Art & Hotels: Hotel Molitor Paris – MGallery
Hello art lovers, when in Paris, relax in style at Hotel Molitor Paris – MGallery. The swimming pool of the 5-star hotel was a very popular location in Paris from the 30s to the 80s. After the golden years though, the pool became less and less sought-after and ended up closing its doors in 1989.
It was classed as a listed historic building but soon fell into decay. It was then, unofficially, occupied by street artists who transformed the fabulous location into an avant-garde underground artsy kind of place. The building has been restored to its beauty and it reopened its doors as a hotel in 2014.
Hotel Molitor Paris – MGallery is located in the posh 16th arrondissement, near the Roland Garros stadion, the Bois de Boulogne and Parc des Princes.
The hotel offers, besides the two large pools, the largest spa of Europe (1700 m2). The pools are 33 m2 (indoor) and 46 m2 (outdoor). The 124 rooms all have views over the summer pool. It might actually give you the impression of staying on a cruiseship. The executive rooms have portholes, which reinforces that feeling.
Old and new
The interior designer, Jean-Philippe Nuel, kept quite some original features such as mosaics and leaded-glass windows and combined those with a fresh contemporary and minimalist interior decoration. The combination of old and new worked out really well.
You might notice on the photos above that the building is higher now than it used to be. The architect indeed added two floors (and the rooftop bar).
What about the art?
You will see art on every corner of the hotel. I really like the idea of incorporating street artwork in the hotel as street art was such a big part of Molitor’s history.
So actually, what they did, is invite the artists that had been active while the building was abandoned and they asked them to leave their art on and in the renovated building.
One can see the artworks throughout the hotel, on the walls of the hotel lobby or in the corridors. They also used the old changing rooms of the winterpool, which are relatively small cubicles, as a gallery.
The 78 cubicles have been taken over, each one by a different artist, in order to produce a fascinating gallery of contemporary urban art. You will find work of amongst others Kouka, Hopare, Katre, Jace, Mademoiselle Maurice, Bradley Theodore, Mosko & Associés, Balder, Fred Calmets and Shuck One. Click here for the complete list of artists.
Hotel Molitor Paris – MGallery is a real gem. I love it when art and hotels get combined!
