Located in Miami's Brownsville neighborhood, the Historic Hampton House was once known as the…read more"Social Center of the South." Originally built in 1954 as the Booker Terrace Motel, it became a premier place for African American travelers during the Jim Crow era and remains one of the few surviving Negro Motorist Green Book hotels in Miami. Published by Victor Hugo Green from 1936 to 1966, the Negro Motorist Green Book was an indispensable travel guide for African Americans, listing hotels, restaurants, gas stations, and businesses where Black travelers could expect safe and respectful service. At a time when segregation and discrimination made travel dangerous, the guide provided a lifeline for families on the road. Publication ended after the Civil Rights Act of 1964 outlawed legal segregation, making the guide's mission increasingly unnecessary. The Green Book later inspired the title of the 2018 Academy Award-winning film Green Book. The Hampton House also gained renewed attention through the 2020 film One Night in Miami, which dramatizes the evening of February 25, 1964, after Muhammad Ali defeated Sonny Liston to win his first heavyweight championship. The film imagines Ali celebrating at the Hampton House alongside Malcolm X, Jim Brown, and Sam Cooke. According to local history, it was here that Ali enjoyed the famous bowl of vanilla ice cream he had promised himself after the fight. More than just a motel, the Hampton House became an important gathering place during the Civil Rights Movement. It welcomed influential figures such as Muhammad Ali, Malcolm X, and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., who is said to have practiced an early version of his "I Have a Dream" speech here in 1960. Its renowned pool and jazz club also attracted legendary performers including Ella Fitzgerald, Sam Cooke, Nat King Cole, and many others who could entertain audiences on segregated Miami Beach but were prohibited from staying there overnight. Following desegregation, economic activity gradually shifted away from Brownsville, and the Hampton House closed in 1976 before falling into decades of neglect. Thanks to determined preservation efforts led by the Dade Heritage Trust and local community advocates, notably Dr. Enid C. Pinkney, the Historic Hampton House was saved from demolition in 2002. Miami-Dade County purchased the property, and a $6 million restoration project transformed the abandoned motel into a museum and cultural center, that opened in 2015. In 2022, it was officially listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Today you can tour the two-story, fifty-room, modernist style inn featured a jazz club, restaurant, and swimming pool. Tickets are $25 for a 45 minute tour but they sometimes host events with free tours. Check their website for dates and details. As someone who loves history I appreciate this time capsule of mid century modern design but more importantly the Hampton House is an important symbol of resilience, civil rights, and Black history that continues to educate and inspire.

What an amazing piece of history in Miami. I was lucky to get a personalized tour…read more A Green Book hotel where Muhammad Ali, Martin Luther King Jr and others stayed. It is now a historic landmark and inspired the play and movie 'One Night in Miami' Art Basel and other cultural events have taken place here. They do school field trips. A true hidden gem with a story to tell.

I was instantly greeted by Brooke very warm personable knowledgeable of what I was exactly looking…read morefor in my frame work to make it stand out and pop! Definitely coming back with more art work framing!!!

Brooke is an extremely talented artist and does a fantastic job at framing!…read more She is helping my wife and I decorate our Parkland home with photographic art that will be framed beautifully. Her studio is beautiful and I sound highly recommend her studio and services. Highly recommend

