US art collector and real estate developer Craig Robins is channeling millions of dollars into a scheme to nuture artistic talent from around the world with virtually free courses here.

"I'm very committed to Miami and I want to invest in Miami as a cultural center. 'Art + Research' is what Miami needs," Robins, an influential figure in the cultural and architectural resurgence of Miami Beach, told AFP.

Robins is largely credited with persuading organizers of Art Basel to create a second show outside of Switzerland in Miami, which has become one of the major cultural highlights in the US and is fast eclipsing the European event.

Now he is planning a two-year residency program at the University of Miami, determined to provide through his "Art + Research" scheme the facilities and resources budding artists need to get their foot on the ladder.

The faculty will oversee up to 25 artists every two years who will follow an overall theme such as painting, video, fabric-printing or photography.

This will be a "program that won't be burdened by a traditional notion. So there won't be any daily classes, it's not nine to five. This is a comprehensive program that has been designed to be fluid and flexible, to inspire," Robins said.

The goal is for tuition to be free. "We are budgeting six million dollars to cover the costs over the first three years plus a million dollars for facilities," he added.

The budget would allow for 12 emerging artists in residence, and the facilities are due to be contributed by his real estate company Dacra.

The program will be overseen by an international staff of accomplished artists, curators and critics.

They include British artist Liam Gillick, who has been exhibited at the Guggenheim Museum and the 50th Venice Biennale, and Guadalupe Echevarria, director of the Ecole de Beaux Arts de Bordeaux, one of France's leading art schools.

The program, slated to begin in 2009, has now been pushed back to 2010 but Robins is optimistic and excited about its future impact on the Miami and international art scene.

Robins is also the founder of Design Miami, the furniture-as-art exhibit that runs concurrent to Art Basel in Miami and Switzerland each year.

Robins's private contemporary collection includes works from John Baldessari, Richard Tuttle, Marlene Dumas, Paul McCarthy and Mike Kelley as well as design pieces by leading architects and furniture designers.