For one of England’s most exclusive hotels, VISTO curated a sophisticated art collection that sets the standard for a historic luxury property. We designed its 2,000-piece art collection to bring the hotel its authenticity as a reimagined English Gentleman’s home from the 1830s. Working with Alberto Pinto Interior Design, VISTO led the sourcing, selection, procurement, framing, delivery and installation for the entire property.
The art predates the 1830s, the moment at which the building, previously a hospital, was constructed. We purchased a collection that the Lanesborough’s imaginary cosmopolitan, well-traveled family could have developed over time from the middle of the 18th century.
VISTO organized and supervised the restoration of hundreds of antique pieces of art and frames over a six-month period.
While the Lanesborough’s art is antique, the property’s feeling is fresh and learned, with each of its 2,000 pieces of art hand-picked and never repeated twice.
In Celeste, the hotel’s restaurant, VISTO selected a rare series of 18th-century hand-colored engravings representing Raphael’s wall paintings in the Vatican.
The hotel’s authenticity comes from its art, which is the only element of the property that is as old as the building itself.
Highlights include two portraits of Captain John Smith and his wife in the entry by Sir Joshua Reynolds, one of England’s greatest 18th-century artists.
The collection includes Italian landscapes, English portraiture, military and hunting scenes, and Northern European still-lifes—all pieces that were core components of contemporary art collections in London.
For the Belgravia Room, VISTO developed a cycle of ceiling paintings representing three traditional English hunts. These four-part stories are surrounded by paintings portraits of regal horses and cloud studies.