The Hermitage Hotel Teams with Hatch Show Print
Two Nashville Legends Team Up To Create New Branding For Century Old Hotel; New Look Wins Addy Award
NASHVILLE, Tenn., March 15, 2011— To commemorate its Centennial Anniversary, Nashville’s Hermitage Hotel has teamed up with another of the city’s oldest institutions to create a fresh look for the hotel’s brand.
Hatch Show Print, a letterpress shop in Nashville since 1879, created original artwork that will be featured on The Hermitage Hotel’s website and printed collateral, including letterhead, note cards and business cards. Additionally, the hotel’s restaurant, The Capitol Grille, already features the new designs on their menus, and will incorporate them into the website designs and the restaurant’s décor. The Oak Bar adjacent to the Capitol Grille will display a rotating exhibit of Hatch Show Prints. (See attached samples of printed materials and see the new website at www.thehermitagehotel.com.)
Graphic designer Bob Delevante, who works closely with Hatch Show Prints, led the design efforts. Delevante originally came to Nashville with his brother for a music career but soon discovered a love for photography and art. The musician/artist in him also had an affinity for the elegant craftsmanship of the Hatch Show Print. Delevante’s designs for the hotel’s new look recently were awarded a Gold Addy Award from the Nashville chapter of the American Advertising Federation.
“If you follow music, art and the culture of the American South, then you are probably familiar with the iconic look of Hatch Show Print’s work,” said Janet Kurtz, director of sales and marketing for the hotel. “The driving force behind everything that we do is preservation and as Nashville’s most notable historic hotel, working with Hatch Show Print for this redesign was a natural fit.
“Both The Hermitage Hotel and Hatch preserve the craftsmanship and cultural heritage that make Nashville what it is. We’re excited to introduce Hatch Show Print’s distinctive style to the many people form throughout the world who visit our hotel,” she continued.
Hatch Show Print, known for providing bold, colorful graphics, originally created posters for vaudeville, circus and minstrel shows. Later, the company began to create posters for legendary music greats such as Johnny Cash, Hank Williams and Elvis Presley. One of the country’s oldest working letterpress shops, Hatch Show Prints are instantly recognizable.
The Hermitage Hotel features the new Hatch Show Print material on their newly redesigned website (www.thehermitagehotel.com).
About The Hermitage Hotel
Opened in 1910, The Hermitage Hotel has been woven into the history and memories of Nashville and her residents for over 100 years. In keeping with a deep respect for Nashville and the state of Tennessee, The Hermitage Hotel is committed to preserving the region’s heritage by putting into practice the traditions that make hospitality synonymous with The South. This commitment extends to protecting the state’s historic and scenic landscapes through a relationship with The Land Trust for Tennessee. This relationship began in 2008 when a program was created in which guests may donate $2.00 for every night they stay in the hotel. To date guests have donated over $150,000. The relationship was furthered in 2010 when the Trust graciously allowed the Capitol Grille to create a substantial period garden using sustainable practices on the property at Glen Leven. Glen Leven is an historic 66 acre farm located just 5 miles from The Hermitage Hotel and owned by the Land Trust for Tennessee. The Hermitage Hotel is the only Forbes Five Star and AAA Five Diamond hotel in Tennessee and five contiguous states.
The commitment to preservation continues in the hotel’s Capitol Grille and Oak Bar. Relaxed, low key, and known as the place for Nashvillians “in the know”, the Capitol Grille is the best example of a regionally inspired southern steakhouse in Nashville. Chef Tyler Brown has found the best source for heritage breed beef which now graze on the grasses at Glen Leven. The farm at Glen Leven also provides the vegetables that are used in all seasonally planned dishes. Chef Brown is actively involved with Share Our Strength, an organization whose mission is to end childhood hunger by 2015, and the Chef’s Move to Schools program, an offshoot of the Let’s Move program. Also, by supporting the Southern Foodways Alliance, the team at the Capitol Grille works to assure that the recipes and methods passed from generation to generation are not lost. The Capitol Grille is Nashville’s only Forbes Four Star and AAA Four Diamond restaurant.
The Hermitage Hotel is the most likely location in Nashville to find a Who’s Who of the entertainment world. Guests have included Tom Cruise, Jon Bon Jovi, Scarlett Johansson and the Jonas Brothers, among many others.
More information about the hotel can be found at http://www.facebook.com/#!/hermitagehotelnashville
About Hatch Show Print
You'd think a place like Hatch that started in 1879 would have hundreds of thousands of posters lying around. But we don't. One reason is because the shop has moved six times since the 1870s, and posters are heavy. No one kept an archive, or "copies," of the jobs because for decades a letterpress poster was perceived as just a poster—nothing special, not a prize. Not until the mid-1970s did we begin preserving poster copies in envelopes, and even since then a few holes remain in the history.
We feel our responsibility is to create posters for tomorrow's history. And when we're not up to our necks printing and designing our contemporary work, we pause to tip our hat to our heritage and restrike a select number of historic posters based on those few remaining in our archive, like the Johnny Cash poster for Minneapolis, Minnesota. We wish we could print them all, and we regret disappointing people who ask if we have a specific poster that represents something very special to them personally.
# # #
Jeff Bradford/Natalie Townsend, 615.515.4888, info@bradfordgrp.com
