Developer Michael Shvo will unveil a LaLanne exhibit at the Raleigh hotel in Miami Beach ahead of Art Basel, a move that draws parallels to his marketing efforts at the Getty in New York City.
Les LaLanne at The Raleigh Gardens will open later this month at a private party to be held at the historic hotel, at 1775 Collins Avenue, which has been shuttered since 2017.
The exhibit will likely feature gorilla sculptures by Claude Lalanne and François-Xavier Lalanne, and will be part of Peter Marino’s and Raymond Jungles’ designed gardens.
Developers typically pull out all the stops during Art Basel Miami Beach, hosting over-the-top events to attract wealthy buyers.
Shvo hosted a preview of the gardens, with a gorilla sculpture at The Real Deal’s sixth annual Miami Real Estate Showcase & Forum, held at Mana Wynwood in Miami last month. Jungles also designed that installation as a jungle.
In 2013, Shvo and Paul Kasmin Gallery unveiled the Sheep Station, a François-Xavier Lalanne exhibit with 25 epoxy stone and bronze sheep at the former Getty filling station in Chelsea.
Victor Group and Shvo developed the Getty, which was the most expensive new boutique development to arrive on the West Side of New York City. In 2014, private equity executive Robert F. Smith paid roughly $59 million for a penthouse at the development, marking the priciest deal that had closed in Downtown Manhattan.
Shvo, along with Bilgili Group and Deutsche Finance Group, bought the 83-room Raleigh for $103 million from Tommy Hillfiger and Dogus Group this summer. The developer also purchased the Richmond Hotel and the South Seas Hotel, two Art Deco properties on the same block as the Raleigh. In all, the investors paid $242.85 million for the three hotels.
Shvo wants to build a slender, 200-foot residential tower behind the Richmond and the South Seas.
In late July, the Miami Beach City Commission endorsed a proposed ordinance that would allow property owners who control 115,000 square feet of land to build “ground level additions” up to 200 feet high in the RM-3 zoning district between 16th and 21st streets. Combined, the three properties sit on more than 125,000 square feet of land.