THE CORAL CAR - REEFLINE SERIES
A project in collaboration with REEFLINE Miami Beach
The Coral Car - REEFLINE Series marks artist Leandro Erlich's debut with Lladró Art Editions, a limited-edition collection that invites us to reflect on sustainability and the fragile balance of the natural world.
Created within the framework of Lladró's sustainability initiative, Conscious & Creative, this project pays tribute to the preservation of coral reefs, vital to maintaining the balance of ocean ecosystems.
The collaboration celebrates the dialogue between art and sustainability, transforming Erlich's concept of transmutation into tangible porcelain works that embody a shared commitment to harmony, innovation, and environmental preservation.
A percentage of the proceeds from this art project will be donated to support REEFLINE's cause.
REEFLINE is a pioneering underwater public sculpture park and hybrid reef off the coast of Miami Beach. Conceived by cultural placemaker Ximena Caminos and masterplanned with Shohei Shigematsu/OMA, REEFLINE brings together art, science, education, and community to enhance marine ecosystems, foster ocean literacy, and inspire global ocean stewardship. REEFLINE aims to plant thousands of corals on large-scale, site-specific underwater artworks, over the next decade while creating a blueprint for coastal cities worldwide — a living classroom where art, science, and education meet to empower future generations and collective action.
Partially funded by voter-approved $5 million City of Miami Beach Arts & Culture G.O. Bond, this 11-phase initiative seeks to raise $40 million to extend a living underwater corridor along seven miles of Miami Beach.
Leandro Erlich was born in Argentina in 1973 and lives and works between Paris, Buenos Aires and Montevideo.
A conceptual artist, his work explores the perceptual foundations of reality and our ability to question them through a visual language. The architecture of everyday life is a recurring theme in his practice, inviting a dialogue between what we believe and what we see, and bridging the gap between the museum or gallery space and daily experience.
THE INSPIRATION Concrete Coral – Artistic installation by Leandro Erlich at Miami Beach.
The Coral Car – REEFLINE Series draws inspiration from Erlich's artistic installation Concrete Coral for REEFLINE. "The central theme of Concrete Coral is based on the idea of transmutation. A series of aligned cars, as if in a traffic jam, becomes the foundational structure for coral reef regeneration. Industrial development over the past century has improved quality of life while also having a profound impact on ecosystems affected by human activity. In line with the idea that the planet requires actions to restore balance, Concrete Coral conveys that recovery is possible. The same ingenuity that has enabled us to achieve extraordinary advances, even to explore the cosmos, can also be applied to finding solutions for our planet.
Human action, often associated with the negative footprint on the Earth, can be redirected toward innovations that promote balance and regeneration."
— Leandro Erlich
"Transmutation becomes an act of redemption, transforming the fruits of human progress into a means to heal and renew our natural world."
— Leandro Erlich
Twenty-two marine-grade concrete cars beneath the waves. Studded with Coral Lok technology for fast, secure, and sustainable coral transplantation. Industrial icons reimagined as sanctuaries for ocean regeneration. Hope made real through art and nature.
THE WORK OF ART – The Coral Car – REEFLINE Series consists of only 175 units of the artwork Coral Car – REEFLINE (Sand). These creations continue the artistic journey that began in 2019 with Order of Importance, an installation by Leandro Erlich curated by Ximena Caminos, Founder and Artistic Director of REEFLINE. Installed on the shores of Miami Beach, that work featured cars and trucks sculpted in sand, an artistic statement in favor of ecosystem restoration that now finds a new chapter in the artist's underwater installation Concrete Coral.
Each piece in The Coral Car – REEFLINE Series is a masterpiece of high craftsmanship, featuring 1,418 hand-sculpted marine elements, from corals, tube sponges, and sea urchins to poriferans and algae, in shades of orange, red, green and salmon.
The composition is coated with exclusive sand-colored glazes that capture the beauty of our fragile underwater ecosystems, as if gently covered by a layer of ocean sand. A percentage of the proceeds from this art project will be donated to support REEFLINE's cause.
Marine elements:
293 corals, 167 tube sponges, 427 sea urchins, 467 soft coral, 2 starfish, 1 sea snail, 1 seashell, 37 poriferans, 23 algae.
Total 1.418
