Quest Schaller Hotel – Bendigo

Featured Image by: Me

“This world is but a canvas to our imagination.” – Henry David Thoreau

Artist Mark Schaller wanted to contribute to the reverence of beautiful Bendigo and I believe he certainly has by turning a hotel into a canvas for his imagination!

During my stay in Bendigo, pulling up to this hotel was a delight in itself for me. The building alone peaked my curiosity and I was eager to set my eyes on what was held inside this black box accented with the brightest of green, which you’d think just came from the paintbrush statues placed in the oversized plant pots aligned outside the building.

Giant sculptures with bright smiles welcomed me upon entering, followed by the gallery of artwork that whisked me away into a mesmerizing creation of color.  The very artistically designed interior was complimented by quirky, cute, yet functional furniture.

“This is my kind of hotel.” I couldn’t help but think as I headed toward the front desk.

I had never seen a hotel like it, and curiosity got the best of me… who’s to credit for such an amazing hotel?

Turns out the Art Series Hotel Group has three hotels in Melbourne designated to three different artists – Olsen, Blackman, and Cullen – and the first hotel of the art series outside of Melbourne is The Schaller Hotel in Bendigo. The idea behind the Art Series Hotel Group is to design hotels as art galleries; so every single painting or piece of artwork in the Schaller Hotel is an original of Mark Schaller!

No doubt, I have now become very fond of Mark Schaller’s art and feel so blessed that I just so happened to be placed in such a uniquely iconic and artistically rich hotel during my stay in Bendigo.

I went up to my room, still admiring the artwork along the way; the walls in the hallway were pitch black as to accent the florescent colored paintings and each door was marked with a painted yellow number.

I opened the door to a quaint little room with one wall lined with a closet, mini fridge, and a tea and coffee area, leading to a desk, mini sitting area and a short queen-sized bed, accompanied by a small patio which permitted a bright airy feeling in the room.

The bathroom contained the regular toilet, shower and vanity area, and to complete it all, Mark Schaller’s florescent signature brushed across a single white wall in the bedroom. Surprisingly, the interior made the room feel much bigger than it actually was. Why should a hotel room be any bigger when all it’s really necessary for is sleeping anyway? I say, travel is for exploration; not staying cooped up in one’s hotel room! And exploration I did!

The Schaller Hotel also has bikes to hire for free for their guests. So, for dinner that first evening of my stay, I hopped on a bike and rode around the adorable town of Bendigo, through the beautiful botanical garden, to one of my new favorite discoveries of Australia, Grill’d, for a delicious healthy burger – don’t forget the sweet potato fries!

Later on, when turning on the TV for the first time, I got hooked on the short documentary on Mark Schaller and the Bendigo influenced art he created for the hotel.

According to Schaller, “Happiness is a loaded brush,” and his motto for his work is, “Any surface”.

And that includes a tram! Yeah, this tram that Schaller painted looked like so much fun from the video, so I wanted to go check it out in person very badly. However, I was devastated when I found out it was shut down for service the week I was there. There are still other trams and plenty of places to have the trams take you to, including Weeroona Lake, Bendigo Stadium, The Art Gallery, Capital Theatre, and much more!

The video also explained that before beginning his work for the hotel, Schaller engaged himself in the city to reflect the joy he finds in the city back into his artwork. I can certainly say he did a great job, because even from my short stay, I experienced the bright, artsy, joyful spirit of Bendigo and every painting I laid eyes on in that hotel reflected that same feeling.

Next time you’re in Bendigo, be sure to check out the Schaller Hotel! And let me know what you make of the tram, or what Mark referred to as his “moving studio”!

Maybe I’ll be back one day, but as for now, thanks for the joyful journey, Bendigo – oh yeah, and the delicious breakfasts! 😉

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Cheers,

Joyful Jot