Best Permanent Exhibits In South Florida

Museums across South Florida provide experiences that enhance one’s knowledge and understanding of a variety of topics, including art, science and local history. Oftentimes, traveling exhibits are the focal point of museum visits, but it’s the permanent exhibits that make our local museums permanent fixtures in the community. From flowing and creative works of art, to tangible historical artifacts, to interactive mechanisms giving you a hands-on feel of the lesson being taught, South Florida’s permanent exhibits successfully educate, entertain and inform, and continue to make their imprint on South Florida culture.

Museum of Contemporary Art North Miami

770 N.E. 125th St.
North Miami, FL 33161
(305) 893-6211
www.mocanomi.org

The focus of this museum is to make contemporary art accessible to everyone in the South Florida community. MOCA’s permanent exhibits and collection of art are a constant that reflect the innovation and creative spirit of the artists and the museum itself. Jack Pierson’s “Paradise” and Mark Handforth’s “Electric Tree at Griffing Park” highlight the use of abstract design, color and illuminating light. MOCA’s art collection is comprised of over 600 works and features artwork by Edward Ruscha, Dennis Oppenhim and Zoe Leonard.

HistoryMiami

101 W. Flagler St.
Miami, FL 33130
(305) 375-1492
www.historymiami.org

This iconic local history museum, its staff and partners successfully carry out its mission to educate locals and visitors about Miami’s long and rich history. Through its exhibitions, the museum presents and preserves the different elements of the city’s history and uses them as cultural educational tools, fully accessible to the community. HistoryMiami’s permanent exhibit is “Tropical Dreams: A People’s History of South Florida.” This exhibit takes you on a journey from past to present, highlighting important events and elements like the first settlers and how it gained the reputation as the “gateway to the Americas.”

Museum Of Discovery & Science

401 S.W. 2 St.
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33312
(954) 467-6637
www.mods.org

Scientific education and experience through exciting, cutting-edge presentation is the mission of this Ft. Lauderdale museum. People can learn about science as it relates to the Earth and the human body (some of its permanent exhibits demonstrate the correlation in both). Among the five permanent exhibits at the museum are “Living in the Everglades,” a mission to teach and inform the public on efforts to restore and preserve the Florida Everglades. “Powerful You” displays the wonders of the human body, featuring the use of interactive elements that teach on the body and health. The “Minerals Rock Exhibit” showcases the importance of minerals in the human body and in nature.

Related: The Best Museums In Miami

Fort Lauderdale Antique Car Museum

1527 Packard Ave. (S.W. 1st Ave.)
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33315
(954) 779-7300
www.antiquecarmuseum.org

Right here in South Florida is a tangible piece of America’s proud industrial history. The museum pays tribute to the engineering genius of the Packard Motor Company, showcasing car models manufactured over a 40-plus year span. Throughout the museum are permanent exhibits of Packard Motor Company car models, including the 1909 Packard Model 18 Speedster, the 1924 Packard Model 2-26 Sedan and the 1947 Model 2111 Clipper 8 Deluxe Custom Truck. The building is a replica of a Packard showroom and is decorated with thousands of pieces of collected and donated memorabilia.

Miami Science Museum

3280 S. Miami Ave.
Miami, FL 33129
(305) 646-4200
www.miamisci.org

For over 60 years, the Miami Science Museum has been dedicated to providing Miami and South Florida with direct access to science and technology education. While the museum is widely known for its planetarium, it also attracts a large number of visitors with its collection of innovative permanent exhibits. Among them is the “Energy Tracker,” a fully interactive exhibition of energy, its uses and its effects. “Hurricanes” offers an up-close encounter with the natural disaster, featuring a real Hurricane Hunter aircraft and artifacts from Hurricane Andrew. The age-old “braun vs. brain” challenge is explored in the “Moving Things” exhibit, a hands-on experience teaching from a scientific point of view how things move.

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For nearly 20 years, Shawanda James has been actively involved in creative writing in Miami, Florida. In addition to her work as a freelance writer, she is actively seeking publication for her debut novel and collection of poetry. Her work can be found at Examiner.com.