THE DEARBORN INN — Autograph Collection
Scope of work
Interior Design
Location
Dearborn, MI
Photography : Joe Thomas - Eric Laignel
The project aimed to restore and reposition one of America's most storied hotels—a 1931 National Register of Historic Places landmark originally commissioned by Henry Ford and designed by Albert Kahn—as a contemporary luxury destination under Marriott Bonvoy's Autograph Collection. The 135-key Georgian-style property, set across 23 landscaped acres in Dearborn, Michigan, had welcomed generations of visionaries, from Walt Disney to Eleanor Roosevelt, before closing for a comprehensive two-year renovation. The challenge was clear: honor a century of history without being imprisoned by it.
Located on the grounds of the original Ford Motor Company campus, the Dearborn Inn sits at the intersection of American industrial ingenuity and natural beauty. Surrounded by manicured lawns, mature trees, and the quiet dignity of the Michigan landscape, the property occupies a world apart from the city that surrounds it—a retreat that has always felt both important and intimate.
The five Colonial Homes on the property grounds offer a distinctly different way to stay. Historically themed residences—each evoking a different chapter of American architecture—provide the intimacy and character of a private house with the full service of a luxury hotel. Nestled among the lawns and mature trees, they extend the inn's narrative of American heritage into something entirely immersive: accommodation as lived history.
A Century, Inhabited. The Dearborn Inn is not a museum. It is a living place, where the past is not displayed but encountered—in the marble underfoot, the fireplace beside you, the objects you pause to examine, the stories that surface unbidden over dinner. History here is not a backdrop. It is the reason you came.
At the heart of the common areas, a monumental textile installation, The Giant Loom, highlights the artisanal dimension of the project. Designed by Saguez & Dash and created by artist Mariella Motilla for Obakki, the work runs through the lobby like a common thread. This giant loom symbolically connects the spaces and circulation routes. Its panels evoke the contours of Camelback Mountain and the lines of Mummy Mountain. Produced ethically in a village in Mexico, the installation revisits the traditional weaving techniques of native communities.
Once dark and fragmented, the lobby has been transformed into a space connecting the carriage entrance to the vast interior garden, directly in line with Mummy Mountain. Circulation is fluid; the restaurant, bar, and lounge intertwine in a natural continuity.
The rooms have been designed as nature-inspired retreats. The walls feature subtle shades that reflect the changing tones of the Arizona sky. Natural materials dominate: light wood, textured fabrics, mineral finishes. The soft lines of the furniture reflect the organic shapes of the landscape, transforming the room into an indoor extension of the desert. From king-size rooms to casitas with living rooms and bars, each space extends the experience of a stay immersed in the Sonoran Desert.
