An innovative art venue that spotlights emerging experiential artists has found a permanent home: Sweet Tooth Hotel, which has hosted a series of spectacular art-themed pop-ups around Dallas-Fort Worth, is opening a flagship location in downtown Dallas.
It'll take a space at 1511 Elm St., a former FieldHouse gym space, where it will house nine gallery spaces, a gift shop, and a cocktail lounge sponsored by Calirosa Tequila, the celebrity brand owned by Maroon 5 singer Adam Levine and his wife, Behati Prinsloo.
Sweet Tooth Hotel was founded in 2018 by wife-and-husband Jencey and Cole Keeton as an immersive, adventurous art venue featuring emerging experiential artists. Exhibit themes have included everything from sugar to retro-futurism to yarn.
Their exhibits bring together work by innovative local and national artists, along with curated products for sale in their gift shop, and a specialty bar featuring whimsical cocktails. They currently have a pop-up experiential art exhibit titled "Rewind" open in Allen at Watters Creek.
Opening in downtown's Central Business District was a perfect fusion of their desire for a permanent space combined with the landlord's goals to spice up that block of Elm Street, says Jencey Keeton.
"Woods Capital, who owns the building, has been absolutely incredible to work with, and we are excited to add to the evolving neighborhood on Elm Street," she says.
Downtown Dallas, Inc. also worked to help them find a space. "They've been supportive since we first opened our doors as a pop up," she says.
At 6,000 square feet, this will be their largest space, more than five times the size of their original pop-up.
And they'll be opening with a new exhibit. Titled "Dreamland," it already has five artists confirmed: Dallas multimedia artist Shamsy Roomiani, Dallas artist Tramaine Townsend, McAllen fiber artist Yvette Alaniz of Bobcat & Birdie, Dallas artist Aaron Bender, and Dallas artist Molly Sydnor.
"Our goal is to serve as a local artist platform, although our Allen location has national artists, as well," Jencey says.
They'll also be working with Calirosa Tequila owners Adam Levine and Behati Prinsloo to create an art installation and cocktail menu. Calirosa Rosa Blanco is a blue agave tequila aged in California red wine barrels for 30 days, which gives it a distinctive pink coloring.
"At the end of the exhibit there'll be a beautiful cocktail lounge presented in partnership with Calirosa Tequila, best described as a neon disco garden," she says. "The menu will feature specialty cocktails created in partnership with Calirosa, plus artisan takes on classic cocktails and a boozy tea party service."
"From the art installations to the specialty cocktails, we're infusing every inch with imagination and joy," she says.
Ongoing chapters of Sweet Tooth Hotel will reveal new themes and concepts for guests to explore yearly in their permanent gallery space.
"Downtown Dallas, Inc. (DDI) was proud to work with Sweet Tooth Hotel to secure an ideal location for their flagship operation in our urban core," says DDI VP Dustin Bullard in a statement. "This innovative operation is the latest sign that Downtown Dallas is an increasingly vibrant gathering place full of arts and culture. We have no doubt that Sweet Tooth Hotel will serve as a fun, immersive experience for thousands of Downtown residents and visitors in the years to come."
Sweet Tooth Hotel is set to open in Summer 2022. Tickets are not yet on sale but you can sign up for their email list at sweettoothhotel.com.
