CATBIRD HOTEL PUSHES THE BOUNDARIES OF HOSPITALITY DESIGN POSSIBILITY WITH ITS CURATED ART COLLECTION.
Maranda Ryser, “Free Falling” (print on paper) 20 inches by 16 inches. PHOTO COURTESY OF NINE DOT ARTS
Carolina Mizrahi, “Cat 02” (2016, limited edition print on paper), 40 inches by 40 inches. PHOTO COURTESY OF NINE DOT ARTS
BLURRING THE LINES BETWEEN HOSPITALITY AND GALLERY, Catbird Hotel (catbirdhotel.com) boasts an eclectic 47-piece art collection that merges midcentury modern with quirky chic. The 165-room hotel by Sage Hospitality Group, which opened in 2021, tapped Nine Dot Arts, a Denver-based custom art curation firm, to seek out works from underrepresented artists and local, emerging and international talent.
Daisy Patton, “Untitled (Sisters in Fur Coats with Birds)” (2019, oil on archival print on panel), 80 inches by 60 inches. PHOTO: COURTESY OF NINE DOT ARTS
“The art collection at Catbird is unlike any hotel art you’ve experienced before,” says Molly Casey, Nine Dot Art’s chief curator. “It’s meant to feel edgy and fringe, reflecting what’s happening in Denver’s avant-garde scene and around the world.” One of her favorites pieces in the collection, titled “Come Out, Come Out Rhino, Wherever You Are,” is a 992-pound bronze rhinoceros peeking out of a manhole outside Catbird’s entrance. Created by Gillie and Marc, a duo known for their public artworks, the sculpture is meant to raise awareness about endangered species while welcoming visitors to the River North Arts District. “Internally, our team affectionately refers to it as ‘Wilma,’” Casey says. “It’s a rhino in RiNo!”
Gillie and Marc, “Come Out, Come Out Rhino, Wherever You Are” (2021, bronze), 60 inches by 91 inches by 63 inches PHOTO: BY QUENTIN MALVEAUX
The Nine Dot team worked closely with Swan Dive, an all-female Denver-based interior design studio that set out to blur the line between hotel and home. The hotel’s spaces are playful and layered with items stacked on shelves that feel as if they were collected over a lifetime and artwork incorporated seamlessly into the mix. Indeed, Catbird appeals to extended-stay travelers and art aficionados alike.
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