Liz Lambert’s Hotel Artistry
A Place to Get Your Hands Dirty and Play
By Ashley M. Halligan | Photography by Allison Smith
With an ever-expanding portfolio of art-project-hotels, Texas-bred (yet internationally admired) hotelier Liz Lambert has encompassed the soul of Austin-and sprinkled it all over the state. A West Texas native, Lambert has lived quite a colorful life. A New York City prosecutor- turned world renowned, made-from-scratch-hotel artist, she has managed to create four of Texas’ most talked about hideouts to rest your feet and your mind.
Though all of her properties are quite different from one another, they share a parallel sense of thoughtfulness, innovation and creativity. Lambert elaborates, “I would say that I hope that each of our properties have a soul, offer a sense of community, create an uncluttered and comfortable environment. And maybe when we’re lucky-they inspire creativity in our guests.” There cannot be a better principle behind designing a hotel’s concept.
One of the common characteristics apparent throughout Lambert’s properties are the architectural surprises that are almost organic; every touch is well-executed in harmony with the natural surroundings. Each place, in its own way, is like a hiccup-a subtle yet whimsical extension of the place where [the idea] was born. “I think that there are overlapping qualities in my designs, while I’m also responding to the existing architecture of a place. I think most all the places have a certain purity to them; they all tell a story. And telling that story is where I begin-by looking at the neighborhood, the buildings (or a pasture, in the case of El Cosmico) themselves, and imagine what would be perfect for that place—San Jose is a meditative place; the Saint Cecilia is more decadent, and so on,” Lambert explains. “I also arrive at basic color stories when I first begin: San Jose was green, Saint Cecilia blue, El Cosmico yellow and Hotel Havana red. I’m going to have to start over.” Lambert’s translation of both nature and the stone walls of a building’s former incarnations is genius.
Austin, Texas is already familiar with Lambert’s brilliance. Whether it be Saturday afternoon coffee and outdoor music at Jo’s Coffee on South Congress (with the sweet touch of “I love you so much” painted in red cursive on its northward-facing side), a white wine sangria in San Jose’s ultrachill patio, tucked into what almost feels like a desert escape imported from the 1950s, or a swanky cocktail at Hotel Saint Cecilia’s exclusive bar, the properties in Lambert’s group, Bunkhouse Management, all offer an atmosphere that affords nothing less than total relaxation garnished with style and funk.
And now, Lambert is focused on sculpting hotel programs and creating workshops to complement each properties’ signature flair. She explains,“Currently as Bunkhouse Properties we have Hotel Havana (San Antonio), Hotel Saint Cecilia, Hotel San Jose, El Cosmico (Marfa) and Jo’s Coffee. At some point, we’d like to expand El Cosmico. But for now we’re growing our program of events and workshops, which is what I had envisioned.” One unique example stands out. In February, El Cosmico began offering a Camp Design Build Adventure: This week-long workshop focuses on locality and community in design build projects—not just materials and construction techniques, but how climate, geography, socioeconomics, personal relationships and even factors like the food, music and art of a place can and should influence design. More than just a how-to clinic, Camp Design Build Adventure is about creating meaningful experiences as we work, sharing communal moments around the camp, dinner table and bonfire. During the camp, adventurers will design and construct furniture, source materials locally and build it all while sharing moments of community, purpose and fun.
These types of programs have been part of Lambert’s dream since she first set foot into Hotel San Jose. Lambert said it best when she said, “It’s what I had always envisioned—a place to get your hands dirty and play.” Expanding on the sense of community and escape she applies to her establishments, Cosmico also offers Porchside Potlucks where locals and patrons come together every other Friday evening to enjoy a beer, grill some food and listen to a DJ-all under the Marfa sky.
