Springfield, Massachusetts

MGM Springfield

Working closely with MGM’s internal design team, RAREculture has created innovative design elements throughout the new resort and casino. Starting with the interiors and restaurants to the entryway and lobby guests are greeted by two permanent installations commissioned by notable artists Jeppe Hein and Mia Pearlman. Deeply inspired by Springfield’s local history, RAREculture has incorporated artistic elements and influences from historical natives throughout the resort. In the guestrooms, bespoke silk screen prints were created for the bedding, framed historic photography dotes the guest baths, and custom wall coverings were created to mimic the rugs.

Inspired by the town of Springfield's vast history, RAREculture commissioned Danish artist Jeppe Hein to create Bench of Expectation - an abstract, sculptural bench which is situated between the new buildings and the Armory at the MGM Springfield.

"The bench offers a place to sit and a back to lean on, but unlike usual benches, this consists of elongated, tilting, winding, rapidly rising or falling lines of seating with high arches and sharp bends or loops. With all of these modifications, the bench not only offers an opportunity to sit down and relax, but it also promotes conversation between users and viewers, giving the piece active characteristics and social qualities."- Jeppe Hein

Hein’s work explores and invites human interaction. He uses the element of play to build ease between strangers, creating a space in which they can communicate. His work invites the viewers to interact with it, creating a level of familiarity between both the art, and the viewer, as well as between the viewers themselves. The Bench of Expectation is Hein's first permanent installation in the United States

RAREculture commissioned Brooklyn-based artist Mia Pearlman’s MGM Springfield installation, The Flying Tidings Whirled , a site specific, water jet cut aluminum sculpture suspended in the hotel's entryway. The title of this artwork is drawn from an Emily Dickinson poem about a summer storm in Springfield, and its abstract forms evoke the tornado which made such an impact on the city and led to the creation of MGM Springfield.

The upward swirling movement of The Flying Tidings Whirled draws people through the entrance to the hotel and into the lobby which is both dramatic and uplifting, transforming a terrible event into a graceful welcome. As you walk through the space, the sculpture looks and feels different from every angle, delighting visitors with its complex combination of forms.

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