2014 – 2025
Hotel Schneider, Obertauern
Task
Art Curation, Art Commissions, Procurement, Storytelling + Communication Strategy
In Obertauern, where landscape and memory are inseparable, Hotel Schneider opened a new chapter of its long family history through a permanent contemporary art collection. Timeless Stories was conceived as a quiet, layered narrative—one that translates heritage, alpine landscapes, and lived hospitality into artistic form.
Rather than beginning with a predefined theme, the curatorial process started with what was already present: archival photographs, handwritten notes, and everyday objects from the Schneider family’s early years on the Brettsteinalm. These fragments became the foundation for a collection shaped from within.
For the Schneider family, the intention was never to explain history, but to allow it to be felt. Art was approached as a form of dialogue—between the mountains outside, the life inside the house, and the people who return to it season after season.
VELVENOIR invited four international artists whose practices share a sensitivity to place, memory, and transition. Through commissioned works and on-site residencies, each artist engaged directly with Obertauern—observing its light, rhythms, and pauses—allowing the collection to grow from lived experience rather than abstraction.
Installed throughout suites, corridors, and shared spaces, the artworks are encountered in passing moments: on the way to breakfast, returning from the slopes, or pausing in changing light. The collection does not dictate a single narrative. Instead, it allows each guest to find their own point of connection.
To extend the experience beyond the physical space, VELVENOIR developed a digital storytelling system with custom labels and QR codes. Guests can explore the artists, curatorial decisions, and background narratives at their own pace, transforming the hotel into an ongoing cultural dialogue rather than a static display.
Collection Highlights:
– 28 commissioned works
– Mixed-media and fine-art photographic practices
– Artist-in-residence program on-site
– Integrated digital booklet and QR-based storytelling
– Bespoke Art Communication Strategy