All of that said, enough cannot actually be said about the brilliance of each of her properties. Beginning with El Cosmico, she’s crafted a desert hideaway filled with restored vintage trailers-all from the 50s, bamboofloored yurts, magnificent teepees and tent camping for those more into wilderness. As if it’s not magical enough to imagine all of this under the vastness of the starry West Texas skies, consider the hammock grove and outdoor Dutch tubs available to rent by the hour. One can sigh with longing at the mere thought of such a place. (elcosmico.com)
Hotel Havana has an entirely different aura. Standing majestically over the North Riverwalk, Hotel Havana is an historic landmark favored by many Texans who venture to San Antonio for its old Texas charm. Now restored to an entirely different degree of grandeur, Havana retains all of its former charm but is now infused with a pan-Latin influence and rooms adorned by charming touches like vintage, sherbert-hued fridges, antique furniture and retro sofas for resting your feet after a day exploring the city. (havanasanantonio.com)
And back home in Austin-town, Lambert’s SoCo properties are incredibly cherished. Many know the story of the dilapidated Hotel San Jose. When she first got her hands on it-in a not quite revitalized South Congress neighborhood that was that was a few degrees beyond sketchy, Lambert stumbled out of the Continental Club and right into a three-year project that was filled with the specter of prostitutes, stabbings, and tenants who could not pay the designated rate, all the while holding an unimaginably prosperous future up its sleeves. Handled with poise and determination, Lambert made friends with the folks who called San Jose home and flipped the former nightly patrol stop into an iconic SoCo landmark, all of which can be seen in Lambert’s documentary about the progression, The Last Days of the San Jose (yes, the incomparable Lambert has even directed films).
Nowadays, San Jose is a trendy hangout and favorite hotel for locals and out-of-towners alike. With fantastically curious amenities like typewriters and Polaroid cameras for rent, it’s hard not to fall in love with its whimsy. Within the vast courtyard walls, Hotel San Jose is so tucked away that it seems to be part of a desert secret rather than smack dab in the middle of one of Austin’s most traversed streets. With white-walled rooms, colorful tapestry bedding and again, elements of the 1950s, there’s something simply poetic about Hotel San Jose. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, but I think San Jose is what happens when the cardiganwearing librarian girl has a naughty love affair with the leather jacketclad James Dean lookalike. (sanjosehotel.com)
Like each of Lambert’s properties, Hotel Saint Cecilia, too is a story all its own. Perhaps the grandest of the Bunkhouse Properties ensemble, Saint Cecilia is nestled on a SoCo side-street and named in honor of the patron saint of music and poetry. Per its bio, “These accommodations take inspiration from the experimentation of 60s writers like William Burroughs, the daringness and extravagance from groups like the Stones in the early 70s and the defiance of convention embodied by artists like Miró and Warhol in the late 50s and early 60s.” Hotel Saint Cecilia is a mecca for musically and poetically inclined patrons (or those who can at least get lost in the ideas) to really, really escape.
Saint Cecilia’s suites are perfect representations of referenced freedom and defiance. A “Hunter S. Thompson for Sheriff” painting adorns one wall, while an outdoor shower graces the patio of another. There are record players and even an Adam Bork fireplace video installation in one.
Outdoor fireplaces and upright pianos can also be uncovered (if you book the right rooms). And if you thought that was it-drum roll please…there’s an enviable vinyl record collection for the in-room turntables and an extensive collection of books about artists, poets and musicians to help you unwind, seek inspiration (as if the aforementioned wasn’t enough) and perhaps revisit long forgotten favorites of days gone by. (hotelstcecilia. com)
I’m not sure another word describes Lambert better than simply: artist. Even still, that distinction seems too basic for the vast current of creative mediums she colorfully hand-applies to every project she brings from vision to reality. There’s much to be taken from Lambert as inspirationher determination, her seamless application of life into each endeavor and her bottomless well of ideas. She’s a very real gal with huge ideas and a simple life. “When I’m not in Austin, my girlfriend Amy [Cook] and I enjoy being on my family’s ranch in Marfa. It’s a great place to unwind with tequila, music and camping,” she says. Yes, we can back up for a moment. As if her life weren’t impressive enough, Lambert also happens to be in a beautiful relationship with Amy Cook-the Austin-based, folksy, singer-songwriter who captures Austin’s ear with lyrics straight from the soul.
Orange moon lies low
Up against a western sky
Soon we’ll see all our troubles disappear…
We’ll build a bonfire and laugh at all life’s crazy twists and turns
Bonfire; and as the flames flicker burn out bright
We’re fireflies tonight.
And it is lyrics like these [from Fireflies] that take me to a West Texas dusk. With such a song in one’s head, it’s easy to imagine how this place makes Lambert so happy. When asked which of her properties she’d most like to live at she says, “I like to live at all of them from time to time. I love living in hotels.” This nomadic bliss and adventurer’s optimism tell me that maybe we all have a lot more to learn from escaping a little more often than every once in a while-to have a sip (or two) of tequila, a good, old-fashioned campout and a little music under the stars. ALM
