Fine Art Turns Up the Heat at Manhattan's Hudson Hotel

Art Business News, March, 2001 by Vanessa Silberman

NEW YORK--Years ago, the average art found in a hotel lobby or guest room was a poster or limited-edition print featuring a floral motif, seascape or maybe a mother and child frolicking at the shore. A bit drab, perhaps, but no one expected more from a hotel.

Today all that has changed. More and more hotels are recognizing that customers appreciate fine art and are incorporating it into their designs as a key selling point. Travelers want more than just a place to lie their head once they hit their destination--they want an experience--and original art is often a means to make their hotel visit unforgettable.

Hotelier, trendsetter and former owner of the famed Studio 54 night club in New York Ian Schrager caught on to this idea a number of years ago. As far back as 1982, when he commissioned Robert Mapplethorpe to do original photographs for the Morgan's Hotel, Schrager has incorporated art into the design of his hotels. "I think art is very important in hotels," said Schrager, who is chairman and c.e.o. of Ian Schrager Hotels (ISH). "The same way we appreciate art that we live with and look at--the emotion and poetry of it and the way it moves us--is the same way it gives an added dimension to a hotel or any public space."

So unique was Morgan's that the term "boutique hotel" originated with that project and the name has stuck for Schrager's subsequent hotels, including the Paramount and Royalton in New York, the Delano in Miami, the Mondrian in Los Angeles, St. Martins Lane and Sanderson in London and, most recently, the Hudson Hotel in New York. The look of each "boutique hotel" is completely unique and features a blending of art, design and style.

The Hudson

"Throughout all our projects, in one way or another, some sort of artistic endeavor was involved...although perhaps never as prominent as what we did at the Hudson" Schrager said.

Indeed, the Hudson Hotel, which opened during the fall of 2000, does appear to be his most ambitious hotel involving art to date. Designed by Schrager and world-renowned designer Philippe Starck (their fifth collaboration), the Hudson features a hand-painted ceiling mural by Francesco Clemente in the dazzling hotel bar, Clemente-designed lamps in each guest room and Jean Baptiste Mondino photographs in the hotel library--all of which were created exclusively for the Hudson.

The hotel also features an eclectic array of designer furniture, from carved, wooden African stools to silver-leaf Louis XV furniture. "It's like the leftovers from the castle--a mixture of what you inherit from your grandmother along with new pieces," said Anda Andrei, president of design for ISH.

The theme of the Hudson is similar to a college campus run amuck: "The inspiration ... is like a university campus, with the library and cafeteria, but then it is taken over by a group of wild kids who play with it and turn everything upside down," said Andrei. "Each place has a twist, like the lobby's chandelier designed by Ingo Mauer that has holograms instead of bulbs ... and the bar's glass floor is lit from beneath."

Selecting the Artists

The youthful exuberance of the Hudson is complemented by the choice of artists whose work is playfully scattered throughout the building.

How did Schrager choose the artists? First and foremost, Schrager looked for artists who shared a similar vision. "We've always had a disposition of getting artists, not just for the sake of something unrelated to the project, but going to an artist who we thought was consistent with the project," he said.

"I'm always looking for new ways that art can bring more excitement and dimension to the hotel, provided that it is environmental and something you live with--not just something hung on the wall," he continued. "For me, in order for it to work, the art needs to be integrated into the whole project."

According to Schrager, the decision to commission Clemente for the ceiling mural and lamps was an easy one. "I love Clemente's work, and I thought a ceiling mural would be appropriate for the place and location. For me, a lot of Clemente's work has sexual undertones, and I thought it would fit in perfectly in the bar."

He continued: "There's an element of spirituality in Clemente's work ... With the lamps we were trying to say to our guests that when they are in their lonely, anonymous hotel rooms ... there is somebody there with them. That is what we tried to get out of his work."

For the library, Schrager believed the "irreverence" of photographer Jean Baptiste Mondino was necessary to complement the space which, filled with traditional elements like books, computers, a billiard table and fireplace, would otherwise take on a serious tone. In order to add an element of fun to the room, they gave Mondino a free hand. "What is amazing to me," said Schrager, "is that he [Mondino] went ahead on his own and photographed cows, putting them in an absurd situation with all these designer hats by Chanel and Christian Dior."

"At that particular moment, cows seemed to be in the air everywhere," Schrager continued. "We had an exhibit of cows throughout the city of New York, and we had mad cow disease running rampant throughout Europe. In the middle of all this, we commissioned an artist to create something, and what do we get? We get a reflection of the collective consciousness with the cows!"