South Congress
Hotel
When New Waterloo built the South Congress Hotel in 2015, they wanted to create a space that honored the character of the neighborhood and of the historic avenue itself: artisanal, rustic, and timeless, with an offbeat and approachable vibe.
The partners hired me to select and install original local art in the guest rooms and lobby, a job that later grew to include sourcing accessories, plants, and furniture for the lobby, bar, and restaurants.
We wanted to install art that would create a welcoming, authentic vibe. The challenge was finding works that wouldn’t overpower the design-driven details and custom-built furniture throughout the hotel. Alyson Fox’s dreamy photography was enlarged to suit the scale of the lobby.
Originally a loan from an art collector, the smiley face police riot shields by Jimmy Cauty became iconic in the bar. When the collector needed them back, we were able to contact Jimmy in the U.K., and luckily, he had just produced another small edition. He overnighted three to us and we avoided a lapse in happy faces at the bar.
South Congress Hotel Art Shows
The South Congress Hotel was built from the ground up, with the intent to stay true to the essence of Austin while allowing the space to grow and define itself over time. As we worked with local artists to outfit the guest rooms and lobby, it became clear that New Waterloo had an opportunity to support local art in the common areas. The minimal but majestic event space was a perfect blank canvas for pop-up art shows that would be accessible to the public and profitable for the artists.
Soon after the hotel opened, I met with New Waterloo to plan an inaugural art show for local artists. We decided it would work best as a pop-up event, free to the public, with the artists keeping all proceeds from their sales. We approached two local artists, Gareth Maguire and Bob Schneider, whose works we’d installed in the lobby. Their real life friendship and previous collaborations in art and poetry made them the perfect pairing for the launch. Their first show, called Symbiosis, was a success all around and paved the way for subsequent pop-up Symbiosis shows. The ongoing art program at the hotel now includes craft workshops led by local makers, First Thursday music events, and community yoga classes.
