Radisson Collection launches immersive botanical art exhibition at newly opened Milan hotel as part of their global Art Series initiative
4 July 2023
Radisson Collection today announces their newest art partner as part of the brand's continuing global Art Series - Studio Mary Lennox. The Studio has created an immersive botanical art installation at the recently opened Radisson Collection Hotel, Santa Sofia Milan, installed for the hotel's grand opening event last week. The exhibition is the latest in the Radisson Collection global Art Series, an ongoing series of collaborations with emerging contemporary artists to create immersive artwork highlighting iconic travel destinations through digital and social channels and on-site exhibitions at the hotels aimed at enriching the guest experience.
Radisson Collection - Radisson Hotel Group’s luxury lifestyle collection of iconic properties - is proud to extend the global Art Series initiative to the new medium of botanical art, adding to the current program ambassadors in the fields of illustration, photography and sculpture. Connecting guests to art and design is a signature part of the Radisson Collection brand experience, and each of the art collaborations sees Radisson Collection partner with a different emerging artist to create immersive artwork highlighting the iconic locations of the brand.
Known for dramatic floral and botanical styling from collaborations with luxury brands like Loro Piana, Rimowa, Gucci, Mercedes and many more, Studio Mary Lennox was invited to create artistic interventions across the ground floor of the new Radisson Collection Hotel, Santa Sofia Milan, as a tribute to Milan’s botanical urban landscape as well as its rich design scene. Incorporating the architectural styling of the hotel’s spaces, the exhibition takes inspiration from Milan’s colorful stained-glass windows and local florals. The artwork features pressed and dried specimens of flowers and plants such as wisteria, garden rose, jasmine, daisies and clematis to name a few, commonly found around the city’s gardens and parks. The ceiling skylights of the ground floor bar are decorated with a gestural “fresco” style pattern, featuring wild compositions of pressed florals and greenery. Together with the natural light, the pressed flower installations create a dance of light and floral shadows that evolves from dawn to dusk. The exhibition extends from the hotel lobby into the hotel’s Sofia Kitchen & Bar and will be in place for the next 6 months for guests and locals alike to enjoy.
In keeping with the botanical theme, the hotel has also created a new signature beverage, the Inti Por Vida, incorporating a unique twist on the classic Pisco Sour cocktail including floral and botanical elements such as chamomile and bay leaves syrup. Reflecting the Radisson Collection ethos of facilitating authentic local experiences for guests, a self-guided botanical walking tour of Milan has also been created by the hotel. The map is available for guests from the hotel concierge and offers a thematic lens through which to discover and explore Milan while highlighting floral-themed local bars, restaurants, and hidden gardens within walking distance of the Radisson Collection Hotel, Santa Sofia Milan. The floral itinerary can also be discovered via the @radissoncollection Instagram account.
“We’re thrilled to launch this collaboration with Studio Mary Lennox. Our hotel is very much rooted in Milan’s vibrant local culture and this exhibition brings together art and nature in a delightful way that I’m proud to showcase to both guests and locals.” says Marco Scola, General Manager, Radisson Collection Hotel, Santa Sofia Milan.
“We were inspired by the beautiful natural light in the hotel which creates an ever-changing game of light and shadow throughout the course of the day. Pressed and preserved behind plexiglass, the vibrant colors of the flowers are concentrated, and the distinctive shape of each unique plant is accentuated. The play of light and shadow creates beautiful floral silhouettes reflected on the walls and floors to achieve a dramatic effect. We are excited for guests of the hotel to discover the exhibition during their stay at the hotel.” says Ruby Barber, the founder of Studio Mary Lennox.
The art installation was created to celebrate the recent opening of Radisson Collection Hotel, Santa Sofia Milan. The hotel features 159 guest rooms and suites in a newly renovated building knows as a 1960s landmark in the city. The building was originally the headquarters of Allianz Italy and maintains the original trachyte-clad façade and a characteristic oxidized copper pitch roof with an entirely transformed interior decorated in an aesthetic of elegant maximalism inspired by classic Milanese mansions.
Radisson Collection Hotel, Santa Sofia Milan is the fifth hotel of the luxury lifestyle brand in Italy and benefits from a central Milan location halfway between Piazza del Duomo and the famous Navigli canal district. The hotel lobby and reception area, throughout the adjacent co-working spaces, and in the hotel’s all-day dining restaurant, Sofia Kitchen & Bar, guests experience an eclectic mix of contrasting elements from different eras of Milanese history. Sofia Kitchen & Bar occupies a space in the former courtyard of the building, now covered by a glass roof, where damask and oriental motifs, as well as art nouveau and modern objects create a new living room for the Milanese, taking inspiration from the green of Milanese fountains, streetcars, and 1960s taxis.
Radisson Collection has a strong heritage of connecting with art and design dating back to the SAS Royal Hotel in Hammerichsgade, designed by Arne Jacobsen, one of the greatest Danish architects of the twentieth century which later became the Radisson Collection Royal Hotel, Copenhagen, as it is known today. Today, art and design are recurring signature elements in Radisson Collection hotels, which feature art from both local and internationally celebrated artists. Following the success of the global Art Series up to date, Radisson Collection will continue working with a collection of new artists to continue to take guests on a unique journey across Radisson Collection destinations through the diverse mediums of art.
