The Next Chapter for Hôtel Magique
Before Hôtel Magique, whenever I would step into a hotel, well, not all hotels, but the hotels that I would call magique, I noticed I would experience an overwhelming sense of curiosity. A childlike curiosity about guests and doorman stories, the interiors hidden behind closed doors, what it would feel like to spend time there daily, and even imaginary hotel souvenirs I wished existed.
Looking back, I realise that the places that stayed with me were never just beautiful places. They were the places that unlocked a magique state of mind I wanted to tap into every day.
When I created the original painting that read Hôtel Magique – Open Crazy Late for my living room as a way to enter this magique state of mind from home, I could have never imagined that this imaginary hotel - a place that didn’t exist, but could - would eventually travel across the world and into your homes through art, products, collaborations, and so much more.
Imagining Hôtel Magique in all its different forms has brought me endless creativity, imagination, curiosity, connection, and so much more. Hôtel Magique became a way to approach hospitality through a different lens: not as a luxury service, but as a form of emotional transport.
And it made me wonder: why do some environments seem to open up our imagination, while others don't? What happens when we create more room for these feelings in our everyday lives, and how do we do that?
These and many more questions have led me into a fascinating world of research into human nature, neuroscience, psychology, art, curiosity, imagination, creativity, and the environments that allow them to flourish.
And it starts with magique.
To me, magique means a universal sense of wonder, curiosity, and possibility we often find in nature, in art, and in human connection. But the more I read, listen, and learn, the more I realise that we, humans, (yes, going deep here ;) are also a form of pure magique. We can imagine something that doesn't exist and then bring it into the world. We can communicate through words, music, art, movement and sometimes without saying anything at all. We can make another person feel something through something we've created.
And yet, today we are facing a rise in disconnection. We are tapping into this magique side of ourselves less and less. But the more I research, the more I believe there is so much more within us than we maybe believe, feel, or remember. So much creativity, kindness, and possibility. So much magique. So I am currently dedicating all my time to researching how Hôtel Magique could become a doorway back to this magique side of who we are, and always have been.
I am exploring how spaciousness, nature, human connection and other conditions might allow us to become more curious, explore our imagination, and express our creativity. Not just through art or making beautiful things, but through the way we think, solve problems, see possibilities, and imagine different futures.
And if Hôtel Magique can offer even a little more room for people to experience that, to reconnect with themselves, rediscover their curiosity, explore their imagination, and perhaps leave seeing themselves and the world around them a little differently, that would mean the world to me.
I'm still very much in the middle of this research and exploring how everything I'm learning could translate into physical spaces, gardens, gatherings, books, experiences, and an actual Hôtel Magique. Not a hotel to sleep in, but to dream in.
— Milou Neelen, Founder of Hôtel Magique
