Art Deco Alive! is a cross-continental celebration to mark the centenary of the Exposition International des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes (International Exposition of Decorative Arts and Modern Industries) of 1925, a landmark exhibition in Paris that birthed a new international design style that earned the moniker ‘Art Deco’.
Travelling to cities across the world through the 1920s and the ‘30s, Art Deco inspired architects, artists and designers from Mexico City to Shanghai.
Juxtaposing the twin tropical havens of Mumbai and Miami nine thousand miles apart, Art Deco Alive! spotlights the shared architectural legacy of the two cities that house the world’s largest surviving clusters of Deco-inspired buildings anywhere in the world.
Mumbai is home to flamboyant picture palaces, stately public buildings, and quaint private residences characteristic of the 1930s–50s style. South Mumbai’s Victorian Gothic and Art Deco Ensembles, designated as a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2018, are vindication of the city’s drive to hold onto its architectural diversity against gentrification and vacuous development. Miami has its South Beach masterpieces, fronted by its charming pastel hotels.
Art Deco Alive! honours this rich Indo-Latin cultural connection as reflected not just in design but also in music, food, dance and cinema.
Scheduled for October 2025 in Miami and November 2025 in Mumbai, the open-to-public festival’s schedule includes the Centennial Museum Exhibition curated in collaboration with Art Deco Mumbai Trust and the Miami Design Preservation League. It will offer visitors a global overview of the Art Deco style while focusing on the Mumbai-Miami juxtaposition through a comparison of their iconic buildings, design language, and pioneering architects.
The Art Deco Alive! Symposium sees architects, conservationists, creative catalysts and city administrators engage in dialogue. A discussion series, documentary screenings, workshops for kids, guided heritage tours, themed F&B pop-ups, and cultural performances make up the vibrant programming line-up.
We are Art Deco Alive! – a cultural movement that connects continents, celebrates history, and reimagines the future of heritage.
