A new artwork was unveiled at Principal Edinburgh (that’s the George Hotel to you and me!) last week.
The hotel manager, Andreas Maszczyk gave us a special tour of the newly refurbished building, but introduced the new piece of art to assembled journalists first: “We are revealing something very special tonight by artist Charlie Anderson!”
Anderson explained: “I was asked to create a canvas inspired by Edinburgh and some of the history of the building here which dates back to the 1800s when it was owned by Sir William Oliphant who had a printing press.”
And this is the result. It is a collage style using notables such as Muriel Spark and Robert Louis Stevenson along with contemporary fonts applied. You can see this in the Printing Press Bar & Kitchen which forms part of the Principal Edinburgh.
Charlie Anderson is well-known for this large scale pop paintings but this montage will no doubt introduce his art to a wider audience.
The hotel has had a multi-million pound makeover leading to its name change on 1 November 2016. One of the things which will continue according to Andreas is the quality of service. He is a big advocate of everyone in the different parts of the hotel knowing what is going on that day across all function suites. And he also took time to explain the significance of the red phones in each room. They actually do connect to a switchboard and guests are assured that their needs will be met within the hour.
We rather liked the tuck boxes which are found in every room – and which are free! If you bring your dog with you then they get a dog bed and a free tuck box of treats too!
We also had a private tour of the Forthview Suite which, as the name suggests, looks to the north of the city, the river and the Ochils beyond.
This is the first of the Principal Hotels to get this VIP treatment. There are others in the group such as the Russell Square London and the Principal York.
Photos © Sandy Young 07970 268944
sandyyoungphotography@gmail.com
07970 268 944
Founding Editor of The Edinburgh Reporter.
Edinburgh-born multimedia journalist and iPhoneographer.
