My coastal landscapes and seascapes hang in restaurants, banks and offices across Rhode Island, including three Gregg’s Restaurants & Taverns locations (North Kingstown, Warwick and East Providence) and a building at Centreville Bank that has about 30 of my photographs in it.
If you’ve had dinner at Gregg’s in North Kingstown or Warwick, there’s a good chance you ate under my sunflowers.
That’s the thing about art in a restaurant or a hotel. Nobody comes in for it. They come in for a burger, or a bed, or a meeting. But the art is a big part of how the place feels, and how it feels is what people remember.
What makes art work in a hotel, restaurant or office?
A sense of place. People love recognizing where they are. The Newport Bridge at sunrise, Point Judith Light, the Venice Fishing Pier at sunset. A real local landmark beats generic “beach art” every single time, and it gets people talking. (“Hey, is that Beavertail?”)
Calm. These are busy places. My work is quiet on purpose: long exposures, smooth water, open sky. It lets a room breathe instead of adding more noise.
Scale. Big walls need big art. One large piece usually does more than a row of little ones. My photographs get printed at feature-wall size all the time, and they hold up.
Consistency. When you’re doing more than one room, it should feel like one collection, not a yard sale. Same mood, similar tones, different scenes.
Who do I work with?
Restaurants and taverns. Dining rooms, bars, entryways. Spaces where people sit for an hour and look around.
Hotels, inns and B&Bs. Lobbies, hallways and guest rooms. A few statement pieces where people gather, and a consistent set for the rooms.
Banks and offices. Lobbies, conference rooms, the wall behind the desk. Centreville Bank is a good example. The woman who ran their art program found me and reached out. I made up some samples for her to look at, she picked the photos, and about 30 of them ended up throughout one of their buildings.
Vacation rentals and condos. This is one I’d love to do more of. A real photograph of the beach your guests can walk to, or the pier they’ll fish off in the morning, makes the place feel like somewhere. It gives guests something to talk about, and it makes the listing photos stand out too.
How do I pick art for a space?
Here’s roughly how I think about it, and you’re welcome to steal it:
- Start with what’s nearby. A lighthouse, a pier, a stretch of beach. Use it.
- Keep the mood consistent across rooms. Change the scene, not the feeling.
- Go bigger than you think. Art should cover about two-thirds of the width of the furniture under it.
- Match the print to the room. Gallery wraps are the most popular. No frame, no glass, just hang it. For busy spots like hallways, bars or anywhere near water, metal prints are a great option. They hang just as easily, wipe clean and shrug off the occasional bump.
What size print should I buy? →
Where you’ll find my work
- Gregg’s Restaurants & Taverns, North Kingstown and Warwick. Sunflowers Under Stormy Skies, framed big, in the dining area at both locations.
- Gregg’s Restaurants & Taverns, East Providence. Several more of my prints.
- Centreville Bank. About 30 photographs throughout one of their buildings, picked by the woman who ran their art program from samples I made up.
- Banks and offices around Rhode Island, most of them placed through art consultants I work with.
How does it work?
- Tell me about the space. Rooms, wall sizes, the feel you’re after, timeline and a rough budget. An email is fine.
- I send you a short list, matched room by room, with suggested sizes.
- It gets printed and hung. If you have a designer, consultant or framer, I send them the file and they take it from there. If you don’t, I have people I trust for printing and framing.
Opening a new place or renovating? Bring me in early. It’s a lot easier to plan art around the walls than the other way around.
The Gulf Coast collection
I’m heading to Venice, Florida, and starting on the Gulf: the Venice Fishing Pier, the South Jetty, Caspersen Beach, Siesta Key.
If you run a restaurant, hotel or rental in Sarasota County and want art of your coast instead of a generic palm tree, I’d love to hear from you. New work starts this spring.
Venice, Florida → · Siesta Key →
Questions people ask
What kind of art works best in a hotel or restaurant?
Calm landscapes and seascapes, ideally of places people recognize. They help people relax and give the room a sense of place.
What’s the best art for a vacation rental?
A big photograph of something local: the beach, the pier, the lighthouse down the road. It makes the stay feel specific and the listing photos pop.
What type of print should we get?
Gallery wraps are the most popular. No frame, no glass, easy to hang. For high-traffic or humid spots, metal prints hang just as easily and wipe clean.
Can you do art for a whole building or multiple units?
Yes. Centreville Bank has about 30 of my photographs in one building. I’ll make up samples, you pick, and it ends up feeling like one collection.
Do you have Florida images?
Some now, and a lot more coming this spring, alongside 30+ years of New England coast.
Do you do office art too?
Yes. Lobbies, conference rooms and executive offices are some of my favorite installs.
Let’s talk about your space
Tell me about the place and how you want people to feel when they walk in. I’ll write back myself, usually within a day.
Email me at mike@mikedooleyphotography.com.
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