American World Traveler Spring 2020 Issue

56
Hilton Garden Inn
Sacramento Art and Food Celebrated at the Hilton Garden Inn’s New Hotel
by Jennifer Merrick
IIn the lobby of the newly-opened Hilton
Garden Inn Sacramento Airport
Natomas, we watched as local artist,
Amie M. Tokuhama-Chapman, painted a
floor-to-ceiling mural of flowers, farm fields
and a plane.
“It’s a tribute to the hotel’s location and
Sacramento,” said Amie when I admired her
work.
Located 100 miles northeast of San Francisco,
Sacramento, California’s capital, is known for
its rich soil and bountiful crops. The Hilton
Garden Inn gives guests a taste of the farmto-fork
city with nightly chef specials at the
Brightheart Bar and the Garden Grille and
Bar. We enjoyed an assortment of local meats
and cheeses along with the freshest of fruit
accompanied by a Judy’s Garden Gin, a sig-
Jennifer Merrick
nature cocktail created especially for actress,
Judy Greer.
The Shop, open 24 hours a day, also stocks
local products, including chocolate and confectionaries
from Andy's Candy Apothecary;
wines from nearby family-owned vineyard,
Bogle Winery and almonds. The valleys
around Sacramento produce the majority of
the world’s supply of this nutritious nut, along
with plums, peaches, tomatoes, olives, pears,
sunflowers and grapes. Amie’s painting of the
farm fields celebrated this rich agricultural
heritage.
The mural also reflects the strong street art
culture of Sacramento. The city has embraced
outdoor art with over 800 murals in the downtown
core alone and an annual festival that
sees dozens of new murals every year.
“Graffiti artists, sometimes on the run, migrated
here from the larger cities,” said Jenn
Kistler-McCoy, our guide and owner of Sac
Tour Company, explaining how the culture of
murals began in Sacramento.
On the tour through downtown Sacramento,
Jenn fed us tidbits and tales about the murals
and the artists. Some were well-known, like
Shepard Fairey, a street-art celebrity, whose
arresting 15-story Johnny Cash mural was a
commentary on the prison system. Other
artists were local, like Maren Conrad, who
painted a tribute to Lady Bird, an Oscar-nominated
coming-of-age story that brought
Sacramento into the limelight.
“It’s a city that fosters art,” Amie said, and
then told us that the Hilton Garden Inn commissioned
her for the mural after seeing her
sidewalk art at one of the city’s many festivals.
The plane in her work reflects the location of
the hotel. Situated seven minutes from the airport
and ten minutes from downtown, it
attracts both business and leisure guests.
Modern, comfortable and reasonably priced,
its amenities include an outdoor pool, business
center, fitness room, room service and
free parking. And if your timing is right, you
may just get to see more art in action. Hilton
Garden Inn has plans to commission more
murals as part of its mandate that the hotel
represent the character and flavours of
California’s capital.
www.hilton.com/en/hilton-garden-inn
Jennifer Merrick
American World Traveler Spring 2020