LUXURY DOWN TO A FINE ART
One of Australia’s finest art hotels gets a makeover, with everything from bigger beds and bathtubs to plush new carpet
S et in a 19th century jam factory, surrounded by a working port on the Hobart waterfront, and overlooked by omnipresent kunanyi/Mt Wellington, the Henry Jones Art Hotel has one of Australia’s most stunning settings.
Designed by Circa Morris-Nunn Architects and opened in the winter of 2004, the 56-room Henry Jones Art Hotel occupies the former Henry Jones’ IXL jam factory, a collection of convict-built sandstone warehouses on Hobart’s original wharf.
Morris-Nunn’s award-winning transformation of a derelict industrial site to luxury hotel retained as many features as possible, resulting in an entirely unique hotel experience. Literally no two rooms are alike. One, the Peacock Terrace, was the two-storey residence of the eponymous factory owner and comes replete with original wallpaper and timeworn staircase.
Current owners Federal Group acquired the hotel in 2008, the first in its growing portfolio of luxury hotels that now includes the MACq 01 storytelling hotel across the road on the Hunter St wharf, Saffire on the East Coast, and developments in the works at Cradle Mountain and Port Arthur.
Each is distinctive, as Federal Group tourism sales and marketing manager Tom Wootton explains: “Where MACq 01 embodies high-design experiential accommodation, The Henry Jones is more intimate and classic with a distinct artistic edge.”
Intriguingly, he adds there are “several future projects under consideration for the [Hunter St] area, where we intend to create a sophisticated culture precinct showcasing the finest Tasmanian produce, art and service”.
The area is of course a central piece of the puzzle in the nascent redevelopment of Macquarie Point, where Mona dreams of building a reconciliation-themed art park and Tasmanian Aboriginal history centre.
Now almost 15 years old, Henry Jones has had its first major refurbishment, with $1.7 million spent on all 56 rooms and suites.
“The Henry Jones runs at very high occupancy and so we must periodically update the interiors and furnishings to maintain the expected level of quality,” Wootton says.
Most striking, though, is how well Morris-Nunn’s original design has held up in a world of rapidly changing tastes and trends. Sure, the beds are larger (“super king”, in fact), there’s new manchester, fancy overflow baths, gas fireplaces, new window shutters and plush new carpet throughout. But the old buildings, with their reveals of convict-hewn sandstone, huge beams, remnant wallpaper and historic factory infrastructure remains.
The hoteliers know it is these features that guests will remember long after the valet has waved them off.
Unless, of course, they’ve bought one of the 400 artworks on display and mostly for sale throughout the hotel. This program is a stroke of genius. Australian guests can take advantage of the Tasmanian Government’s interest-free COLLECT art loan scheme to buy the work of Tasmanian artists – many of them emerging – and the hotel gets a rotating roster of contemporary art for the price of the salaried art liaison. There’s even room in the budget for new gallery The Packing Room in the hotel’s glass atrium, as well as a new $20,000 art prize for Tasmanian artists.
Another notable transformation over the past couple of years is the return to form of the hotel’s restaurant offerings. Premium diner Landscape is doing a roaring trade with an Asado grill, Ollie Mellers in charge, and several gongs to its name in its first year of business. The Jam Packed cafe menu has also been given a nudge with new green bowls and cold-pressed juices, but most exciting is casual diner and wine bar Peacock and Jones – an unfussy experience of Tasmanian provenance by chef Jeff Workman, with service led by Emma Devlin.
Art and history tours of the hotel operate daily with knowledgeable guides and are a terrific way to explore this fascinating hotel in one of the most significant built-heritage sites in Hobart.