Las Vegas restaurants lean into art displays and interior design as do hotels, casinos and residents. Spiegelworld's creative producer, Matt Hodges, gives insight regarding the selection process through his eyes.
Q: Spiegelworld has quite the collection. How long have you been art consulting for the space and how did you initially connect with the team there?
A: Art has always been a core influence of Spiegelworld and we have collected art from our beginnings, stemming from our Impresario Extraordinaire's (Ross Mollison) passion for collecting. A main focus of mine is collecting input and ideas from the team to formulate a visual plan for every space which includes art from our existing collection, new work we commission from artists we’ve worked with through the years as well as work from emerging national and local artists.
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Nothing is better than commissioning artists to make art and we have done so since the start of Spiegelworld. Mark Ogge and Christopher Ulrich were even part of the debut of Absinthe in New York back in 2006. Whenever we create new spaces, there’s always been art incorporated but nothing before like Superfrico and the level we were able to bring in for that collection...For Superfrico, we brought in Heather Harmon as a consultant and she was fantastic in helping to bring new artists to the table we weren’t familiar with.
Q: How would you describe the art collection displayed throughout Superfrico?
A: I would describe it as a very colorful space with a wide assortment of art scattered on top of swirling muraled walls, each piece working toward the overall vibe of the room yet also being individual portals to ancillary stories that can take you further. It’s textured, with different mediums, styles and purposes. Some emit light across the room, whereas others reward closer inspection.
For instance, one of the newer pieces is a sculpture by Gabe Barcia-Colombo. ‘The Holy Roller’ sits right in the dining room at Superfrico and appears to be some sort of slot machine. It’s really an interactive work of art that uses machine learning to generate life advice with each pull of the handle.
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The sculpture is fed 500,000 quotes from throughout history and composes a new unique quote for each person who pulls the lever on the machine. Come by and your own personal mantra can be revealed.
Q: What do you look for when considering new artwork and artists?
A: We are looking for connection. We have art that connects to authentic, specific histories and events in our lives, art that connects to long standing relationships with people and places and art that connects to shared ideas and obsessions. Every piece has a story. Some of those stories are real and emotional, some are old and mixed with fiction, some are brand new but all of them relate to real people.
So rather than searching for new artists, I find it’s more like uncovering threads, picking them up and following where they lead. Some work is taking us back to strong memories like Avedon’s portrait of Slava Polunin and some are pulling us forward like Scott Teplin’s piece or the works by Penny Goring and Hadi Fallahpisheh.
Like everything at Spiegelworld, it's not just one thing. It's a rippling, echoing formation: artists within Spiegelworld, emerging Las Vegas artists, big names from the art world and global voices. Hopefully the ever-growing collection feels reflective of our world and community.
Q: What are the commonalities between the various works displayed?
A: There’s a commonality in the bold saturated color, the whimsical point of view, and a resonance with the spirit of stupid fun we celebrate.
Q: What is your favorite part of art consulting with Spiegelworld?
A: My favorite part of developing the art collection with Spiegelworld is connecting with the artists. I get to meet people I never would have the chance to meet and dream about new art to make with them. It's been so rewarding to meet and get to know people like Adehla Lee, Justin Favela, Matthew Day Jackson…and not really know where it will lead, but collaborating and letting the ideas show us what's next.
Q: What has proven to be successful in your work there?
A: The way we are growing our voice and point of view regarding art in a patient and authentic way has been successful. It's not just an extra idea for the experience but something we aim to fully integrate into the DNA of the worlds we create. Architecture, interior design, art, music, food, drink, performance and hospitality: these are all components in a recipe that we are forever trying to perfect.
Q: Where is Spiegelworld headed next with the art direction?
A: There’s a lot I can’t reveal just yet, but I can say that visual art of all kinds will be a more and more central and vivacious part of the experiences Spiegelworld puts together in Vegas, Atlantic City, New Orleans and elsewhere. We’re so excited to start focusing on getting to know the artists local to the communities we land in and interlace them into our worlds and collections. I would love to introduce Las Vegas artists to our audience in Atlantic City, NOLA artists into our Las Vegas world, and let it all ping back and forth.
“Spiegel” means mirror - I want us to be a part of the way art reflects our experiences and feelings and see what happens when disparate works and points of view collide and bounce off each other. Art makes life more rich and that’s what Spiegelworld wants. When I think about the future of art at Spiegelworld, I just want to keep going further and hope we keep bringing more art into the intrinsic mix from larger outdoor pieces, bespoke commissions as well as the tiniest personalized moments.
Photography by: Courtesy of Spiegelworld; Courtesy of Drex Agency
