Tent highlights Miami’s historic style at Red Bull event

A modern structure in a historic Miami Beach area.

The South Beach area in Miami, Fla., is known for more than its diet—it’s also home to the oldest Art Deco society in the world. For those planning a tented event in the area, that means one more entity that has to sign off on the structure before starting installation.

The Red Bull Art of Can’s nationwide hunt for creativity attracts artists from around the world to exhibit art inspired by the blue and silver Red Bull can. For the March 2010 event that took place on Ocean Drive in Miami, the host company needed a structure that could be associated with the brand’s image, allow for high visibility from the exterior and still be acceptable to the Miami Design Preservation League, which decides what events can take place in this area of South Beach. Eventstar Structures, Medley, Fla., designed a 28-foot-tall horseshoe-shaped structure with an exterior perimeter glass facade. The walls were constructed in a horseshoe shape, which provided for an outdoor lounge area, were constructed of an aluminum/grey color vinyl blockout material, and the facade—made of the same material—was accented at the top with the Red Bull brand image.

A combination of materials was used to construct the roof. Blockout material covered the area where audiovisuals were displayed and translucent material was used for the rest of the roof to allow natural light to play a role in the space.

The project required a minimum of 3,200 square feet of interior space and 1,200 square feet of outdoor space. Palm trees that were unevenly and asymmetrically spaced throughout the site created challenges for the structure’s design and installation. Eventstar conducted extensive and precise site surveys to assure a workable design. Uneven terrain was another challenge; each plate had to be installed to a 1/8-inch tolerance in both level and position.

The prominence of the location was both a benefit and a challenge. Both the host company and Eventstar gained high visibility from the event, but the city only allowed for two days to build the structure and one day to dismantle. The street was closed to through traffic and cranes were pre-positioned to help expedite the process. The two 70-ton cranes were used to lift the roof and then place all of the support columns.

More than 46,000 people walked through the 12-day event sampling about 25,000 cans and 17,500 shots of Red Bull.