Alcova will return to Miami for the third time during Miami Art Week 2025, hosting its next edition from December 2 to 7. The platform will once again activate the Miami River Inn, a historic site in East Little Havana’s South River Drive Historic District. Known as the oldest hotel in the city, the location first opened in 1908 and consists of pastel-colored Victorian houses surrounded by tropical vegetation.
Last year’s Alcova Miami generated strong interest, drawing attention for both the design content and the setting. The Miami River Inn provided a slower pace within the intensity of Art Week. Alcova used the atmosphere of the site to create a space that encouraged visitors to pause and explore. The event stood apart from Miami’s usual venues and supported direct engagement with the work on view.
Architecture as Framework
For the 2025 edition, Alcova will once again treat the hotel’s architecture as an active part of the project. Spatial installations and interventions will appear throughout the timber structures and original features of the inn. Alcova’s layout relies on a path-based approach, guiding visitors from unit to unit through shifts in material, form, and scale.
Organizers describe this edition as a “spatial narrative.” Visitors will move through the site by intuition, discovering each project in sequence. Alcova selected designers whose work focuses on exploration and site-based installation. Rather than centerpieces or isolated moments, the event builds a continuous format through architectural response.
New Partners and Returning Contributors
Alcova will release the full list of participants and events in the coming weeks. Each edition draws from a global network of designers and collectives focused on experimental practice. Alcova supports formats that push exhibition structure and encourages works that rely on spatial conditions rather than static display.
This edition introduces a new Main Partner: Haworth. Based near Lake Michigan, the company has developed contract furnishings since 1948, including office systems, seating, and movable walls. Haworth’s support will assist with both structural planning and on-site buildout. Alcova identified a shared interest in architectural thinking and material experimentation as the basis for the collaboration.
Studio Vedèt, based in Milan, created the visual identity for the 2025 edition. The studio has worked on previous Alcova projects and continues to direct design across print, digital, and spatial materials. Space Caviar returns to oversee spatial planning and will coordinate with exhibitors to develop layouts that respond to the site’s specific architectural scale.
