Of course, a handful of Hotel rooms have become landmarks because some debauched rock star once trashed the place.
Others have piqued public curiosity because of a mysterious guest.
And, there are those shady out-of-the-way Inns that anonymous couples seek out, where they can engage in a secret tryst far from the prying eyes of nannies, private dicks, and the like.
Who can forget the tawdry scene in LA Confidential when actor Danny DeVito's character busts in on an unsuspecting couple to snap photos for a trashy tabloid rag?
Many celebrities lodge at the Chateau Marmount or the low-key Sunset Marquis where privacy is key.
Keanu Reeves was known to have foregone on his own digs in his youth for a suite at a local hostelry while his personal effects remained locked safely in storage.
Meanwhile, Warren Beatty probably had the fanciest bachelor pad in Tinsel town in the Penthouse at the Beverly Wilshire in his wild tomcat days.
But, of course, reputable Hotel chains fulfill a purpose for a handful of others: businessmen on the road, flight attendants on lay-overs, and the tourist trade.
In a bold-faced effort to shed some light on the mysterious goings-on in Hotel Rooms around the Nation, a group of conceptual artists fathomed up a gallery exhibit - "50,000 beds" - which shed an insightful light on the Hotel "culture".
The stand out show was a collaborative effort involving 45 artists, 30 Connecticut Hotels, and a handful of the State's Art Institutions (the Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum in Ridgefield, Real Art Ways in Hartford, and Artspace in New Haven).
Artist Chris Doyle shipped off artists to the participating Hotels, Motels and Inns, with the provisio that they shoot a short video during a single night's stay.
Doyle is a Brooklyn artist who has been making Hotel videos for years.
Three exhibitions were divided into 15 videos spaces apiece with a display structure for each.
With the aid of series of - ramps, translucent scrims, projection screens, flat screen monitors, and the occasional bed - the structures allowed viewers to move through the installations at their own pace along a path from the nightmarish to the comic, the sexy to the fetishistic, and to just plain weird.
Doyle claims he had no real expectations and didn't doctor the results.
Some artists focused on the physical elements of the rooms, while others took their rooms as an inspiration.
Erika Van Natta, for instance, created eye-catching photos for a fictional brochure for her designated hotel.
In addition to documenting details like door jambs, telephone keys, and bathroom faucets - visionary artist Marina Zurkow - included animations of human and animal figures cavorting to the "Blue Danube waltz".
"I wanted to deal with the fantasy of left-over dreams and the detritus of other people who had inhabited the space," she explained ruefully.
"So, I just followed my instinct which was to strip down to my underwear and set up my tripod."
Laurel Nakadate is known for her provocative hotel-room videos in which she has confronted strange men in chance encounters.
In her perversely funny - "Beds" - video she appeared on the balcony outside her suite's glass doors and falshed her panties at a fully-dressed man who was conducting her actions to the strains of a pop tune.
"You don't have to say you love me by Dusty Springfield," the artist giggled.
She alleges it could happen.
Gee, maybe I need to look beyond the Hampton Suites for my own accommodation in the future.
The world is passing me by, no doubt.
Mr. Doyle was concerned that maintenance help that clean the rooms might be overlooked; so, a couple of the featured videos address the staff exclusively.
Andy Warhol was known to have said, "Art is what you can get away with".
But, Benjamin Constant took another stance.
"Art for art's sake, with no purpose, for any purpose perverts art. But, art achieves a purpose which is not its own."
In this instant case, which is true?
For more information: www.50000beds.net
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