Marc Aka Max H.
Yelp
I first learned of the The Margulies Collection when reading an article in the December 6, 2015 NYTimes about the Miami collector for whom the museum is named, Martin Margulies. Well, I thought, this guy is amazing, to think how insightful he was to start collecting deKoonings, Eliasson, Noguchi, Segal, Serra more than 30 years ago, when the majority of art appreciators were not appreciating this type of art, no, not at all. This is not a traditional gallery, and certainly not a museum. It is a showcase for Margulies personal collection, or a large part of it, contained within almost 50,000 square feet of several warehouses in Lynwood Art District. It's large. No, It's HUGE! And many of the pieces displayed are humongous installation pieces, soaring 40 feet high and 20 feet in diameter. My descriptions cannot do justice to what he has collected and allows the public to see, at minimal cost, October through April.
The Collection is operated by a not-for-profit Foundation, with all proceeds going to support Lotus House, a shelter for women in Miami. Security guard are shelter residents. When there, we benefitted from a tour led by the Collection's curator, who was low key, easy to understand, oh-so-knowledgable, and responsive to questions from the less than dozen people in attendance. We were fortunate to meet the Collection's Assistant Curator, Nuncio Auricchio after our tour, and he shared his fascinating story of how he started as an unpaid intern while student at UM, and has been with the Collection for 9 years. He's a fortunate guy, and a pleasure to speak with. Nuncio, thanks for being so gracious!
It was easy to walk around, move from one floor to another. There was no overbearing presence of security guards, which we experienced when we went to the PAMM later that day.
This was almost a religious experience for me, walking around and through these pieces by artists, some of whom, work exchanges hands at auctions at $10-20 million
There is free parking in a fenced in lot. Walk up to the unassuming front door, ring the bell, and enter another world.
We will return in the Fall, and spend several hours feeding our ever-hungry hearts and souls for art. Anyone going here will appreciate what they see and experience. Take the tour, it is scheduled daily at 11 AM, when the Collection opens. You'll appreciate it. Trust me. Look at my pics. You'll get it. Go.