Let me start by stating something that will tell you just how pleased I am with Obrapia: These guys…read moreare magicians! I'll start from the beginning... last January the gallery that represents my work (Mayer Fine Art from Norfolk, VA) participated in the Miami International Art Fair at the Miami Beach Convention Center. During the hanging day, the largest and most expensive piece of artwork arrived in a huge crate and was delivered to the Convention Center. When the box was then moved to our booth, we discovered that the Convention Center's work crew had poked two huge holes in the crate by using a forklift to move the work horizontally. When we opened the box, there were two tiny punctures on a $26,000 painting taller than a person. We panicked and we asked the organizers if they knew of a good local art restorer. They recommended Obrapia and we called them. About eleven am or so, a nice Cuban guy with bright blue eyes and with the unfortunate name of Fidel (for a Cuban in Miami anyway) shows up. It is seldom in my experience that I have seen an "expert" not only be an expert, but also an aficionado of his expertise and a true hero in this case. For my fellow galleristas: when you come to Miami, if you need any repair work, or stretching, or conservation, or framing, then Obrapia Fine Arts has my highest possible recommendation. Fidel arrived, looked at the work and initially began to repair the two holes right on the spot. He did that easily and quickly, and after he was done, it was impossible to find them again. Because the painting had been laid flat during shipping (even though the crate was marked with giant letters with DO NOT LAY FLAT signs), the canvas had stretched and was wavy and bubbly and had several pressure marks. We needed it re-stretched, and it became clear that the only way to get it back to a taut canvas would be to un-frame it and re-tighten it. This is no easy task for a huge seven feet by seven feet work of art, and the decision was made to take the painting back to Obrapia's shop and work on it there. Easily said, but that meant that Fidel would have to go and rent a truck, come back, pick up the painting from the Convention Center, take it to his shop, un-frame it, upgrade the stretcher bars, stretch it, re-frame it, drive it back to the Convention Center and hang it. And it was 3PM and the fair opens at 6PM. Somehow this dude did it. At 5:30PM he was back with a beautifully taut painting, and not only had he fixed the tiny pricks, and not only had he re-stretched the saggy linen, and not only had he upgraded the stretcher bars and added a cross bar and four angle corners, but the amazing dude had also touched up the frame and eliminated all the nicks and bruises from it. And then he hung it. And then he gave Mayer Fine Art the bill, and we were shocked at how reasonable that bill was, and the amazing degree of professionalism and expertise and joy for the job shown by this talented conservator. And Obrapia Fine Arts got a well-earned tip on top of the bill from Mayer Fine Art.

This place is such a scam. I had a piece that needed to be reframed and repainted in a part. They…read morehad it for 3 months. The guy wouldn't return my phone calls, I went 4 times and he kept giving me the run around. Finally I just said I don't believe you give me the piece and he handed it to me without any work done. Total scam artist. Ridiculous.

I'm in love with Oolite Arts Center, it truly takes me back to my art roots! My infinite love for…read moreit and it's nostalgic. Currently taking a Drawing class. My instructor Wil is amazing! I can literally be there in class ALL day. I have really enjoyed meeting new people with similar interests. All around it's a true joy. Love it here!!!

Located in Lincoln Road Mal, Oolite Arts, a non profit was founded in 1984 as ArtCenter/South…read moreFlorida by potter Ellie Schneiderman, who was looking for affordable work spaces for Miami's visual artists. She want to "help artists help themselves." According to their website "Oolite Arts seeks to be the bedrock of the visual arts in Miami. Formed over time, it is composed of residents, alumnae, curators and visitors, coming together to build a community around contemporary art - a fundamental part of our arts ecosystem." Today Oolite Arts provides artists with the free studio space, the chance to exhibit their work, and support. The building contains artists' studios, small exhibitions spaces, and the group's offices. You can take classes or attend events in the building. Oolite also operates out of a new location at 75 NW 72nd St where they will offer more than 200 art classes and launch a visual art program for teens. Oolite Arts recently sold one its two Lincoln Road buildings and there are plans to build and open a new building in Little River later in 2023. Little River is becoming an alternative location for artists priced out of nearby Wynwood. The new building will have two dozen studios for the group's residency program where artists can get free space for two years, an exhibition space, a theater for films and lectures or presentations, a studio, and offices. Any organization that supports and facilitates the arts is a worthwhile one to support. They help artists who might otherwise not be able to afford studio space to have a place to work and exhibit. It looks like they have some amazing plans in the works to help even more artists in the future. This is a fantastic organization. Stop by for inspiration and culture.

The two sales reps were friendly and showed me a few pieces of jewelry like the mini diamond Jewish…read morestar. Wide selection of men's watches and diamond necklaces. Realized today that this store was also in the Weston Town Center where I have previously shopped.

Wow, an elegant Weston Jewelers inside the Seminole Hard Rock, the rent must be crazy. Anyways, I'm…read moreglad it's here since the other location is far west in the Weston Town Center and has been a staple there for decades. The one sure similarity of the stores is the MnM candy dispensor for customer enjoyment. This store is a mini version of the other location but has a nice variety of jewelry. My wife has purchased quality jewelry from Weston Jewelers in the past. The female employee greeted me and discussed cleaning a antique sapphire diamond ring but they cannot perform that task at this store. If you are at Hard Rock andcwant a quality piece with a nice staff then check this place out.

