Miami, Florida, USA
“Much like the Moai figures on Easter Island, they are an expression of identity and culture on Miami Beach,” states William Lane.
Miami-based architect William Lane reinvents the typical lifeguard towers creating cartoonish, almost anthropomorphic, and colorful structures throughout Miami Beach.
The architect has completed all 36 towers encompassing six original silhouettes and combinations of six color palettes.
Each tower is placed along a seven-mile stretch, from the southern tip of Miami Beach to the northern edge of 87th Street.
With a compact 260 sq ft footprint, all towers sit about 2.4m above ground and feature an overhang of around 1.2m that provides shade for the lifeguards.
The timber structures are topped by a contoured standing-seam aluminum roof.
This can easily roll and bend to provide “unique profiles,” the architect say, adding to the character of each tower.
“They are activators of public space – in this case of the beach. They are anthropomorphic and provide the shoreline with a unique formation of characters that are an expression for the identity and culture of the region,” says Lane.
“Through the complex strata of their forms – biomorphic, techno-fluid, phosphorescent, retro-future and even art deco – the Miami Beach lifeguard towers create a layered and lyrical set of cultural artifacts that are specific to a place, yet universal in meaning,” the architect continues.
Project: Life Guard Towers
Architects: William Lane Architect
Client: City of Miami Beach
Photographers: William Lane Architect
