Miami Beach sues acclaimed artist after $1.1 MILLION public artwork installation falls apart

• City of Miami Beach is suing artist, Sarah Morris, who had created a tiled artwork on wall of the Miami Beach Convention Center
• Only months after completion in July 2019 colored tiles began to crack and fall
• City seeks $1 million in damages against the artist and contracting companies involved – but she says the builder who created the original wall is responsible

The City of Miami Beach is suing an internationally acclaimed artist that had been hired to create a colorful tiled artwork on the side of Miami Beach Convention Center.

But just months after being completed in July 2019, the artwork consisting of red, green, black, blue, white and pink tiles became a safety hazard as the ceramic squares suddenly started cracking and falling off the wall. 

The city had to put up a protective covering over parts of the artwork to prevent anyone from being injured as the tiles came away and smashed onto the ground.

A complaint has now been filed against artist Sarah Morris and her company Parallax LLC, as well as two contracting companies that were involved in erecting the mosaic, Home One Contractors Corporation and Moosally Construction. The city is seeking more than $1 million in damages. 

Morris was paid over $1.1 million to design and install the abstract tile artwork named ‘Morris Lapidus’ on the convention center’s north and east exterior walls. 

In a lawsuit, seen by the Miami Herald, the city holds Morris and the contracted companies responsible for the issues with Morris essentially contractually obliged to repair any problems with the artwork for two years following the installation.

Morris is said to have been tasked with examining the walls to ensure they were suitable for the project to begin with and to then ensure the quality, completion, and installation of the artwork.

But Parallax, Morris’ company has responded in turn blaming the very design and construction of the walls of the Miami Beach Convention Center itself for the artwork’s troubles.

Morris, who is a renowned painter and filmmaker based in New York, has an extensive portfolio consisting of international art exhibitions and public installations, although her website makes no mention of the Miami Beach Convention Center project.

Morris was commissioned by the city in October 2016 to create the installation as part of the convention center’s remodeling project. 

The artist paid homage to Morris Lapidus, a notable architect who was known for designing iconic Miami landmarks, but there were various delays in the installation process including issues with the tiles which were the wrong size and had to be cut up manually. 

The project was finally finished three months behind schedule. The installation was also supposed to come with an agreement that included a two-year warranty that stipulated that Morris would bear the cost of repairs within that timeframe. 

But around nine months after completion, the artwork began deteriorating in the spring of 2020 with the city reporting water damage, cracked tiles, grout issues, and bulging.

By October tiles had began falling off forcing the city to take action.

Morris then hired two firms to investigate the artwork’s issues, while the city conducted its own investigation through which an engineer recommended removing all of the tiles entirely due to severe problems with the east wall.

‘Simply, if MBCC’s walls could not support the Artwork, it was Artist’s contractual duty to notify the City before the Artwork was installed and to design a means of mitigating this issue,’ the city’s lawsuit states. ‘Artist did nothing, leaving the City to believe that the Installation Site was proper and ready for the Artwork.’

Through her lawyer, Morris contends that the construction company who built the convention center’s walls should be held accountable for the damage. 

‘Parallax is prepared to vigorously defend itself against any allegations of wrongdoing and looks forward to the resolution of this matter,’ the company said through its attorneys, Soto Law Group. ‘Any damage to the artwork ‘Morris Lapidus’ is a direct result of issues surrounding the design and construction of the Miami Beach Convention Center itself.’

The lawyer also stressed that Morris’s international reputation as an artist requires the city take down the entire ‘Morris Lapidus’ installation, claiming it could not continue to be displayed in its current condition. 

‘Ms. Morris is an internationally renowned artist, whose site-specific artwork has been installed and displayed in leading cities, such as New York, Paris, Zurich, Basel, Dusseldorf, Frankfurt and Bologna, to say nothing of Miami Beach,’ Soto Law said in a statement. 

‘CMB’s response to the damage to the ‘Morris Lapidus’ installation is an affront to the artist and to Miami Beach’s own standing among the leading cities hosting Ms. Morris’s work. Ms. Morris, the artwork, and the City of Miami Beach deserve better.’

As for now, the artwork remains up.