To celebrate this year’s Frieze Art Week in London, Roberta Moore Contemporary artist, Stuart Semple, has created a unique, site-specific 127m long painting on the façade of Bulgari Hotel & Residences as the hotel’s first ever artist in resident in a project entitled, The Artist is in Residence.
The painting by Semple on the exterior of Bulgari Hotel & Residences
The painting aims to document Semple’s individual experience of his stay at the Bulgari, in the form of a giant lyrical Mind Map that glows at night. As well as this painting, an exclusive set of limited edition handmade screen-prints are on display in the hotel and are available to purchase and are intended by Semple to engage viewers in the subtle, emotive narratives behind the main installation.
A detail from Monster by Stuart Semple on display inside the Bulgari Hotel and Residences
The bold confident lines of the painting on the exterior of the Bulgari Semple explores his teenage years in the 90s and new rave era of the early 2000s as well as referencing influential figures in the music and art worlds such as Jay Jopling, Leigh Bowery, Pulp and so on.
Semple’s painting close up
Semple has created the installation of eye-catching sketches and graffiti in luminous neon brights that offer a playful, contemporary contrast to the hotel’s chic design which epitomises the elegance of the Italian high jewellery brand which is well known for its forward-thinking collaborations with hip artists and architects such as Zahra Hadid.
Stuart Semple in front of the façade
Painted live for passersby to witness, as a piece of performance art in itself this is the first major collaboration of its kind for the hotel from an artist whose work is collected by some of the world’s biggest art collectors and celebrities.
This is a brave, visually exciting collaboration which Glass hopes the Bulgari Hotel will continue to host.
by Caroline Simpson
The Artist is in Residence is on until October 19 at Bulgari Hotel & The Spirit Room
171 Knightsbridge, London SW7 1DW