Black: A History of Black Photographers: 1840 to the Present (Liveright, 2025), will host a writer talk to discuss the collection of Black photography featured within her book. She will be joined by photographer Cornelius Tulloch and Joan Morgan, highlighting how the photography aims to redefine our understanding of American history.
Throughout Miami Art Week, The Betsy will celebrate musicians with a series of performances at The Piano Bar. All performances are free and open to the public.
Performance Schedule: • Monday, December 1, from 6-11 p.m. – Pianist and composer David Attelan • Tuesday, December 2, from 6-11 p.m. – Pianist Tal Cohen and vocalist Catalina Londoño • Wednesday, December 3, from 6-11 p.m. – Pianist Angel Perez • Thursday, December 4, from 6 p.m. to midnight – Pianist Leonard Reina • Friday, December 5, from 6 p.m. to midnight – Pianist Brian Murphy • Saturday, December 6 o 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. – Pianist Conor Rohr o 4-8 p.m. – Vocalist Cindy Ellis and pianist Ryan Ellis of The Ellis Duo • Sunday, December 7 o 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. – Jaui Schneider and Amy Arlo Duo (piano/vocal) o 5-6:30 p.m. – Carmen Tomassetti Jazz Trio at the Ocean Drive Promenade Series (in Lummus Park) o 6 p.m. to midnight – Pianist Edgar Pantoja and drummer/percussionist Gabriel Placido
Adjacent to The Piano Bar’s performances is LT South Beach, a casually elegant New American restaurant fusing international flavors and culinary techniques from France, Asia and Latin America. Helmed by award-winning Chef Laurent Tourondel, the restaurant (which was recently recognized by Tripadvisor as one of the top 10% of restaurants worldwide) is committed to quality, with a menu that features hand-selected USDA Prime or certified black Angus steak, fresh-caught fish and enticing vegetarian options. The restaurant’s outdoor terrace is one of the best spots for people-watching on Ocean Drive, while the airy dining room provides a front-row seat to nightly live jazz and Latin rhythms.
The Betsy – South Beach’s annual Miami Beach Art Week festivities—held during the same timeframe as Art Basel Miami Beach—will be free and open to the public daily from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.
