The reception area of the Austin Proper Hotel showcases Kelly Wearstler’s signature aesthetic
A sense of tranquility permeates the reception area at the Austin Proper Hotel. Striped with natural light, it’s anchored by a graceful front desk crafted from Petit Granit, leather, and wenge. Feel-good gingham fabric swathes the ceiling and an ebonized wood inlay punctuates the oak flooring, conjuring a geometric motif. This welcoming zone showcases designer Kelly Wearstler’s reverence for pattern and materiality, which translates into details like retro floral-covered walls and shou sugi ban cypress found throughout the property.
Situated in a LEED Gold-certified building by New York firm Handel Architects, the 244-room hotel with 99 residences is the third outpost in the Proper portfolio, joining two California locations in San Francisco and Santa Monica, all designed by Wearstler. “For the hotels, I am looking at the local history, the architecture, the natural environment,” says Wearstler, founder and principal of her eponymous studio. “Austin was my muse for the design.”
The venerable Los Angeles-based designer celebrates the city’s one-of-a-kind heritage by placing features like a brass disc-and-neon tube light fixture front and center. To manifest what Wearstler describes as “a true embodiment of Southern comfort,” she elicited a laidback residential vibe that draws on Austin’s landscape—the hotel is steps from Lady Bird Lake—and brims with a palette of earthy blue and warm golden hues of ginger, nutmeg, and sienna.
A mosaic of Portuguese tiles adorns the dining room walls at Peacock
Reminiscent of the Art Nouveau movement, the lobby’s monolithic staircase “is a beautiful, sculptural centerpiece—an ode to Austin’s stately homes,” she says, noting that the “artful craftsmanship of the wood is layered with a collage of patchworked vintage rugs” that were collected over five years. Ceramics adorning the staircase landing, “add a sense of soul and visual depth,” she points out.
Inside the Peacock, the hotel’s Mediterranean grill restaurant, a floor-to-ceiling wall of old, motley Portuguese tiles is the standout, reinforcing Wearstler’s knack for melding vintage and modern moments. At Goldie’s, where cocktails are made at the sunken bar, wallpaper that originated as printed linen, handblown glass globes, and desert rose marble tables continue the theme of marrying old and new.
Stone carries through to the guestrooms, which mix raw travertine with original fiber works by Magda Sayeg, one of many local artists that include Evan Voyles and Rick Van Dyke with whom Wearstler collaborated. Embracing made-in-Austin materials and sourcing items from the Round Top Vintage Market some 90 minutes away was also important to Wearstler’s vision for the hotel—a deep dive “into the culture of Austin, a merging of past and present, infused with a creative spirit that is constantly evolving,” she says.
Vintage moments transpire at Goldie’s Sunken Bar; guestrooms feature paisley headboards
The Peacock’s design is inspired by the Mediterranean; the lobby staircase pays homage to the city’s stately homes
This article originally appeared in HD’s May 2020 issue.
