Did you know that Melbourne has a new designer boutique hotel? Must admit this one kind of crept up on me... I had heard whispers... but didn't realise The Cullen opened this month!
The Cullen is a $48 million(!!), 115-room hotel, and is the first in a series of six proposed Art Series Hotels - a $300 million hotel group conceived by property developer Will Deague. Each hotel is inspired by and named after a prominent Australian Artist - The Cullen takes its name and inspiration from artist Adam Cullen.
Adam Cullen is one of Australia's most collectible artists, and is best known for winning the Archibald prize in 2000 with a portrait of David Wenham. Seven of Cullen's large-scale artworks grace the walls of the hotel foyer, other works and digital prints feature elsewhere in the hotel, and glass screens in each room are watermarked with Cullen's drawings. Each room also features designer details including Kartell ghost chairs and glossy design book! And apparently the hotel also has bikes and smart cars decorated with Cullen's work for guests to hire. Ooh la la!
Well I must say, I think Melbourne is sorely lacking in the boutiqe hotel department. Although I am not sure if a 6-storey, 115 room hotel counts as 'boutique'. Anyway, it looks pretty snazzy, and it doesn't seem too expensive. It'll be interesting to see how the other 5 Art Series Hotels unfold. Next in line is The Olsen in South Yarra, named after celebrated painter John Olsen, which is due to open its doors in March.
Great photos! And i love the concept. I got really excited that Hu Tong is opening there- the best dumplings ever! Is The Storrier Hotel by the same group?
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry... this reeks of bogan tacky!
ReplyDeleteWent there for breakfast last weekend, the food was ok, good coffee, but the service was far too casual for a 5 star hotel.
ReplyDeleteI suspect many of the finishes and fittings have also been done on the cheap as one of the bathroom taps had nearly fallen off!
Hi
ReplyDeleteIt's Emma from Art Series Hotels, I'm the Marketing, Brand and Innovation manager here. Thanks so much for your comments.
I'm sure you did find a few niggly things, being in our infancy with only launching officially this week there is still some maintenance fine tuning we're working through.
All in all we've had a fabulous response from guests and visitors.
Hu Tong Dumpling Bar opens tomorrow and we're all excited to get involved in sharing some duck from the specially imported duck oven.
The Cullen Hotel prides itself on being authentic to the values of Adam Cullen. We provide genuine, down to earth service in an unpretentious manner.
Please do share your thoughts so we can consider your feedback to improve.
Thanks goodness for good coffee!
Cheers
Emma
this snuck up on me so much that i never heard as much as a whisper - never heard of it! thanks for the head's up, luscious lucy. x
ReplyDeleteHi Lucy,
ReplyDeleteWhat - thanks a lot for the tip. I'm actually coming to Melbourne this weekend and I'm using your blog as a source of inspiration for places to visit and things to do. And we've booked at the Cullen Hotel, can't wait to check it out!