How often have you heard that we all need art in our homes and workspace? Upon hearing, do you immediately assume that person is trying to sell you art?
Well, take it from me (someone who has absolutely no authority on the matter–but who isn’t trying to sell you anything), being surrounded by art is like a warm bowl of soup for your psyche. As my girl Anne of Green Gables would say, it provides such scope for the imagination.
A few weeks ago, I was lucky enough to stay at Proper Hotel in Santa Monica. Talk about a place to let your mind wander. As you walk from building to building, the lobby into the dinning areas, to the amazing rooftop bar and pool area above, there are a million beautiful and odd things to gaze upon, offering a nice jolt of creativity and awe.
The entire space was reimagined by the brilliant mind of Kelly Wearstler. (Follow her on instagram for more inspiration.) It quite eclectically revolves around a gorgeous building from the 1920s meshed with out-of-the-ordinary contemporary construction.
Take a visual tour with me. Keep your eyes peeled. Every nook and cranny of this joint has a little optical entertainment.
the diverse furnishings of the Proper lobby
inside Palma restaurant on the 1st floor of Proper 
the exterior of the hotel waving helloÂ
the Calabra rooftop bar and pool
360° views of Santa Monica from the deck of Calabra
the coolest pool gate I ever did see
even the gym was artfully pieced together 
inside my first hotel room, in the older portion of the hotel, built in the 1920s
What do you think of this 70s vibe?
views from my second hotel room, in the newly constructed portion of the hotelÂ
What I love most about Kelly Wearstle’s work is how sculptural every room feels. You step into one of her environments, realizing that ordinary objects like chairs or elevator carpeting, have the potential to be art. Stay in a Proper hotel for a week, and you won’t see a door handle as a means to an end, but as a piece of carefully crafted metal with an intent grander than simply allowing you to pass through.
Wearstle creates such a fun interplay between different planes. Humor and the absurd have a home in her design. That brings me to my next set of pictures from the LA area.
I had the unique chance to see 348 West 22nd Street by Do Ho Suh (2011–15) at the LA County Museum of Art. It’s a life-size replica of the artist’s New York apartment. The rooms and everything inside are entirely constructed of translucent fabric, allowing you to see through one intricate interior rendition to the next.
Suh, born in South Korea in 1962, immigrated to the US in 1991. Since then, he’s traveled and lived around the world. This ever transitioning lifestyle created an entirely new concept of home for the artist. That influenced his work as Suh made multiple recreations of his different homes over the years.
Take another virtual tour, really thinking about the sculptural aspect of interior spaces. Note each little detail from the posted notice, to the coils on the stove, to the involved intricacies of the window unit.
What are your thoughts? Does it make you see these two creators in a different light when you view their work side by side? What did you learn from Kelly Wearstler or Do Ho Suh? I’d love to hear your point of view.
for the love of nike 