A View Of A Large Umbrella

Art at Viceroy Santa Monica

Inspiration is everywhere at Viceroy Santa Monica, starting with the very first sight that greets you: a mural on our eight-story façade. This is your entrée to our evocative world, where quiet moments are found under the shade of palm trees, yet imagination is continually awakened by bold design and thought-provoking art. Keep your eyes open, and we’ll keep your senses piqued. Throughout the hotel, we’ve collaborated with local artists to create breathtaking murals, digitally augmented paintings, original aerial photography and much more, all of which reflect our vibrant soul and the creative community that surrounds us. It’s all part of Viceroy’s A Canvas For Discovery initiative, which puts original, site-specific works created by innovative artists at the forefront of our hotels to welcome you and guide your journey.

Viceroy Santa Monica Reimagined

Endless & Surf Fins

Design Narrative: Endless

Inspired by infinite ocean horizons and sandy, west coast shorelines, Erin Miller Wray’s “Endless” embodies its name with mid-century modern shapes, colors and clean lines. This bold, youthful and eclectic piece was inspired by the rich history of Santa Monica and was designed to celebrate the beauty of the past while connecting us to the excitement of our evolving future.

Photo Credit: Jason Travis @jtrav

Design Narrative: Surf Fins

Inspired by the patterns and textures found in sandy beach landscapes and flowing ocean waters, Erin Miller Wray’s “Surf Fins” brings repetition and order to organic shapes. The geometry and linework in this piece are inspired by patterns seen in rippled sand and water, while the blue and clay colors evoke the shorelines of the coast. The result: a unique and elevated twist on a classic surf shape.

Meet the Artist: Erin Miller Wray

Erin Miller Wray is an artist and designer specializing in hand-painted visual branding. EMW began her career in large-scale projects after learning the social benefits of public artwork in communities. Through her exploration of modern, energetic shapes and colors, she hopes to enhance the well-being of community members through access to public art. Her pieces are inspired by the community and the history of the area around the mural site and are designed to encourage audiences to explore creativity, possibility, healthy lifestyles, and engagement with others.

Learn more about Erin at erinmillerwray.com or on Instagram @erinmillerwray.

Meet Erin

Art Talk with EMW

Viceroy CEO Bill Walshe is joined by Artist Erin Miller Wray and Viceroy Brand Director Don Samora to discuss all-things-art. Filmed on location at Viceroy Santa Monica.

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The Backyard

Design Narrative: The Backyard

The Viceroy Santa Monica pool isn’t just a destination. It’s an entire mood. And Priscilla C. Witte’s piece captures it completely. Bringing this staple of the LA beach scene to life, her work provides a bird’s-eye view of the vibrant and relaxing atmosphere. Powered by Augmented Reality (AR), Witte’s illustration comes to life through motion graphics and audio simply by scanning the piece with your mobile device. Who wouldn’t want to jump in on a hot SoCal day?

Watch The Backyard

Meet The Artist: Priscilla C. Witte

Los Angeles-based artist/illustrator/muralist Priscilla C. Witte has established herself as one of the city’s most exciting and recognizable talents. Her explorative growth as an artist has proven her unique ability to play with form, space and color. When she isn’t painting a wall or sketching on her iPad, you can find her with her family at the beach or on a hike.

Learn more about Priscilla at pcwitte.com or on instagram at @pcwitte.

ADRiFT & AXiS

Design Narrative: ADRiFT

ADRiFT is a mixed-media painting depicting a woman floating in water, her form blending seamlessly into the multicolored surroundings through the use of abstract geometric shapes — an exploration of the intersection of the human form and the natural world. By using craftsman's paper and acrylic paint, Fisher sought to create a tactile, multidimensional effect that captures the fluidity and complexity of water. The shapes highlight the interplay between the woman and her environment, suggesting that she is a part of, rather than separate from, the world around her. The viewer is invited to reflect on their own relationship with nature and the human form and, ultimately, be inspired to form a deeper appreciation for the complexity of our world, and our place within it.

Design Narrative: AXiS

AXiS is a part of a larger series that combines Fisher’s love of art and travel. The imagery was captured while he was laying on the beach in Santa Teresa, watching birds fly overhead against a cloudy blue sky. He was inspired to create something that would capture the sense of wonder and awe he felt in that moment. This piece is particularly special to Fisher because it was one of the first he created while exploring a new style, using only heavy body acrylics. Through the use of loose brush strokes and texture, he created a vivid and dynamic composition. It’s a prime example of how he is able to immerse himself in new surroundings and capture the essence of a place. Fisher hopes to inspire others to embrace their sense of adventure and see beauty in even the smallest of moments.

Meet The Artist: Kelcey Fisher

Kelcey Fisher, born in South Florida, grew up in a naval family and found home by the sea. Frequently moving, yet inspired by the calmness of the oceans at his side, he created his signature “Controlled Chaos” pattern. Kelcey has since made a name for himself by creating artwork inspired by his environment. Moving from the beach to the city, Kelcey found his artwork evolving, creating harmony between oceans and concrete—much like the journey of his life. Whether you’re a fan of his street art and murals or his mixed-media work and more recent modern Impressionism, Kelcey's work infuses a space with an unmistakable vibe.

Learn more about Kelcey at kfishart.com or on instagram at @kfishla.

