Arte Surfside

The exclusive, and exceptionally private, Arte Surfside stands out for its refined understatement while providing extensive amenities and facilities far beyond what is usually offered even by comparable ultra-luxury buildings today. Designed by Antonio Citterio and Patricia Viel, who have helmed their Milan-based architecture practice for the past five decades, Arte’s Italian DNA doesn’t scream like the whir of a Vespa, but whispers like the unmistakable grace of a principessa.

The structure itself appears to rise from the ground like a rough-hewn wedge of ancient travertine, becoming a contemporary Rock of Gibraltar in the tiny oceanfront town of Surfside, Florida. The facade, which is lined in slabs of that rich, sensuous, and slightly raw stone is accentuated with a gridded bronze Schuco window system and broad expanses of sliding glass doors. Meanwhile, the landscape design is by Enea Garden Design, a renowned Swiss landscape architecture firm that has established a significant presence in Miami in recent years, with multiple notable projects.

Arte has ample and extensive amenities, especially for a smaller, boutique building. Across Collins Avenue, an annex building contains the parking and bulk of the amenities, allowing more of the oceanfront tower to be devoted to residential units, taking full advantage of ocean views without the necessity of building a towering monolith. Within both towers is a surprising Xanadu of recreational options, including a 75-foot indoor lap pool lined in travertine and onyx, an oceanfront outdoor swimming pool with an adjacent meditation pond, a sauna, a steam room, a children’s playroom, a state-of-the-art fitness center, a yoga studio, a rooftop tennis court with James Bollettieri programming, a residents lounge with catering kitchen, and what the marketing materials elegantly call a “dedicated pet runway and relief corridor.” Again, like a principessa, Arte is never vulgar.

Arte’s extremely well appointed residence interiors offer Great Rooms with wide-plank European white oak floors in a brushed pearl finish, travertine accent walls, recessed ceilings with indirect lighting, and corner balconies. Floor-to-ceiling glass windows open to expansive, deep terraces with Brazilian Ipe wood decking, and travertine ceilings. Magnificent kitchens offer cenere oak Poliform cabinets, white marble countertops, and bronze accents. Gaggenau appliances include gas stoves and full-height wine refrigerators. Master baths offer custom oak vanities with honed white Byron marble and brushed bronze finishes - designed to be spa-like retreats. They also have Roman travertine floors and sculptural soaking tubs. Residence floor plans are designed to maintain privacy between bedrooms and the entertaining areas of the home. Bronze hardware and detailing, as well as architectural travertine, are seen throughout. These details show just how much Citterio and Viel drew inspirations from classic European apartments of the 1920s and ’30s, a time when grand living and high modernist architecture became bedfellows.

Arte is located in the heart of Surfside, FL, a small, almost quaint seaside community in the heart of the Greater Miami metropolis. In this town of smaller scale architecture, home buyers are finding surroundings of relaxed, bespoke luxury. The Four Seasons Surf Club, which offers a private club, a hotel, and the Surf Club Restaurant by Thomas Keller, is two doors down from Arte. Meanwhile, Bal Harbour Shops, a few blocks north, offers an unrivaled collection of luxury boutiques, and restaurants such as Makoto and Hillstone’s that can always be relied on for a great meal. The beach walk, which extends from South Pointe to the northern tip of Bal Harbour to both locations, links everything effortlessly together.