PHILADELPHIA — Style-conscious hoteliers such as Ian Schrager and the late Bill Kimpton have led a revolution in big-city lodging over the past two decades, opening fun, funky and art-filled boutique hotels from New York to Chicago to San Francisco.
But somehow, Philadelphia, the nation’s fifth-largest metro area, found itself bypassed by the trend.
No matter. As of earlier this summer, the City of Brotherly Love may have the coolest hotel room in the USA.
Room 414 at The Westin Philadelphia downtown is the handiwork of more than two dozen Philadelphia-area artists and designers who collectively created an environment that is as much museumlike art installation as lodging.
Led by local designers R.J. Thornburg and Eileen Tognini, the wide-ranging crew created a chocolate-colored cocoon layered with drawings, prints, sculptures, handmade furniture and textiles.
http://www.usatoday.com/travel/destinations/2007-08-16-philadelphia-art-hotel_N.htm