Melt Into Love

Design Narrative: Melt Into Love

Traditionally working only in black and white, this series marks Monica's bold step into color. Inspired by the sudden isolation resulting from the 2020 quarantine, these 9 pieces represent both the beauty within each of us, as well as a celebration of being able to coexist with one another again. The series itself is divided in half: Four paintings situated together in the lounge showcase continuous strokes across five different colors. The other five, situated in the dining room, are ten different paintings, all cut in half, and combined into unique, singular pieces. As a full collection, “Melt Into Love” is a celebration of the moments when our individual beauty combines together, and the unexpected joy that results in those moments.

Take a 360 Tour

Meet The Artist: Monica Perez

Monica Perez’s works are expressions of emotion—impulsive, spontaneous gestures of hands-on canvas. Her aesthetic unites paint and design with strokes of abandon and constraints of composition. She predominantly works in acrylic and often merges tactile and digital techniques in a single piece. Monica trained as a graphic designer in New York City and worked as a Creative Director for over a decade at top design and production studios. Monica now focuses exclusively on her art. Born in Montevideo, Uruguay, Monica now lives in Venice with her husband, two children, and their French Bulldog, Storm.

Learn more about Monica at monica-perez.com or on Instagram @monicaperezart.

Deep Roots

Design Narrative: Deep Roots

Like plants, people’s outward appearances often look very different. But our inner similarities are the unseen roots that connect ecosystems, both natural and social. In Spencer Mar Guilburt’s piece, the black lines represent a plant's underground root system. The palm leaves represent people, and closely resemble the curves of the human body, symbolizing our return to nature and the earth that created us. The blue rectangle represents the ocean and water, our great life bringers, while the yellow circle depicts the sun shining over us regardless of shape, color, or creed. The blue window, with sprawling plant life, represent humans collectively looking towards a brighter future – one that includes a more harmonious relationship with our surroundings and reverence for nature.

Meet the Artist: Spencer Mar Guilburt

Spencer Mar Guilburt got the public’s attention in 2010 with his prismacolor street art. His gallery, known for his expressive, inspiring abstract work, now has a celebrity following. MAR portrays feeling and unlocks greater meaning through his thoughtful use of colors, shapes, and textures. He has created installations for global brands including BMW, Adidas, AT&T, Disney, and Neiman Marcus.

Learn more about Spencer at SpencerMarGuilburt.com or on Instagram @this_means.

Meet Spencer

Ijeoma

Design Narrative: Ijeoma

In art, there is a tradition that encourages one to rediscover something established by reimagining it through the gaze of our most contemporary eye. In Evelyn Leigh’s art for Viceroy Santa Monica, she reimagines the all-new property through the most basic elements; color and shape. Her simple, yet stunning, contours are bathed in comforting paints that are meant to evoke the calming effect of a body of water, or a palm tree gently waiving in the wind.

Meet the Artist: Evelyn Leigh

Evelyn Leigh's imagination is currently captured by the exploration of geometric patterns and the discovery of images within images, shapes within shapes, and the invention of depth on flat surfaces through color and line. She resides in Los Angeles and paints around the world.

Learn more about Evelyn at evelynleigh.com or on Instagram @thepaintedline.

Meet Evelyn

The Lost Warhols

Design Narrative: The Lost Warhols

Created by LA-based photographer and mixed media artist, Karen Bystedt, who photographed Andy Warhol in the early ’80s. The photographs from that session were lost for decades but have now been restored by Karen alongside an archivist at the Getty Museum. Known now as “The Lost Warhols,” Karen has built upon the collection by inviting fellow artists to paint atop the photographs and add another layer of creativity and collaboration to the pieces. The all-original pieces for Viceroy have been digitally augmented to slowly transform from raw photograph to finished, multi-layered artwork. “Beach House Andy” features Warhol in his Montauk beach home, while scenes of Santa Monica surf & skate culture stream on a vintage television nearby. “Sugar Palm Andy” features a mind-bending, dissolving version of Warhol, and incorporates a color palette pulled directly from the mural at the hotel’s Sugar Palm Poolside.

Watch Beach House AndyWatch Sugar Palm Andy

Meet the Artist: Karen Bystedt

Karen Bystedt is a multi-disciplinary artist living in Downtown Los Angeles whose work is collected and shown around the globe. Bystedt’s work transcends the limitations of society’s expectations of what is and looks into the future of art through COLLABORATION, INCLUSION, and LOVE in a digital age.

Learn more about Karen at karenbystedt.com or on Instagram @karenbystedt.

Above The Beach

Design Narrative: Above The Beach

Jan Birch’s “Above the Beach” captures the essence and energy of the iconic California coast by inviting the viewer to see the warm sands of Santa Monica and its turquoise sea in an alternative way.  This image is part of a larger aerial collection that explores perspective, and how our vantage point alters our perceptions of the world around us, giving us a new appreciation of the everyday.

Meet The Artist: Jan Birch

Los Angeles photographer Jan Birch explores the relationship between perspective and reality. Her work provides an innovative way to look at the world and illustrates the essence of each location. Her images seek to remind the viewer of how powerful a change in viewpoint can be in transforming our perceptions. Birch travels internationally for commissioned and personal projects, and brings a fresh approach to contemporary Los Angeles photography.

Learn more about Jan at janbirchstudio.com or on instagram at @janbirch.photography.