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In celebration of Italian American Heritage Month, A Fish Called Avalon will host an exhibition of Italian American Icons, featuring 14 award-winning mosaic portraits from Italy’s internationally renowned Scuola Mosaicisti del Friuli. Founded in 1922 in the small town of Spilimbergo in the Friuli Venezia Giulia region in Northeast Italy, the mission of the school is to preserve the ancient art of mosaics while combining new, innovative techniques. The works will be on display beginning October 1st through November 6th at A Fish Called Avalon, located in the Avalon Hotel, 700 Ocean Drive, Miami Beach. (305) 532-1727.
The beautifully crafted mosaics were created using ancient techniques that go back centuries and were produced in over 5,000 distinct colors in the antique furnaces of Venice and Murano. The collection is dedicated to the portrayal of Italian Americans who have distinguished themselves in their chosen professions.
On display will be portraits of Gianni Versace, Al Pacino, Frank Sinatra, Luciano Pavarotti, Martin Scorsese, Lady Gaga, Bradley Cooper, Sylvester Stallone, Alicia Keys, John Turturro, Monica Bellucci, Kobe Bryant, Sophia Loren and Leonardo DiCaprio. Each piece takes about three months to create, incorporating 200-300 individually cut pieces of glass, along with stone, plastic, wood and cloth, all melding together to form an impressionistic work of art.
Miami Connections — Many of the Italian American personalities depicted have ties to South Florida, most notably Gianni Versace, who lived (and sadly died) just four blocks from the Avalon. In Scarface, starring Al Pacino, Miami Beach’s Art Deco District – and the Avalon – served as the backdrop in many of the film’s scenes. Luciano Pavarotti made his operatic debut in Miami alongside Joan Sutherland in Florida Grand Opera’s 1965 production of Lucia di Lammermoor, and he also had a home on Fisher Island. Sophia Loren has a home on Williams Island, and then there is Frank Sinatra, whose Rat Pack’s frolics on Miami Beach helped to put the Fontainebleau on the world map.
View a video showing the creation of the Pavarotti mosaic portrait here: https://youtu.be/9_vbs5loIlY
The Italian American Icons collection was conceived and curated by Guglielmo Zanette, artistic director of Naonis Cultural Association, a non-profit organization in Italy dedicated to support talented young artists in Friuli Venezia Giulia. This is only the second time that the mosaics will be shown in the US, following their 2021 debut at the Marin Museum of Contemporary Art. Mr. Zanette will be in Miami for the exhibition and will be available to conduct private tours and/or collaborate with local cultural institutions. If making a dinner reservation at A Fish Called Avalon for a party of four or more, guests are invited to ask if Mr. Zanette would be available to meet with them to provide details about the process and the individual artists.
With its generous wall space, A Fish Called Avalon has proven to be an ideal venue to showcase various artists and art collections. In 2021, as part of the City of Miami Beach’s No Vacancy program, the restaurant featured a five-foot sculpture of a slice of Chef Kal Abdalla’s award-winning Pecan Crusted Key Lime Pie. Created by Miami artist Gianna DiBartolomeo, the piece was bejeweled with more than 10,000 multi-colored sequins, beads and pins, illuminated by LED lights as the pie rotated on a six-foot plate.
The previous year, New York artist Birgit Rathsmann transformed the façade of the Avalon Hotel into a living projection screen for “Room for Storms” during Art Week Miami Beach, featuring an entire season of satellite hurricane footage from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). And, as it is in the heart of the Art Deco District, the Avalon was the ideal locale for showcasing Miami Beach artist Sid Daniels’ Art Deco-inspired artwork in 2019’s “Art at the Avalon”.
Please note that on Monday, October 3rd, reservations will be limited to outdoor seating, as the restaurant is hosting a private event with Guglielmo Zanette presenting the mosaic portraits and featuring Italian arias by a vocalist from the Florida Grand Opera, a sponsor of the event along with Alessandro Berselli Wines, miamiartzine.com and Robbins Global Innovations.
The public is invited to view the Italian American Icons exhibition October 1st through November 6th. A Fish Called Avalon is open 7 days a week, 5:30pm – 10pm Sunday through Thursday, and 5:30pm– 11pm on Fridays and Saturdays. Reservations are recommended. (305) 532-1727 www.afishcalledavalon.com
