Urban Studios at 420 Lincoln Road, Miami Beach 

The College of Architecture + The Arts’ Miami Beach Urban Studios (MBUS) is located on Lincoln Road, the iconic pedestrian shopping street designed by Morris Lapidus in the 50s. MBUS offers FIU students and faculty access to Miami Beach's burgeoining arts and design culture as well as  practical experience with design firms and arts organizations throughout the city.

During our Happy Hour at MBUS we will enjoy refreshments and 

• tour the  practice and performance spaces for music and theatre students and gallery/exhibition spaces
• view an in-depth sampling of the current exhibitions
• learn about the special history of Lincoln Road and the iconic 420 building
• meet and mingle with other Barnard/Columbia alumni, including distinguished graduates of the Columbia Architecture program who are active at Urban Studios

Our Special Host:  John A. Stuart holds a Masters of Architecture from Columbia University (1991). He also has  an MA in Archaeology from Princeton, and undergraduate degrees from Brown University. He is now the Associate Dean for Cultural and Community Engagement, the Director of Miami Beach Urban Studios, and a Professor at FIU.  Stuart is the recipient of honors including a Wolfsonian Research Fellowship and the Miami AIA Award for Excellence in Design, and has also authored several books. One  of these,  “The New Deal in South Florida,” provides a fascinating view of  the formation of 1930s Miami including the construction of the  Liberty Square Projects (also known as "Pork 'n' Beans", these buildings are now due to be razed). Stuart now presides over a extensive variety of research topics: sea level rise, world potable water shortages, aging in place, health, prosthetics, mobility.  The latest addition to the mix at at Miami Beach Urban Studios: a MakerBot Innovation Center, providing leading 3D printer technology to artists, musicians, designers and  entrepreneurs.