I was lucky enough to stay in 2 of the beautiful Art
Series hotels on a recent trip to Melbourne. I’ll be telling you all about The
Cullen this week, but I’ll also have a review of The Olsen coming up.
I have to confess that before staying at The Cullen in
Melbourne’s Prahran, I didn’t really know a lot about artist, Adam Cullen. I
recalled him winning the Archibald Prize, but other than that, his artwork was
completely unknown to me.
In a way, this is something the Art Series hotels aim to
rectify; by bringing art into the hotel room, to spark a fleeting love affair
with Australia’s foremost living artists. And this is exactly what it did for
me.
Displayed throughout the hotel and in the rooms themselves,
Cullen’s artworks are at once vibrant and playfully macabre. Now don’t get me
wrong, there is nothing at all off-putting about sleeping next to his droopy
horses (or maybe they were donkeys) – in fact, there’s something reassuring
about the personalities in the works that help you feel at home.
From the outside, The Cullen’s grey steel façade is
punctuated by bright green protruding pods (balconies) – a delight at night and
a bit of a beacon to find your way home along Commercial Road.
The rooms range from a Studio Suite through to the Penthouse
Suite (2 Bedrooms, 2 Bathrooms and views across Melbourne). The Studio Suite I
enjoyed included a magnificent en suite bathroom (separated by a frosted glass
wall adorned with another Cullen artwork).
As for food, the amazing Hutong dumpling restaurant is just
downstairs as well as the Terrace Bar and Bistro (they do some mean corn
fritters – yum!).
From the moment you enter The Cullen and pass the life-sized
mosaic cows you know you’re in for an experience, an exciting journey into the
mind of an artist.
The Cullen
artserieshotels.com.au/Cullen