A monumental mirrored orb will land on Miami Beach this December. The 28-foot-tall, 44-foot-wide sculpture, A Lore Supreme by Abu Dhabi-based artist Christopher Joshua Benton, will serve as a public gathering space during Art Basel Miami Beach week, installed on the sand behind the Faena Hotel from December 1 to 6.

The work will be made of 7,000 mirrored facets, evoking a spinning disco ball emblazoned with a reimagined map of the world. Benton's globe deliberately privileges the countries — across Africa, the Caribbean and Latin America — whose diasporas have shaped Miami's culture. Embedded speakers will play fragments of conversation and music gathered during the artist's research into the city's music scene, from disco and dancehall to dembow, descarga, salsa, house and techno. Benton has described Miami as a dance floor, a shared space where different cultures move alongside one another.

At sunset the sculpture becomes a performance venue under the umbrella of "Island Funk House," with wellness activities, sound documentaries and live events. Major Lazer will headline an exclusive mid-week concert at the site, and participating acts include Jacob Lusk, Richie Hell, DJ Le Spam, DJ Pressure Point and PaperWate. Chase Sapphire Reserve is supporting the programme, with cardmembers getting a sunset cocktail, dinner and afterparty on December 2.

This is Benton's first major installation in the United States. His practice combines research into dance and public space; he has worked on a Black dance archive with scientists from MIT's Immersion Lab, built a public park of astroturf carpet for the 2024 Public Art Abu Dhabi Biennial, and illuminated the facade of Dubai's Burj Khalifa.

Alongside the globe, Faena Art has commissioned Marinella Senatore's An Expanded Baroque Crown, a light installation at the Faena Cathedral inspired by Italian celebratory traditions, developed with the poetry organisation O, Miami. Both projects are free and open to the public — continuing Faena's tradition of large-scale Art Week commissions, which previously included a rotating-platform library by Es Devlin and an archive presentation by Marina Abramović.