As part of Melbourne Design Week (15–25 May 2025), Rydges Melbourne presents Spectra, a bold new art- meets-design exhibition created in collaboration with acclaimed Melbourne artists Rowena Martinich and Geoffrey Carran. Taking over the hotel’s lobby, this vibrant installation will challenge conventions and reimagine the role of fine art within the built environment. Free and open to the public, Spectra celebrates the intersection of contemporary design and expressive artistry.
General Manager of Rydges Melbourne, Lee Davey, says the partnership aligns with the hotel’s commitment to support local creatives “we’re excited to see our lobby come to life with Spectra, and we hope it sparks conversation and connection with our guests. Collaborating with local talents like Rowena Martinich and Geoffrey Carran for Melbourne Design Week lets us support our community in a way that feels true to who we are. We’re proud to be part of what makes this city so special—its events, its festivals, and the creative spirit that brings people together.”
Known for their expansive public artworks and boundary-pushing collaborations, the duo now brings their distinctive, expressive vision into the realm of spatial design, offering an artist-led perspective to traditional interiors. As both romantic and professional partners, Martinich and Carran bring a deeply collaborative energy to this project, supporting each other in the exploration beyond the traditional canvas and into the built world. Featuring custom-designed carpets (in partnership with GH Commercial), a 12m wallpapered wall, limited- edition canvas prints, original large-scale paintings, and a vibrant window installation.
“Spectra allows us to apply our artistic language to a functional setting in a way that’s both immersive and emotionally resonant,” says Rowena Martinich. “Seeing my gestural painting translated into carpet was a dream realised-where colour and movement become part of how people interact with a space.”
Geoffrey Carran adds, “Spectra is an exciting demonstration, to a broad audience, of just how meaningful art is in changing the way you feel. The Lobby at Rydges Melbourne provides the perfect case for this, it is both transitory and a place to pause at the same time, it showcases in real time how the application of site-specific artworks can shift people’s emotional connection to space even if it is fleeting.”
Based on Wadawurrung Country, Martinich and Carran are deeply inspired by the colours of the Surf Coast’s earthy bushland tones and bright coastal light which has informed their bold, expressive styles. Their ability to integrate fine art across a range of environments has seen them commissioned to activate hospitals, food courts, silos, building facades, and train stations, as well as collaborate with major brands such as Dulux, Mecca Cosmetica, NGV and Nike.
As art increasingly finds a home within everyday environments, Spectra offers a glimpse into the future where art is not just a decoration but lived in and felt. This exhibition marks the next chapter and they welcome opportunities to bring this vision to new spaces around Australia and beyond.
This free exhibition will run in-line with Melbourne Design Week from 15th – 25th May 2025. For those wanting to dive deeper into the exhibition, Rowena Martinich and Geoffrey Carran will host an artist talk session with Design Anatomy at the Rydges Melbourne on May 18.
