From guest room to gallery, hotels use art as marketing tool
Harvey Chipkin, Travel Weekly, 7/31/2007
Will the hotel concierge be replaced by the hotel curator?
Not anytime soon, but a growing number of hotels are embracing art and art programs as a way to "paint" a certain image of themselves and to distinguish their product from competitors.
And, yes, some hotels have gone so far as to hire curators to deal with their art collections.
The Sagamore Hotel in Miami, for example, has a private, rotating art gallery of contemporary art that has been built up over the past 15 years. The curator is hotel co-owner Christine "Cricket" Taplin.
The trend is seen by observers as part of the evolution of lifestyle hotels, which seek to lure younger travelers with a feeling and an attitude rather than services and amenities, which have become similar across many brands.
While there has always been art in hotels, operators are installing original and commissioned works. They are even employing artists-in-residence programs to add to the guest experience.
Kathleen Robb, director of sales for XV Beacon in Boston, a luxury boutique property, said that art in the hotel was commissioned "to help build the image of the hotel.
"We have local artists, modern pieces, 14th century mosaics and traditional pieces all working together," Robb said.
In Miami, the Sagamore bills itself as "Sagamore, the Art Hotel." Artwork is on display, including paintings, photography, sculpture and video art. The Sagamore's concierge can also arrange VIP tours of private collections and museums in Miami.
Frequently, hotels that undergo renovation move toward the artistic to appeal to a changing marketplace.
In New York, the Shoreham, which had been a traditional midtown property, was reborn as a "Zen-meets-modern sanctuary" that features five screens embedded in the lobby walls that host a changing selection of interactive video art.
Making the Shoreham's art personal, a selection of photographs were blown up and slipped behind glass to be used as headboards for guest room beds.
"In today's environment of overbranding and concept flash, art provides insight rather than advertising," said a spokesman for the Shoreham. "New York may spin at the speed of light, but the art provides a chance to slow down."
Ian Schrager had maverick artist Julian Schnabel design his lavish Gramercy Park Hotel, which features works by Schnabel as well as contemporary artists like Andy Warhol, Jean-Michel Basquiat and Cy Twombly.
One new hotel group has even taken the name the Gallery. Each Gallery location will feature a dedicated photography gallery.
"The Gallery forges a vital connection between the expression of luxury with art and photography," according to the hotel's launch announcement.
The launch of the Gallery was held at the International Center of Photography in New York amid a series of photographs taken by photographer Gary Whitaker, who was commissioned to "capture the core elements and emotion of the resort experience."
Hotels below the luxury level also are using art as a marketing tool.
Patrick O'Neil, senior vice president of operations for the new NYLO brand, which will open its first property in Plano, Texas, in December, said, "Art enables us to become part of the community. It's a way to differentiate our brand and to become more entrenched and localized than other brands."
The Plano property is working with the Dallas Institute of Art to run a contest for local artists. Winners' work will be displayed in the hotel. Like an art gallery, the work will be for sale, and 90% of the revenue will go to the artist. The remainder will go to charities.
For NYLO, art is a natural fit as accommodations will have an urban-loft design.
Some hotels have taken the artistic outreach to extremes. The Gladstone in Toronto rents artist studios by the day, week or month. The studios, all located on one floor, feature 14-foot ceilings, track lighting and large windows.
The new Max Hotel in Seattle turned a tired property into a "showcase for local artists." Entire hallways are given over to individual photographers, every guest room has an original painting and the minibar sells "Maximalism," a published catalog of the hotel's artwork with contact information for each artist.
 Some hotels have become veritable museums. For instance, the Langham Place Hotel in Hong Kong houses more than 1,500 pieces of contemporary Chinese art, from sculpture to paintings to drawings. (Time magazine called the hotel "the best art gallery masquerading as a hotel.")
At Le Meridien Tahiti, there is an on-site artists' space called L'Atelier that offers exhibitions as well as opportunities to meet with the artists themselves. Guests can participate in art workshops and create their own works to take home.
The Hilton Anatole Dallas, like the Sagamore, is owned by art collectors. They display a significant portion of their art at the convention hotel -- more than 1,000 pieces in public areas and guest rooms.
Some of the works once graced royal palaces in China, Japan, India and southeast Asia, dating as far back as the fifth century B.C.
The hotel also offers self-guided audio and group tours.
"The art serves as our identity," said Tom Faust, the Anatole's director of sales and marketing. "People identify the Anatole as an art gallery with a hotel attached."
Faust said when meeting planners arrive for site inspections, "we can talk about more than the dimensions of the ballroom; we can talk about the feel of the hotel."
"Meetings are trying to accomplish a business goal, and our venue can set the stage for that. Holding a meeting here makes a statement," said Faust, adding that the art has "definitely driven customer demand."
The Shoreham spokesman said, "Guest reaction has been favorable as the art creates a sense of place for them. In turn, that establishes loyalty, because guests leave with additional experiences and memories."
Robb at XV Beacon also said she believed guests stayed at the hotel because of the art.
"We have guests who stay here because they are amateur art collectors, designers or architects who appreciate what the art brings to the look and feel of the hotel," she said. "We have groups coming to the city for art tours who stay with us because it is an extension of their visit."
Procuring, displaying and maintaining art can be pricey. But hoteliers believe the cost is well worth it.
"Yes, it is an expensive undertaking," Robb said. "But it certainly helps with marketing and cachet."
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