The Florida Citrus Model Train Society is a non profit that was founded in 1999 to share the fun,…read morehistory, and hobby of model trains with the community. The club meets at 8:30 AM on Tuesday and Friday at the Plantation Diner. Many of the elaborate train set scenes are handmade and operate at HO, O, N, and G scale. It is always a thrill to see the trains race through tiny towns populated my miniature people. I have previously caught the train displays at the Plantation Historical Museum and more recently at their annual holiday display in Broward County libraries Southwest Regional location. You can check out their website to see where they will be setting up next. The club offers their model train displays for free to the public so drop them a few bucks if you can. As a fan of history and miniature displays it is aways a joy when I can see their amazing displays.

As a fan of history and architecture, the Hollywood Women's Club certainly caught my eye as I was…read morewalking along the exercise path that runs along the historic Hollywood Beach Golf and Country Club across the street. Like many women's clubs in Florida, the Hollywood Women's Club was founded in 1922 during the Florida Land Boom years. In the 1920's women's clubs were formed to give back to the community. They became a way for women to get out of the house and assert their independence. They allowed women to get involved in politics and launched the women's rights movement. The Hollywood Women's Club predated the founding of the city and in 1924 they joined the General Federation of Women's Clubs. The first club members were the wives of officers in the J.W. Young Organization which was the development company building Hollywood. They met in the first clubhouse that was built on land donated by the founder of Hollywood, Joseph W. Young in 1927. Early club projects included donating hundreds of books to the first public library, holding tag sales to pay for health screenings for children, giving migrating farmers assistance with housing and welfare, getting the Miami Telephone Co. to bring the first telephone line to town, and collecting $12,000 during a war bonds drive. Today the club supports literacy programs, funds a youth scholarship, participates in the Hollywood Historical Society, supports the neighborhood crime watch, and provides financial aid to many state charities through the General Federation of Women's Clubs. The original plans for the clubhouse included an ornate Mediterranean Revival style. After the collapse of the land boom due to the Great Depression and several hurricanes the design was scaled back to a more affordable $25,000 Classical Revival style building in 1927. The building was listed as a a local historical landmark in 1985, and added to the National Register of Historic Place in 1995. Between 2012 and 2014 money was raised by the club and added to a grant to prevent the clubhouse from sinking into the sand. Other cosmetic work was also completed on this charming historical building. In 2022 the Hollywood Women's Club celebrated their 100th anniversary. During this time further electrical improvements and upgrades to the kitchen were made. Today the clubhouse is available to be rented for private events. The 1,200 square foot main event room has hardwood floors and a grand piano and can accommodate 60 people. There is also a catering kitchen. Information on how to rent the clubhouse and join and volunteer with this important civic organization can be found on the club website. If there are any upcoming events you can find that information as well. For instance they hold 2 round bingo nights for $10. The next bingo night is May 30th and they serve inexpensive drinks including alcohol and snacks. For over 100 years the women of Hollywood have been coming together to improve their local community as well as the state of Florida. Women's clubs have a legacy of helping their communities and it's nice to see that this one is still going strong today.

We hosted my mother's 90th birthday party at this venue. We could not have found a more perfect…read moreplace to have celebrated. From the initial inquiry call 6 weeks out to the event day the staff was immediately responsive, informative, kind and knowledgeable. The restored Women's Club is run by a staff of loving, dedicated volunteers. Every question that I had as our plans developed were addressed with amazing speed. The venue has been beautifully restored and we were honored to have our celebration here. Would not hesitate to recommend the Hollywood Women's Club venue. Thank you to the team that made this venue beautiful and available to us.

The current exhibitions being shown in this museum are lovely. I love that they have a studio for…read morearts and crafts. We made some paper flowers after walking the entire museum. It was a lovely Sunday afternoon well spent. The art is abundant and very interesting

I haven't went to a museum in a while so I decided to come here one week day. The museum is quite…read moresmall and they have a cafe that serves food and beverages. To our surprise, one of the rooms was very bright and punk like with vulgar art--very captivating to the eyes lol. Another exhibit showed real life people captured in Miami decades ago, very nostalgic. I definitely wish the museum was bigger, I also didn't remember about the Rotunda outside and we weren't told about it upon entry either so that was our bad. Overall, good experience. We even got an almond croissant from the cafe before starting our tour--pretty good. I'd recommend as entry here is also free! :)